Songs for Insomniacs 71: Pink Martini, “City of Night”

Our final Martini installment, from a group that named itself after a cocktail.

Unlike many neo-lounge bands, Portland’s Pink Martini delves into what’s authentic in mid-century music and then reshapes the result for a contemporary audience.

“City of Night” (which recalls the title of John Rechy’s 1963 novel, which in turn may have been inspired by James Thomson’s 1874 gloom-and-doom epic “The City of Dreadful Night” — read it if you dare) might be a suitable theme song for this playlist — depicting a city that never sleeps because it’s populated by insomniacs.

Songs for Insomniacs Playlist