Nat took the advice seriously and, around the age of 12, started to dive into the classics, "playing everything from Bach to Rachmaninoff," according to Ruuth. On August 23, 1956, Cole spoke at the Republican National Convention in the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California. Booklet Volumes 1 and 2 contain 4 shellac records. It became a hit instantly, but Cole was unsatisfied. Natalie recorded his hit "Unforgettable" and put their vocals together as a duet. As of the spring of 1950, Cole's recordings were being credited simply to "Nat King Cole." On July 8 of that year, his recording of the wistful movie theme "Mona Lisa," featuring a string chart arranged by Nelson Riddle, became Cole's third number one pop hit and gold record. Chiefly known today as a performer of romantic ballads, he had a dark, grainy baritone voice with which he sang in a style at once intimate and unmannered. Always a perfectionist, Cole put full effort into re-recording the entire song, and that first rendition has now become something of a collector's edition. Stemming from an upper-class family, Ellington was a jazz singer who performed with notable names like Count Basie and Duke Ellington (no relation), according to The Hollywood Reporter. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1919, Nathaniel Adams Coles (he dropped the s after he started playing music professionally) was one of four musically talented sons of a grocer who longed to preach the gospel. "I think it was too early," Kitt said, "to show ourselves off as intelligent people."[2]. In 1939, he formed the King Cole Trio in Southern California and became an immensely popular recording artist for Capitol Records, helping to make the company's fortune as well as his own. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Equally skilled as a jazz pianist and a middle-of-the-road pop crooner, Cole would still be remembered with affection today if he only had one of those musical identities. He was, without a doubt, a pioneer, but that doesn't mean his many successes came without struggles. Something went wrong. @ 2023 - Recording Academy. Nat King Cole The Christmas Song LP Red Colored 180g Vinyl. The Nat King Cole Story [45rpm 200g Vinyl] by Nat King Cole (Vinyl, Jan-2011, 5 Discs, Analogue Productions) $1,199.00 New. The cancellation would turn out to be the permanent end of his career. There were several covers of Nat Cole's original record in the 1940s. Of course, in the mid-20th century, smoking was irresistibly popular. The day before he died, he did a radio interview, stating: "I am feeling better than ever. This vintage song carries the timeless message to keep your chin up when life looks bleak. For over a year, the entertainer worked tirelessly on his show, even turning down a total of $500,000 in performances in order to focus on the program. Nat King Cole 78rpm Single 10-inch Capitol Records #1010 Mona Lisa. Nat soon married a dancer, Megan Robinson, and moved to Los Angeles where he formed the Nat King Cole Trio. Nat King Cole Capitol Records LP Vinyl Records, Go Betweens LP Vinyl Records, They tried a couple of places, including Beverly Hills, but ultimately wanted somewhere away from the paparazzi and rowdy fans. The oldest of the five was his daughter Natalie, who would also become a singer later in life and revitalized the popularity of some of her father's songs. The trio played in Los Angeles throughout the late 1930s and recorded many radio transcriptions. His stature as a popular icon was cemented during this period by hits such as "The Christmas Song" (Cole recorded the tune four times), "Nature Boy" (1948), "Mona Lisa" (1950), "Too Young" (1951), and his signature tune "Unforgettable" (1951). In December 1964, he was diagnosed with lung cancer when they discovered a tumor in his left lung, as reported by the Orlando Sentinel. Cole frequently consulted with President Kennedy (and later President Johnson) on the issue of civil rights. The prejudices of the era in which Cole lived hindered his potential for even greater stardom. When Capitol Records signed the Beatles to its roster, Cole knew that his days as a pop superstar were numbered. According to the Los Angeles Times, Cole was aware of his impending death. Omissions? During a neighborhood meeting, the residents expressed that they simply didn't want undesirables around, to which Cole replied, "Neither do I, and if I see any undesirables coming in here, I'll be the first to complain.". Maria Cole [1] ( ne Hawkins; August 1, 1922 - July 10, 2012) was an American jazz singer and the wife of singer Nat King Cole; mother of the singer Natalie Cole. 10731074, This page was last edited on 17 February 2023, at 05:16. The classic "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" was