Nat King Cole - Year by Year - Part 1

Thank you benjaminhuf......I am catching up on all the great posts while I wait for my NKC cds order

 

Night Lights

1. Night Lights
2. I Got Love
3. Stay
4. Mr. Juke Box
5. I Just Found Out About Love
6. Dame Crazy
7. Too Young To Go Steady
8. Love Me As Though There Were No Tomorrow
9. The Shadows
10. Believe
11. To The Ends Of The Earth
12. Never Let Me Go
13. I Promise You
14. The Way I Love You
15. Once Before
16. Make Me
17. Sometimes I Wonder
18. I Need A Plan
19. I'm Willing To Share This With You
20. The Story's Old

I loved this album, mixed bag that it is, when it first came out in the early summer of 2001. It already seems like a different era.

The title track was already a great favorite of mine. I think it's a perfect, polished gem of perfection. Nat, in this song and some others, doesn't overplay his hand, but becomes almost a buddhist, in the positive sense, reaching a nirvana of neutrality in song. He's not that sad, inho, but he's also not happy. He's got some hope, but not a lot. To me it's pretty philosophical, but also beautiful. I notice that Nat sings the grammatically correct "whom"--with the m--but the lyrics online leave that out. The whom, to me, is a verbal verson of him him elegantly and comfortably wearing his tux, naturally cool, as he sings this song, which became a big hit in 1956:


-artist: nat king cole
-peak billboard position # 11 in 1956
-words by sammy gallop and music by chester conn


Night lights, those blues-in-the-night lights
Are no longer bright lights since I'm without you
Sweet dreams, oh where did they fly to?
You're gone and who can I cry to?

Those night lights remind me of bright eyes
And beautiful white lies too good to be true
As I go on my way with all my heart I pray
That those night lights will lead me to you

<instrumental interlude>

Those night lights remind me of bright eyes
And beautiful white lies too good to be true
As I go on my way with all my heart I pray
That those night lights will lead me to you

To me this is another song like Smile, or Autumn Leaves, which says so much with so little. As you can tell, I love this song.



Here's the short review that I wrote for Night Lights for amazon.com that summer. As you can see, I was not particular enough about sound quality, and even said something nice that wasn't entirely deserved about the mastering:

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best new albums of 2001 was made in 1956!, July 29, 2001

By A Customer
Take a trip on a CD time-machine to a different era, and enjoy a "brand new" Nat King Cole album that was recorded more than 45 years ago, but which somehow never saw release. Except for a few singles that came out of these sessions, the album was buried in the Capitol Records' vaults until now. Night Lights has been expertly remastered by Bob Norberg, and the songs sound fresh in clean in their original mono format. There are also nice liner notes written by Nat King Cole expert Will Friedwald that give insight into who wrote the songs, how they were recorded, etc.

The songs themselves are a treat--lovely confections arranged by the legendary Nelson Riddle. And Nat's voice is in top form--sensuous or jaunty depending on the song. When Nat sings "Believe in what you're doing/And do what you believe in/And Life will offer love and laughter/Ever after--just believe!" you'll smile and probably get a mood boost that will last the rest of the day. About the half of the songs are jazzy, brassy, uptempo, numbers, while the other half are three minute string laden romantic epics of the kind they just don't make anymore (although I guess Diana Krall is helping them make a comeback). If you're a Nat King Cole fan, you owe it to yourself to buy this great disc which gets my vote as one of the best new albums of the year.

 

Thanks, Ben. As I say, I think that 'philosophy' is particularly true for the Ravel inspired arrangement of I've got you under my skin for Sinatra - and the many arrangements that led to - Night and Dayfor the Swingin' Affairalbum, You are my lucky star for Nelson's own Let yourself go album, When your lover has gonefor Ella, What now my lovefor Shirley Bassey and so on.

One last quotation - on the same subject - from (I think) Peter J Levinson's book about Nelson. In the course of an argument, Nelson Riddle's wife allegedly said to him "All you think about is sex and music" to which the great arranger replied "What else is there?"

