A Record a Week: Nat King Cole - You're My Everything

SIDE 1.
YOU'RE MY EVERYTHING
LITTLE COQUETTE
MAGIC MOMENTS
YOU'LL SEE
BEND A LITTLE MY WAY

SIDE 2.
THE GIRL FROM IPANEMA
BECAUSE YOU'RE MINE
BRUSH THOSE TEARS FROM YOUR EYES
POINCIANA

This album is a compilation of Nat King Cole songs and as far as I can tell, it was an unauthorized release. It's hard to find information on it other than that it was released by Pickwick Records in 1967 and it doesn't seem to appear on any of his 'official' discographies.

It contains a mixture of Jazz Piano, some more upbeat stuff and some crooning style. No matter what the style, Nat King Cole's wonderful voice floats above. The man fought adversity to become a pioneer in the formats of Jazz Piano, Jazz Trio and Male Vocal. Constantly up against the racism battle, he just kept on making music and ignoring the hatred. Sadly, he died in 1965 after a battle with lung cancer. No surprise, as he reportedly smoked up to three packs a day, something he apparently attributed his vocal sound to (if you trust Wikipedia).

This album is a nice mixture, but it leaves me wondering why, if you are going to make a (most likely) unauthorized collection, you wouldn't make one with a few more chart-hitting songs of his. Perhaps these were the songs that were public domain, or favourites of a label exec. Either way, with a voice like his, it's pretty hard to go wrong when picking songs.