popularized by Cole in the late 1940s. Reportedly, the all-white audience begged Cole to continue with the show, but he fervently refused and flew to Chicago after canceling his remaining three performances in the South. Jazz singer Nat King Cole was best known for songs like "The Christmas Song" and "Ramblin' Rose" (via Billboard).He became a popular crooner in the 1950s, and made history when he became the first Black man to host a regular TV variety show. Incomparable Nat King Cole II. It sold over 500,000 copies, and proved that folk-based material could appeal to a wide audience. Click here to send a letter to the editor. To this day, singer-instrumentalists such as Diana Krall and John Pizzarelli continue to model their groups on the King Cole Trios stylish, tightly routined records, and Coles own brilliant playing left its mark on any number of younger pianists, among them Ahmad Jamal, Oscar Peterson, George Shearing, and Bill Evans, who called him probably the most underrated jazz pianist in the history of jazz.. Beginning in the late 1940s, Cole began recording and performing more pop-oriented material for mainstream audiences, often accompanied by a string orchestra. All rights reserved. The failure of The Nat King Cole Show left Cole feeling both frustrated and restless, but his options were limited. There he formed the King Cole Trio (originally King Cole and His Swingsters), with guitarist Oscar Moore (later replaced by Irving Ashby) and bassist Wesley Prince (later replaced by Johnny Miller). Hancock Park, however, was an all-white neighborhood that had a "restrictive covenant" barring non-whites from living there unless they were servants. Capitol 78-rpm albums [ edit] Volumes 1-4 released as separate booklets in 10" format. Cole performed a posthumous "virtual" duet with his daughter, recording star Natalie Cole, for the title track of the 1991 Grammy Awardwinning album Unforgettable . [12] A handful of Cole recordings have made appearances on the Holiday 100 and are noted below according to the holiday season in which they charted there. Born . "Cole, Nat 'King'." By the summer of 1957, it was New York City's top-rated variety program. He died of lung cancer in February, 1965, when he was forty-five years old. Instead, his most publicized relationship was his marriage to Maria Hawkins Ellington. She began recording again after a stint in rehab in. The trio specialized in swing music with a delicate touch in that they did not employ a drummer; also unique were the voicings of piano and guitar, often juxtaposed to sound like a single instrument. Feb. 28, 2023 2 PM PT. . While Coles reputation went into a temporary eclipse as a result of his early deatha lifelong chain smoker, he died of lung cancer in 1965, three decades before Sinatra gave his last public performancehe was restored to prominence in 1991 when his daughter Natalie, herself a talented pop singer, released a single of Unforgettable in which his original performance of the song, recorded 40 years earlier, was electronically superimposed on her own to create a virtual duet. The record put Cole back in the limelight, and he has been there ever since. The year was 1936, and Cole had left his hometown of Chicago to go on tour with a Broadway musical revue. Cole was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990, and in 1997 was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame. Cole appeared frequently on popular variety programs hosted by Perry Como, Milton Berle, Ed Sullivan, and others. Only one person other than Cole's wife would get to visit Cole before he died, and that was comedian Jack Benny. Chalk? He rejected it, cheekily requesting $1 million instead. Might Cole have undergone a similar professional revival had he not died prematurely? I think I've finally got this cancer licked.". Booklet Volumes 3 and 4 contain 3 shellac records. Perhaps her single most popular work to date, was her number one Elektra recording last year of Unforgettable, one of her fathers biggest-selling hits of all. One cosmetics representative claimed that a "negro" couldn't sell lipstick, to which Cole angrily responded, "What do they think we use? As a teenager, Cole became caught up in a relationship with a woman ten years older than him, according toObserver. 