03.15.10
This Wednesday, March 17, NAT KING COLE turns 91
This coming Wednesday, March 17, NAT KING COLE turns 91. Using the present tense is absolutely fitting. Today, at every hour, radio stations around the world continue to broadcast his timeless music. He is, indeed, still very much with us. He still stands out from the rest, and he stands alone. Comparing anyone to Nat Cole is simply impossible.
His career comprised two major areas of activity. From 1936 to 1948 he was an extraordinary jazz pianist, centering a great trio with a fresh sound, and his own distinctive style. A thorough craftsman, his playing was to cause a sense of wonderment amongst other pianists. His work has influenced such pianists as Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, Ahmad Jamal, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, etc. His musical talents remain untouched and undimmed by the passing of time.
From 1948 until his death on February 15, 1965, he was a singer, soloing as a husky-smooth baritone, backed by all manner of accompaniments. In his brief lifetime, he had two major careers. He excelled and remained at the top of both of them. No one else in the music business has ever matched this dual achievement. No one.
His accomplishments in these two fields are important for their excellence and exceptional taste. Many of his peers revere his work as a high standard by which to learn and measure themselves.
Fortunately, he bequeathed us an abundance of recordings that allows us to hear of him what we wish, when we wish. One thing of which I'm certain, is how blessed we are to have had him among us, albeit too briefly. He was kind. He was gifted. He was thoughtful. He was gracious. He was disciplined. He was elegant. He was giving. He was aware. He was real. He was my dear friend. He was Nat Cole.
Happy Birthday, Nathaniel.
Dick
12.04.09
Nat King Cole: The Christmas Song -- In Stores Now!
Nat
King Cole: The Christmas Song (CD, digital)
Nat King
Cole’s classic holiday album is redecorated with new cover art and a sleek
tracklist. “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)” is the most played holiday
song on U.S. radio, according to a poll conducted by ASCAP and Mediaguide.
1. Nat’s Christmas Wishes (spoken word) 2. The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) 3. Deck The Halls 4. O Come All Ye Faithful 5. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen 6. O Tannenbaum 7. O Little Town Of Bethlehem 8. I Saw Three Ships 9. O Holy Night 10. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing 11. A Cradle In Bethlehem 12. Away In A Manger 13. Joy To The World 14. The First Noel 15. Caroling, Caroling 16. Silent Night
BONUS TRACKS
17. Buon Natale (Means Merry Christmas To You) [with Anthony Hamilton] 18. All I Want For Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth) 19. The Happiest Christmas Tree 20. The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) [with Natalie Cole]
This coming Tuesday, March 17, NAT KING COLE turns 90! Using the present tense is absolutely fitting. Today, at every hour, cable, the internet, and radio stations around the world continue to play his timeless music. He is, indeed, still very much with us. He still stands out from the rest, and he stands alone. Comparing anyone to Nat Cole is simply impossible.
His career comprised two major areas of activity. From 1936 to 1948 he was an extraordinary jazz pianist, centering a great trio with a fresh sound and his own distinctive style. A thorough craftsman, his playing was to cause a sense of wonderment amongst other pianists. His work has influenced pianists such as Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, Ahmad Jamal, Horace Silver, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, etc. His musical talents remain untouched and undimmed by the passing of time.
From 1948 until his death on February 15, 1965, he was a singer, soloing as a husky-smooth baritone, backed by all manner of accompaniments. In his brief lifetime, he had two major careers. He excelled and remained at the top of both of them. No one else in the music business has ever matched this dual achievement. No one.
His accomplishments in these two fields are important for their excellence and exceptional taste. Many of his peers revere his work as a high standard by which to learn and measure themselves.
Fortunately, he bequeathed us an abundance of recordings that allows us to hear of him what we wish, when we wish. One thing of which I'm certain is how blessed we are to have had him among us, albeit too briefly. He was kind. He was gifted. He was thoughtful. He was giving. He was disciplined. He was gracious. He was tuned-in. He had an easy smile, and a devilish grin. He was talented. He was caring. He was professional. He was real. He was my dear friend. He was Nat Cole.
Happy Birthday, Nathaniel.
Dick LaPalm
02.18.09
Nat King Cole: “Voices Of Change, Then & Now” digital EP -- Available Now
CAPITOL/EMI RELEASES NAT KING COLE “VOICES OF CHANGE, THEN & NOW” DIGITAL EP VIA ALL MAJOR DIGITAL SERVICE PROVIDERS
Inspiring 3-Track EP Celebrates a New Era of Hope and Black History Month
Hollywood, California – February 10, 2009 – As the United States welcomes President Barack Obama to the White House and Black History Month begins, Capitol/EMI is proud to present a musical salute to universal hope and progress. A new digital EP of songs by the incomparable and unforgettable Nat King Cole, titled “Voices Of Change, Then & Now,” features “At Last,” “We Are Americans Too” and “Pick Yourself Up” with excerpts from President Obama’s Inaugural Address as introductions. Starting today, “Voices Of Change, Then & Now” is available for DRM-free purchase from all major digital service providers.
