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.
Don't Blame Me
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've hung around you just like a fool
Falling head and heels in love like a kid out of school
My poor heart is in an awful state now
But it's too late now to call a halt
So if I become a nuisance it's all your fault
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I'm under your spell but how can I help it
Don't blame me
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling
Don't blame me
I can't help it if that doggoned moon above
Makes me need someone like you to love!
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
But don't blame me
I like every single thing about you
Without a doubt you are like a dream
In my mind I find a picture of us as a team
Ever since the hour of our meeting
I've been repeating a silly phrase
Hoping that you'll understand me one of these days
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I'm under your spell but how can I help it!
Don't blame me!
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling
Don't blame me
I can't help it if that doggoned moon above
Makes me need someone like you to love!
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
But don't blame me
In Nat King Cole's song Don't Blame Me, the singer confesses his love for someone and takes full responsibility for falling head over heels for them. The lyrics express his fondness for every little thing about this person, making it clear that he finds them irresistible. Despite his awareness of how he may come across, he can't help himself from being completely smitten. The singer describes his heart in an "awful state," but he knows that it's too late to turn back. He acknowledges that he may become a nuisance, but he makes it clear that he's not at fault for his feelings.
The lyrics also show that the singer appreciates his love interest's qualities and acknowledges that he's the one in the wrong. He recognizes that it's her charms and kisses that have put him under her spell. He can't conceal the thrill he's feeling and he blames it all on her. The song makes clear that his love is unconditional and unyielding, even if it ultimately causes him pain. The singer knows his love is true and will not be swayed.
Line by Line Meaning
Ever since the lucky night I found you
From the moment I met you, I knew you were special
I've hung around you just like a fool
I've been following you around like a lovesick puppy
Falling head and heels in love like a kid out of school
I'm completely in love with you, and it's like I'm experiencing young love all over again
My poor heart is in an awful state now
My heart is hurting because of how much I've fallen for you
But it's too late now to call a halt
I can't just stop my feelings for you, even if I wanted to
So if I become a nuisance it's all your fault
If I start to bother you with my affection, it's because you've made me fall so deeply for you
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I can't help but love you; it's not my fault
I'm under your spell but how can I help it
Your charm and personality have completely enchanted me, and I can't resist falling for you
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
Every little thing you do makes me fall for you more
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling
I can't hide my excitement and happiness when I'm around you
I can't help it if that doggoned moon above
I have no control over how the moon makes me feel, just like I have no control over how deeply I love you
Makes me need someone like you to love!
The power of the moon makes me yearn for someone like you to love
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
Your kisses are so sweet that they've only made me fall deeper in love with you
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
Your charming qualities only make it harder for me to resist and not love you with all my heart
But don't blame me
Even though I can't help but love you, it's not my fault
I like every single thing about you
I love every aspect of your personality, your looks, your charm, and your character
Without a doubt you are like a dream
It's hard to believe that you are real; you are practically a dream come true
In my mind I find a picture of us as a team
I can't help but envision a future where we are together, as a happy and loving team
Ever since the hour of our meeting
From the moment we met, I knew that you were going to be someone significant in my life
I've been repeating a silly phrase
I've been saying something foolish over and over again because it perfectly describes my feelings for you
Hoping that you'll understand me one of these days
I'm hoping that someday you'll understand how much I love you and want to be with you
Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DOROTHY FIELDS, JIMMY MC HUGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mickjr270
Sublime Dorothy Fields lyrics.
@joelbramble6915
When you consider the fact that singing was a "secondary" skill that this world-class jazz pianist had to be talked into doing publicly... Wow.
@chazinko
When music speaks in a way the human heart understands.
@citizen1163
Came here for the song after reading how many truly memorable songs were written by Dorothy Fields & partners... just those 3 words 'Don't Blame Me' & I guessed it'd be this song.
Truly Unforgettable
@singlecatt
He had such an incredible voice.
@georgeb.wolffsohn30
And serious chops at the piano.
@alvarobarona5156
Love this !!!
Feeling alive listening to this beautiful song !!!!!
Love your life
Love your love !!!
Bring the best to everyone !!!
@calvinrichardsonsr9192
Great Nat.
@cindychristian1700
Thisis a beautiful song that I'm just discovering!
@edsonademir9817
Great song of Nat Cole, fantastic. From EUA to world.