Nat King Cole

Nat King Cole (born Nathaniel Adams Coles on March 17, 1919, in Montgomery, Alabama; died February 15, 1965, in Santa Monica, California) was an American jazz pianist, singer, and actor. His father, Edward James Coles, was a Baptist minister, and his mother, Perlina, played organ at church. The family moved to Chicago when he was four. He studied piano and organ at church and was strongly influenced by stride pianist Earl Hines. As a teenager, he earned a living playing in clubs and touring bands.

In 1937, Cole formed the King Cole Trio in Los Angeles with guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince. The piano-guitar-bass lineup, without drums, was imitated by countless groups that followed. His self-composed “Straighten Up and Fly Right” became a hit in 1943, followed by “Route 66” and “(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons.” In the trio years, he was known for clean single-note lines, restrained harmony, and light swing.

From the late 1940s, his baritone voice took center stage. “Nature Boy” (1948), “Mona Lisa” (1950), which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and “Unforgettable” (1951) made him Capitol Records’ leading pop star. Fans nicknamed the company’s circular headquarters building “the House That Cole Built.” His string albums with arrangers Nelson Riddle, Billy May, and Gordon Jenkins brought jazz phrasing together with the lyrical reach of popular song. Love Is the Thing (1957) is among the best known.

In November 1956, NBC launched The Nat King Cole Show, making him the first African American to host a nationally televised variety program in the United States. It ended a year later after Southern television stations refused to carry it. Cole died of lung cancer in 1965 at age 45. In 1991, his daughter Natalie Cole used recording technology to “duet” with him on “Unforgettable,” winning a Grammy and bringing his voice to a new generation.