Red Hot + Blue: A Tribute to Cole Porter

It says click here to download, which is what I wanted to do. It turns up some crazy album. Amazon will have to get a LOT better at searching and user interface to win me over from iTunes.

I purchased this when it was released, (on cassette), listened to it so much over time, not even re-spooling could save it and I actually morned its passing. To find it so many years later on DVD was like Christmas morning. So many talented artist.

Awesome CD, used to have the cassette tape. We decided we had waited long enough to here this grouping of music again....so bought the CD. Especially as it was sold as a money raiser for AIDS. Wonderful songs, fab groups singing them. We love it.

this is the red hot that started the whole affair. this collection of cole porter covers was recorded as a way to let the world know that the music industry cared about aids awareness and raising money to bring about a cure.

the representation of artists is a cross section of who was hot in 1990 with few exceptions (prince, janet jackson, madonna and cyndi lauper immediately comes to mind--madonna would pay her dues soon though). some of them are gloriously up to doing the cole porter songs justice.

for example, lisa stansfield's 'down in the depths' is elegantly jazzy and a perfect showcase for her sweet honeyed mezzo. and, kd lang can do wrong working her way through 'so in love'. it's brilliant. as is annie lennox's 'ev'ry time we say goodbye'.

others bring their stamp to the songs and make it happen for the pop market. u2's 'night and day' is a great success, david byrne takes 'don't fence me in' on a great romp and fine young cannibals take 'love for sale', which has an unshakeable identity with women from billie holiday to aretha franklin, and makes it a randy boy-toy cruise that porter would have loved!

now, while sinead o'connor and iggy pop made be the last two singers one would expect to take on cole porter, o'connor's whispery boop-a-doop approach to 'you do something to me' is a definite change of pace and pop just says 'so what!?' he and debbie harry give 'well, did you evah?' the punked out once over that again would have tickled porter to no end.

now, if he wouldn't lose his sense of humor on some of the rest, as a listener i do. jody watley has one of the toughest tunes to do in 'after you--who?'. and a sense of humor or a little help from elton john might have saved her. as is her apporach is too studied and careful. and i don't get salif keita's 'begin the beguine'. this is one of the songs that needed to be sung because of its lusicious melody. and i like rap as much as the next person but i have to concede the point that porter's lyrics don't need reconception as raps.

This collection of Cole Porter songs performed by different contemporary artists came out in the early 90's as a fundraiser to benefit AIDS research.

The artists have different styles, so you'll probably like some tracks much more than others. I think they're uniformly good with some standouts, such as Annie Lennox's Everytime We Say Goodbye.