While this two-disc compilation from Castle Pulse is hardly definitive, it does contain many, many classic performances and it lists for a good price. There are original recordings of "That's Amore," "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening," "Lucky Song," "Georgia on My Mind," "That Lucky Old Sun," "Under the Bridges of Paris," and a few dozen others. What a compilation like this reveals about an artist like
Dean Martin is simply how talented he was. Sure, there are the sappy Italian songs and the saloon songs, but there are also country songs, pop standards, and jazz tunes thrown in this mix, and like his pal
Frank,
Martin could sing anything he wanted to at will.
Memories Are Made of This portrays how gifted he was, and makes even the most casually curious listener want to dig for more. That is the function of a good compilation, and this one merits attention for that alone.