I shall lower the tone no further... just the tone arm...

 

LaPalm began working with Nat in, I believe, 1950, starting out as a regional promotion man. By 1956 he was most likely much more intimately involved with Cole and his career.

I will concede that one man's memory of 50 year old events is not necessarily the last word. However, my few exchanges with Dick have found me asking him, for example, "who arranged the concert arrangement of such-and-such song?" Without missing a beat he will roll off an answer, typically one I'm not expecting. He's an extremely sharp fella. If there's a book on Nat that I'd love to read it's the one I wish he'd write.

 

Ian, as I was scrolling thru the posts of the day I was going to add the "what else is there" line. Riddle was such an austere fellow at times, but when I read quotes like that it's really a window into a very complex and brilliant musician.

 

It's magic--Keely Smith

You'll recall that a while ago apileocole changed his avatar to Keely Smith. Now it's back to NKC, but like all of us apileocole has the right to change it at any time. Anyway, Keely Smith is quite good, imho. One of my favorites that she did is a song that first got its start as a Doris Day tune, and it was a big hit for DD in 1948--It's Magic. I have the first Bear Family box for Doris Day, and I like that version a lot.

But I think I like Keely's even better. At the end of this note are some of apileocole's comments on her work.

What's interesting about Keely's version is that right in the middle of it she changes the tempo to double (triple?) time and blasts through it.

In a little bit, after giving the lyrics for this song, I'll give you apileocole's very nice notes on Keely Smith. But here's a taste that fits perfectly for this song:

apileocole writes: "Keely has power. There's some subtlety here, but it might be said that subtlety isn't Keely's forte. In fact it's been said that (in context of this later day Riddle-era classic pop) she's as hot and subtle as a branding iron..."

Yeah, baby! She brands you with this one.

This song seems like it would have been good for NKC. Or am I wrong about that? I wonder why he never did it...


It's Magic
Doris Day
Words by Sammy Cahn
Music by Jule Styne

Peaked at # 2 in 1948
Competing versions by Dick Haymes (#9); Gordon MacRae (#9); Tony Martin (#11);
Sarah Vaughn (#11); and Vic Damone (#24).
Sung by Doris in her film debut: "Romance On the High Seas", also starring Jack
Carson and Janis Paige

You sigh, the song begins, you speak and I hear violins
It's magic
The stars desert the skies and rush to nestle in your eyes
It's magic

Without a golden wand or mystic charms
Fantastic things begin when I am in your arms

When we walk hand-in-hand, the world becomes a wonderland
It's magic
How else can I explain those rainbows when there isn't rain?
It's magic

Why do I tell me myself these things that happen are all really true
When in my heart I know the magic is my love for you?

It's magic

It's magic

Why do I tell me myself these things that happen are all really true
When in my heart I know the magic is my love for you?


From apileocole:

"Nelson Riddle, Billy May and the rest of the Capitol Crew present the phenomena that's a little bit Doris Day, a little bit Chris Connors, a little bit Garland range, one part big band canary, one part balladeer, one part Cherokee, a lot June Christy, has more pipes and sultry factor than all the above and goes by the name Keely Smith.

Unfortunately she didn't get much recorded during her prime, and the best of her prime was the slice of her time spent at Capitol. Most of the attention was on her as the partner in Louis Prima's act; they were the original Las Vegas sensation and the prototype Sonny and Cher only wished they could be- er I mean were inspired by. Keely would generally play "deadpan" contrast to Prima's wildness and contrast her own deadpan with a sultry undercurrent.

As for her solo career though, with the same producer as the Prima records (Voyle Gilmore) at the helm, Keely's ship was somewhat adrift at first. There were a few okay singles from sessions apparently aimed at the "youth market" or that is, juvenile early '50's rock/pop. I suspect that the, er, erotic aspect of her sultry style, when combined with a certain off-beat zany-ness of the Prima act, made the Capitol guys think of R'n'R for some reason... Unfortunately Capitol was never very good at that until EMI sent over the Beatles records. In fact it's pretty bad. There's one called Rock-A-Doodle-Doo for instance, which I suspect is all one needs to know about that one.

