Nat King Cole

Artist Image: Nat King Cole
Attribution
Image Credit: Capitol Records ( front back), Public domain

Biography

Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 - February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. He owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres. He was one of the first black Americans to host a television variety show, and has maintained worldwide popularity since his death. Nathaniel Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama, on Saint Patrick's Day (March 17) in 1919. When he was 4, he and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois, where his father, Edward Coles, became a Baptist minister. Cole learned to play the organ from his mother, Perlina Coles, the church organist. His first performance was of "Yes! We Have No Bananas" at age four. He began formal lessons at 12, eventually learning not only jazz and gospel music, but also European classical music, performing, as he said, "from Johann Sebastian Bach to Sergei Rachmaninoff". Cole had three brothers: Eddie, Ike, and Freddy Coles. His half-sister, Joyce Coles, married Robert Doak, of Robert Doak & Associates, Inc., art suppliers. The family lived in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago. Cole would sneak out of the house and hang around outside the clubs, listening to artists such as Louis Armstrong, Earl Hines, and Jimmie Noone. He participated in Walter Dyett's renowned music program at DuSable High School. Inspired by the performances of Earl Hines, Cole began his performing career in the mid 1930s while still a teenager, adopting the name "Nat Cole". His older brother, Eddie, a bass player, soon joined Cole's band, and they made their first recording in 1936 under Eddie's name. They also were regular performers at clubs. Cole, in fact, acquired his nickname, "King", performing at one jazz club, a nickname presumably reinforced by the otherwise unrelated nursery rhyme about Old King Cole. He also was a pianist in a national tour of Broadway theatre legend Eubie Blake's revue, "Shuffle Along". When it suddenly failed in Long Beach, California, Cole decided to remain there. He would later return to Chicago in triumph to play such venues as the famed Edgewater Beach Hotel.

Details

Item Name Item Details
Year Formed 1935
Number of Albums 66
Record Label
Website
Wikipedia Nat King Cole on Wikipedia
Social Networks

Trivia

In what year did Nat King Cole die?

1965

...Nat King Cole (1919 1965 ) was a leading figure in American popular music in the 1940s and 1950s. He was the first African American artist to host his o...
How many siblings did Cole have?

four

...Baptist church, and Perlina Adams Coles, who sang in the choir. Cole had four siblings, all of whom had musical talent. Hoping to seek opportunities a...
In what year did Coles move his family to Chicago?

1923

...ation in the Deep South, Coles moved his family to Chicago, Illinois, in 1923 as part of the Great Migration of southern blacks to the Midwest and Eas...
What was the first truly American form of popular music?

jazz

...southern blacks to the Midwest and East. Chicago was a lively center for jazz , the first truly American form of popular music, and young Nat was capti...
Who was a neighbor to Nat?

Louis Armstrong

...sic, and young Nat was captivated by the genre. The great trumpeter Louis Armstrong was a neighbor, and the young Nat heard pianists Earl Fatha Hines,...
What did Coles' mother teach him?

piano

...fluenced by music in his father's church. Like many others in the Great Depression, Coles did not finish high school, but his mother taught him piano ....
What year was Nathaniel Adams Coles born?

1917

... Reverend Edwards Coles and Perlina (Adams) Coles, was born on March 17, 1917 , in Montgomery, Alabama. (Cole would drop the s from his name early in h...
What year did Coles father move his family to Chicago?

1921

... in his career.) Cole's father moved the family to Chicago, Illinois, in 1921 . His father served as pastor of the Truelight Spiritual Temple on the So...
Where did Cole move to in 1921?

Chicago, Illinois

...m his name early in his career.) Cole's father moved the family to Chicago, Illinois , in 1921. His father served as pastor of the Truelight Spiritual ...
How old was Cole when he was playing the organ?

twelve

... Temple on the South Side of Chicago. By the time he reached the age of twelve , Cole was playing the organ and singing in the choir of his father's ch...
What was Eddie's previous job?

bassist with Noble Sissle's orchestra

...he Rogues of Rhythm. His older brother Eddie, previously bassist with Noble Sissle's orchestra , joined him. The genius of Cole, Moore, and Miller In H...
Where did Cole grow up?

Chicago

... vocalist specializing in warm ballads and light swing. Cole grew up in Chicago , where, by age 12, he sang and played organ in the church where his fa...
What was the name of King Cole's first jazz group?

