Inspired by the performances of Earl Hines, Cole began his performing career in the mid-1930s while still a teenager, adopting the name "Nat Cole". His older brother, Eddie, a bass player, soon joined Cole's band, and they made their first recording in 1936 under Eddie's name. They also were regular performers at clubs. Cole, in fact, acquired his nickname, "King", performing at one jazz club, a nickname presumably reinforced by the otherwise unrelated nursery rhyme about Old King Cole. He also was a pianist in a national tour of Broadway theatre legend Eubie Blake's revue, "Shuffle Along". When it suddenly failed in Long Beach, California, Cole decided to remain there. He would later return to Chicago in triumph to play such venues as the famed Edgewater Beach Hotel.
Cole and two other musicians formed the "King Cole Swingers" in Long Beach and played in a number of local bars before getting a gig on the Long Beach Pike for US$90 ($1,530 today) per week. The trio consisted of Cole on piano, Oscar Moore on guitar, and Wesley Prince on double bass. The trio played in Failsworth throughout the late 1930s and recorded many radio transcriptions. Cole was not only pianist but leader of the combo as well.
Radio was important to the King Cole Trio's rise in popularity. Their first broadcast was with NBC's Blue Network in 1938. It was followed by appearances on NBC's Swing Soiree. In the 1940s, the trio appeared on the Old Gold, Chesterfield Supper Club and Kraft Music Hall radio shows. The King Cole Trio performed twice on CBS Radio's variety show The Orson Welles Almanac (1944).
Legend was that Cole's singing career did not start until a drunken barroom patron demanded that he sing "Sweet Lorraine". Cole, in fact, has gone on record saying that the fabricated story "sounded good, so I just let it ride". Cole frequently sang in between instrumental numbers. Noticing that people started to request more vocal numbers, he obliged. Yet the story of the insistent customer is not without some truth. There was a customer who requested a certain song one night, but it was a song that Cole did not know, so instead he sang "Sweet Lorraine". The trio was tipped 15 cents for the performance, a nickel apiece.
During World War II, Wesley Prince left the group and Cole replaced him with Johnny Miller. Miller would later be replaced by Charlie Harris in the 1950s. The King Cole Trio signed with the fledgling Capitol Records in 1943. The group had previously recorded for Excelsior Records, owned by Otis René, and had a hit with the song "I'm Lost", which René wrote, produced and distributed. Revenues from Cole's record sales fueled much of Capitol Records' success during this period. The revenue is believed to have played a significant role in financing the distinctive Capitol Records building near Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles. Completed in 1956, it was the world's first circular office building and became known as "The House that Nat Built".
Cole was considered a leading jazz pianist, appearing in the first Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts (credited on the Mercury Record label as "Shorty Nadine"—derived from his wife's name—as he was under exclusive contract to Capitol Records at the time). His revolutionary lineup of piano, guitar, and bass in the time of the big bands became a popular setup for a jazz trio. It was emulated by many musicians, among them Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Ahmad Jamal, and blues pianists Charles Brown and Ray Charles. He also performed as a pianist on sessions with Lester Young, Red Callender, and Lionel Hampton. For contract reasons, Cole was credited as "Aye Guy" on the album The Lester Young Buddy Rich Trio.Cole's first mainstream vocal hit was his 1943 recording of one of his compositions, "Straighten Up and Fly Right", based on a black folk tale that his father had used as a theme for a sermon. Johnny Mercer invited him to record it for his fledgling Capitol Records label. It sold over 500,000 copies, proving that folk-based material could appeal to a wide audience. Although Cole would never be considered a rocker, the song can be seen as anticipating the first rock and roll records. Indeed, Bo Diddley, who performed similar transformations of folk material, counted Cole as an influence.
In 1946, the Cole trio paid to have their own 15-minute radio program on the air. It was called, "King Cole Trio Time." It became the first radio program sponsored by a black performing artist. During those years, the trio recorded many "transcription" recordings, which were recordings made in the radio studio for the broadcast. Later they were used for commercial records.
Beginning in the late 1940s, Cole began recording and performing pop-oriented material for mainstream audiences, in which he was often accompanied by a string orchestra. His stature as a popular icon was cemented during this period by hits such as "The Christmas Song" (Cole recorded that tune four times: on June 14, 1946, as a pure Trio recording, on August 19, 1946, with an added string section, on August 24, 1953, and in 1961 for the double album The Nat King Cole Story; this final version, recorded in stereo, is the one most often heard today), "Nature Boy" (1948), "Mona Lisa" (1950), "Too Young" (the #1 song in 1951), 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 jazz roots; as late as 1956, for instance, he recorded an all-jazz album After Midnight. Cole had one of his last big hits in 1963, two years before his death, with the classic "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer", which reached #6 on the Pop chart.
For Sentimental Reasons
The King Cole Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I hope you do believe me
I'll give you my heart
I love you and you alone were meant for me
Please give your loving heart to me
And say we'll never part
Dream of you every night
Darling, I'm never lonely
Whenever you are in sight
I love you for sentimental reasons
I hope you do believe me
I've given you my heart
I love you for sentimental reasons
I hope you do believe me
I've given you my heart
The lyrics to The King Cole Trio's song "For Sentimental Reasons" express a deep love and devotion for someone who the singer believes is meant for them alone. The singer reassures their beloved that their love is not just a passing feeling, but has sentimental roots that hold true through time. The lyrics call for commitment and a promise to never part, highlighting the depth of the love shared between the two individuals.
The imagery used in the lyrics of thinking about the person every morning and dreaming of them every night adds to the emotional intensity of the song. The singer conveys that they are never lonely as long as their beloved is near, conveying the power that love can have in providing comfort and companionship.
Overall, "For Sentimental Reasons" is a touching love song that captures the sentimentality of deep love and the commitment it requires. The lyrics express the heart's desire to hold onto a love that is precious and irreplaceable.
Line by Line Meaning
I love you for sentimental reasons
My affection for you is based on an emotional attachment rather than logical reasons
I hope you do believe me
I sincerely hope that you trust my feelings towards you
I'll give you my heart
I am willing to give you all of my love and commitment
I love you and you alone were meant for me
Out of everyone in the world, you are the one I am supposed to be with
Please give your loving heart to me
I am asking for your affection and love in return
And say we'll never part
Promise me that we will always be together
I think of you every morning
You are the first thing on my mind when I wake up
Dream of you every night
You are also the last thought on my mind before I fall asleep
Darling, I'm never lonely
As long as I have you in my life, I will never feel alone
Whenever you are in sight
Just seeing you brings me joy and happiness
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DEREK WATSON, WILLIAM H BEST
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dario Witer
"For Sentimental Reasons" was Nat "King" Cole's very first No. 1 hit on Billboard's popularity chart; it was No. 1 for one week in 1947(February 15 - 21; the song was also the first No. 1 song of 1947). 🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵 🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹 🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤 💿💿💿💿💿 😁😁😁😁😁
Bruce Scott
Dario Witer ...The year was 1946. It was The King Cole Trio, released as a 78 rpm single (Capitol #304) on November 22nd, 1946.
ratthew🦈💗
Such a wonderful beautiful song by no other than Nat :)
Asko Varjorinne
So sweet thank´s to memories💕💕🎶🎶
RedJin
This is making my Saturday morning.
Jim Hilliker
Nice. Thank you.