Nat Coll

This volume of Capitol/EMI's Legends Of The 20th Century profiles Nat King Cole, tracing his work as a jazz pianist and a massively popular singer. Both sides of Cole's talent are explored in this 22-track album, which includes "Nature Boy," "Unforgettable," "When I Fall In Love" and other vocal hits as well as jazz works like "Straighten Up And Fly Right," "When I Take My Sugar To Tea," "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" and "Body And Soul." A fine sampling of highlights from both of Cole's careers.

When guitarist Jacob Kellermann and conductor Christian Karlsen devised the programme of this recording, one inspiration was the legendary jazz album Sketches of Spain on which Miles Davis performed arrangements of Spanish folk music, along with a version of the Adagio from Joaquín Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez. Rodrigo’s work is a re-imagining of times past and of courtly life in the gardens of the Royal Palace of Aranjuez, and as such it is the perfect opening to Kellermann’s and Karlsen’s project, intended to conjure up Spain ‘as if through a prism – as a concept rather than a place’. In order to achieve this they have enlisted the help of Francisco Coll and Pete Harden, who have each contributed a concertante work for guitar and ensemble.

For her new double-album Sol Gabetta teams up with excellent French pianist Betrand Chamayou, with whom she plays sold out concerts in major concert halls. The album features Mendelssohn's complete works for cello and piano and new, short pieces written by famous contemporary composers Wolfgang Rihm, Heinz Holliger, Francisco Coll and Jörg Widman specifically for this album, all of which were inspired by Mendelssohn’s beautiful "Lied ohne Worte, Op. 109." The album was recorded at the famous new Philharmonie de Paris.

Pianist/vocalist Diana Krall pays tribute to the Nat King Cole Trio on her Impulse! set. In general, the medium and up-tempo tunes work best, particularly such hot ditties as "I'm an Errand Girl for Rhythm," "Frim Fram Sauce," and "Hit That Jive Jack." Krall does not attempt to directly copy Cole much (either pianistically or vocally), although his influence is obviously felt on some of the songs. The slow ballads are actually as reminiscent of Shirley Horn as Cole, particularly the somber "I'm Through With Love" and "If I Had You." Guitarist Russell Malone gets some solo space on many of the songs and joins in on the group vocal of "Hit That Jive Jack," although it is surprising that he had no other opportunities to interact vocally with Krall; a duet could have been delightful. Bassist Paul Keller is fine in support, pianist Benny Green backs Krall's vocal on "If I Had You," and percussionist Steve Kroon is added on one song. Overall, this is a tasteful effort that succeeds.

Yannick Bovy, the young cronner all the way from Belgium together with Mr. Cole’s enormous repertoire, this musical celebration will surprise you with a life unforgettable hits and swing you to the moon. To refresh all the great memories with Nat King Cole, Yannick also released his album “Yannick Bovy Celebrates Nat King Cole” as a tribute to Nat King Cole’s unparalleled repertoire and gained rave reviews from fans around the Globe.

Nat King Cole could charm most listeners by simply singing a few lines from the phone book. His delivery is so intoxicating that even less-than-stellar material doesn't cause so much as a blink of the eye. This is true with Classics' collection of some of his 1947-1949 cuts, where hardly a classic standard or hit is in sight. What one does get, though, is a generous dose of Nat Cole and the trio's slow-riffin' best . While ranging from the ballad perfection of "How Lonely Can You Get" and "Lost April" to svelte blues sides like "My Mother Told Me," Cole, guitarist Irving Ashby, and bassist Johnny Miller show how they perfected the piano trio template forged by the singer's first group with guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince…

Boasting incredible sound quality and an impressive track listing, 1947, Vol. 3 is a wonderful collection of some of Nat King Cole's finest recordings from the late '40s. Despite his amazing piano playing, Cole's charming voice is the real star of this album. His smooth croon makes overplayed standards like "Dream a Little Dream of Me" feel fresh again. With minimal accompaniment and only one self-penned track (the humorous piano showcase "The Geek"), the arrangements had a lot of potential for failure. But instead these are some excellent renditions of songs that have mostly fallen out of the American public's interest. Anyone looking for a quality collection of Cole's performances, or even a good collection of classic vocal jazz, should definitely try to give this album a listen, as it really is quite good.

This double CD finds Cole revisiting his earlier hits with new versions. The 36 selections (+ 2 Bonus track) mostly focus on his pop successes of the 1950s, although there are a few wistful looks back at his trio days. Not as essential as the original renditions of these popular recordings, the remakes nevertheless find Cole in peak form and comprise a highly enjoyable retrospective of his vocal career.

Sweet and nostalgic Christmas album with two golden voices that are not with us any more. Nat King Cole and Dean Martin take turns and sing 22 xmas classics. Listen to O Tannenbaum, Adeste Fideles, Silent Night with Nat, Let it snow, Rudolph the red nose reindeer, White Christmas with Dean and feel like a little child again. Not much need to be said. Just a small masterpiece.