But there was also one single that she wanted to do: I Wish You Love. Even though this was a tenuous opportunity and happening in 1956, she wasn't all compliancy; she recalled telling them something to the effect that "I'll do whatever songs you say as long as it includes that one." To their credit, the Capitol folks agreed, Riddle arranged and the single version was good enough to clue 'em in eventually. In '57 they booked some sessions and proceeded just as if they were recording an album by another master of classic pop like Sinatra or Cole. The results were just as good in their way, in my opinion, and they followed with two more albums in '58. All were overshadowed in the fame department by Keely's other career with Prima and ended up kind of buried in that last flood of classic pop that poured from Capitol in the late 1950's.

What's more, Sinatra wasn't the only one to leave Capitol for what seemed to be greener pastures in 1959-60. So did Prima, and to her later regret, Keely went with her then-husband to what was initially a lucrative deal (with ownership of masters) at Dot. So there would only be 3 albums and a bunch of singles sessions with only a couple of those being good...

The singles and the sole unreleased album track seem to have only been recorded in mono, but it's excellent mono. The albums were recorded in stereo, although the first was released before stereo LPs and I'm not sure if the other two were released in stereo at the time either. At any rate, the album cuts are stereo here, complete with a few early stereo snafus. The intro of It's Been A Long Long Time has Keely being picked up as much by a "room" mic as hers, and both mics dialed in one side channel; the engineer quickly works the controls to bring Keely's vocal mic on top and in center on the fly over the next few lines. There's more than a bit of overload in all stages (mic preamps, console and tape) at times.

Adding new problems in 1994, Larry Walsh's rush-job playback with indifferent solid-state gear for Bear Family has more than a few uncorrected tape drop-outs and Bear Family's mastering engineer Adam Skeaping seems to think we want to hear late '50's classic pop through hard and bright digital pop sound (but who doesn't except Steve). Never the less, it beats a No-Noised Norberg job and the sheer vitality of those vintage tube recordings comes through loud and clear. Loud is a good way to play a lot of it too.

There were a few clunkers on the Capitol albums (like an interesting but forgettable run through Stardust or a bizarre and campy Indian Love Call) and some that would be perfectly good if there weren't similar versions by others (like a good Stormy Weather that still belongs to Lena Horne). The rest largely succeed in spite of the fact that they are mostly standards with other classic versions out there, often more than one. It's a measure of how good they turned out that they are worth attention in addition to, and sometimes at least on par with, the most "definitive" versions by others.

Keely has power. There's some subtlety here, but it might be said that subtlety isn't Keely's forte. In fact it's been said that (in context of this later day Riddle-era classic pop) she's as hot and subtle as a branding iron..."

 

hehe thanks for posting my notes on Keely, Ben. She's one of a number of wonderful talents that we could call contemporaries of Nat in more ways than being around at the time. It goes further in that she also recorded a few songs Nat also recorded, which can make for an interesting contrast that illuminates the talents of both and their respective arrangers. Yeah I agree in feeling Keely outshone Day with her Riddle arranged It's Magic.

Here is Capitol-era Keely, with Louis Prima, singing the ah... intimating song All Night Long in the only video appearance of her I've seen that I consider to be a good showing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N57cvWiSIxw

 

more on Night Lights

Like apileocole, I'm not sure I like the sequencing on the Night Lights CD of 2001. What would make a good order? I don't know....

Anyway, the order we got was

1. Night Lights
2. I Got Love
3. Stay
4. Mr. Juke Box
5. I Just Found Out About Love
6. Dame Crazy
7. Too Young To Go Steady
8. Love Me As Though There Were No Tomorrow
9. The Shadows
10. Believe
11. To The Ends Of The Earth
12. Never Let Me Go
13. I Promise You
14. The Way I Love You
15. Once Before
16. Make Me
17. Sometimes I Wonder
18. I Need A Plan
19. I'm Willing To Share This With You
20. The Story's Old

I do have a mildly amusing story (I hope) about how the sequencing struck my son in 2001. He's now 12, and so I think he would have been just 5 at that time. Anyway, I was playing Night Lights on the stereo (but in mono, of course) as he and I played with some toys. He listened to the title track, and became thoughtful. He had followed the story and asked me some question--and it was clear that he understood that basically it's a man out looking for his love among the night lights.

