Nat King Cole: Swing Era

A first-class singer and a very talented pianist.

Before achieving international pop stardom with his vocal recordings for her Capitol label during the early Fifties, the great Nat "King" Cole (1917-1965) enjoyed considerable success fronting his own trio in Hollywood and resorting to a repertoire of jazzy/jivey/novelty numbers that made for irresistible listening. Initially backed by guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince, singer-pianist Cole set for a smooth, crisp, appealing sound that gained him early popularity. Best exemplified in hit tunes such as "Route 66", "Scotchin' With the Soda", "Sweet Lorraine" or "Hit That Jive Jack", the peculiar Nat Cole style somewhat came to define the spirit of the war years. A first-class singer and a very talented pianist (inspired by Earl Hines and a big influence on Oscar Peterson), Nat Cole did frequent "soundies" during this initial period in his career, and this video is a fascinating collection of those early film shorts produced for theaters or television. Backed by sidemen such as guitarists Oscar Moore and Irving Ashby, bassists Johnny Miller and Joe Comfort or Latin percussionist Jack "Mr. Bongo" Costanzo, Cole was in peak artistic form in these true musical gems from his early West Coast period. Recommended to old-time fans and jazz enthusiasts alike, the music in this anthology sounds as enjoyable as ever.

1. Route 66
2. Sweet Lorraine
3. Little Girl
4. Home
5. The Trouble with Me Is You
6. Calypso Blues
7. For Sentimental Reasons
8. That's My Girl
9. Mona Lisa
10. Because of Rain
11. Too Young
12. This is My Night to Dream
13. Nature Boy
14. You Call it Madness
15. Got a Penny, Benny?
16. Come to Baby Do
17. Errand Boy for Rhythm
18. Is You or Is You Ain't My Baby
19. I'm A Shy Guy
20. Who's Been Eating My Porridge
21. Frim Fram Sauce
22. Oh, Kickeroony
23. Now He Tells Me
24. Breezy and the Bass
25. Solid Potato Salad
26. It's Better to Be By Yourself
27. Always You