Download Free Natalie Cole * Songs

Natalie Cole music biography continued...

Stephanie Natalie Maria Cole in Los Angeles, California on February 6, 1950, Cole made her singing debut at the age of six on her father's Christmas album. Cole was 15 years old when her father died of lung cancer in February 1965 and her mother moved the family to Massachusetts. While performing on the side, Cole stayed in school and wound up getting a B.A. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. After she graduated from college, Cole played at more and more distinctive venues. Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy (two Chicago-based songwriters and record producers) caught her act at Mister Kelly's nightclub in Chicago. They liked the range of her talent and took her into the studio to record a demo tape. Signed to Columbia, her father's label, Her debut album in 1975, Inseparable, resulted in chart success with the single "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" (#1 R&B, #6 Pop). Her performance of the song won her a 1976 Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, breaking Aretha Franklin's string of eight consecutive wins. She was also awarded the Best New Artist Grammy of 1976. The Yancy-Jackson partnership would go on to spawn several more hits for Cole, including "Inseparable," "Sophisticated Lady," "Mr. Melody," "I've Got Love on My Mind," and "Our Love," which would transform Natalie into every bit a star as her father before her.



Cole's career was derailed by drug abuse in the early 80s, but after a stint in rehab she came back to record several more hit R&B singles and albums, culminating in 1991's , Unforgettable... with Love, featuring her own arrangements of her father's greatest hits. The album garnered Cole several Grammy awards, including Album of the Year and sold over 7 million copies in the United States alone. Cole has released several more albums in the two decades since, becoming a staple on smooth jazz radio stations throughout the world with both her classic songs and her newer material. For the girl who was once nicknamed "Sweetie," the musical life sure has been sweet.