Nat King Cole

This fine complement to Capitol's earlier collection of Nat "King" Cole Trio vocals (1942-1946) delivers another generous selection of the singer's prime early work. And while it's not as packed with hits as the prior disc is ("Route 66," "Sweet Lorraine," "Straighten Up and Fly Right"), the second volume still contains a nonstop array of Cole's near-perfect singing and tasty piano work. Along with smashes like "Too Marvelous for Words," the collection takes in the usual Cole mix of glowing ballads ("Tis Autumn"), playful novelties ("Ooh Kickeroonie"), and svelte swingers ("When I Take My Sugar to Tea")…

For those needing a reminder of Cole's very original and expert piano playing, this 18-track roundup of some of his best instrumentals should fit the bill. Part of Capitol's three-volume series of Cole's classic trio sides (the other two cover the vocals), The Best of the Nat King Cole Trio includes gem after gem from the group's 1943-1949 prime and features the classic lineup that included guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Johnny Miller. With Cole and Moore seamlessly blending lines throughout, the group forged the standard for many a piano trio to follow by way of classics like "Jumpin' at Capitol," "Sweet Georgia Brown," and "These Foolish Things."

For all the resurgence in interest in Nat King Cole since 1991, when his daughter Natalie recorded a duet patching her new vocal with his from 40 years earlier and scored a gold-selling hit, Capitol Records lacked a single-disc hits collection that covered Cole's most successful singles for the label. This 22-track, 62-plus minute CD/cassette collection does the trick…

Nat King Cole - The Complete Capitol Recordings Of The Nat King Cole Trio (1942-1961) {18CD Box Set Mosaic MD18-138 rel 1991}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 2.87 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 2.10 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 186 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1942-61, 1991 Capitol / Mosaic Records | MD18-138
Jazz / Vocal Jazz / Swing / Traditional Pop

This collection contains 349 songs recorded at 91 separate recording sessions between October 11, 1942 and March 23, 1961. Two-thirds of the selection on this 18-disc anthology have either been out out of print since the 1940s, or have never been released in any form. Cole's 1956 album, AFTER MIDNIGHT, is included here in its entirety, along with all of the trio's more familiar songs. Included in this set are 104 tracks previously unavailable on US LPs. Sixty-six of the tracks were previously unavailable anywhere. Fifty-six rare Capitol radio transcriptions appear commercially for the first time. Dozens of the tracks appear at the correct speed for the first time ever.

Capitol Records took This Is Sinatra!, a compilation album, into the Top Ten in early 1957, which probably prompted the label to assemble a similar collection, This Is Nat "King" Cole, later in the year. Consisting of tracks not previously issued on a Cole LP, the disc contains seven recent Billboard singles chart entries among its 12 selections – "Too Young to Go Steady" (which reached number 21), "Forgive My Heart" (13), "Nothing Ever Changes My Love for You" (72), "To the Ends of the Earth" (25), "I'm Gonna Laugh You Right Out of My Life" (57), "Someone You Love" (13), and "Never Let Me Go" (79) – while an eighth song, "That's All," was the B-side of the 1953 Top 20 hit "Lover, Come Back to Me!" "Too Young to Go Steady," which peaked in April 1956, turned out to be all that was really heard of a stage musical intended for Broadway, Strip for Action, with songs by Jimmy McHugh and Harold Adamson, which closed out of town. "I Just Found Out About Love" and "Love Me as Though There Were No Tomorrow," two more songs from that ill-fated show, are among the previously unheard tracks unearthed for this compilation.

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.

The Best of Nat King Cole is part of EMI-Capitol Special Markets' Ten Best Series, where they selected ten hits from a popular artist on their roster. For the budget-minded, it's a nice collection of Nat King Cole's best-known hits, like "Unforgettable," "Ramblin' Rose," "Mona Lisa," "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" and "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons." It certainly won't please either jazz purists or Cole collectors, but the budget-conscious looking for an affordable (albeit skimpy) sampler of well-known Cole should turn here.