Genres: Early R&B, Urban Blues, Swing, Jump Blues, Vocal Pop, Traditional Pop, Vocal Jazz Active: 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's Born: March 17, 1919 in Montgomery, AL
Johnny Hartman, Mel Tormé, Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Johnny Mercer, Sarah Vaughan, Dick Haymes, Charles Brown, Natalie Cole, Brook Benton, Johnny Mathis, Bing Crosby, Al Hibbler, Dean Martin, Al Jarreau, Dorothy Dandridge, Bill Evans Trio, Lester Young Quartet, Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra Marvin Gaye, Brook Benton, Diana Krall, Chuck Berry, Dean Martin, Tony DeSare, Cecil Gant, Ray Charles, John Pizzarelli, Roland Prince, Bryce Rohde, Billy Taylor, David Leshare Watson, Monty Alexander, Bill Evans, Todd Rhodes, Ronnell Bright, Joe Williams, Horace Silver |  |
For a mild-mannered man whose music was always easy on the ear, Nat King Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late '40s to the mid-'60s, he was a massively successful pop singer who ranked with such contemporaries as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. He shared with those peers a career that encompassed hit records, international touring, radio and television shows, and appearances in films. But unlike them, he had not emerged from a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group. Oddly, that was one source of controversy. For some reason, there seem to be more jazz critics than fans of traditional pop among music journalists, and Cole's transition from jazz to pop during a period when jazz itself was becoming less popular was seen by them as a betrayal.
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Release: June 29, 2010
Label: Hip-O Select
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Release: October 13, 2009
Label: 100 Hit Legends
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