Nat King Cole

Nat King Cole: The Pianist Behind the Velvet Voice

Born Nathaniel Adams Coles on March 17, 1919, in Montgomery, Alabama, Nat King Cole grew up in Chicago, where his family moved when he was a child. His father was a pastor and his mother a church organist, so he received musical training very early and fell in love with the jazz of Earl Hines. As a teenager, he was already recording and performing in the city’s clubs. In the late 1930s, he founded the King Cole Trio in Los Angeles, made up of piano, guitar and double bass, with no drums. Success came gradually, notably thanks to “Straighten Up and Fly Right.” Over the course of the 1940s, his warm, velvety voice took over from his career as a pianist, and songs like “Unforgettable,” “Mona Lisa” and “Nature Boy” made him an international star. In 1956, he hosted his own show on American television, an important milestone for a Black artist at the time. He died of lung cancer on February 15, 1965, at just 45 years old.

An Elegant, Swinging Piano Style

It is often forgotten that Nat King Cole was first and foremost a remarkable jazz pianist. Influenced by Earl Hines and Teddy Wilson, he developed a fluid, light and highly swinging style, built on clear phrasing and a great economy of notes. His right hand sings, with precise articulation, while his left hand, discreet but solid, provides harmonic support. He favored clarity and balance over technical showmanship, with an unerring sense of melody and rhythm. In the drumless trio, he also served as the rhythmic engine, creating a light, intimate pulse that proved highly influential. His approach inspired many pianists, among them Oscar Peterson, who admired him throughout his career.