Overlooked - Red, Hot + Blue

A friend of mine introduced me to this Cole Porter tribute years ago, called Red, Hot + Blue. It's rapidly approaching 20 years old and yet, much of this stuff still holds up. This is as much a tribute to the longevity of Cole's amazing writing and composing as it was to the fine selection of artists chosen to interpret him.

Some of the tracks are stronger than others of course. I'm not a Sinead O'Connor fan (personally, I think she's an arrogant harpy), and bands like the Thompson Twins are doomed to sound dated.

But some don't just hold up, they shine. Tom Waits and Annie Lennox both sound fantastic in their tributes ( "It's Alright With Me", and "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" respectively).

Without a doubt, the true gem in this bunch though is U2's "Night and Day". The song made famous by Sinatra, is a wonderfully simple dedication to a fierce love. They covered it at a time when they were working on Achtung Baby, an album that would radically change they way the band sounded and was perceived. You can hear the push toward synthesizers from Clayton and Mullen that would reshape U2's future direction.

It's Bono's voice that really brings it together though. It's clear and soaring and crooning and husky in all the right places. I'd challenge anyone out there to say that this isn't one of the best Cole Porter interpretations ever. Maybe even one of the best covers in general. Enjoy.

MP3: U2 - Night and Day

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