Although Nat King Cole is chiefly remembered for his intimate vocal work on orchestrated ballads like "Unforgettable" and "Mona Lisa" he cut an astounding 1, sides in his career , he was also a gifted bandleader, arranger, and pianist and his early work with the drummer-less King Cole Trio will be a revelation for listeners only familiar with the vocal hits that came later. Working with sympathetic guitarist Oscar Moore and bassists Wesley Prince early and Johnny Miller later , Cole set a standard for easy, intimate versatility, and his trio could stop, start, and swing on a dime.

This four-disc, track of rare radio recordings done for the Standard Transcription Library between and finds the trio doing a little bit of everything, from novelty numbers, standards, and Cole originals to backing other singers like Anita Boyer, Ida James, Anita O'Day, and the Barrie Sisters, and it's all delightfully immediate and intimate.

Jazz Time Records. Castle Pie. Nat King Cole Jazzy: Beginnings. Proper Records. Various Artists On the Rocks! Hallmark Recordings. Cherished Classics. Nat King Cole Definitive Gold. Deja Vu. Rajon Entertainment Pty Ltd. Nat King Cole Lazy River. Rare Jazz Music Ltd. We move back to recording for Transcription Services in July and vocalist Maxine Johnson is added on a few tunes.

The 12 songs in this set exhibit a good variety, with fewer in the strictly jive category. This will evolve. In November we are back to the trio. Cole takes the vocal at a lower pitch. Solos are fine and there are some tricky lines in harmony.

Moving into February , we have a couple of Cole tunes and the occasional addition of vocalist Anita Boyer. The trio sounds like a streamlined machine; they cover these tunes with a slick professionalism. This session has not been previously released. Al is somewhat plodding and the DC recordings are of a lower quality. The NYC sessions sound a little better and put the drummer lower in the mix. Track Listing - Disc 3. I Blowed and Gone.

Harry "Sweets" Edison. I Cover the Waterfront. John W. Somebody Loves Me. Back to the Land. I Want to Be Happy. Peg O'My Heart. Mean to Me. I Cover the Waterfront [Alternate Take]. Airiness a la Nat [Alternate Take]. Babs Fred E. Scotchin' with the Soda W. Slow Down Redd Evans. Thank you, Dale. That's very helpful. Hank , May 3, Great idea for a collection. I have the Trios CD but this is something entirely different.

Sneaky Pete , May 3, Location: Now reporting from the Tempting at this price. MilesSmiles , May 3, Location: Knowing. Anyone get this yet? Any opinions? This seems to be only available through Hip-o-Select directly. Does anyone know when this will go retail? JETman , May 21, Location: Gothenburg, Sweden. Location: Groningen, Netherlands, EU. Old Man Moon - , Standard transcription Moon Song - , Standard transcription Rosetta - , Standard transcription Scategoria - , Standard transcription Rhythm Serenade - , Standard transcription Rib Town Shuffle - , Standard transcription Jump, Jack, Jump -, , Standard transcription I Knew a Time - , Standard transcription Lilla Mae - , Standard transcription I Like to Riff - , Ammo, master take On the Sunny Side of the Street - , Ammor master take Black Spider Stomp - , Ammor master take By the River St.

Marie - , Ammor master take Slew Foot Joe - , Standard transcription Off the Beam - , Standard transcription King Cole Blues - , Standard transcription Lovely Little Person - , Keystone transcription Love Me Sooner - , Keystone transcription

Anyone who remembers Nat King Cole primarily as a singer of ballads, to lush orchestral accompaniments, will find this 2-CD set a revelation. He started out as a jazz pianist, whose rhythmic style of playing derived from Earl Hines, and this compilation traces his development through the forties. The compilation begins with his first recording 5/5(2).