Then the next track--and suddenly Nat's happy and has L-O-V-E written all over his face. My son turned to me and said, "The night lights worked!! They must have taken him to the right place!"

I thought that was funny and perceptive--for a 5 year old, anyway--but maybe it does show a slight weakness in the sequencing, which mixes the more lightweight novelty numbers with the more high brow and moody numbers.

To skip ahead, one of my favorite songs on the whole album is Once Before. It's written by Ray Evans, whose work I like very much. Here's a little about him from wikipedia:

"Raymond Bernard Evans (February 4, 1915 – February 15, 2007) was an American songwriter. He was a partner in a composing and songwriting duo with Jay Livingston, known for the songs they composed for films. Evans wrote the lyrics and Livingston the music for the songs.

Evans was valedictorian of his high school class, where he played clarinet in the band, and received a bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1937. He was elected that same year to Pi Gamma Mu, the honor society in the social sciences for his outstanding academic performance at the Wharton School.

Livingston and Evans won three Academy Awards,[1] in 1948 for the song "Buttons and Bows", written for the movie The Paleface; in 1950 for the song "Mona Lisa", written for the movie Captain Carey, U.S.A.; and in 1956 for the song "Que Sera Sera", featured in the Alfred Hitchcock movie The Man Who Knew Too Much and sung by Doris Day..."

I love how Que Sera Sera becomes a plot element in The Man Who Knew Too Much, while at the same time illustrating the themes of that film.

Anyway, this guy could write a fine song, imo, which makes it quite puzzling that Once Before was neglected in the vaults for more than 40 years.

Here are the lyrics of Once Before:

Once before
love sent her child to find me
with loving arms to bind me
for all the world to see
and it was once before
love smiled and said forever
and gave her word she'd never
go far from me
promises made
promises fade
leaving my bitter heart
to face love afraid
and so I closed the door
to love to life to laughter
alone was I thereafter
until that magic moment
when I held you
and felt your lips resign
to mine
then the love I knew
once before
was mine once more...

Talk about a "mystery" song with "vapor" voices! This is tough song to pull off. But imho NKC does it with power. It may be the most emotionally affecting track on the album for me. And what an epic Nelson Riddle makes it into. Anyone else like Once Before?

 

As to Nat performing It's Magic, I suggest it could have been assumed to be "a lady's song" to some degree. He also clearly had no shortage of things coming at him left and right, so it may just have slipped by. But it's true, I think, that between Nelson and Nat, a perfectly good rendition could have been possible.

Frank was paired with Keely for a somewhat awkward but cute single. Yet as I think I mentioned, I would have been quite interested to hear, and maybe even see, Nat and Keely in some shared musical space. Unfortunately as we all know, it would have been distinctly unlikely for various social concerns, even on what might have been the only likely venue (Nat's '57 TV show). But their voices may have been interesting in both contrast and synthesis; both share a relatively husky area contrasted with their more soaring notes so to speak. They both worked with May and Riddle. Moreover, while Keely played spaced, deadpan and simmer off of the overpowering eruption that was Louis Prima, I suspect that very much the opposite would have been elicited from her in the right ways by Nat's very different presence. That may have been just what she needed to "draw her out" and help complete her public performance persona in a way that she would soon need but never had much chance to achieve.

Alas, things kind of went off the rails for her after her initial Capitol projects were in the can, and it seems for Capitol to a limited extent. Fortunately not for Nat.

