Cole was exposed to the greats of jazz, soul and blues at an early age and began performing at the age of 11. Her debut album in 1975, Inseparable, won her immediate praise, with the smash single This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) (#1 R&B, #6 Pop) winning her a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female, a category that had been monopolized by Aretha Franklin, since its inception in 1967. She also was named the Grammys' Best New Artist of 1975. She attended the Northfield Mount Hermon School in Northfield, MA.
More hits followed through 1980, including her biggest Pop hit, 1977's I've Got Love On My Mind, as well as Sophisticated Lady (She's A Different Lady) (1976), Our Love (1978), and Someone That I Used To Love (1980). "I've Got Love On My Mind" and "Our Love" both earned certifications as Gold singles. But then her career hit a snag in the early 1980s due to a severe drug problem. By 1985, Natalie was clean, sober, and in fine voice, and ready to begin her comeback in earnest with the album Dangerous, released on the Modern label.
In 1987, she released Everlasting (on EMI Manhattan) which sold over 2 million copies in the U.S., and won Cole a Soul Train Award for Female Single of the Year for the #1 R&B ballad I Live for Your Love. This album was the one that put Natalie Cole firmly back in the spotlight, yielding three major hit singles: Jump Start, "I Live For Your Love" (#2 AC and #13 Pop as well as #1 R&B), and a successful remake of Bruce Springsteen's Pink Cadillac (#5 Pop, #16 AC, and #1 Dance). The album also included a taste of things to come in her career with a remake of one of her father's signature hits, "When I Fall In Love," which did moderately well on the AC chart. In 1989, the aptly-titled Good To Be Back gave her another across-the-board smash with "Miss You Like Crazy" (#1 both R&B and AC, and #7 Pop).
However, it was her 1991 album, Unforgettable... with Love, featuring her own arrangements of her father's greatest hits, that gave her the most success. Ironically, when Natalie began her career, she was determined not to capitalize on her father's name and wanted to forge her own identity by going after the soul market in earnest. For many years, she also found the prospect of recording her late father's songs too painful on a personal level. But Unforgettable... With Love certainly paid off. The set sold over 5 million copies in the United States alone, and won Cole several Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance. The album featured a duet, the title track, with her father, created by splicing a recording of his vocals into the track. As a single, it reached #14 on Billboard Magazine's Hot 100 chart, and went gold. The one sour spot in the album's success was that it strained Natalie's already-tumultuous relationship with her mother, Maria, who said in interviews at the time that she couldn't listen to the album or attend any of her daughter's concerts because she felt that the music really belonged to her late husband.
Natalie has released several more albums of pop standards in the years since; as a result of appealing to the "adult standards" audience, she has made only occasional forays onto the pop singles charts in that time (for example, "A Smile Like Yours," #8 AC and #84 Pop in 1997), although her albums still sell well. Her 1999 album Snowfall On The Sahara marked a return to the easy adult-contemporary soul that categorized her late-1980s hits, but for 2002's critically-praised Ask A Woman Who Knows, she turned more to the jazz side of the spectrum, covering songs made famous by Dinah Washington, Nina Simone, and Sarah Vaughan.
Battle With Drugs
In 2000, Cole released an autobiography, Angel on my Shoulder, which described her battle with drugs during much of her life. In the book, Cole admitted to using LSD, heroin and crack cocaine. Cole said she began experimenting with drugs while attending the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and was arrested in Toronto, Canada for possession of heroin in 1975. Cole continued to spiral out of control - including an incident in which her young son Robert nearly drowned in the family swimming pool while she and her first husband, the late Reverend Marvin Yancy were on a drug binge - until she entered rehab in 1983.
In concert with the release of the book, her autobiography was turned into a made-for-TV movie, The Natalie Cole Story, which aired December 10, 2000 on NBC.
Natalie has been married three times and has a son Robert Yancy (by Marvin Yancy), born in 1977. She later married former Rufus drummer Andre Fischer, who co-produced the Grammy Award-winning Unforgettable... With Love, Natalie's love offering featuring songs made famous by her father, including a faux-duet between her and her father.
The marriage to Fischer ended in divorce a few years later, amidst rumors of domestic verbal and physical abuse.
It has also been reported that Natalie has recovered from a life-threatening hepatitis illness (most likely the cause of her years of drug abuse) by having a liver transplant.
Miss Cole went on to release more albums after Unforgettable...With Love, with most of them featuring jazz-oriented standard songs or pop-song remakes. None of the albums were nearly as successful as Unforgettable...With Love.
As of 2013, Natalie Cole spent most of her professional time covering the concert circuit entertaining audiences around the world with her hits.
On December 31, 2015, Natalie Cole died from congestive heart failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. She was aged 65.
