7:07:00 PM
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LOS ANGELES, CALIF. (FEBRUARY 25, 2020) — GRAMMY®
winner Nat King Cole is one of the most honored and iconic performing
and recording artists of all time. To showcase the Recording Academy
Lifetime Achievement Award recipient's professional and personal
achievements, the GRAMMY Museum® proudly presents This Is Nat King Cole,
which will bookend his centennial celebration. The exhibit will open
on, what would have been, Cole's 101st birthday, March 17, 2020, when
Cole's daughters, Timolin and Casey Cole, will discuss the stories
behind the exhibit with moderator Scott Goldman at the Museum’s Clive
Davis Theater. The exhibit will run through summer 2020.
This Is Nat King Cole will offer a retrospective of Cole's
career, his most significant professional accomplishments, his
relationship with Capitol Records, as well as, a glimpse into his
personal life through handwritten letters to his wife and family, among
other items. The masterful pianist and vocalist's initial focus was
jazz, having formed the Nat King Cole Trio while in the late ’30s. Cole
was signed to Capitol Records in 1943 and released his debut album, The King Cole Trio, a year later at the dawn of the LP format. The album topped Billboard's inaugural album chart. He went on to record nearly 700 songs for Capitol, including 150 singles that charted on Billboard's
Pop, R&B and Country charts. That phenomenal success led to
Capitol's iconic round building on Vine Street in Hollywood to be
informally known as "The House That Nat Built." Along with his
trailblazing music career, Cole is recognized for his contributions to
the struggle for racial equality. This Is Nat King Cole will
take a look at Cole as an essential figure in several sociopolitical
advancements, including the U.S. civil rights movement.
“We are so excited that our father is being honored at the GRAMMY
Museum in celebration of his centennial, and even more special that it
is on his birthday. Our hearts are full knowing that after all these
years his music lives on in the hearts of so many," said Cole's
daughters Casey and Timolin.
This exhibit captures the arc of Cole's professional and personal
life as a study of success despite adversity, and the triumph of
civility, respect and talent married with political, cultural and
business savvy.
"Nat King Cole's legacy as an iconic, American artist is
unparalleled, making him an undeniable national treasure," said the
Museum's President Michael Sticka. "It's an honor for the GRAMMY Museum
to host this exhibit and celebrate his incredible achievements and
musical legacy."
Exhibit highlights include:
- Tuxedo worn by Cole during his 1960 visit with Queen Elizabeth II
- Kimono given to Cole during a 1960 visit to Japan
- Cole's Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, awarded posthumously in 1990
- A collection of handwritten letters to Cole's wife, Maria, written between 1948 and 1956
- Beaded gown worn by Maria Cole at a celebration of Nat's 25 years with Capitol Records
- A Tiffany sterling silver box from activists Eunice Kennedy Shriver and Sargent Shriver gifted to Cole and engraved "Nat King Cole, The Best Friend A Song Ever Had"
