Our Day Will Come

It is impossible to improve upon perfection, and when it comes to early '60s soul-pop, Ruby & the Romantics' "Our Day Will Come" is the epitome of musical perfection. Improve upon the original version of this classic? It cannot be done. Period. But that doesn't mean that "Our Day Will Come" shouldn't be covered -- it only means that if you're going to embrace the gem, you need to do it on your terms instead of trying to emulate Ruby & the Romantics' definitive 1963 version. When Holly Oas covered "Our Day Will Come" in 1986, the dance diva was smart enough to try something totally different with it. Like Charles Brown, Denise King (a fine jazz singer from Philadelphia), and others who have embraced "Our Day Will Come," Oas isn't trying to be Ruby & the Romantics. Instead, she successfully gives the song a Euro-dance/Europop makeover. Oas isn't a great singer, but she's a pleasant, likable one -- and she has enough girlish charm to make her interpretation of "Our Day Will Come" a creative success. Although Dice Records -- the Dayton, OH-based, Sutra-distributed indie that released this 12" single -- specialized in Hi-NRG, Oas' "Our Day Will Come" remake isn't fast enough to qualify as true Hi-NRG. But it is definitely club-oriented, mildly danceable, and mindful of late-'70s Euro-disco; it's the sort of medium-tempo tune a dance club DJ would spin when he/she is ready to slow things down a bit but isn't quite ready for a ballad tempo. While Our Day Will Come didn't make Oas a big name in the music world, it did enjoy some club exposure and is a single that she should be proud of.