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.
Tea for Two
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just tea for two
And two for tea
Just me for you
And you for me alone
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
No friends or relations
We won't have it known, dear
That we own a telephone, dear
Day will break and you'll awake
And start to bake a sugar cake
For me to take for all the boys to see
We will raise a family
A boy for you, a girl for me
Oh, can't you see how happy we would be
The lyrics to Nat King Cole's song "Tea for Two" describe a cozy and intimate moment between two lovers. The singer imagines himself sitting with his partner, sharing a quiet cup of tea, with no one else around. It's clear that their connection is strong and they only need each other to be happy. They plan to keep their relationship private, away from friends and family, and even avoid having a telephone to prevent any interference. The final lines of the song suggest a future together, where they will start a family and raise children, building a life of happiness and love.
Throughout the song, the imagery is warm and affectionate. The idea of sharing tea is often associated with relaxing and spending time with loved ones, which adds to the intimacy of the scene. The lyrics suggest that the couple is content with just each other's company, and that they don't need anyone else to be happy. The tone is sweet and romantic, and the song is often interpreted as a declaration of love.
Overall, "Tea for Two" is a touching and romantic love song that captures the comfort and security of being with the person you love. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a happy and content life, and the simple act of sharing tea becomes a symbol of the strength of their relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Picture you upon my knee
I envision you sitting on my lap
Just tea for two
We're alone, just you and me, with nothing else but tea
And two for tea
There's enough tea for both of us
Just me for you
I am here only for you, with no one else around
And you for me alone
You are here only for me, with no one else around
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
We are in complete privacy and seclusion, with no one around to observe or overhear us
No friends or relations
We have no acquaintances or family members around us
On weekend vacations
We have gone away to spend the weekend together
We won't have it known, dear
We don't want anyone else to know what we're doing
That we own a telephone, dear
We wouldn't want anyone to know how to reach us, even if they tried to contact us
Day will break and you'll awake
Morning will come and you'll wake up
And start to bake a sugar cake
You'll begin baking a cake for us to enjoy
For me to take for all the boys to see
I'll take the cake with me to show off to my friends
We will raise a family
We have plans to start a family together
A boy for you, a girl for me
We hope to have a son and a daughter
Oh, can't you see how happy we would be
We can imagine how joyful and content we will be with each other and our potential family
Lyrics © Capitol CMG Publishing
Written by: IRVING CAESAR, VINCENT YOUMANS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@allanohare7934
Most people don't realize that Nat Cole was extremely important in the development of jazz piano. Back during WWII he came out with a new style that mostly freed the left hand from time keeping (as it had been used going back to ragtime) and used it primarily for accents or doubling the right hand. Check out some of the videos here by the King Cole Trio of that era and you'll see it pretty clearly. Soon thereafter came Bud Powell, and the bebop piano style that leads to what we hear today.
@BullgoesforGold355
Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn’t he close friends with Art Tatum? Or maybe I’m thinking of Oscar Peterson/Ray Charles.
@kennethhodges3187
It's tragic that most people either didn't know or care about Nat's ability as a pianist! He was a great influence on Oscar Peterson, and the world of jazz lost a great musician when the singing took over! Oh and by the way at the time of writing this Nat would have been 100 this week had he lived! His memory though will never die!
@mrjimmienoone2130
Complete bewilderment, disbelief,... How on earth can anybody play such wild, but incredibly tasteful, sophisticated, delicate, inimitable phrases on a piano??? He turns the piano into a totally different kind of instrument.
@rodrickmiller6376
Yes he does. Genius
@vova47
No, he plays it like the piano should be played. It's some other people who are not doing it right.
@harryandruschak2843
Showing why my entertainment nowadays is mostly YOU TUBE. Rare archive footage like this should be listened to, not gathering dust is some vault.
@richardbrudzynski4793
Brilliant! Cole was born on March 17, 1919. We've been blessed with 100 years of Nat King Cole.
@JeanPaul-Godtier
I'm blown away, i thought he was "just" a Singer ! Oh my god how could i have missed this, THIS is pure gold, so much ideas and great improvisation arround the melody !!!
@comradeplatinumacd829
He was first and foremost, a top-tier piano player. Same story as George Benson, as in people heard hm sing and said, oh you've got to do this -- you'll make a mint . . . And his voice was wonderful, too. But he's right up there with Tatum, and Earl Fatha Hines, only a more laid-back West Coast sound . . .