Nathaniel Adams Coles was born on March 17, 1919, in Montgomery, Alabama. He had three siblings and a half-sister, Joyce. The family moved to Chicago, Illinois when Nat turned 4, where his father became a Baptist minister.
He had learnt to play the organ from his mother who played the church organ. His first performance was at the age of four and he performed “Yes! We Have No Bananas”. At 12, he began formal lessons learning gospel, classical music and jazz.
His music career eventually began when he turned 15. He dropped out of school to pursue music. His brother, Eddie, a bassist, returned from a tour and formed a sextet with Nat.
Nat married Nadine Robinson who was a member of the cast in the musical he performed in 1937. They eventually settled in Los Angeles after the show ended. Here, Nat began to look for work.
He eventually got a job as a pianist for nightclubs. One of the club owners asked him to form a band and he hired a bassist and a guitarist. They named themselves the King Cole Swingsters after the nursery rhyme in which “Old King Cole was a merry old soul”.
However, before recording for small labels and making radio transcriptions, they renamed themselves the King Cole Trio. In 1940, he recorded his first hit called, Sweet Lorraine.
In 1940, Nat became a household name and grew more famous. His fame skyrocketed after he released “Unforgettable” in 1954.
He had five children with Maria Hawkins who he married six days after his divorce from Natalie. His career was laced with racist experiences. Around September 1964, he fell sick and was diagnosed with lung cancer. On February 15, 1965, he died.
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