World Record Club (EMI)
T311 (33rpm)/TT311RC (Tapereel), 1 June 1964, UK
LET’S BE FRIENDLY / WITH MY EYES WIDE OPEN I’M DREAMING / RAIN / I FEEL LIKE A FEATHER IN THE BREEZE / WHO’S YOUR LITTLE WHO-ZIS? / LET ME GO, LOVER / I FEEL A SONG COMIN’ ON / BE HONEST WITH ME / MAMBO ITALIANO / THAT’S ALL I WANT FROM YOU / IT LOOKS LIKE LOVE / A DAY IN THE COUNTRY
This was the very first collaborative mail-order compilation produced by EMI and Bernard. Songs selected by the DMA for EMI; songs sequenced, sleeve notes written and design supervision by Bernard; cover photo supplied to EMI by the DMA; sleeve notes as follows:
“DEAN MARTIN Let’s Be Friendly
Dean Martin is one of the rare personalities who has that miraculous gift of song presentation – a gift he uses with perfection.
When the 12 songs were selected for this album, I was more than pleased to see that they were all top quality, matching the class of the person who sings them. Each time Dean records a song, he expresses it in a way which I have never heard from anyone else – a way that makes you think “If only I could sing like that”. Tracking Dino’s complete career since he began way back in 1943, remembering his continuous upward climb through the Martin and Lewis days to the present, it can be seen that the world has one of the greatest all-round entertainers.
Listen to the way he sings this collection of some of his very own favourites – the easy swingin’ I FEEL LIKE A FEATHER IN THE BREEZE, IT LOOKS LIKE LOVE, BE HONEST WITH ME or I FEEL A SONG COMIN’ ON. How can anyone refuse when he says LET’S BE FRIENDLY or suggests A DAY IN THE COUNTRY? But one must never forget that Dean Martin is not just a singer of happy go-lucky songs, he can switch with consummate ease from a song of this type like MAMBO ITALIANO to a dreamy, romantic ballad such as RAIN, WITH MY EYES WIDE OPEN I’M DREAMING, THAT’S ALL I WANT FROM YOU or WHO’S YOUR LITTLE WHO-ZIS?! There is also a contribution from the Country and Western scene – namely LET ME GO, LOVER. These are all evidence of Dino’s versatility – although does proof have to be obtained now? This is Dean’s 21st year in show business and I hardly think that he has to prove to any member of the public after all this time that he is good. He is more than that – he is a man with supreme perfected artistry. In all sectors of show business he has shown the world that Dean Martin is a very strong force to be reckoned with.
Whenever Dino walks into the studio for a recording session, he immediately makes everyone feel completely at their ease. He records each song as if it were specially written for him, and sings with such sentiment and sincerity that you are astounded that one person can lend such charm and feeling just to a song. This same calmness is projected to the co-stars of movies in which Dean is working – a calmness which, I believe, is part of the secret of success which goes hand in hand with him. Someone once said, ‘He makes Perry Como look a nervous wreck.’ This has always amused Dean, as Perry is a great friend of his. Nevertheless, there is that exclusive quality surrounding the man born Dino Crocetti which no one else has.
He first saw the light of day on the 7th of June, 1917, and little did his parents know that the cries they were listening to would one day emerge as one of the world’s finest singing voices. Now, 47 years later, the mere mention of his name and one thinks of an artist now known as a really remarkable personality in the crazy world of show business. Personally, Dean loves recording. He told me once, ‘I guess recording will remain part of my working life just so long as people want me to keep making discs. I get a fantastic kick out of a recording session, especially when your work turns out a three- or four-million seller like several of mine have. I am very thankful to the public, but I believe in keeping them out of my personal life, for example you’d be crazy to walk down Fifth Avenue without a long black overcoat and a beard!’ Dino’s sharp wit and tremendous sense of humour shine through his cabaret and comedy acts, assets which suited him very well especially in the Martin-Lewis era.
I have never known such a relaxed character – from the way that he interprets a song you’d thing that he hasn’t a care in the world. Indeed, I don’t really think he can have; he has talent, artistry, handsome looks and a happy family life.
I sincerely hope that every Dean Martin admirer will buy this splendid album. Let’s Be Friendly is a very apt title for Mr. Martin – you could never find a friendlier person. Here are a dozen ballads sung in the inimitable song-styling of the man I will always regard as the finest, known to me and to all of his close friends as Dino.
BERNARD H. THORPE
Acknowledgments are due to the International Dean Martin Club and its President Bernard H. Thorpe for their co-operation”
THE DEAN MARTIN ASSOCIATION 