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.
Pick Yourself Up
Natalie Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dust yourself off and start all over again.
Nothings impossible I have found
For when my chin is on the ground
I pick myself up, dust myself off and start all over again
Don't lose your confidence if you slip
Be grateful for a pleasant trip
Just pick yourself up and dust yourself off
Work like a soul inspired till the battle of the day is won
You may be sick and tired, but you'll be a man my son.
Will you remember the famous men
Who had to fall to rise again
So take a deep breath, pick yourself up
Dust yourself off and start all over again
Don't lose your confidence if you slip
Be grateful for a pleasant trip
Just pick yourself up dust yourself off
And try to start all over again.
You gotta work like a soul inspired till the battle of the day is won
You may be sick and tired, but you're gonna be a man my son.
Will you remember the famous men
Who had to fall to rise again
So take a deep breath, pick yourself up
Dust yourself off and have a nice trip
And start all over again!
The lyrics of "Pick Yourself Up" by Natalie Cole are an uplifting anthem that promote resilience, perseverance, and the importance of dusting yourself off and starting over again. The song encourages listeners to not lose their confidence no matter how many times they slip, but to pick themselves up and try again. The lyrics are directed towards someone who may be feeling defeated and in need of motivation to keep going.
The song begins with the directive to "take a deep breath" and to "dust yourself off" in order to start again. The lyrics suggest that nothing is impossible and that even when things seem tough, one can stand up and try again. The second stanza of the song suggests that hard work and determination are necessary to win the battle of the day. Even when someone is sick and tired, they can still push forward and become stronger.
The song also references "famous men who had to fall to rise again," suggesting that failure is not the end but rather an opportunity to learn and grow. The lyrics encourage listeners to have a positive outlook and to be grateful for the pleasant moments while also recognizing that setbacks and challenges are part of the journey.
Overall, "Pick Yourself Up" is a song about resilience, positivity, and perseverance, encouraging listeners to keep pushing forward and to never give up on their dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
Pick yourself up, take a deep breath
Get up and start again, take a moment to collect yourself
Dust yourself off and start all over again.
Move on from your mistakes and try again
Nothings impossible I have found
Anything is possible with effort and determination
For when my chin is on the ground
In times of defeat or despair
Don't lose your confidence if you slip
Stay confident despite setbacks
Be grateful for a pleasant trip
Be thankful for the good times and experiences
Just pick yourself up and dust yourself off
Keep going and persevere through difficulties
Start all over again.
Begin anew and keep trying
Work like a soul inspired till the battle of the day is won
Work hard and passionately until you achieve your goals
You may be sick and tired, but you'll be a man my son.
You may feel exhausted, but persevere and you will become strong
Will you remember the famous men
Think about the successful people
Who had to fall to rise again
Who overcame challenges and came out stronger
And try to start all over again.
Keep trying and don't give up
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind