Natalie Cole

For the past three decades, Natalie Cole has been one of our most treasured and successful vocal stylists. She has interpreted material from almost every genre including contemporary pop, jazz, as well as R&B classics. She has won eight Grammy Awards, including the coveted "Best New Artist" Award in 1975.

The benchmark of Natalie's work has always been to ultimately serve each song. For nearly three decades, she has interpreted material from virtually every musical era, never bending to trends or the latest production gimmicks.

Recognized for delivering a lyric with uncompromising intensity, Natalie grew up loving the classic performances, no matter the genre. Her early appreciation for Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan and all of her father's contemporaries soon translated into a curiosity about artists such as the Beatles, and the Rolling Stones.

Natalie's own legacy has always been built on a fierce dedication to her craft. Her song selection has led to some of contemporary pop's most elegant interpretations. In 1975 Natalie's stellar career took off. Her debut effort, Inseparable was an instant smash garnering her first gold album, winning two Grammy Awards including "Best New Artist" and spawning the Top 10 hit "This Will Be."  Her 1976 self-titled album Natalie, also achieved gold and garnered her a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance for the song "Sophisticated Lady." 1977's Unpredictable and Thankful both hit platinum and 1979's I Love You So reached gold. These albums included the platinum singles "I've Got Love on My Mind" and "Our Love." She continued her amazing climb in the early 1980's winning yet another Grammy and three more nominations. She closed out the decade with another Grammy nomination for her hit album Everlasting, which included the Top 15 smash hit "Jump Start," as well as an NAACP Image Award and a Soul Train Award and the 1989 album Good To Be Back which contained the Top 10 hits "Miss You Like Crazy" and "Wild Women Do."  

Natalie has delivered many memorable albums in her 25-year journey, but undoubtedly is best known for the multi-platinum, multi-Grammy winning Unforgettable, With Love, which honored a legacy of standards made famous during her father's (Nat King Cole) era. It was 1991's signing that would unveil a Natalie Cole project that would change the musical lexicon forever. The acclaimed Unforgettable, With Love has sold an amazing 14 million copies, pushing Natalie's total album sales well over the 30 million mark. A testament to Natalie's brilliant ability to convey a lyric and a tribute to her father's genius, the album garnered seven Grammy awards, becoming one of the most honored albums of all time.  

In 1993 Natalie followed up that milestone with the much honored and gold album Take A Look, which garnered her a Grammy for Best Vocal Performance. She also teamed up with another one of her idols, the legendary Frank Sinatra, recording "They Can't Take That Away From Me," for Sinatra's Duets album.  

In 1994 Elektra released Holly And Ivy, a cleverly jazz-imbued Christmas album that has become a classic, and, in 1996 Natalie enriched the tradition she established with Unforgettable, With Love, by releasing the 18-song opus, Stardust. Produced by familiar compatriots David Foster, George Duke, and Phil Ramone, the album included rare gems originally recorded by Nat King Cole, Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington and others.  Included on the acclaimed work was the lesser-known nugget, "To Whom It May Concern," penned by Nat King Cole and Natalie's aunt, Charlotte Hawkins. Stardust featured Natalie performing the duet "When I Fall in Love" with her father for which she won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.  

In 1999 Elektra Records released Natalie's highly praised album Snowfall On The Sahara a delightful array of pop and R&B songs. It's the first time in almost a decade the celebrated singer has mined such gilded territory. Guided by the gentle expertise of longtime collaborators David Foster and Phil Ramone, each song is lovingly brought to life, tethered by the soulful effortlessness of Natalie's legendary voice.  Elektra Records also released The Magic Of Christmas in 1999, a CD of Christmas standards performed with the symphonic flair of the world renowned London Symphony Orchestra. Natalie lent her unique vocal talents to holiday favorites such as "O' Tannenbaum," "Twelve Days of Christmas," and "Mary Did You Know." On the classic tune, "The Christmas Song" Natalie once again performed a duet with her father Nat King Cole, which captures the magic created on their original Grammy-winning duet, "Unforgettable."  

2000 marked Natalie's 25th year in the music industry. To mark the occasion, Elektra Records released Natalie Cole: Greatest Hits Volume I, a testament to one of the great vocalists of any era. In addition, Warner Books released her autobiography, Angel on My Shoulder, which she co-authored with Digby Diehl. The book made its appearance on national best-seller lists across the country, including the #1 slot on the Los Angeles Times Best-Seller List. NBC adapted the book for television and called it "The Natalie Cole Story" directed by actor/director Robert Townsend. Cole, who was an Executive Producer on the film, won an NAACP Image Award for her appearance in the acclaimed bio-pic.  

In 2002 Natalie joined the Verve Music Group and reunited with Tommy LiPuma, producer of the Unforgettable album on the album Ask A Woman Who Knows. Their first collaboration together garnered four Grammy Award nominations including nominations for Natalie for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for "Better Than Anything" and for Natalie and Diana Krall for Best Jazz Vocal Album.  Natalie launched her acting career in 1992 debuting with a critically applauded performance in the season finale of NBC's much heralded series "I'll Fly Away." In 1994 she starred in the title role in the USA Network Premiere Movie, "Lily in Winter," which has become a classic and is shown on various networks during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season. She also appeared in the CBS hit series "Touched By An Angel" and in the TNT broadcast of a special Lincoln Center musical production of "The Wizard of Oz."  In 1998, Natalie appeared with Laurence Fishburne in the HBO made-for-TVmovie, "Always Outnumbered" based on a short story of the same title by Walter Mosley and in 1999 she starred in the Showtime telefilm "Freak City." While her acting skills have earned her rave reviews, music remains at the very heart of a career that spans almost three decades.

*By arrangement with the William Morris Agency