Royal Dukes

...urch where his father was pastor. He formed his first jazz group, the Royal Dukes , five years later. In 1937, after touring with a Black musical revue...
Who replaced Oscar Moore in King Cole and His Swingsters?

Irving Ashby

...e and His Swingsters), with guitarist Oscar Moore (later replaced by Irving Ashby ) and bassist Wesley Prince (later replaced by Johnny Miller). The tr...
How many years later did the Royal Dukes form?

five

... his father was pastor. He formed his first jazz group, the Royal Dukes, five years later. In 1937, after touring with a Black musical revue, he began...
What was the name of the bassist who replaced Wesley Prince?

Johnny Miller

...placed by Irving Ashby) and bassist Wesley Prince (later replaced by Johnny Miller ). The trio specialized in swing music with a delicate touch in that...
What were the voicings of piano and guitar often juxtaposed to sound like?

a single instrument

... the voicings of piano and guitar, often juxtaposed to sound like a single instrument . An influence on jazz pianists such as Oscar Peterson, Cole was ...
What did jazz critics tended to regret?

his nearabandonment of the piano

...m tone and flawless phrasing, Cole was regarded among the top male vocalists, although jazz critics tended to regret his nearabandonment of the piano ....
How many songs did Nat King Cole record that became hits on the pop charts?

over 100

...s an American singer, jazz pianist, songwriter, and actor. He recorded over 100 songs that became hits on the pop charts. His trio was the model for s...
Where was Coles born?

Montgomery, Alabama

... Biography edit Early life edit Nathaniel Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama , on March 17, 1919. He had three brothers: Eddie (19101970), Ike...
What was the name of the brother that was born in Montgomery, Alabama?

Eddie

...s born in Montgomery, Alabama, on March 17, 1919. He had three brothers: Eddie (19101970), Ike (19272001), and Freddy (19312020), and a halfsister, Jo...
When was the birth of Nat King Cole?

March 17, 1919

...life edit Nathaniel Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama, on March 17, 1919 . He had three brothers: Eddie (19101970), Ike (19272001), and Fredd...
How many brothers were there in the family?

three

...l Adams Coles was born in Montgomery, Alabama, on March 17, 1919. He had three brothers: Eddie (19101970), Ike (19272001), and Freddy (19312020), and ...
Who was the half-sister of the Cole brothers?

Joyce Coles

... (19101970), Ike (19272001), and Freddy (19312020), and a halfsister, Joyce Coles . Each of the Cole brothers pursued careers in music. When Nat King C...
What church organist did Cole learn to play?

Perlina Coles

...linois, where his father, Edward Coles, became a Baptist minister. Cole learned to play the organ from his mother, Perlina Coles , the church organist....
What was Nat King Cole's nationality?

African American

...st popular and influential entertainers of the 20th century. As an African American ballad singer and jazz musician, he topped the charts year after y...
How many records did Nat King Cole release?

50 million

...d jazz musician, he topped the charts year after year, sold more than 50 million records, pushed jazz piano in a new direction and paved the way for l...
What was the name of the author of the biography?

Daniel Mark Epstein

...Nat King Cole's voice is really one of the great gifts of nature, Daniel Mark Epstein , author of the 1999 biography Nat King Cole, says. Remember, he ...
Who was Nat King Cole's idol?

Earl Hines

...ised in Chicago. His first recordings show the influence of his idol, Earl Hines . By the time he was 18, Cole was married, living in Los Angeles and f...
What was the name of the nightclub act that Cole fronted with a name that riffed on a nursery rhyme?

the King Cole Trio

...onting a nightclub act with a name that riffed on a nursery rhyme the King Cole Trio featuring guitar, bass and piano, but not a lot of vocals. The Ki...
What jazz trio inspired Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal to form similar trios?

The King Cole Trio

...e Trio featuring guitar, bass and piano, but not a lot of vocals. The King Cole Trio had a huge influence, inspiring other jazz musicians like Oscar P...
Who says if Cole had never crooned a note, he would still be an important figure in jazz?

Epstein

...zz musicians like Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal to form similar trios. Epstein says if Cole had never crooned a note, he would still be an important ...
How did Cole get most of his popular musical fame?

his soft baritone voice

...complished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice , which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres. He was ...
In what genres did Cole perform?

big band and jazz

...sical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres. He was one of the first black Americans to host a televis...
How many children did he and his wife have?

thirteen

...tant musical personalities in United States history. Together they had thirteen children, but only five of them lived to adulthood. In 1921, the famil...
At what age was Nat an accomplished pianist?

