Dean Martin was in all aspects of the word, a legend. Martin’s music was saturated with sensuality and had a tone in every note that couldn’t help but bring about a romantic, nighttime feeling. Elvis Presley had idled him, and Stevie Van Zandt said, “He was the coolest dude I had ever seen, period.” Two Dean Martin songs I can’t help but show appreciation for are “Volare” and “On An Evening In Roma,” both released in the mid 1950s and have mesmerizing instrumentals, combined with simplistic lyrics still fully capturing the essence of love. Above are the lyrics from “Volare”, shaped as a hand. Simply because volare, in Italian, means to fly. Why not shape it as a plane you ask? One, I didn’t wish to lack originality — and two, I think Martin meant to use the word volare as a metaphor, and intended listeners to feel a sense of companionship when they wanted to escape the chaos of life. A perfect piece of the song embodying this is when Martin sings: “We can sing in the glow of a star that I know of where lovers enjoy peace of mind. Let us leave the confusion and all disillusion behind.” Below is the second song I find to be a classic from Martin’s work — “On An Evening In Roma.” I chose a cup of coffee to display the lyrics for this one because the Italians do enjoy their coffee, so you could call me cliche for succumbing to the “When in Rome” adage. I also felt the color scheme really complemented the nighttime ambiance the song portrays, along with the nicely proportioned amounts of red — giving it a very intimate touch. A great snippet from the track doing this image justice is when Martin says: “Do they take ’em for espresso, yeah, I guess so. On each lover’s arm a girl, I wish I knew. On an evenin’ in Roma.” 
You can watch Martin’s rendition of these two songs live in the video below. All in all, the iconic Rat Pack member even after his death on December 25, 1995, continues to put listeners in awe with his suave presence behind the mic and songs that are deemed timeless classics.