 

Yes, Ben, I do. The first time I heard it, the song seemed a bit odd, but I'm one who tends to get into things better on subsequent listens. This song is certainly such a case. It has moved me. Also, it amazes me how they pull some of this off, since a few passages are structured in a relatively awkward way. Any other singer might not have managed to make it sound as fitting. Nat reads the passages with the gradual, self-sensical lurches of one feeling through their soul at times, while his innate melodic way could not but have it flow poetically (precisely as it was meant IMH). And who in the world but Nat ever could say "Alone was I thereafter" with that same absolute expression?

Perhaps a feeling that it was good but "not as perfect a song as [ name the hit ]" cast a shadow of doubt that left this song lost in the darkness for so many years. To have so many to choose from!

 

Tangerine

A line of thought still rattling around in my brain was previously touched upon by Jordan and I regarding the Ballerina and Tangerine sessions. On one hand these two sessions, both focused on a very similar "sound" (both arr. by Riddle), could have "belonged" with Night Lights even better than some which were included on the eventual CD (most conspicuous being Mr. Juke Box, which seems to me to be an aborted attempt for a "juvenile" oriented single and doesn't jive with the rest). On another hand, maybe these and not the many Night Lights tracks were a scrapped album instead, since all you need to add to those two sessions are five compatible tracks - perhaps one more good session - and you have a cohesive sounding album. The two sessions:

9/19/56
How Little We Know
Should I?
Ballerina

10/4/56
True Blue Lou
Like Someone In Love
I'm Shooting High
Tangerine

Another session wasn't strictly needed either. There were enough compatible tracks from recent months already in the can to make a full 14-cut 12", including:

Breezin' Along With The Breeze
You Are My Sunshine
Up Pops Love
Dame Crazy
I Just Found Out About Love
I Got Love
Stay
Believe

Muck around with a playlist, and I come out with:

Side A
1 - I Just Found Out About Love
2 - Like Someone In Love
3 - Up Pops Love
4 - I'm Shooting High
5 - You Are My Sunshine
6 - Believe
7 - Breezin' Along With The Breeze

Side B
1 - Ballerina
2 - Stay
3 - Dame Crazy
4 - True Blue Lou
5 - How Little We Know
6 - Should I?
7 - Tangerine

Or here's a 12-cut variant, if we strip out the two tracks from the show Strip For Action (woo woo) that might've made an EP had said show seen any er, action:

Side A
1 - Breezin' Along With The Breeze
2 - Like Someone In Love
3 - Up Pops Love
4 - I'm Shooting High
5 - You Are My Sunshine
6 - Believe

Side B
1 - Ballerina
2 - Stay
3 - True Blue Lou
4 - How Little We Know
5 - Should I?
6 - Tangerine

Either way, to my ears these listings place highlights in the right spot, lesser ones "buried" near but not at the ends, and has the right openers and side closers. There's even the almost obligatory weak one (to my own opinion) in his version of You Are My Sunshine that never the less fits in the album. The most obvious title for such an album would be Like Someone In Love. Me, I can see a somewhat blocky, bold 1956 graphics cover job in white, black and off-orange cast, a terribly polite liner blurb over-emphasizing Nat's "smooth velvety vocal stylings" to try softening any perceived feathers ruffled by the swingin' singer herein, and a blocky print calling it Tangerine.

This might not have been regarded among his best albums, quite the reverse I suspect, but rather a lightweight one that fans treasure and each time they play it think in a pleased way, "Gee."

Strangely enough the problem isn't that these tracks don't fit together well enough. In fact one might say this collection would actually be too cohesive, even relatively relentless, in its consistency. However this doesn't preclude it when one considers either Nat's own discography or other albums of the time. This album wouldn't be all that different from one they would release, Tell Me All About Yourself. For other albums of the time, Sinatra had a few smashing albums with tracks cut "from the same cloth" as it were. If they were looking at Sinatra too however, that might've stayed their hand on an album like this (or would it have in late '56?).

