Dino: The Essential Dean Martin

Performer: Dean Martin
Producer: Lee Gillette; Voyle Gilmore; Jimmy Bowen; Lee Gillette; Voyle Gilmore; Jimmy Bowen; Frank Collura (Compilation)
Distributor: EMI Music Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Dean Martin (vocals). Liner Note Authors: Dean Martin; Deana Martin; Steven Van Zandt; Gail Martin Downey. Nearly a decade after Dean Martin's death, the crooner's fans were finally given the definitive Dino collection. While there was already a two-disc summation of Martin's Capitol recordings, as well as several compilations of his Reprise material, the single-disc, 30-track DINO: THE ESSENTIAL DEAN MARTIN contains a generous selection of the best of his work, culling from both labels' vaults. Steubenville, Ohio's favorite son became a singing star in the 1950s, mostly by virtue of his smooth, easy charm, apparent both in his vocal style and his public image. That charm is crystallized here--the South American lilt of "Sway;" the spare, countryish "Memories Are Made of This" (not insignificantly covered later by Johnny Cash); the laissez-faire swing of "Ain't That a Kick in the Head"--it all bespeaks an uncommon coolness that was Martin's to burn. DINO: THE ESSENTIAL DEAN MARTIN catches all of his best-known tunes, from the aforementioned gems to the perennial Reprise-era sing-along "Everybody Loves Somebody," but it fills in the spaces between with lots of equally lovable tracks, or did you think Glen Campbell had the patent on "Gentle on My Mind?"

Dean Martin was a towering pop-culture icon of the 20th century. He first became known as part of a wildly successful music-and-comedy team with Jerry Lewis in the 1940s and '50s, subsequently becoming a solo singing star. His mellow, Bing Crosby-inspired crooning style lent itself well to everything from Italian ballads to pop standards and even C&W material. As part of Frank Sinatra's notorious Rat Pack, he took part in numerous films and concerts with Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. A major presence in movies, and on TV, radio, and records up to the 1970s, Martin was one of the most recognizable faces in America. He had been in retirement from show business for several years when he died in 1995 at the age of 78.

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