We remember Nat King Cole (1919-65)

We remember the one and only Nat King Cole who was born on this day in 1919.   He died of cancer in 1965.

Like many of you, I grew up with Nat King Cole's songs on my parents' turntable.  In our case, it was listening to Nat King Cole singing in Spanish.

Did you know that Nat King Cole recorded an album of Spanish songs in Cuba in 1957?  It was one of my parents' favorites! I like it a lot too! I also have come to appreciate Cole's great voice and arrangements!

Back in March 2009, Scott Johnson posted this note about Nat King Cole:

"Today is the anniversary of the birth of the great Nat "King" Cole.

Cole was born on St. Patricks's Day, though until Daniel Mark Epstein did the research for his biography of Cole, we weren't entirely sure that the year was 1919.

He was born in Montgomery, Alabama and grew up in Chicago after his father moved the family there in 1923 to pursue a career in the ministry.

Cole first made his name as a jazz pianist. He developed an intensely loyal jazz audience with the King Cole Trio (Oscar Moore on guitar and Wesley Prince on bass), the outfit that established the piano/guitar/bass format as a formidable jazz vehicle.

It is almost unbelievable, given Cole's talent as a vocalist, that the Trio in fact began as an instrumental combo."

Cole was one of the greatest male vocalists of the 20th century. He died awfully young but his music lives on.

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