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Nat King Cole

Encyclopedia : N : NA : NAT : Nat King Cole

 

For other uses, see King Cole (disambiguation).
Nat King Cole in The Blue Gardenia (1953)
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Nat King Cole in The Blue Gardenia (1953)

Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965) was a popular American singer, songwriter, and jazz pianist.

Contents

Childhood and Chicago

Nathaniel Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama. His father was a butcher and a deacon in the Baptist church. His family moved to Chicago, Illinois, while he was still a child. There, his father became a minister; Nat's mother Perlina was the church organist. Nat learned to play piano from his mother until the age of 12, when he began formal lessons. His first performance, at age four, was of "Yes, We Have No Bananas." He learned not only jazz and gospel music, but European classical music as well, performing, as he said, "from Johann Sebastian Bach to Rachmaninoff."

The family lived in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago, which was famous in the 1920s for its nightlife and jazz clubs. Nat would sneak out of the house and hang outside the clubs, listening to artists such as Louis Armstrong, Earl "Fatha" Hines, and Jimmie Noone. He participated in Walter Dyett's renowned music program at DuSable High School.

Inspired by the playing of Fatha Hines, Cole began his performing career in the mid 1930s while he was still a teenager, and adopted the name Nat Cole (losing the "s" from his last name). His older brother, Eddie Coles, a bassist, soon joined Nat's band and they first recorded in 1936 under Eddie's name. They were also regular performers at clubs. In fact, Nat got his nickname "King" performing at one jazz club, a nickname presumably reinforced by the otherwise-unrelated nursery rhyme about "Old King Cole". Cole also was pianist in a national touring revival of ragtime and Broadway legend Eubie Blake's review, Shuffle Along. When it suddenly failed in Long Beach, California, Cole decided to remain there.

Los Angeles and the King Cole Trio

Nat Cole and three other musicians formed the "King Cole Swingers" in Long Beach and played in a number of local bars before getting a gig on the Long Beach Pike for $90 per week.

Nat married a dancer Nadine Robinson, who was also with Shuffle Along, and moved to Los Angeles where he formed the Nat King Cole Trio. The trio consisted of Nat on piano, Oscar Moore on guitar, and Wesley Prince on double bass. The trio played in Los Angeles throughout the late 1930s and recorded many radio transcriptions.

Cole did not achieve widespread popularity until "Sweet Lorraine" in 1940. Although he sang ballads with the trio, he was shy about his voice. While Cole prided himself on his diction, he never considered himself a strong singer. His subdued style, however, contrasted well with the belting approach of most jazz singers.

During World War II, Wesley Prince left the group and Cole replaced him with Johnny Miller. The King Cole Trio signed with the fledgling Capitol Records in 1943 and stayed with the recording company for the rest of Cole's career. By the 1950s, Cole's popularity was so great that the Capitol Records building, on Hollywood and Vine, was sometimes referred to as "The House that Nat Built".

Cole was considered a leading jazz pianist, appearing, for example, in the first Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts. His revolutionary lineup of piano, guitar and bass in the time of the big bands became a popular set up for a jazz trio. It was emulated by many musicians, among them Art Tatum, Ahmad Jamal, Oscar Peterson, Tommy Flanagan , and blues pianists Charles Brown and Ray Charles. He also performed as a pianist on sessions with Lester Young, Red Callender, and Lionel Hampton.

Politics

On August 23, 1956, Cole spoke at the Republican National Convention in the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California. He was also present at the Democratic National Convention in 1960, to throw his support behind President John F. Kennedy. Cole was also among the dozens of entertainers recruited by Frank Sinatra to perform at the Kennedy Inaugural gala in 1961. Nat King Cole frequently consulted with President Kennedy (and later President Johnson) on the issue of civil rights. Yet he was dogged by critics, who felt he shied away from controversy when it came to the civil rights issue. Among the most notable was Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, who was upset that Cole didn't take stronger action after being attacked on stage by white supremacists in 1956 (see below).

Singing career

King Cole's first mainstream vocal hit was his own "Straighten Up and Fly Right", based on a black folk tale that his father had used as a theme for a sermon and recorded in 1943 at Johnny Mercer's invitation for the start-up Capitol Records label. Selling over 500,000 copies, the song's success propelled Nat into the charts while showing that folk-based material could appeal to a wide audience. Although Nat would never be considered a rocker, this song is considered a predecessor to the first rock and roll records. Indeed, Bo Diddley, who performed similar transformations of folk material, counted Cole as an influence.

