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.
I Remember You
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Were we on the Nile?
Long, long ago,
Say an hour or so
I recall that I saw your smile.
I remember you,
You`re the one who made
A few kisses ago.
I remember you,
You`re the one who said
"I love you, too," I do.
Didn`t you know?
I remember, too,
A distant bell,
And stars that fell like rain
Out of the blue.
When my life is through,
And the angels ask me to recall
The thrill of them all,
Then I shall tell them
I remember you.
The song I Remember You by Nat King Cole is a beautiful ode to love and memories. Each verse is a nostalgic recollection of moments spent with a loved one. The opening lines of the song create an air of mystery and romance as the singer tries to recall the time and place where he first saw his love smile. The lyrics suggest that it may have been at an exotic location like Tahiti or on the Nile, giving the impression that this love story is something out of a fairy tale or a dream.
As the song progresses, the singer delves deeper into his memories and remembers the person who made his dreams come true, the one who he shared kisses with. He also recalls the moment when his lover said "I love you, too," which brings back a flood of feelings and emotions. The lyrics are simple yet powerful, conveying the depth of love and the power of memories.
Towards the end, the singer talks about a distant bell and stars that fell like rain out of the blue. These are images that evoke a sense of magic and wonder, adding to the mystical quality of the song. The final lines of the song are particularly poignant, as they suggest that even in death, the singer will remember his love, and the angels will ask him to recall the thrill of it all.
Overall, the song is a timeless classic that captures the essence of love and the power of memories. The lyrics are beautifully written, and the melody is haunting, making it a perfect showcase for Nat King Cole's incredible talent.
Line by Line Meaning
Was it in Tahiti?
Can we reminisce on when we were in Tahiti?
Were we on the Nile?
Do you remember if we were on the Nile river?
Long, long ago,
It feels like such a long time ago.
Say an hour or so
Maybe it was just an hour or so ago.
I recall that I saw your smile.
But what I do remember is seeing your smile.
I remember you,
I definitely remember you.
You`re the one who made
You're the person who made my life better.
My dreams come true
You're the reason why I was able to fulfill my dreams.
A few kisses ago.
It wasn't that long ago that we last kissed.
You`re the one who said
You were the person who said it.
"I love you, too," I do.
When you said "I love you too," I meant it.
Didn`t you know?
Wasn't it clear to you?
I remember, too,
I also remember something else.
A distant bell,
I hear a faraway ringing.
And stars that fell like rain
And stars falling like raindrops from the sky.
Out of the blue.
This happened unexpectedly.
When my life is through,
When my life has ended.
And the angels ask me to recall
And the angels ask me to remember.
The thrill of them all,
All of the exciting moments.
Then I shall tell them
I will tell the angels.
I remember you.
That I remember you.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JOHNNY MERCER, VICTOR SCHERTZINGER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@MarkBlackburnWPG
NAT KING COLE – I Remember You
There's an interesting story beyond the small Wikipedia entry for Johnny Mercer's favorite of his own compositions – I REMEMBER YOU. Mercer's friend, Hollywood film director Vic Schertzinger had asked Johnny if he could come up with some lyrics for two tunes he'd just composed for a 1941 movie “The Fleet's In.” Vic died before the movie premiered, at the young age of 53. But not before he had the thrill of being first person to enjoy what Johnny had come up with, for I REMEMBER YOU and TANGERINE.
Oddly, Tangerine was the big hit; I Remember You had to wait two decades until Nat King Cole included it as a slow ballad – beautifully arranged by Ralph Carmichael (who left us last year). Nat was Mom's favorite singer, and Dad gifted her with the black vinyl LP “The Touch of Your Lips” – whose title track song Dad told me was playing when they danced in her parents' parlor (living room) and shared their first kiss. I shared that story with Ralph Carmichael a year before he died and the great arranger (and Gospel music writer) replied, “Thank you very much, Mark!”
That same year – 1961 – an Australian-born Englishman, Frank Ifield introduced my generation to I REMEMBER YOU but as a walking-tempo countrified rendition that sold two million records (“1.1 million in the UK alone”).
Because of which (I believe) Sinatra never went near Johnny Mercer's favorite of his own songs and the brief Wiki entry states,
I REMEMBER YOU has since been covered most notably by Frank Ifield, Glen Campbell and Björk.
The Beatles covered the song on stage early in their career, as recorded on an amateur taping made at the Star Club in Hamburg in December 1962. That version was ultimately published in 1977 on the bootleg recording "Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962".[5]
Nat's 1961 recording included the seldom-heard opening verse – one of Mercer's best. And one more reason this one's still my favorite version.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7LHDEcNc_E
Thanks Thevimanaskirmish for sharing. Celebrated this day (2/6/2023) at " Great Melody, Great Lyric, Great Rendition, Songwriting Workshop, Harmony Central
@jojo44135
I remember you-ooh
You're the one who made my dreams come true
A few kisses ago
I remember you-ooh
You're the one who said "I love you, too"
Yes, I do, didn'tcha know?
I remember, too, a distant bell and stars that fell
Like the rain out of the blue-ooh-ooh-ooh-hoo-hoo-hoo
When my life is through
And the angels ask me to recall
The thrill of it all
Then I will tell them I remember you-ooh
I remember, too, a distant bell and stars that fell
Just like the rain out of the blue-ooh-ooh-ooh-hoo-hoo-hoo
When my life is through
And the angels ask me to recall
The thrill of it all
Then I will tell them I remember, tell them I remember
Tell them I remember you
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Sings Sweet Songs for Swingers (1959)
1.
Sweet and Lovely
2.
Let's Fall in Love
3.
Makin' Whoopee
4.
That Old Feeling
5.
I Remember You
6.
Moonlight Serenade
7.
Gone With the Wind
8.
Can't We Be Friends?
10.
My Old Flame
12.
Lullaby Of Broadway
@jameshub2
From the motion picture "The Majestic" starring Jim Carey who frankly should have at least been nominated in my opinion for an oscar in this movie, this song sung by Nat King Cole is simply a stunning romantic tune,God bless you Nat!
@tommyryan1311
A truly great film. Just revisited after not watching it for over 10 yrs. So well done.
@deborahansar3893
I ran here after hearing this at the end of a very lovely movie Majestic❤ love Jim Carey thank you for that you deserved that Oscar 🎉🙏
@leandrodalessandro1917
I love this kind of 40's music... so sweet, soft... and nostalgic (even for someone like me born at the end of the '80s)
@elliotttopkins8746
Nat King Cole's phrasing is immaculate. This is the signature version.
@beforeourveryeyes
That's what I was gonna say. He rides effortlessly and perfectly over the orchestra: a Master.
@edyoung646
i tell my ESL students that this is the only singer they can rely on for PERFECT enunciation in song (goes for "perfidia" as well) - his clear voice evidence of a guiless lack of a need to hurt people - he was a saintly man with soul - i was born in the private hospital where he was treated confidentially for his final illness - if he had never sung, we´d be talking about him as a pianist in a league with art tatum and bud powell. RIP Maestro~
@jimbosteen2935
Hey man nice call on the phrasing thing😊
@jameshub2
Absolutely no comparison and that is saying something since there were about a hundred of them!
@brandiva96
Now this is music!!! Speaks to your heart and soul!!!