1st Annual GRAMMY Awards. After Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole is the best remembered of the singers who dominated American popular music between the end of the big-band era and the advent of rock n roll. (via NewsOne). Throughout the 1950s, Cole continued to rack up hit after hit, including "Smile," "Pretend," "A Blossom Fell," "If I May." "Book Reviews: "Unforgettable: The Life and Mystique of Nat King Cole," by Leslie Gourse." This article contains a list of albums by Nat King Cole and compilations of his recordings, together with a list of his chart singles. On one hand, his existence as a popular Black musician certainly challenged racist sentiments and broke down many barriers. During the late 1930s and early 40s the trio made several instrumental recordings, as well as others that featured their harmonizing vocals. Natalie, of course, has followed in her fathers difficult-to-fill footsteps as a highly successful recording artist in her own right. Soon, he graduated to playing other characters, such as his roles inIstanbulandChina Gate. They were the big act on Columbia Records, who had them re-record the song with a string section - the first time the trio used strings on a record. Cole was also among the dozens of entertainers recruited by Frank Sinatra to perform at the Kennedy Inaugural gala in 1961. It also inspired NBC to offer him his own weekly TV series, which debuted in 1956. To speculate about what might have been is obviously fruitless, though it is possible that he might have taken up the piano again and become the elder statesman of jazz that he had it in him to be. Coles singing career began inadvertently when a tipsy customer at a small Hollywood bistro insisted that he sing, Sweet Lorraine, which he did to an enthused response, not only from the drunk, but from the entire audience as well. Twin girls Casey and Timolin were born in 1961. The song and the album of the same name won seven Grammy awards in 1992. UK. 1 spot on of the pop charts, his most successful record yet. . Evan Tyrone Martin's homage to the late beloved singer continues with a holiday tribute show, "An Unforgettable Nat King Cole Christmas," which Martin will perform at the Marriott Theatre on . He was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, cut his last records on December 3, and died 10 weeks later at the age of 45, by all accounts a disappointed man. Arguably, it's even rarer for one to become a "holiday standard," played by the masses year after year. While this shift to pop music led some jazz critics and fans to accuse Cole of selling out, he never totally abandoned his jazz roots; as late as 1956, he recorded an all-jazz album, After Midnight. This page was last edited on 11 November 2022, at 01:27. 49, no. Spouse (s) Nat King Cole. Cole would form a few jazz music groups before creating the King Cole Trio. . Shared with: Lee Gillette (Producer) For the album "The Nat King Cole Story". Nat King Cole - Where Did Everybody Go - Used Vinyl Record lp - E34A. While Cole was not the first African-American to host a network television showan honor belonging to jazz pianist and singer Hazel Scott in 1950 Cole's stature made the venture more socially significant, which Cole himself recognized. In Cole, Nat King. After 14 frustrating months, Cole called it quits, crisply telling a newspaper columnist that Madison Avenue is afraid of the dark.. Record Labels Nat King Cole Recordings Sold to Universal Music Group By Chris Eggertsen . For most of the '30s and '40s he was a third of this musical act. The attack began at the rear of the auditorium when three men ran down the aisles towards Cole and his band. Born in Alabama on March 17, 1919, Nathaniel Adams Coles (he would later drop the "s") always had a musical streak. Personal Life Cole married for the first time when he was only 17. Coles jazz roots never quite disappeared, especially when he recorded up-tempo tunes such as Almost Like Being in Love (1953) with arrangers such as Nelson Riddle and Billy May, sailing effortlessly atop the beat with the irresistible swing of the nonpareil instrumentalist he had been. According to UDiscover Music, Cole also had perfect pitch, making him able to pick out and identify a note on the piano in an instant. The next month, he underwent surgery to remove the lung, but it was too late. The last episode of The Nat King Cole Show aired December 17, 1957. Nat would continue playing piano with the revue for the rest of the tour, performing all across the country until the show, unfortunately, ran out of money in Long Beach in 1937, as described by the Orlando Sentinel. It was emulated by many musicians, among them Art Tatum, Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson, Ahmad Jamal, Tommy Flanagan, and blues pianists Charles Brown and Ray Charles. How Biden Intends to Misuse the CHIPS Act. Sensing its commercial possibilities, Cole rerecorded the song two months later, adding four violins and a harp, the first time he had ever sung with string accompaniment. We want to hear your thoughts about this article. Yet despite this and other close encounters with the evils of racism, Cole remained outwardly unfazed and his white fans staunchly loyal. As a kid, Cole played the organ and sang