Music Picks

Dean Martin - Amore

Capitol Records always does a superb job of re-issuing and re-packaging their deep archival catalog.  I always look forward to seeing the “Capitol Records” logo on the package when I get a stack o’ cd’s for Classic Cool in the mail.  Dean Martin’s new compilation, “Amore,” is no exception.  Issued for the Valentine’s season, “Amore” features 15 cuts, some you would expect (”That’s Amore,” “Just in Time,” “You’re Nobody ’til Somebody Loves You”) and several seldom re-issued tunes (”It Looks Like Love,” “Let’s Be Friendly,” It Won’t Cool Off”).  A great balance between presenting the familiar and mining the catalog for those gems maybe you’ve never heard before.  We’re looking forward to spotlighting Dino’s “Amore,” and you will soon have a chance to win your own copy.  Keep us tuned in and turned up to find out more, at Classic Cool 650AM.

-Ronnie Renfrow

Jane Monheit - The Lovers, The Dreamers, and Me

Jane Monheit’s new cd, “The Lovers, The Dreamers, and Me” is in stores this week.  She has one of the most fanatical fan bases of all the post-millennium jazz singers.  Case in point:  I have an attorney friend who will drive or fly anywhere to see her, and does so several times a year (frankly, I think it creeps her out a little bit).

All this adulation is for good reason.  Jane Monheit is an incredibly versatile talent.  The new cd underscores the fact that she can sing it all, from the opening “Like a Star” by fellow songstress Corrine Bailey Rae to Cole Porter’s “Get Out of Town” to the beautiful bossa “A Primera Vez.”  A perfect cd to start the new year - you’ll love it.  Tune in to Classic Cool 650 AM to hear it on your way home.

- Ronnie Renfrow