Beginning in the late 1940s, Cole began recording and performing more pop-oriented material for mainstream audiences, often accompanied by a string orchestra. His stature as a popular icon was cemented during this period with such hits as "The Christmas Song" (1946), "Nature Boy" (1948), "Mona Lisa" (1950), and his signature tune "Unforgettable" (1951). While this shift to pop music led some jazz critics and fans to accuse Cole of selling out, he never totally abandoned his musical roots; as late as 1956, for instance, he recorded an all-jazz album, After Midnight. In 1991, Mosaic Records released the Complete Nat King Cole Trio Recordings on Capitol, which contained 349 songs on 27 LPs or 18 CDs. Cole's unparalleled record sales revenues helped fuel much of Capitol Records' success during this period; this commercial success is also widely acknowledged to have played a significant role in financing the distincitve Capitol Records building on Vine Street in Los Angeles, California. Completed in 1956, the world's first circular office building was and is known by many as "the house that Nat built."

Nat King Cole with the future star age 10 Billy Preston (1957)
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Nat King Cole with the future star age 10 Billy Preston (1957)

Throughout the 1950s Cole continued to rack up hit after hit, including "Smile", "Pretend", "A Blossom Fell", "If I May" and many others. Most of his pop hits were collaborations with famed arranger/conductor Nelson Riddle. It was with Riddle that Cole released his first 10-inch long-play album in 1953 entitled "Nat King Cole Sings For Two In Love". Several more albums followed, including the Gordon Jenkins arranged "Love Is the Thing", which peaked at #1 on the album charts in April, 1957.

Inspired by a trip to Havana, Cuba in 1958, Nat went back there that same year and recorded "Cole Espanol", an album sung entirely in Spanish and Portuguese. The album was a hit not only in the U.S., but in Latin America as well. The album was so popular, that two others followed: "A Mis Amigos" in 1959, and "More Cole Espanol" in 1962.

Musical tastes were changing in the late 1950s, and despite a successful stab at rock n' roll with "Send For Me" (peaked at #6 pop), Cole's ballad singing had grown old to younger listeners. Like contemporaries Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra & Tony Bennett, Nat found that the pop singles chart had been almost entirely taken over by youth oriented acts. In 1960, Nat's longtime collaborator Nelson Riddle, left Capitol Records for Frank Sinatra's newly formed Reprise Records label. The two parted ways with one final hit album "Wild Is Love", based on lyrics by Ray Rasch and Dotty Wayne. Nat would later re-tool the concept album into an off broadway production called "I'm With You".

As the 1960s progressed, Nat once again found success on the American singles chart, starting with the country/pop flavored hit "Ramblin' Rose" in August of 1962. Three more hit singles followed: "Dear Lonely Hearts", "Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days Of Summer", and "That Sunday, That Summer".

What became Nat's final album was entitled L.O.V.E., and was recorded in late 1964. It was released just prior to his death and peaked at #4 on the Billboard Albums chart in the spring of 1965. A "Best Of" album went gold in 1968. His 1957 song "When I Fall In Love" was a chart topping hit for Great Britain in 1987.

Cole was the first African American to have his own radio program. He repeated that success in the late-1950s with the first truly national television show starring an African-American (see below). In both cases, the programs were ultimately cancelled because sponsors shied away from a black artist. Cole fought racism all his life, refusing to perform in segregated venues. In 1956, he was attacked on stage while singing the song "Little Girl" in Birmingham, Alabama by members of the White Citizens' Council who apparently were attempting to kidnap him. Despite injuries, Cole completed the show but vowed never to perform in the South again.

Cole performed in many short films, and played W. C. Handy in the film Saint Louis Blues. He also appeared in The Nat King Cole Story, "China Gate" and "Blue Gardenia" (see photo above).

Nat King Cole, a heavy smoker, died of lung cancer in February 1965 while still at the height of his singing career. Cat Ballou, his final film, was released several months later.

Nat's daughter, Natalie Cole, and his youngest brother Freddie Cole, are also singers. Natalie and her father had an unexpected hit in the summer of 1991. The younger Cole mixed a 1961 recording of her father's rendition of "Unforgettable" with her own voice, creating an electronic duet as part of her own tribute album to her father's music. Both the song and the album of the same name won seven Grammys the following year.

