"When I first organized the King Cole Trio back in 1937, we were strictly what you would call an instrumental group. To break the monotony, I would sing a few songs here and there between the playing. I sang things I had known over the years. I wasn't trying to give it any special treatment, just singing. I noticed thereafter people started requesting more singing, and it was just one of those things... I'm a musician at heart. I know I'm not really a singer. I couldn't compete with real singers. But I sing because the public buys it." -- the legendary singer Nat King Cole (3/17/1919 - 2/15/1965), from "Nat King Cole" by James Haskings, 1990. So, "not really a singer"? Nat King Cole was one of the great singers of the 20th century, his modesty notwithstanding. "The Christmas Song," "Unforgettable", "Mona Lisa", "Autumn Leaves", and so many more of his songs performed in his incredibly rich, smooth and effortless baritone voice will be played for many generations to come.
The victim of racial discrimination and even violence, Cole was assaulted by racists in Birmingham, Alabama, at a concert and harassed in his all-white Los Angeles neighborhood. Despite that, he was criticized for performing before all-white audiences in the South, and not being more active in the Civil Rights movement. That changed when he later became active in the NAACP and played a significant role in organizing the 1963 March on Washington.
(photo: by Fred Baker, 1961, Gelatin silver print, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution)
