Nat King Cole (born Nathaniel Adams Coles; March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965) was an American singer who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. He was widely noted for his soft, baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres and which he used to become a major force in popular music for three decades, producing many hit songs. Cole was one of the first African Americans to host a national television variety show, The Nat King Cole Show, and has maintained worldwide popularity since his death from lung cancer in February 1965. (More from Wikipedia)
Chuck Berry grew up in a middle-class family in St. Louis and began working as a musician in local nightclubs in the early 1950’s. Influenced by the guitar stylings and showmanship of Texas bluesman T-Bone Walker, he was performing with the Johnnie Johnson Trio by early 1953. As Wikipedia tells it: “[Chuck ]Berry’s calculated showmanship, along with mixing country tunes with R&B tunes, and singing in the style of Nat King Cole to the music of Muddy Waters, brought in a wider audience, particularly affluent white people.”
(June 2013/1)
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Glen Campbell quickly became highly sought after as a guitarist and played for a wide variety of artists in the 1960’s; Wikipedia lists recordings by Bobby Darin, Rick Nelson, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, the Monkees, Nancy Sinatra, Merle Haggard, Jan & Dean, Elvis Presley, and Frank Sinatra.
Wikipedia lists an almost completely different group of artists in that article (as opposed to those listed above who were backed by Glen Campbell in particular): “Notable artists employing the Wrecking Crew’s talents included Nancy Sinatra, Bobby Vee, the Partridge Family, the Mamas and the Papas, the Carpenters, the 5th Dimension, John Denver, the Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, the Grass Roots, and Nat King Cole.”
(February 2015)
I did find a tidbit on line that I will share with you about yet another Linda Pierre King song, “Autumn Leaves” that does not appear on either CD. I must say that she has an impressive list of songs for someone about whom no one seems to know anything.
“Linda Pierre King travelled through Texas and in 1966, recorded at Accurate Sound in San Angelo. Most of her songs were recorded solo, but on a couple, some of the Outcasts backed her up. The owner of the studio, Ron Newdoll recalled her as an attractive folk singer who recorded about 18 songs in his studio. Nothing of hers would ever be released though, until a couple of decades later. This version and complete session of ‘Autumn Leaves’ makes it here or anywhere for the first time. Other artists such as Nat King Cole also covered this famous ballad.”
(April 2015/2)
