As a duet partner of Jerry Lewis in the 1940s and 1950s, and a member of the illustrious 'ratpack' in the years that followed, Dean Martin became an American legend. And as is the case today, his death in 1995 did not end his career. Following in the footsteps of Nat King Cole and Ray Charles, old Martin recordings were patched up and provided with new duet partners in order to tap a new audience
… for his music. This is not entirely unjustified, because the crooner genre that he helped make so popular is experiencing an unprecedented revival in the new millennium. On Forever Cool, admirers like Kevin Spacey, Chris Botti, Robbie Williams, Joss Stone, Martina McBride and Shelby Lynne sing a posthumous duet with their hero. And what applied to previous projects also applies now. Those who do not dwell on the morbid concept for too long will easily be enchanted by these technologically advanced operations. (MS)more
