As a piano player, he formed a jazz trio in 1938 that played Los Angeles nightclubs, one of the first jazz trios featuring guitar and piano. Prior to this he had played music since he was a child and had worked with bands since he was sixteen. He was raised in Chicago and exposed to the abundant jazz scene there. He was heavily influenced by pianist Earl "Fatha" Hines.
Later he became more popularly known as a singer and crooner and his work became more orchestrated.
His first mainstream vocal hit was in 1944 with Straighten Up and Fly Right, based on a black folk tale that his father had used as a theme for a sermon. Although hardly a rocker, the song's success proved that an audience for folk-based material existed. It 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 twenty-seven LPs or eighteen CDs.
Throughout the 1950s Cole continued to rack up hit after hit, including Smile, Pretend, A Blossom Fell, and If I May. Most of his pop hits were collaborations with famed arranger/conductor Nelson Riddle. It was with Riddle that Cole released his first ten-inch long-play album in 1953 entitled Sings for Two in Love. Several more albums followed, including the Gordon Jenkins arranged Love Is the Thing, which reached number one 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, Cole's ballad singing had grown old to younger listeners. Like contemporaries Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and 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. 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 reached number four 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 the U.K. 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. In both cases, the programs were ultimately canceled 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 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.
On 23rd August 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 the 1956 on-stage attack.
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, to which Cole retorted "Neither do I. And if I see anybody undesirable coming in here, I'll be the first to complain."
He and his second wife, Maria Ellington, were married in Harlem's Abyssinian Baptist Church by Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. They had five children, including twin girls. Daughter Carol Cole, and son Kelly Cole were adopted. Kelly Cole died in 1995. Nat's daughter, Natalie Cole, and his younger 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. Both the song and the album of the same name won several Grammy awards the following year.
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 The Blue Gardenia.
Nat King Cole was a heavy smoker of Kool menthol cigarettes, believing that smoking up to three packs a day gave his voice the rich sound it had (Cole would smoke several cigarettes in rapid succession before a recording for this very purpose). Cole died of lung cancer at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California, on 15th February 1965. His funeral was held at St. Victor's Catholic Church in West Hollywood, and he was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Cat Ballou, his final film, was released several months later.
An Affair to Remember
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That we'll rejoice in remembering
Our love was born with our first embrace
And a page was torn out of time and space
Our love affair, may it always be
A flame to burn through eternity
So, take my hand with a fervent prayer
That we may live and we may share
Our love affair is a wondrous thing
That we'll rejoice in remembering
Our love was born with our first embrace
And a page was torn out of time and space
Our love affair, may it always be
A flame to burn through eternity
So, take my hand with a fervent prayer
That we may live and we may share
Nat King Cole's iconic song "An Affair To Remember" is a timeless classic that has captured the hearts of millions of people around the world. The song speaks of a passionate love affair that is so powerful and intense that it will remain etched in the memory of the lovers forever. From the very first line, the song sets the tone for a wondrous love affair that is nothing short of magical. As the song progresses, the lyrics describe how the love between the two lovers was born with their first embrace and how a page was torn out of time and space as they were swept away by their intense feelings.
The next set of lyrics emphasizes the eternal nature of their love and how it will continue to burn like a flame throughout eternity. The final line of the chorus speaks to the religious and spiritual nature of their connection as they hold hands and pray fervently that they will be able to live and share this love affair forever.
Overall, the song is a beautiful and poignant testament to the power of love and the enduring quality of true passion. Nat King Cole's flawless delivery adds an extra layer of emotion and depth to the lyrics, making this song a true masterpiece that will always be remembered and cherished by generations of music lovers.
Line by Line Meaning
Our love affair is a wondrous thing
Our romantic relationship is something truly remarkable and amazing
That we'll rejoice in remembering
We will always look back on our relationship with joy and happiness
Our love was born with our first embrace
Our love for each other began when we first held each other in our arms
And a page was torn out of time and space
Our love is so powerful and intense that it seems to exist outside of the constraints of time and space
Our love affair, may it always be
May our love for each other last forever and never fade away
A flame to burn through eternity
Our love is like a bright and everlasting flame that will never be extinguished
So, take my hand with a fervent prayer
Let us hold hands and make a passionate vow to each other
That we may live and we may share
So that we may live together and share a life filled with love and joy
A love affair to remember
Let us create a love story that will be remembered for all time
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harold Adamson, Leo McCarey, Harry Warren
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@rustycuanico294
Our love affair is a wondrous thing
That we'll rejoice in remembering
Our love was born with our first embrace
And a page was torn out of time and space
Our love affair, may it always be
A flame to burn through eternity
So take my hand with a fervent prayer
That we may live and we may share
A love affair to remember
Our love affair is a wondrous thing
That we'll rejoice in remembering
Our love was born with our first embrace
And a page was torn out of time and space
Our love affair, may it always be
A flame to burn through eternity
So take my hand with a fervent prayer
That we may live and we may share
A love affair to remember
@marthabarlow8704
I'm only 12 years old and I guess I'm an old soul because I love this era of music. The movie to this song is also pretty great.
@masuganut2082
Martha Barlow I’ve always been an old soul. You’re classy 😉 and unique! So happy to hear other people like this, even ones so young 🙂
@freakjob0
I fell in love with his music about that age as well. I'm over 40 now.
@amadobustamante5237
@Marta Barlow You are not !!
You know what music really is and appreciative of it . I'm happy for you !!
@deen7733
i'm 13 and i really really love jazz, it's a music genre you don't have to be old to like jazz!
@monicavallelucena1375
Congrats Martha your're very sensitive person!!
@115painter
This song makes me cry every time I hear it. My mom loved Nat King Cole and the movie is definitely a tear jerker. #memories
@Junaleg
The minute I start listening, my hand automatically seeks the like button. How not to is beyond me.
@vaneprospero
I simply love this song. Can't get enough of it. Thank you for sharing.
@jcfreema
I agree with you Vanessa..