“We Are Americans Too,” recorded by Cole in May, 1956, one month after he was assaulted onstage in Birmingham, Alabama by three white supremacists, is a call for recognition, mutual respect and human kindness. On “Voices Of Change, Then & Now,” an excerpt from President Obama’s momentous Inaugural Address introduces the song.
The label declined to release “We Are Americans Too,” a striking departure from Cole’s well-loved ballads, when it was recorded. That same year, Cole became the first African American host of a national television program (NBC’s “The Nat King Cole Show”). With quiet resolve and sheer perseverance throughout his life, Cole broke through and broke down numerous color barriers in his determination to further civil rights for all marginalized Americans.
Somewhere out there in the parade Loudly, proudly and undismayed We’ll be singing this song many millions strong We are Americans, loyal Americans We are Americans too.
Says Carole Cole, Nat King Cole’s daughter and CEO of King Cole Partners & Productions, “Eubie Blake and Andy Razaf wrote ‘We Are Americans Too’ in 1940. Dad recorded it 1956. In the words of writer Will Friedwald, this song ‘was a rarity in the pre-war period: an anthem of African American pride that would sing the accomplishments of the 'race' in a ‘God Bless America’-like fashion. Previously, there had been protest songs delineating the African American condition... but there was never anything like ‘We Are Americans Too’.”
During these challenging times, “Pick Yourself Up” is a song brimming with optimism that inspires the willpower to change. This tune is also introduced by an uncanny excerpt from President Obama’s Inaugural Address, in which the President advises all Americans by saying, “Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.” Remarkably, this is the exact sentiment conveyed in Cole’s song.
“At Last,” recorded by Nat King Cole in 1957, four years before Etta James made the song a signature classic of her own, is a stirring and romantic vocal stunner. Television viewers around the world watched President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dance at several Inaugural balls on January 20, 2009, accompanied by various renditions of “At Last.”
Nat King Cole: “Voices Of Change, Then & Now” digital EP 1. “We Are Americans Too” (with introduction excerpt from President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address) 2. “Pick Yourself Up” (with introduction excerpt from President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address) 3. “At Last”
02.18.09
RE:GENERATIONS EP now available on iTunes!
Featuring 4 songs from the upcoming release, RE:GENERATIONS. Available on CD, Vinyl and digitally now.
Lush Life (Produced By Cee-Lo Green) Brazilian Love Song (Produced By Michaelangelo L'Acqua) Day In, Day Out (Produced By Cut Chemist) Anytime, Anyday, Anywhere (Produced By Amp Fiddler)
Two Grammy winners that contrubuted to Nat King Cole's upcoming release: RE:REGENERATIONS
Natalie Cole Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: Still Unforgettable will.i.am Best Urban/Alternative Performance: "Be OK"
12.12.08
RE:GENERATIONS Grammy Nominations!
Congratulations to Natalie Cole
and all the Grammy Nominees that contrubuted to Nat King Cole's upcoming release: RE:REGENERATIONS
Natalie Cole
Traditional Pop Vocal Album: Still Unforgettable
will.i.am
Song of the Year: "American Boy"
Producer of the Year
Urban/Alternative Performance: "Be OK"
Cee-Lo
Pop Performance by Duo or Group w/ Vocals: "Going On"
Alternative Music Album: The Odd Couple
Short Form Music Video: "Who's Gonna Save My Soul"
Producer Of The Year: The Odd Couple
Nas
Rap Album: Nas
Rap Solo Performance
Brazilian Girls
Electronic/Dance Album: New York City
11.20.08
New Nat King Cole Project 'RE:GENERATIONS' Announced!
‘RE:GENERATIONS’ LINKS TOP HIP-HOP, POP, LATIN, REGGAE AND ROCK ARTISTS WITH THE GENIUS OF NAT KING COLE
‘RE:GENERATIONS’ Crew Includes The Roots, Cee-Lo, will.i.am and Natalie Cole, Brazilian Girls, Cut Chemist, Just Blaze, TV On The Radio and Many Others
Capitol/EMI to Release CD, Digital Album and Vinyl on March 10, 2009
Campaign Launched with Mural Art Project on Capitol’s Historic Hollywood Lot
Hollywood, California – November 20, 2008 – During the past several months, Nat King Cole has virtually been in the studio and on the MIC with some of the most talented Hip-hop, Latin, Reggae and Rock artists and producers of the day. Capitol/EMI and King Cole Partners & Productions (www.natkingcole.com) are proud to announce the March 10, 2009 CD, digital album and vinyl release of an inspired new recording entitled RE:GENERATIONS. This landmark recording with a cosmopolitan flavor celebrates Cole’s musical and cultural contributions as reinterpreted by some of this generation’s most creative artists.