at church with his family. Nat King Cole - Artist Details. Nat King Cole was in the final stages of lung cancer. The King Cole Trio 78rpm Single 10-inch Capitol Records #311 The Christmas Song. NAT KING COLE Vinyl Records and CDs Nat King Cole's great piano work with his jazz trio got overshadowed by his massive vocal success in the 1950s yet each phase of his career offers up so many riches that it proves that the lines between jazz and popular music just don't matter. His birth date was on Saint Patrick's Day in 1919. After Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole is the best remembered of the singers who dominated American popular music between the end of the big-band era and the advent of rock . By the start of the 1960s, Cole was only getting more popular. Later, Cole was chosen by Paramount Pictures to play W.C. It opens with an out-of-tempo reading of the first eight bars that is sung with hushed delicacy, after which Cole slips almost imperceptibly into a very slow but nonetheless danceable tempo. His remains were interred inside Freedom Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles. Nat King Cole: Encore. Profiles In Jazz. Genealogy for Nathaniel Adams Coles (1919 - 1965) family tree on Geni, with over 240 million profiles of ancestors and living relatives. Nat "King" Cole: Soundies & Telescriptions. Children: 5, including Natalie Cole. In 1956, Nat King Cole became star and host of his own network television variety show on NBC-TV on which such guests as Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett and Mel Torme were spotlighted. An influence on jazz pianists such as Oscar Peterson, Cole was known for a compact, syncopated piano style with clean, spare, melodic phrases. He always blamed the advertising executives for the show's end, bitterly commenting, "Madison Avenue is afraid of the dark.". Cole hit a lull in her career in the early 1980s due to her struggle with drug addiction, subsequently parting ways with Capitol Records. The success of these recordings led to Coles becoming a regular guest on the most widely viewed TV programs of the 50s, including Person to Person, This Is Your Life, Whats My Line? I have not taken part in any protests. Volume 4 is also issued in a box set of three 45-rpm records. March 17, 1919 in Montgomery, AL. Louis Blues. During the early 60s, Cole also travelled extensively, doing highly successful concert tours of Latin America, Japan, the European Continent and England. By Robert Pace 6:00 AM PDT, June 25, 2013. Victor Young, Jeri Southern with Victor Young and His Orchestra. Their first chart success, Straighten Up and Fly Right (1943), was followed by hits such as Sweet Lorraine, Its Only a Paper Moon, (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons, and Route 66. Eventually, Coles piano playing took a backseat to his singing career. Jenkins arranged Love Is the Thing, #1 on the album charts in April 1957. According to Reel Rundown, Nat King Cole never planned to be the first Black man to host his own television program, but when he was offered the gig, he knew its significance. As a result, the King Cole Trio disbanded in 1951, and it was as a pop singer, not a jazz instrumentalist, that Cole was known thereafter and to this day. According toThe Guardian,cigarette smoking was not only "the epitome of cool and glamour," but it was also cheap and accessible. He became a popular crooner in the 1950s, and made history when he became the first Black man to host a regular TV variety show. Sampled by Susan Boyle feat Nat King Cole [sampled] When I Grow Too Old to Dream. In 1956, "The Nat King Cole Show" was the first of its kind for a known Black performer. In August 1948, the couple moved into their new home. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Nat King Cole was born Nathaniel Adams Coles (he later dropped the "s" in his surname) in Montgomery, Alabama. Full-time combos of any sort were uncommon in the swing era, and the King Cole Trio would have stood out for that reason alone. Nat "King" Cole. Cole, a heavy smoker who would smoke as much as three packs of cigarettes a day, died of lung cancer while still at the height of his singing career. Pelote, Vincent. The second version, released in November, established the song as a seasonal standard, and three days after recording it, Cole made an even more successful trio-only record of (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons that shot to the No. Cole praised NBC for its support and directly blamed the advertising industry. In July 1948, Nat King Cole and his new wife began house-hunting, as described by Curbed. Nat King Cole recorded this for the first time in 1946 with his group The Nat King Cole Trio. 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