VA - Great Vocalists of Jazz & Entertainment [2004] Vol. 01-05 of 20

 

In this collection by the German "History" label, you get nearly 40 hours of digitally remastered original 78s and 45s. The sound quality is truly amazing - the remastering process removes hiss, clicks & pops; optimizes the equalization, and synthesizes stereo. The forty discs in this set are grouped into twenty 2-disc volumes which are dedicated to a vocalist or pair or vocalists.

Volume 01. Frank Sinatra — I’ll Be Seeing You
Volume 02. Nat King Cole — It’s Only A Paper Moon
Volume 03. Perry Como — With A Song In My Heart
Volume 04. Bing Crosby — My Melancholy Baby
Volume 05. Louis Armstrong / Cab Calloway — Long Long Journey

Nat King Cole - The Complete Capitol Recordings Of The Nat King Cole Trio {1942 - 1961} (18CD, 1991/FLAC) [reupload]

 

Music fans born after 1960 are less likely to be aware that Nat King Cole began his career as an influential jazz pianist, so much so that the great Art Tatum and the up-and-coming Oscar Peterson formed trios similar to Cole's. What this comprehensive limited-edition boxed set does is put all of Cole's jazz trio recordings, including later groups that added a conga player, selected tracks from sessions that sometimes border on easy listening, and nearly the complete contents of his well-known After Midnight album from the mid-'50s, where he was joined by guests including violinist Stuff Smith, saxophonist Willie Smith, trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison, and trombonist Juan Tizol. But the main emphasis is onCole's recordings from the early days, including masterpieces like "Straighten Up and Fly Right," "Sweet Lorraine," "Body and Soul," and "Sweet Georgia Brown." By listening to sessions in order, one can hear Cole gradually transform from an instrumentalist into a friendly singing pianist and eventually, a master balladeer. Of course, there are forgettable novelty tunes sprinkled in among the gems, but there are also valuable unissued tracks that appear for the first time in this set. Also, the early recordings have been pitch-corrected, as all issues prior to this 1991 Mosaic issue were slightly off. The 18-CD set is accompanied by a detailed booklet with vintage photos, excellent liner notes by Will Friedwald, and a complete discography of the contents. Unfortunately, this Mosaic box has been out of print since the mid-'90s, so it will typically fetch several times its original price when it pops up occasionally on auction lists. 

Nat King Cole - Membran Music Box Set (10 CD, 2005)

 

10 CD collection from Membran Media

Nat King Cole - The Complete Early Transcriptions Of The King Cole Trio 1938-1941 (4 CD, 1991)

 

This four-CD set contains 112 performances by the Trio from 1938-1941, radio transcriptions made especially to be played on the air. The early trio is instantly recognizable and, although there is a greater reliance on group vocals and guest singers (including Bonnie Lake, Juanelda Carter, Pauline and Her Perils, and the Dreamers) rather than on Cole's solo vocals, the music is not all that different from what the King Cole Trio would be playing a few years later when they became much better known. 

Nat King Cole - Embraceable You (Quadromania 4 CD, 2005/FLAC)

 

For a mild-mannered man whose music was always easy on the ear, Nat King Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late '40s to the mid-'60s, he was a massively successful pop singer who ranked with such contemporaries as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. He shared with those peers a career that encompassed hit records, international touring, radio and television shows, and appearances in films. But unlike them, he had not emerged from a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group.

 

 

Nat King Cole - Hittin' the Ramp: The Early Years (1936-1943) [7 CD, 2019/FLAC]

 

By any measure, Resonance's 2019 box Hittin' the Ramp: The Early Years (1936-1943) is a monumental achievement in musical preservation. Over the course of seven CDs (or 10 LPs), Hittin' the Ramp chronicles the earliest recordings of Nat King Cole, rounding up every known track from the days prior to his time at Capitol Records. Those records for Capitol -- sessions that found him slowly transitioning from a swinging jazz pianist to smooth pop crooner -- were what brought Cole lasting fame, but the sides on Hittin' the Ramp lie at the foundation of his music. Playing with a trio comprised of guitarist Oscar Moore and usually Wesley Prince on bass (Johnny Miller took over his role toward the end of 1942), Cole essayed a sly, sophisticated spin on swing, one that relied on a standards songbook yet found plenty of space for blues, boogie, and originals. The standards hint at the refined vocal style Cole developed at Capitol, but the focus here isn't on singing, it's on Cole as a bandleader. During the eight years covered on this set, he worked in a variety of formats, beginning as the musical director for his older brother Eddie in 1936, then sharpening his skills as a leader with his trio. The group worked hard, supporting vocalists and hopping through transcription services as they cut the occasional session for fledgling labels. While many of these sides, particularly the ones recorded for Decca, have been reissued numerous times on fly-by-night imprints, the producers of Hittin' the Ramp took the effort to remaster these recordings so they gleam, then placed them in exacting context, augmented by notes by Will Friedwald. As history, the set is essential, but Hittin' the Ramp isn't a mere scholastic text. The music is jumping, lively, and alive, still brimming with wit and joy. As valuable as it is to have a way to trace the evolution of Cole as a stylist during these early years, it's simply a delight to have these recordings so thoughtfully and lovingly presented.

Nat King Cole - Stardust:,The Complete Capitol Recordings 1955-1959 [11 CD, 2006]

This is the first of two Bear Family boxes devoted to Nat King Cole, the second covers his final five years of recording (1960-1964) and together will form the definitive statement of the last and most amazing decade of one of the greatest stars of all time