Before his international acclaim as a pop vocalist, Nathaniel Adams Coles b… Read Full Bio ↴Before his international acclaim as a pop vocalist, Nathaniel Adams Coles built an indelible reputation as a jazz pianist in the groundbreaking combo, The King Cole Trio. Born into a musical family, young Nat Coles (later changed to Cole) recorded with his older brother, Edward, in 1936 for the Decca label. The four sides cut by Eddie Cole’s Solid Swingers gave the general public its first glimpse of Nat’s gentle yet lively piano riffs. After touring with a revival show of Eubie Blake’s revue Shuffle Along, Cole settled in Los Angeles, playing various nightclubs as a soloist. In 1937, club owner Bob Lewis suggested that Cole assemble a small band to work at his Swanee Inn on North La Brea. The group’s unorthodox instrumentation and size - they had no drummer and, at the time, big bands were the rage - featured Wesley Prince on bass and the innovative phrasings of electric guitarist Oscar Moore. The Trio’s blend of jump blues and jazzy instrumentals with bouncy vocal stylings was a collective effort, while Cole occasionally took the lead on standard ballads. After an uneventful 1939 session for the Davis & Schwegler recording company in Hollywood, The Trio accompanied Lionel Hampton on two recording dates the following summer. Their association with Hampton helped, and that winter The Trio signed with Decca. Their 1940-41 sessions for the label yielded sixteen songs and captured the attention of fellow musicians, fans and a handful of critics. Later that fall, The Trio sounded right at home with drummer Lee Young on a four-song session for the Ammor label. In 1942, Cole recorded with Red Callender and saxophonist Lester Young for the Philo/Aladdin label, Oscar Moore with Cole at the piano.

Somewhere Along The Way
Nat King Cole Trio Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

-Artist: Nat King Cole
-peak Billboard position #8 in 1952
-Words by Sammy Gallop and Music by Kurt Adams

I used to walk with you
Along the avenue
Our hearts were carefree and gay

How could I know I'd lose you
Somewhere along the way?

The friends we used to know
Would always smile "Hello"
No love like our love they'd say
Then love slipped through our fingers
Somewhere along the way

I should forget
But with the loneliness of night I start remembering ev'rything
You're gone and yet
There's still a feeling deep inside
That you will always be part of me

So now I look for you
Along the avenue
And as I wander I pray
That some day soon I'll find you
Somewhere along the way

I should forget
But with the loneliness of night I start remembering ev'rything
You're gone and yet
There's still a feeling deep inside
That you will always be part of me

So now I look for you
Along the avenue
And as I wander I pray
That some day soon I'll find you

Somewhere along the way
Somewhere along the way

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Nat King Cole Trio's "Somewhere Along the Way" reveal a tale of love lost but not forgotten. The singer walks the avenue with the one he loves, both carefree and happy. But, as life often does, situations change, and they lose each other somewhere along the way. The friends they used to know who greeted them with smiles and praised their love story now become a stark reminder of what they once had. Despite the loss, the singer cannot forget and recalls everything in lonely nights. Although the love is gone, they remain a part of him. So, he wanders the avenue, hoping to find them once again, to reunite and continue onwards together.

The lyrics paint a picture of the all too familiar scenario of love lost. Through the simplicity of the words, the song expresses the concept of how life can change over time, and how it is possible to hold onto the past, even after we have left it behind. There is a sense of melancholy in the longing to find something lost, coupled with hope for something that could be found once again. The song is both sentimental and relatable, as everyone has gone through a loss of sorts.

Line by Line Meaning

I used to walk with you
I used to spend time with you by walking together

Along the avenue
We would walk along the street

Our hearts were carefree and gay
We were happy and carefree in our hearts

How could I know I'd lose you
I never thought I would lose you

Somewhere along the way?
At some point in time, we drifted apart

The friends we used to know
The people we used to be friends with

Would always smile 'Hello'
They would always say hello to us with a smile on their face

No love like our love they'd say
They used to say that our love was unique

Then love slipped through our fingers
Then we lost our love unexpectedly

Somewhere along the way
At some unknown point in time

I should forget
I should try to forget