Featured In
ALBUMLive at the Blue Note ChicagoNat "King" Cole
Albums by Nat "King" Cole
ALBUMA Sentimental Christmas with Nat "King" Cole and Friends: Cole Classics ReimaginedNat "King" Cole
ALBUMNat "King" Cole (10th Anniversary)Nat "King" Cole
ALBUMRe: Generations (Bonus Track Version)Nat "King" Cole
ALBUML-O-V-ENat "King" Cole
ALBUMI Don't Want To Be Hurt AnymoreNat "King" Cole
ALBUMLet's Face the Music!Nat "King" Cole
ALBUMNat King Cole Sings My Fair LadyNat "King" Cole
ALBUMThose Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of SummerNat "King" Cole
ALBUMWhere Did Everyone Go?Nat "King" Cole
ALBUMRamblin' RoseNat "King" Cole
Nat "King" Cole's Popular Music Videos
The Happiest Christmas Tree (Lyric Video)
Nat "King" Cole
Calypso Blues (Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, May 16, 1954)
Nat "King" Cole
It’s Only A Paper Moon/How High The Moon (Medley/Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, March 27, 1949)
Nat "King" Cole
Little Girl (Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, March 27, 1949)
Nat "King" Cole
St. Louis Blues (Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, April 13, 1958)
Nat "King" Cole
O Come All Ye Faithful
Nat "King" Cole
Looking Back (Live On The Ed Sullivan Show, April 13, 1958)
Nat "King" Cole
O Little Town Of Bethlehem (Lyric Video)
Nat "King" Cole
The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) [Lyric Video]
Nat "King" Cole
L-O-V-E (Lyric Video)
Nat "King" Cole
Artist Playlists
Nat King Cole Essentials
Pop's unforgettable romantic crooner.
Nat "King" Cole Essentials
The jazz icon’s rich tenor rings in the yuletide season.
Nat "King" Cole: Chill
Lean back and relax with some of their mellowest cuts.
Artist Biography
Nat "King" Cole made it all sound easy. That was the art of Nathaniel Adams Coles, born in Montgomery, Alabama in 1919—he hid the sweat. His family joined the Great Migration of Black Southerners who moved North, in his case to Chicago, where Cole got a jazz combo together. Influenced by the light, punchy swing of pianist Earl Hines, Cole pioneered a cocktail trio sound that was fun and urbane. On '40s recordings like "Straighten Up and Fly Right," "Sweet Lorraine," and "It's Only a Paper Moon," he emerged as a jaunty (sometimes) singer and first-rate instrumentalist. If he'd stopped there, he'd still be celebrated today. Good thing he kept going. With zero vocal training, he discovered that his conversational baritone loved a ballad and audiences loved his singing. He transitioned to a pop-jazz sound, featuring big bands and orchestras. This was night-on-the-town Rat Pack music; songs like "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons," "Smile," and "When I Fall In Love" were almost courtly in their manners. An early convert to Latin rhythms, Cole learned enough Spanish to become an international icon in the '50s. Cole died in 1965, but he was on the charts again in 1991, duetting with his daughter Natalie on "Unforgettable" and a Grammy-crushing tribute album.
Hometown
Montgomery, AL, United States
Genre
Jazz