Nat King Cole

Nat King Cole (read more)

2,253,716 plays scrobbled on Last.fm

Nat “King” Cole (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965) was a popular American singer and jazz musician.

As a piano player, he formed a jazz trio in 1938 that played Los Angeles nightclubs, one of the first jazz trios featuring guitar and piano. Prior to this he had played music since he was a child and had worked with bands since he was 16. He was raised in Chicago and exposed to the abundant jazz scene there. He was heavily influenced by pianist Earl “Fatha” Hines.

Later he became more popularly known as a singer and crooner and his work became more orchestrated.

His first mainstream vocal hit was in 1944 with

Straighten Up and Fly Right, based on a black folk tale that his father had used as a theme for a sermon. Although hardly a rocker, the song’s success proved that an audience for folk-based material existed. It is considered a predecessor to the first rock and roll records. Indeed, Bo Diddley, who performed similar transformations of folk material, counted Cole as an influence.

Beginning in the late 1940s, Cole began recording and performing more pop-oriented material for mainstream audiences, often accompanied by a string orchestra. His stature as a popular icon was cemented during this period with such hits as

The Christmas Song (1946),

Nature Boy (1948),

Mona Lisa (1950), 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 musical roots; as late as 1956, for instance, he recorded an all-jazz album, After Midnight. In 1991, Mosaic Records released the Complete Nat King Cole Trio Recordings on Capitol, which contained 349 songs on 27 LPs or 18 CDs.
(read more)

Edit this artist description

Listen Now

Track	Time	Listeners	Download
Add this track to your playlist The Christmas Song full track	2:05	40,964	Buy mp3
Add this track to your playlist Unforgettable full track	3:27	27,694	Buy mp3
Add this track to your playlist L-O-V-E full track	2:32	23,093	Buy mp3
Add this track to your playlist Nature Boy full track	2:54	18,667	Buy mp3

The Christmas Song

The Legendary Nat 'King' Cole

Top Tracks, Last Week

–	1	Add this track to your playlist Unforgettable full track	920
–	2	Add this track to your playlist L-O-V-E full track	784
–	3	Add this track to your playlist Nature Boy full track	557
–	4	Add this track to your playlist The Christmas Song full track	495
1	5	Add this track to your playlist When I Fall in Love full track	484
–	6	Add this track to your playlist Mona Lisa full track	479
–	7	Add this track to your playlist Smile full track	442
–	8	Add this track to your playlist Let There Be Love	342
–	9	Add this track to your playlist Stardust full track	310
3	10	Add this track to your playlist (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 full track	248
1	11	Add this track to your playlist Straighten Up and Fly Right full track	237
1	12	Add this track to your playlist Too Young full track	228
1	13	Add this track to your playlist Walkin' My Baby Back Home	224
3	14	Add this track to your playlist Aquellos Ojos Verdes	214
–	15	Add this track to your playlist Sweet Lorraine full track	190
–	16	Add this track to your playlist Autumn Leaves full track	187
3	17	Add this track to your playlist It's Only A Paper Moon full track	180
1	18	Add this track to your playlist Ramblin' Rose	177
–	18	Add this track to your playlist A Blossom Fell full track	177
1	20	Add this track to your playlist (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons	165

Number of listeners for the last week More top tracks…

Top Tracks, Last Six Months

1	1	Add this track to your playlist Unforgettable full track	11,040
1	2	Add this track to your playlist L-O-V-E full track	10,099
2	3	Add this track to your playlist The Christmas Song full track	9,527
–	4	Add this track to your playlist Nature Boy full track	7,748
–	5	Add this track to your playlist When I Fall in Love full track	7,292
–	6	Add this track to your playlist Mona Lisa full track	6,661
–	7	Add this track to your playlist Smile full track	5,200
–	8	Add this track to your playlist Let There Be Love	4,641
2	9	Add this track to your playlist Stardust full track	4,404
3	10	Add this track to your playlist Straighten Up and Fly Right full track	3,779
3	11	Add this track to your playlist (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 full track	3,407
3	12	Add this track to your playlist Too Young full track	3,271
4	13	Add this track to your playlist It's Only A Paper Moon full track	3,175
2	14	Add this track to your playlist Sweet Lorraine full track	3,082
3	15	Add this track to your playlist Aquellos Ojos Verdes	3,021
5	16	Add this track to your playlist Walkin' My Baby Back Home	2,838
3	17	Add this track to your playlist Autumn Leaves full track	2,757
6	18	Add this track to your playlist A Blossom Fell full track	2,618
4	19	Add this track to your playlist Ramblin' Rose	2,606
6	20	Add this track to your playlist (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons	2,571
11	21	Add this track to your playlist The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You) full track	2,361
8	22	Add this track to your playlist Almost Like Being in Love full track	2,268
6	23	Add this track to your playlist Let's Face the Music and Dance	2,216
7	24	Add this track to your playlist Send For Me	2,120
9	25	Add this track to your playlist On the Street Where You Live	2,055
7	26	Add this track to your playlist Orange Colored Sky	2,042
18	27	Add this track to your playlist Frosty the Snowman full track	1,994
16	28	Add this track to your playlist Deck the Halls	1,856
8	29	Add this track to your playlist Pretend	1,841
10	30

Nat King Cole

Loading…

Nat King Cole (read more)

2,253,716 plays scrobbled on Last.fm

Listen Now

Radio (show all 10)

Videos (see all 200)

Top Albums (see all)

Top Tracks, Last Week

Top Tracks, Last Six Months