Another, even stronger possibility is that Nat was already famed as a balladeer as his prior album asserted. This may have seemed like the wrong package to the sales folks who'd have to find an angle to plug at. This would be a contrastingly uptempo, all band album. Perhaps just such a listen spawned the idea that they needed a better synthesis of balladeering with band for his first band album, resulting in the even greater Just One of Those Things.

What is more mysterious to me is, with no other uses in mind, why on earth weren't those two sessions teamed with one more song to make a smashing EP? But whether EP, LP or private playlist, these tracks are a delightful patch on Nat's wondrous recorded quilt. I hope this indulgence in speculation about Tangerine has been enjoyable or at least prompted a pleasurable review of these mostly obscure tracks.

 

Funny!
Another great quote! We'll just add love to that mix and call it complete...

OK--catching up with some of the obscure tracks (deservedly, I guess), I am now listening to the close-to-bizarre rarity "Song Of Delilah" on the UK CD Here's to My Lady. This song was recorded in August of 1950. The instrumentation on this track kind of needs to be heard to be believed. It's a stereotyped combination of "exotic" drums, flutes, and strings....Another in the "so bad it's good category," except this one may just be bad. Keep in mind that director Cecil B. DeMille's over the top biblical epic Sampson and Delilah, which was a box office smash, came out in 1949.

Song of Delilah

Delilah
Delilah knows
(The first three words of this song are sung slowly with a big echo effect, as if NKC is in a vast ancient temple, or cave, or something...)
Delilah
so enchanting so fair
heaven (?not clear to me?) knows she's the spirit of love
lasting love
She's warm
as the fire is warm
gently leading beginners in love
through the storm.
since time began
since love has been known
she's told every man
why wander alone
Delilah
with so much to disclose
if you're seeking the secrets of love
Delilah knows
Delilah
with so much to disclose
if you're seeking the secrets of love
Delilah knows
She knows


OK. How do we do a poll? Is someone willing to set up a list of the ten worst NKC songs? I think this one may get some votes. I still like it, in a twisted way.

 

I checked my local library for some NKC cds and they had a few. However I'm not sure what they are because there is no documentation just a front cover with a picture of the trio (Nat is sitting behind a mike with Oscar Moore and Wesley Prince standing over his shoulders)...no title but it is from Capitol. The back does have the track listing and the disc I have (disc 1) seems to be from a four disc set but it looks like only disc 1 and 4 are available from the library. Anyway, I thought it may be all tracks from the trio until I got to track seven 'You Can Depend On Me' and heard other instruments (sax). The library also had the Chronology and Discography by Klaus Teubig. Pretty daunting for a newbie like me but I did manage to find 'You Can Depend On Me' and from what I can make out it was recorded by the Capitol International Jazzmen on March 30th, 1945 (Bill Coleman, Buster Bailey, Benny Carter, Coleman Hawkins, NKC, Oscar Moore, John Kirby, Max Roach and Kay Starr). But in looking at the Discography section I do not see any four volume set. If anyone has the book it is on page 105. The book is copyrighted 1994 so maybe the cd I have came out after that? Any idea what this four disc set is? Thanks.


John

 

It is probably this set, sometimes referred to as Capitol Masters:

Here it is on Amazon.

 

Yep...that looks to be it from the track listing on disc 1. Thanks. Although, I am more interested in getting the individual albums so I'll probably pass on this.

 

jgb: Some of Nat King Cole's greatest songs were singles that weren't on albums. And that 4-cd set actually gets a lot of those singles, as well as a lot of great album cuts. Plus it has excellent liner notes by Will Friedwald. I highly recommend it. And I've seen it used on ebay and elsewhere for c.$20, which makes it a good buy.

I really enjoyed apileocole's youtube video of Keely Smith. What great, and unusual stage presence she had. I like her eyes and and hands, as well as her voice. She has has a very sensual presence in an unusual way.

Well, here we go a bit OT. I really like this song by David Gray, called Nos da Cariad:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNNpPSB2H4g

I realize it doesn't have anything to do with Nat King Cole. Except that good music, of whatever kind, can seem to me like powerful stuff. I don't know anything about David Gray, but I like this song.