12

...in his father's church from the age of 11 and was an accomplished pianist by the age of 12 . He left school at 15 to pursue a career as a jazz pianist....
How long did it take for Cole to reach superstardom?

years

...t as Daniel Mark Epstein unveils in this illuminating biography, it took years of duespaying for Cole to reach superstardom. Epstein doesn't shy away ...
What was the name of Cole's hit single?

The Christmas Song

...s vocal hits Straighten Up And Fly Right Route 66, Mona Lisa, and The Christmas Song , and his second marriage to Maria Ellington. Epstein also cites C...
In what year did a vicious racial attack occur at a Birmingham concert?

1956

...roically survived a vicious racial attack during a Birmingham concert in 1956 . Nat King Cole was not a political philosopher schooled in rhetoric or t...
Epstein was a clear thinker with what kind of instincts and compassion?

sound

...he dialectics of history, the author writes. He was a clear thinker with sound instincts and compassion.... Where he had goneto riches, fame, and hono...
Epstein paid attention to his friends, his children, his sideman, his audiences and most of what?

his music

... his friends, his children, his sideman, his audiences and most of all his music . This respectful biography depicts a multitalented musician whoAwheth...
In what decade did Nathaniel Coles grow up?

1920s

..., dignified demeanor. Born Nathaniel Coles, he grew up in Chicago in the 1920s , when Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton and Gatemouth Earl Hines were ...
What was Nat King Cole's profession before singing?

jazz pianist

...better known by his stage name, Nat King Cole earned prominence as a jazz pianist before switching to a singing career that would ultimately carry him...
What was Cole's dream job?

preacher

...y him to musical immortality. The son of a butcher who yearned to be a preacher , Cole relocated to Chicago with his family when his father became past...
What nursery rhyme inspired King?

Old King Cole

...organist. He earned his nickname King (inspired by the nursery rhyme Old King Cole ) and dropped the s from his surname when he began playing piano in ...
When did Eddie Coles Swingsters make their recording debut for Decca Records?

1936

...ie Coles Swingsters, and made their recording debut for Decca Records in 1936 . The brothers went on the road with the allblack musical revue Shuffle A...
What was the name of the all black musical revue that the brothers released in 1936?

Shuffle Along

... 1936. The brothers went on the road with the allblack musical revue Shuffle Along the following year. When the tour ended in Los Angeles, Nat Cole de...
What was the name of Cole's 1941 hit single?

That Aint Right

.... Fronting the King Cole Trio, Cole wrote, sang and played piano on That Aint Right , recorded for Decca in 1941. The song became a No. The success of ...
What label did Cole sign a recording contract with?

Capitol Records

...941. The song became a No. The success of a second single for the Excelsior label, All for You, resulted in a recording contract with Capitol Records ....
When was That Aint Right released?

1941

...e wrote, sang and played piano on That Aint Right, recorded for Decca in 1941 . The song became a No. The success of a second single for the Excelsior ...
What type of voice did Cole have?

soft baritone

...e as a jazz pianist. He owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres. In 195...
Who helped Cole learn to play the piano?

his mother

...o man. He first learned to play around the age of four with help from his mother , a church choir director. The son of a Baptist pastor, Cole may have ...
What type of pastor was Cole?

Baptist

...f four with help from his mother, a church choir director. The son of a Baptist pastor, Cole may have started out playing religious music. In his earl...
At what age did Cole drop out of school to become a full time jazz pianist?

15

...no training. He eventually abandoned classical for his other musical passion jazz. At 15 , he dropped out of school to become a jazz pianist full time....
How long was Nat King Cole a professional musician?

30 years

...ing Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late '40s to the mid'60s, he was ...
How long had he been a jazz pianist?

a decade

... a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group. For some re...
What was Cole's transition from jazz to pop seen as?

a betrayal

...uring a period when jazz itself was becoming less popular was seen as a betrayal . At the same time, as a prominent Black entertainer during an era of ...
Where was he once physically attacked onstage?

Alabama

...the enmity of racists; once, he was even physically attacked onstage in Alabama . But Civil Rights activists sometimes criticized him for not doing eno...
Who criticized him for not doing enough for the cause?

Civil Rights activists

...; once, he was even physically attacked onstage in Alabama. But Civil Rights activists sometimes criticized him for not doing enough for the cause. Su...