RE:GENERATIONS aims to construct a tuneful bridge between generations, cultures and races. Evocative of a sleek and stylish metrolounge where music and the visual arts converge, RE:GENERATIONS honors Nat King Cole’s continued cultural influence around the planet, 90 years after his birth.
Executive Produced by Carole Cole and Michaelangelo L’Acqua, the album contains the manifold talents of Cee-Lo, The Roots, will.i.am with Natalie Cole, Cut Chemist, Just Blaze, Nas with Salaam Remi, Souldiggaz with Izza Kizza, Michaelangelo L’Acqua with Bebel Gilberto, Stephen and Damian Marley, Bitter:Sweet, Brazilian Girls, Amp Fiddler and TV On The Radio. RE:GENERATIONS is as much a colorful and culturally-diverse soundscape as it is a 21st Century journey in the lexicon of Nat King Cole’s catalog.
In an altogether modern and collaborative approach, many of the world’s most pioneering musicians, producers and DJs have joined together to bring each of their distinct styles to 13 of Cole’s outstanding recordings for RE:GENERATIONS. Also, several respected Los Angeles visual artists have drawn inspiration from Cole’s music, style and cultural influence to create custom artwork for the release.
Says Carole Cole, Nat King Cole’s daughter and CEO of King Cole Partners & Productions, “As the curators of our father’s music, image and likeness, my sisters and I strive to keep Dad in the mix and as innovative as he was back in the day. With RE:GENERATIONS, we want to musically and visually bridge the so-called generation gap and hopefully create mutual admiration and respect between teens, parents and grands of every culture. Who knows? This project may be a cool catalyst that inspires a new kind of dialogue between the generations. We have no doubts that if Nat were here today, he would embrace all of the artists on this record as well as the ones we were unable to get next to. He would want to produce them and encourage them to leave their own indelible mark on the cultural landscape. And as a bona fide music lover, Dad would buy their music and be a loyal fan.”
“As I reflect on the last two years of my life and how RE:GENERATIONS came to be, I can only draw the conclusion that there is a bigger hand at work that brought me to this point in time,” says RE:GENERATIONS Co-Executive Producer, Michaelangelo L’Acqua. “To say that I’ve created a record would be an understatement. This project was like having a child teaching me unconditional love, devotion and patience that has transformed me forever. Walking alongside Nat King Cole, one of my greatest idols, has inspired me to believe that there are no walls too high to climb and no goals too bright to achieve. This project has allowed me to once again see why I devoted my life to music. For the love it gives me, for the expression I can offer to the world and for the happiness it can bring to those that hear it. It’s these truths that I take forth in my life -- never to forget them again. These truths will be my song and I will be a richer man in life. Thank you, Nat.”
Says Natalie Cole, “I just love, love, love the mix that will.i.am put on ‘Straighten Up and Fly Right.’ It's so very cool and Dad would get quite the kick from this. What a great feeling it was to have worked with both will and Dad at the same time! It doesn't get much better and this entire album is so amazing.”
To launch RE:GENERATIONS, Capitol/EMI has commissioned an original Cole-inspired mural by the gifted international muralist/graffiti artist, Man One, for Capitol’s historic Hollywood lot. Assisted by two students from The HeArt Project, a local mentoring program (www.theheartproject.org), Man One completed the impressive mural this week which powerfully depicts Nat King Cole as a ubiquitous force who transcends the ages.
"Creating artwork for this project, RE:GENERATIONS, is quite an honor,” says Man One. “I'm flattered to have been selected as one of the artists to give visual life to this new album. Nat King Cole was not only a great musician, but a true role model who challenged the system and fought for what was right and just. How fitting that this album drops precisely at the moment when our country has voted an African American man into office. If it weren’t for men like Nat King Cole, this dream may have never become a reality. I hope my artwork does justice to the music of this man as interpreted by some of today's hottest musicians in this project."
Original Cole-inspired visual artworks have also been created for the unique package design. Man One, Ritzy Periwinkle, and Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca expand the audio concept of RE:GENERATIONS into a vibrant galaxy of new images that engage the senses. Sage, a collage artist and the eldest of Cole’s six grandsons, generated the imaginative cover image for the project, which, along with the involvement of other members of the Cole Family, further extends the significance of RE:GENERATIONS.
Visual artist and writer Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca says, "As I began to digitally re-visualize classic photographs of Nat while listening to the regenerated music by the various artists on the album, it became clearer to me that Nat's essence shines through all of our musical and visual works - his essence of tranquility, equality, humor, humility and joy."
