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.
Believe
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And when you smiled at me,
In my heart I felt a thrill you see,
That it was love at sight and
I was right to love you as I do.
Still I never dreamed that you could love me too.
Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,
I can't believe that you're in love with me.
You're telling ev'ry one I know
I'm on your mind each place we go
They can't believe that you're in love with me.
I have always placed you far above me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
And after all is said and done,
To think that I'm the lucky one.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.
Skies are gray. I'm blue each day
When you are not around.
Ev'ry thing goes wrong, my dear I've found
But when you're by my side I fill with pride
For I'm so proud of you
It all seems too good to me to all be true
Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,
I never knew what they could do.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.
You're telling ev'ry one I know
I'm on your mind each place we go
They can't believe that you're in love with me.
I have always placed you far above me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
And after all is said and done,
To think that I'm the lucky one.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.
Nat King Cole's "Can't I" is a song that speaks about a love affair that took the singer by surprise. The lyrics talk about the moment when the singer met this person, and his heart skipped a beat, knowing that he was in love at first sight. However, he never thought that this person could love him in return. He expresses his disbelief and amazement that this person is in love with him, considering that he always thought of her as someone who was out of his reach. He talks about his insecurities and the surprise of finding out that this person he thought was too good for him, loves him back.
The lyrics vividly describe the intensity and depth of the singer's emotions, his intense joy, pride, and disbelief at the fact that the person he loves has chosen to love him back. He feels lucky and grateful that he is the chosen one and cherishes every moment spent with this person. The lyrics showcase an intense longing for the loved one and the happiness that the singer feels when he is with her, and the profound sadness that he experiences when she's not around.
Overall, the lyrics to "Can't I" are about the surprise of finding love where you least expect it and the joy that comes with realizing that the person you love also loves you back.
Line by Line Meaning
Yesterday you came my way,
Just yesterday, you came into my life.
And when you smiled at me,
When you smiled at me, I felt something special in my heart.
In my heart I felt a thrill you see,
I had a strong, thrilling feeling in my heart.
That it was love at sight and
I knew immediately that it was love when I saw you.
I was right to love you as I do.
My love for you is true and right.
Still I never dreamed that you could love me too.
But I never thought that you could love me back.
Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,
Your beautiful blue eyes and lovely kisses are a joy to me.
I never knew what they could do.
I never knew the power of your eyes and kisses.
You're telling ev'ry one I know
You're telling everyone that we know.
I'm on your mind each place we go
You're always thinking of me no matter where we are.
They can't believe that you're in love with me.
Our friends and family find it hard to believe that you love me.
I have always placed you far above me.
I always saw you as better than me and never thought you could love me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
It's hard to believe that you actually love me.
And after all is said and done,
Even after everything that's happened.
To think that I'm the lucky one.
I consider myself so lucky.
Skies are gray. I'm blue each day
I feel sad every day when you're not around.
When you are not around.
When you're not here with me.
Ev'ry thing goes wrong, my dear I've found
Everything seems to go wrong without you.
But when you're by my side I fill with pride
But when you're with me, I feel so proud.
For I'm so proud of you
I'm proud of everything you do.
It all seems too good to me to all be true
I can't believe how great it all seems to be.
You're telling ev'ry one I know
You're still telling everyone we know.
I'm on your mind each place we go
I'm always on your mind no matter where we are.
They can't believe that you're in love with me.
People still find it hard to believe that you love me.
I have always placed you far above me.
I still see you as better than me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
But I'm still amazed that you love me.
And after all is said and done,
Even after everything that's happened.
To think that I'm the lucky one.
I still can't believe how lucky I am to have you in my life.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.
I can't believe how fortunate I am that you love me.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CLARENCE GASKILL, JIMMY MC HUGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
john
on A Blossom Fell
i want the song" I'll never settle for less" lyrics,would somebody be so kind to give it to me?