Nat King Cole is best known as a jazz singer. But his talents were not limited to this, since he was also a talented pianist. The birthplace of the great jazz musician is America.
The full name of the musician is Nathaniel Adams Coles. His date of birth is March 17, 1917. The future famous vocalist was born in Montgomery, but in 1921 his family moved to Chicago. His father, Edwards Coles, was a pastor and it was he who taught his son to play the organ. This instrument was fully mastered by young men by the age of 12. Nathaniel's mother was the leader of the church choir where he sang.
First performances
His first group Nat King Cole (this is how the future famous musician began to call himself) called "The Rogues of Rhythm". It also included his younger brother. This big band did not last long. Very soon, Nat Cole organized his trio, which was later destined to become famous. Its composition was constantly changing, but the ensemble gained fame in the following composition: Cole, Moore, Miller. All the musicians of this group were outstanding improvisers. They were breaking jazz standards, giving innovative forms to this direction.
At one of the concerts, a fan called Cole king. Since then, they began to call him the King of Jazz. In 1944, the musician's next disc was released, it was called "Straighten Up and Fly Right". This recording was very successful and became one of the best works of the musician. Since its release, Nat King Cole has come to be regarded as one of the finest jazz musicians.
Trio breakup
Cole became more and more popular. Fans saw him primarily as a vocalist, although he could improvise flawlessly on the piano. Gradually, Nat King Cole began to distinguish himself from the trio he had created. The musician performed solo more and more often. He recorded his next album "Christmas Song" without the participation of the musicians of his ensemble. This event is considered to be the beginning of his solo career. Now the trio has completely disbanded.
King Cole moves permanently to Los Angeles. After that, his relationship with his first wife, Nadine, somehow went wrong. The musician does not live alone for a long time, and a year later he will marry Mary Ellington. By the way, she was not related to the famous jazz musician Duke Ellington, but she was one of the soloists of his orchestra.
Nat had three children with Maria. One of them - Natalie, like her father, became a jazz musician, she performed vocal parts, but she did not have such success as her father.
Legend
Cole released many hits, he was a huge success, but his life ended sadly. The mesmerizing timbre that his voice had was due not only to innate qualities, but also to smoking. The musician smoked a lot, which eventually led to cancer of the larynx. He believed all his life that smoking contributes to maintaining the characteristic hoarseness in his voice, so necessary for a jazz vocalist, but cigarettes killed him.
Nat King Cole has made an invaluable contribution to the development of jazz music. His relaxed singing style has spawned a whole slew of imitators. In 2000, the name of the jazzman was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His work had a serious impact on the development of this genre.
