CD Review: Nat "King" Cole - Capitol Rarities (Vol. 1)

Before we launch into the review, a story....

Don't skip ahead even if you think you know where this story is going.

When I first got wind of Nat King Cole's Capitol Rarities (Vol. 1), I wondered if it might include selections from the massive Cole boxset that Mosaic released in the early '90s. That was arguably the biggest set that the mail-order label had released, aside from the three-volume collection of everything on the Commodore label. The Cole set featured everything his trio recorded for Capitol on 18 CDs or 27 records. If I remember correctly, the purchase could be spread over three monthly credit card installments for a total of $270, before shipping. That was a lot of dough in 1991. 

Of course it sounded like a beautiful package but even then I thought, that's a helluva a lot of music in one box. I had yet to get a CD player when it came out so the thought of playing 27 records seemed like an impossibility, even if I hadn't been a crazy college student. 

Over the years, as I started acquiring more Mosaic boxes - some bought, some as review copies - the Nat set still seemed out of reach, in both cost and scope. Maybe when I retire, I'll have the time for it. In getting an answer to my question - Capitol Rarities does not dip into the Mosaic set - it was mentioned that all that music is now available for streaming online. It's a nice thought, but it's kind of like having a cassette dub: all the great music, sure, but none of the details that you come to expect and relish from a Mosaic set. I'll still have to wait.

Then last month, after I posted my review of Mosaic's Lennie Tristano set, a friend mentioned online that one of the Exchange shops had some used Mosaic boxes for sale. Of course I had to check it out, so I went in, expecting to see huge price tags on things I already have. But there was the Art Blakey set of the 1960 Jazz Messengers. More sets were on the shelves in the back of the shop, I was told. So I went back and saw this..... 

I almost regret having the guy in the shop remove the price sticker because that $270 set of 18 CDs, which still goes for that much and more online.......... was a mere (relatively speaking) $125. Typically, price is not something I crow about when I get a good deal, but that was unbelievable.

And just to give some idea of how massive a box it is. here's another view. Remember, it's about 12X12, if not 13X13.

I considered doing a blog post a day for each disc in the set but that seemed unrealistic. It also might get old after awhile. Besides, how many different things can I say about five versions of "She's My Buddy's Chick" without just lifting from the liner notes? 

So far, I've listened to eight discs. 

Now onto our new release.

 

Nat King Cole

Capitol Rarities (Vol. 1)

(Capitol)  natkingcole.lnk.to/CapitolRaritiesVol1

Nat Cole recorded a huge amount of music during his lifetime, so a large portion of it could be considered "rare," unless you're actively digging through crates of old Capitol 78s. In that way, the title of this collection refers to the fact that these 14 tracks that have been previously released but are hard to find, anywhere other than the original pieces of plastic (or shellac) that first contained them. Five of them are available for streaming for the first time. 

Capitol Rarities (Vol. 1) culls material from different periods of Cole's career, rather than attempting to be the first set in a chronological series. This overview points to another aspect of the singer/pianist's output - not everything he produced had the thrilling precision of the King Cole Trio. He recorded a lot of hokum too. It's not all that appears on this set, but that is a fairly good way to describe "Tunnel of Love," a tale of the efforts he has to take to woo his sweetheart, complete with the Ray Charles Singers (no connection to the singer/pianist who would start out emulating Cole), serving as a Greek Chorus that plays up the corny couplets that rhyme "custard" and "mustard," as well as "coaster" and "toaster."

Three tracks feature Cole's wife Maria in duets with him. "Get Out and Get Under the Moon" casts the couple in close harmony in front of a later version of the Trio and Pete Rugolo's swinging chart. Future collections should include more of this. The other two tracks with Maria are novelty numbers. "Hey Not Now! (I'll Tell You When)" uses the title as a stop-time punchline in yet another song about Nat's failed attempts to make a move on his sweetie. "It's the Man Every Time" plays on the men-like-to-cheat/women-like-to-spend-money stereotypes with lesser results. 

Some of the more interesting moments of the set come with songs that contain an undercurrent of social commentary. In the dramatic "My Brother," Nat could be singing about the easygoing ways of his siblings Freddie or Eddie. But the surprise ending finds Cole saying that "a guy who likes to see his neighbors get along with one another... is the kind of Joe I'm mighty proud to know/ for you're the one I call my brother." For 1950, when it was recorded, it's a powerful message and the smooth Cole delivery hasn't lost any edge.

"The Magic Tree," one of the tracks available digitally for the first time, and "Early American" both mix metaphors about budding relationships with, in the latter, the optimism that must have been brewing this country following the war. The mention of "the first Thanksgiving" might ring hollow in these modern times, but the lyrics are involved enough that it can overlooked. Cole might have been hoping to latch onto another major holiday when he co-wrote "Easter Sunday Morning" but it lacks the narrative that he immortalized in "The Christmas Song." 

While the use of strings is often considered synonymous with music that's more flaccid and lightweight, it's important to remember that Cole took to them adroitly. Thanks to arrangers like Rugolo and Nelson Riddle, the warm Cole pipes made the backgrounds lush rather than mush. Tracks like "The Day Isn't Long Enough" and "My First and Last Love" come off like ballads with weight. "Roses and Wine" might not be the strongest song, but Cole's spoken intro creates a captivating aura that opens the album and lifts the proceedings.

The vocal choruses provide more of a challenge. But even at their most cloying, at least the Alyce King Vokettes (helmed by one of the King Sisters) never gets as bad as, say, Nat's Wild Is Love concept album. That one should remain rare. 

Overall, Capitol Rarities (Vol. 1) shows how a consummate artist can make even so-so material sound strong. Maybe there will be a new life for some of these songs.