“It was truly an honor to be invited to share in the King Cole legacy,” say TV On The Radio. “His presence in music is so ubiquitous at this point that we almost take it for granted. Nat King Cole has become such an integral part of the American music fabric it is difficult to imagine a time when such classic songs and such a classic voice did not exist. We suppose that difficulty, that refusal to admit to a finite relevance to human hearts and minds is what inspires us to deem something ‘timeless’.”
“This was an amazing chance to work with such an incredible vocalist,” says Cut Chemist. “Nat King Cole's voice sounds great with any and every style of music. I’ve never had this much fun doing a remix before. It was an honor and a pleasure to work with the best.”
Says Amp Fiddler, “I thought about making a mix that would be smooth and modern at the same time, knowing how suave and cool Nat was. I had so much fun making this mix and have been a fan for years, so it is an honor for me to be involved.”
“We have so much respect and admiration for Nat King Cole and his music that we were honored when we were asked to participate in this project,” says Didi Gutman of Brazilian Girls. “The tune we chose, ‘El Choclo,’ comes from a record he did in Spanish that includes rancheras, tangos, ballads and other styles of Latin American music. I have it in my collection. I'm from Argentina and I'm a huge fan of tango music, old and new. I love his version of this classic. I find his vocals extremely charming, and his piano playing delightful.”
Says Souldiggaz, “RE:GENERATIONS portrays the mending of two great dimensions of music. It’s an example of how dope music never playz out...and it gives me a chance to do something new and different... good music inspires, the rest retires."
“As fans, we feel it’s an honor to be placed on this record with such a legend whose music is timeless,” adds Izza Kizza of his collaboration with Souldiggaz. “Nat King Cole represents the music that diggs in ya soul, which is our everyday slogan.”
RE:GENERATIONS celebrates a universal love of music, the one language that brings us all together and honors the multifaceted and pioneering legacy of Nat King Cole. This inspired congregation of audio and visual art acknowledges the timeless appeal of Cole’s catalog. From its invention to its re-invention, from each generation to the next, Cole’s music is always fresh and innovative.
“What an honor and a privilege it was for us to work with one of the greatest musicians in jazz history!,” say Bitter:Sweet. “So many of the influences in our music come directly out of that era, so it was really exciting for us to be able to look so closely into those precious and dreamy files. It's so important to find ways to introduce the younger generation to the beauty of such classics, and when we can blend the electronic sounds of a band like ours with his warm velvety vocals, horns and string lines, it really turns us on! We picked the song ‘More and More of Your Amour’ for its playfulness and romanticism. We are all about that! The most fun was being able to exchange a few notes with Nat himself. We hope he would've liked it."
For more information and to view an introduction to RE:GENERATIONS, please visit Nat King Cole’s official Website: www.natkingcole.com.
NAT KING COLE RE:GENERATIONS (CD, Digital Album, Vinyl LP) (not final track sequence)
1. LUSH LIFE produced by CEE-LO GREEN 2. STRAIGHTEN UP AND FLY RIGHT produced by will.i.am, featuring NATALIE COLE 3. DAY IN DAY OUT produced by CUT CHEMIST 4. BRAZILIAN LOVE SONG produced by MICHAELANGELO L'ACQUA, featuring BEBEL GILBERTO 5. THE GAME OF LOVE produced by SALAAM REMI, featuring NAS 6. WALKIN' MY BABY BACK HOME produced by THE ROOTS, featuring TARIQ "BLACK THOUGHT" TROTTER 7. HIT THAT JIVE JACK! produced by SOULDIGGAZ, featuring IZZA KIZZA 8. CALYPSO BLUES produced by and featuring DAMIAN "Jr. Gong" MARLEY & STEPHEN MARLEY 9. MORE & MORE OF YOUR AMOR produced by BITTER:SWEET 10. EL CHOCLO produced by BRAZILIAN GIRLS 11. PICK-UP produced by JUST BLAZE 12. ANYTIME, ANYDAY, ANYWHERE produced by AMP FIDDLER 13. NATURE BOY produced by TV ON THE RADIO
* * *
11.18.08
New Holiday Collection Available at Target!
Just in time for the Holiday season - a new Nat King Cole duet CD has been released exclusively at Target stores! The CD features classic Nat King Cole Christmas songs featuring Natalie Cole, Shelby Lynne, Anthony Hamilton, Ne-Yo, Faith Evans, Los Lonely Boys and LeToya Luckett. Visit your local Target store to make this CD the soundtrack to your Holiday season!
03.17.08
Happy Birthday Nat!
It has been said that
two of the greatest days
in a person’s life
are the day they were born
and the day they discovered
why they were born.
On this day of March 17th,
fans, friends and family joyously celebrate the birth of
