NAT: An Orchestral Portrait of Nat "King" Cole

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NAT: An Orchestral Portrait
of Nat "King" Cole
Studio album by
Nelson Riddle
Released1966
Recorded1966
GenreTraditional pop
Length34:14
LabelReprise RS-6162
ProducerSonny Burke
Nelson Riddle chronology
Interprets Great Music, Great Films, Great Sounds
(1966) 		NAT: An Orchestral Portrait
of Nat "King" Cole
(1966) 		Music for Wives and Lovers
(1967)

NAT: An Orchestral Portrait of Nat "King" Cole is an album by American composer and arranger Nelson Riddle of music associated with the singer and pianist Nat King Cole.[1] The album was released a year after Cole's death in 1965; Riddle had previously arranged several of Cole's albums.[2][3]

Origin[edit]

Nelson Riddle enjoyed a long and successful professional relationship with Nat King Cole. As his very first effort for Capitol Records, he arranged the singer's 1950 hit "Mona Lisa", and for the next 15 years the two collaborated on numerous singles and nearly a dozen LPs. A year after King Cole's death in 1965, Riddle arranged a tribute album of the singer's music. Riddle biographer Peter J. Levinson wrote:[4]

[Riddle] had lost one of his closest friends and the man who had given him a golden opportunity to display his talent. As Nelson described it, 'Nat was my wedge.' Without Nat having taken a stand on his behalf, one can only speculate on the ultimate fate of Nelson's career.

Reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Record Mirror[5]

Reviewing the 2005 CD re-release of the album for AllMusic, Al Campbell wrote, "Although not essential, this is a respectable reissue that traditional pop fans should be aware of".[1]

Track listing[edit]

Side 1[edit]

  1. "Straighten Up and Fly Right" (Nat King Cole, Irving Mills) – 2:44
  2. "Too Young" (Sylvia Dee, Sidney Lippman) – 2:55
  3. "It's Only a Paper Moon" (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg, Billy Rose) – 2:58
  4. "Nature Boy" (eden ahbez) – 2:52
  5. "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" (Fred E. Ahlert, Roy Turk) – 2:38
  6. "Mona Lisa" (Ray Evans, Jay Livingston) – 3:03

Side 2[edit]

  1. "Night Lights" (Chester Conn, Gallop) – 2:34
  2. "Pretend" (Dan Belloc, Lew Douglas, Frank LaVere, Cliff Parman) – 2:55
  3. "Ballerina" (Sidney Russell, Sigman) – 2:38
  4. "Sweet Lorraine" (Cliff Burwell, Mitchell Parish) – 3:10
  5. "Ramblin' Rose" (Joe Sherman, Noel Sherman) – 2:40
  6. "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)" (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) – 2:57

Personnel[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c NAT: An Orchestral Portrait of Nat "King" Cole at AllMusic
  2. ^ Peter J. Levinson (2005). September in the Rain: The Life of Nelson Riddle. Taylor Trade Publications. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-58979-163-3.
  3. ^ "Nelson Riddle – "NAT" An Orchestral Portrait Of Nat King Cole at Discogs". discogs.com. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  4. ^ Levinson, Peter J. (2001). September in the Rain; The Life of Nelson Riddle. Billboard Books. p. 102. ISBN 0-8230-7672-5.
  5. ^ Jones, Peter; Jopling, Norman (4 September 1965). "Nelson Riddle Orchestra: Nat" (PDF). Record Mirror. No. 234. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.

External links[edit]

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