Here are the lyrics:

One lifetime is long enough
Is long enough to wait
The rain like silver in my ears
Fat nothing on my plate
A bucketful of Babylon
A belly full of hate
Go to sleep my one true love
And may your dreams be sweet

Then we’ll be running

See its face beneath the glass
It murmurs on the breeze
Like a long black Cadillac
It passes ‘neath the trees
What is it you’re waiting for?
Sweet love is on its knees
Go to sleep my one true love
And find your heart’s release

Then we’ll be running
Afraid of nothing
Yeah we’ll be running

Silence is golden
Here I am
I ain’t afraid of nothing
Silence is golden
Here I am

The sun above the cotton grass
Is sinking down like lead
The seagulls know the truth of it
And scream it overhead
Hold on to St. Christopher
The sky is murderous red
Go to sleep my one true love
Our glory lies ahead

Then we’ll be running
Afraid of nothing
Then we’ll be running

All wired up in a dawning ray...

 

jgb, if you've any interest in a career type anthology, the Capitol Masters box set is the best one, and also Capitol's best sounding Nat release on CD (thanks to Larry Walsh who did a decent job on it). A relative statement to be sure, but unless you amass a very extensive collection of other titles it'll be the only handy source for some tracks and for now it can be had for a great price.

 

I think you'd have to start a new thread as only the first post in a thread can have a poll. Perhaps after our Year by Year reviewin' it'd be fun to unwind and have a "worst of" sending up.

Just today I was out at fast food, being serenaded on the PA by some lady singers who continuously reminded me of how great Keely Smith was! Seriously, there are some more recent lady singers who I feel are excellent vocalists or have a valid, superbly performed personal style, including Alison Goldfrapp, Alison Krauss and k.d. lang for example, but gad I literally can't stand to hear a huge number of other "singers." The likes of Keely, Ella, Billie, Day etc have really spoiled me!

 

What's this?



Found it on a colage in the liner of the Quincy Jones Live in '60 Jazz Icons DVD. If it's a Norman Granz concert or set of concerts of Nat fronting Quincy Jones big band with QJ charts, I don't suppose anybody thought to record it...

 

Hmmm....guess I will reconsider....it's funny but even though I grew up in the 45 era I don't associate Sinatra, NKC, etc. with singles. Speaking of which...Capitol put out the Sinatra Capitol singles box....did they ever do something like that with Nat?

 

Yyyes... sort of. Kinda. It's called The Classic Singles. You can find posts on it here. Again, if you land it cheap, that's fine. The booklet / packaging is fabulous. But the sound is atrocious (Bob Norberg going to town with digital reprocessing, NoNoise etc) 96kbps mp3 worthy. The track selections somehow got that rather simple idea completely mixed up. The way it turned out, the literally correct title might go something like, Some Of The Classic Singles With Some Pre-Single 78 Records And Some Album Tracks That Were Also Singles Selected With Insecurity Compelling Us To Try Also Making It Satisfy Those Wanting Another Greatest Hits Comp. Might be tricky in the catalogs huh? So The Classic Singles it became. Not the proper job of it Sinatra's singles box is.

 

Here we are, a mention in the Quicy Jones DVD:

It isn't clear from this mention if they backed him beyond opening for him, and sounds like a recording would be unlikely. Anyone have anything on this?

 

Quincy Jones' band, one that featured top-notch talent, backed Nat on his European Tour of April/May 1960. I'm posting a translated review from a Swedish Journal concering a concert in Stockholm, April 26, 1960:

Before Nat King Coel stepped on the scene qute a few personnel shifts occurred. A gentlemen named Irving Busch took over the trumpet lead, and the rhythm section now consisted of John Collins (g), Charles Harris (b) and Lee Young (dr). He (I assume the writer means I. Busch) also acted as conductor. Additionally the orchestra was augmented by a French 5-piece string section. The strings sounded excellent but were only used in a few melodies, including "Unforgettable", in particular, a tune that clearly showed how sensible it was of Cole (and Norman Granz) to use a permanent backing band and not some rough pickup groups like certain other pop acts from the States had to cope with when they appeared on our stages.A lot has been written about Nat King Cole the perfect showman. In some ways this is what he undoubtedly is. Though he did not say a single word to introduce his program he immediately made contact with the audience in a perfectly natural way. He appears relaxed and easy yet his movements are far from extraordinary. He moves with one hand in his trouser pocket, jumps back to the mike and thanks for the applause with automatic movements.He sings excellently in his well-known style and always seems in top shape, though he sounded a little bit hoarser than usual. Maybe it was just a spring cold. The tune selection was as expected. A cross-section of his big hits - That's My Girl, St. Louis Blues, Madrid (i.e. the habanera from Carmen), Sweet Lorraine, Route 66 etc. In short, safe bets for the broader public but nothing for today's purist jazz folk. But first-class entertainment. According to advance publicity Cole was supposed to play a lot of piano in Stockholm, and in a way he did. He seemed to enjoy himself thoroughly when he was seated at the piano and tried to swing "On the Sunny Side" and others. In this he succeeded only moderately. He still has an excellent touch and overwhelming technique. But the old ideas have mostly turned into stiff mannerisms. Nat King Cole has no need to be a piano player anymore. That the general development left him behind a long time ago certainly does nto worry him one bit.

Unfortunately, no recordings seem to have turned up yet.

As you can see, my translator assumed that trumpeter Irv Bush did the conducting; in fact, Lee Yound often conducted from the drums - having to conduct, though, did not help his drumming.

 

Stardust disc 3

I'm a big fan of k.d. lang, and on apileocole's recommend I checked out Goldfrapp. Cool stuff, imho--I like it/her/them!

I hope everyone will keep the recommends of other favorites coming, whether they relate to NKC or not. After I posted that track by David Gray, who I now know is a British folk-rock fellow, I did think of a *very* distant connection with NKC. Nat King Cole's early trio number Ain't I Good To You features a "big Cadillac car," as does Gray's song. There is a difference in the meaning of the car, I admit. Actually, Bob Dylan, working as a DJ for xm, did an entire radio show featuring songs that had Cadillacs in them. As you may have heard, he's a really good DJ. He has good scripts, partially written by himself, and tries hard to speak clearly so that he can be understood, but still has that unique rasp and twang--or whatever it is Dylan has.

Anyway, I'm a little surprised we didn't have more comments on the Night Lights tracks, but I did appreciate the comments we did get.

On to disc 3, which has the classic album After Midnight. I hope some kind soul(s) out there will post the cover art and track list for After Midnight.

Let the comments begin...

(But, as always, feel free to comment on disc 2--or anything in Nat King Cole's recorded career from 1936 to 1964.)


Disc: 3
1. Unfair
2. Make Me
3. Sometimes I Wonder
4. Once Before
5. I'm Willing to Share This with You
6. I Need a Plan
7. Story's Old
8. You Can Depend on Me
9. Candy
10. Sweet Lorraine
11. It's Only a Paper Moon
12. (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66
13. Don't Let It Go to Your Head
14. You're Looking at Me
15. You're Looking at Me [Alternate Take]
16. Just You, Just Me
17. I Was a Little Too Lonely (And You Were a Little Too Late)
18. How Little We Know
19. Should I?
20. Ballerina
21. Caravan
22. Lonely One
23. Blame It on My Youth
24. What Is There to Say

 

Unfair

This is sheer laziness on my part - since I have the box and only need to look it up - but it struck me that Unfairis a long way from home - the rest of the numbers comprising To Whom It May Concern several volumes further on in the set.

Is there a second stereo recording later on? I don't recall hearing it when I first listened to the set eighteen months or so ago.

Any thoughts on why it was recorded so far ahead of the other tracks - or why it was included on the album when the other tracks were recorded much later? Though it fits like a glove.

I need to be a little less lazy... or hazy... or crazy and do some detective work. But before I dive in to After Midnight I'd appreciate some comments on this track.