Love Is On The Way
Natalie Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're the only one who knew why I was leaving
And you're the one who kept right on believing
I felt that I needed space to make it
I put a strain on love, I hope I didn't break it
But it's been so long
Now I'm coming home
(Love is on the way)
I'm comin' home baby (love), 'cause I just can't stay away
(Love is on the way)
Ooh, I can hardly wait to see your face and kiss ya
And once I'm in your arms, you'll know how much
I've missed you, baby
All the lonely nights I longed to have you near me
Calling out your name, hoping you would hear me
But it's been so long
Now I'm comin' home
(Love) hey, honey
I've been thinkin' 'bout our love all day
(Love is on the way)
I'm comin' home, honey (love),ooh
'Cause I just can't stay away
(Love is on the way)
Oh (ooh), oh (ooh)
Hey, babe, If the love's still there the feeling won't be lost
Sure would like to pick up right where we left off
I'm gonna pack my bags and catch me an early flight
Love is on my mind, so I'll be home tonight
(Love) Yeah, baby, hoo,oh (love is on the way)
Love is on the way (love)
Hoo, hoo, yeah (love is on the way)
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
(Love is on the way, yeah, love is on the way, love is)
Love is on the way, yeah,
Love is on the way, ooh, baby
(love is on the way) oh, honey (yeah, love is on the way)
I've been thinking 'bout our love all day (love is)
Love (Love), oh, ooh, ooh, yeah (love is on the way)
(Love) My love is on the way (love is on the way)
Yes it is, I'm coming home, (love is on the way) baby
(Yeah, love is on the way) I'm coming home, honey
In Natalie Cole's song Love Is on the Way, the singer is someone who has been away from their partner for a long time due to needing space. In the song, they are finally coming home to their partner, and they express how much they have missed them. The singer hopes that their love is still strong and that they can pick up right where they left off. They also mention how they have been thinking about their love all day, emphasizing the strength of their feelings.
The lyrics of this song are about the power of love to bring people back together after a period of separation. The singer acknowledges the strain that their need for space put on their relationship, but they also express hope that their love has not been broken beyond repair. The repeated refrain of "love is on the way" conveys a sense of anticipation and excitement about the reunion that is about to take place.
Overall, the song is a celebration of the enduring power of love and the importance of staying connected to the people we care about, even when life takes us in different directions.
Line by Line Meaning
You're the only one who knew why I was leaving
You were the only one who understood my reason to leave
And you're the one who kept right on believing
Despite my departure, you still held on to your belief in our love
I felt that I needed space to make it
I thought that I needed distance and time to handle my problems
I put a strain on love, I hope I didn't break it
My actions had consequences on our relationship, but I hope it didn't ruin our love
Now I'm coming home
I'm returning to you after being gone for a while
(Love) oh honey, I've been thinkin' 'bout our love all day
My thoughts have been consumed with our love throughout the day
(Love is on the way)
Love is coming back into our lives
I'm comin' home baby (love), 'cause I just can't stay away
I'm returning to you because I can't resist my love for you
Ooh, I can hardly wait to see your face and kiss ya
I'm eagerly anticipating seeing you again and being close to you
And once I'm in your arms, you'll know how much I've missed you, baby
Being in your embrace will demonstrate how much I longed for you
All the lonely nights I longed to have you near me
During my absence, I yearned for the nights where you were by my side
Calling out your name, hoping you would hear me
I wished for you, hoping that you could hear me calling in my solitude
Hey, babe, If the love's still there the feeling won't be lost
If our love endures, then our connection remains unbroken
Sure would like to pick up right where we left off
I want to resume our relationship from where we last paused without missing a beat
I'm gonna pack my bags and catch me an early flight
I'm getting ready to return to you quickly
Love is on my mind, so I'll be home tonight
My love for you compels me to come back to you tonight
(Love) Yeah, baby, hoo,oh (love is on the way)
My love for you is strong and it's coming back to us
Love is on the way (love) Hoo, hoo, yeah (love is on the way)
Our love is returning, and it's a cause for celebration
(Love is on the way, yeah, love is on the way, love is)
Love is almost here, and it's worth repeating that fact
Love is on the way, yeah, love is on the way, ooh, baby
Our love is returning, and it's exciting
(love is on the way) oh, honey (yeah, love is on the way)
Our love is coming and it's sweet
I've been thinking 'bout our love all day (love is)
I've been pondering on our love for the whole day
Love (Love), oh, ooh, ooh, yeah (love is on the way)
Our love is special and it's coming back
(Love) My love is on the way (love is on the way)
My love for you is returning and nothing can stop it
Yes it is, I'm coming home, (love is on the way) baby (Yeah, love is on the way)
I'll be home with my love soon, and you better believe it
I'm coming home, honey
I'm finally coming back to you, my love
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: EDWARD COLE, KEVIN CRAIGHEAD, MICHAEL CRAIGHEAD, NATALIE COLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
bryan jones
Such a great song writer. Her voice was in excellent condition after the recovery from rehab thank God. Very beautiful song
Michael Re
This song was the "B" side to "Dangerous" in 1985. Very nicely done!
Le'ron morton
Woke up singing this gem of a song from my favorite female singer of all time Natalie Cole 🤗👍👍🤗 I miss you my Queen 😥😥 ....R.I.P. Sweetie 🙏🙏
Le'ron morton
REST WELL ANGEL 🙏🙏 MISSING YOU QUEEN NATALIE COLE 😥😥 THANK YOU FOR THE GREAT MUSIC 👍👍🤗🤗
Mariano Baldini
NATALIE COLE. LOVE IS ON THE WAY
LOVE IT. AMAZING IN MUSIC 😍 ❤ ❤ 👋 👋 🙋 🌸🌸🌸💞💕🌷🌷💋❤
Incognito 123
Nice songgg🙌🏽never heard before
sgt capes
GOOD job 👍👏👌... Now come with it Nat cole....
sharron taylor
❤️❤️❤️❤️