Making Television History

On November 5, 1956, The Nat King Cole Show debuted on NBC-TV. While commentators have often hailed Cole as the first African-American to host a network television show (an honor belonging to Hazel Scott in 1950), the Cole program was the first of its kind hosted by a star of Nat Cole's magnitude. Initially begun as a 15 minute show on Monday night, the show was expanded to a half hour in July 1957. Despite the efforts of NBC, as well as many of Cole's industry colleagues, (most of whom, such as Ella Fitzgerald and Harry Belafonte, worked for industry scale in order to help the show save money), The Nat King Cole Show was ultimately done in by a lack of national sponsorship (companies such as Rheingold Beer assumed regional sponsorship of the show, but the a national sponsor never eventuated). The last episode of The Nat King Cole Show aired December 17, 1957. Cole had survived for over a year, and it was he, not NBC, who ultimately decided to pull the plug on the show (NBC, as well as Cole himself, had been operating at an extreme financial loss). Commenting on the lack of sponsorship his show received, Cole quipped shortly after its demise, "Madison Avenue is afraid of the dark."

Notable appearances on Television shows other than his own:

Nat King Cole Appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show by: Season, Episode and Production Number, Air Date, Episode Title

Marriage, Children and other personal details

It is not certain that Nat King Cole was born in 1919, and the correct date may never be known. Nat used three different dates himself on official documents. These are 1915, 1916 and 1919.

Cole's first marriage, to Nadine Robinson, ended in 1948. On March 28 (Easter Sunday), just 6 days after his divorce became final, Nat King Cole married singer Maria Hawkins Ellington (no relation to Duke although she had sung with his band). They were married in Harlem's Abyssinian Baptist Church by Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.. They had five children: daughter Natalie was born in 1950, followed by adoption of Carol (the daughter of Maria's sister) and a son Nat Kelly Cole, who died in 1995. Twin girls Casey and Timolin were born in 1961.

In 1948, Cole purchased a house in the all-white Hancock Park neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. The property owners association told Cole they didn't want any undesirables moving in. Cole retorted "Neither do I. And if I see anybody undesirable coming in here, I'll be the first to complain."

Nat carried on affairs throughout his marriage. By the time he contracted lung cancer, he was estranged from his wife Maria in favor of actress Gunilla Hutton (Nurse Goodbody of Hee Haw fame). However, he was together with his wife during his illness and she stayed with him until his death. In interview, his wife Maria has expressed no lingering resentment over his affairs, but rather focused on his musical legacy and the class he exhibited in all other aspects of his life.

Nat was a heavy smoker, smoking up to three packs a day. He believed smoking kept his voice low. He died of lung cancer on February 15, 1965, at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California. His funeral was held at St. James Episcopal Church on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. He was interred inside Freedom Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

Notable Songs

Notable Albums

Year Album Title
1953 Unforgettable
1954 Ballads of the Day
1955 Penthouse Serenade
1955 Sings For Two In Love
1955 The Piano Style of Nat King Cole
1956 Night Lights
1956 The Complete After Midnight Sessions
1957 Just One Of Those Things
1957 Love Is The Thing
1958 Cole Español
1958 Everytime I Feel The Spirit
1958 St. Louis Blues
1958 Tell Me All About Yourself
1958 The Very Thought Of You
1958 Welcome To The Club
1958 To Whom It May Concern
1959 A Mis Amigos
1960 The Touch of Your Lips
1960 The Magic Of Christmas
1960 Wild Is Love
1961 Let's Face The Music And Dance
1961 Nat King Cole Sings; George Shearing Plays
1961 The Nat King Cole Story
1962 Dear Lonely Hearts
1962 More Cole Español
1962 Ramblin' Rose
1962 The Christmas Song
1963 My Fair Lady
1963 Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer
1963 Where Did Everyone Go?
1964 I Don't Want To Be Hurt Anymore
1964 L-O-V-E
1965 Sincerely / The Beautiful Ballads
Re-Releases (Released Posthumously)
1973 Nature Boy
1974 Love is a Many Splendored Thing
1982 Greatest Love Songs
1983 Unforgettable (Australia)
1990 Hit That Jive, Jack
1990 Jumpin' at Capitol
1991 Big Band Cole
1991 The Unforgettable Nat King Cole
1992 Christmas Favorites
1992 Selections From The Nat King Cole 4-CD Box Set (Promo)
1992 The Best Of The Nat King Cole Trio: The Instrumental Classics
1993 Mis Mejores Canciones - 19 Super Exitos
1994 Greatest Hits Vol. 2
1994 Let's Face the Music & Dance
1998 The Frim Fram Sauce
2000 Route 66
2001 The King Swings
2003 Stepping Out of a Dream
2003 The Classic Singles
2003 20 Golden Greats
2003 The Best Of...
2003 The Nat King Cole Trio (With Famous Guests)
2003 The One And Only Nat King Cole
2006 The Very Best of Nat King Cole

External links

 

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