The Associated Press/file
Grammy Award-winning singer Natalie Cole will perform for The Washington Center for the Performing Arts' CenterFest fund-raiser.

Natalie Cole embraces famous father's legacy

ROSS RAIHALA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Friday, January 25, 2002

Try as she might to escape it, the legacy of her famous father, Nat King Cole, has followed Natalie Cole throughout her life.

And that includes one of her most intimate moments, when she was just another 18-year-old on a particularly hot date.

"He was one of the finest men, honey, in the school," Cole told E! Online. "He was gorgeous. I was a virgin. I had planned on, you know, having my first tryst. He picked me up from school, and we went up to his room -- and wouldn't you know he had the radio on, and a song by my father came on the radio ... It freaked us out, (but) it probably made it even better."

Natalie Cole, who will perform in Olympia tonight, was 15 when her father, Nat King Cole, died from lung cancer. The elder Cole was one of the most popular vocalists of his era thanks to hits such as "Unforgettable," "Nature Boy," "Too Young" and "When I Fall in Love."

But Natalie Cole, who will turn 52 next month, didn't start her singing career until she was a student at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Cole began singing in nightclubs, often billed only as "Nat Cole's daughter."

She escaped the lounge circuit in 1974, when she hooked up with producers Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy, who helped Cole redefine herself as an R&B act.

The trio signed to Capitol Records -- Nat King Cole's record label -- and, in 1975, Cole charted with her first hit, "This Will Be." Comparisons to Aretha Franklin soon followed.

"The truth is, (Jackson and Yancy) had always wanted to write for Aretha Franklin, and they could never get to her, so here I am and they said, 'We found our surrogate,' " Cole told VH1. "The first single I did with Capitol Records was 'This Will Be,' and a lot of people thought that it was Aretha and the rest kind of took care of itself."

The "rest" included a pair of Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "This Will Be." And Cole went on to earn numerous gold and platinum albums and score hit singles with "Inseparable," "Sophisticated Lady (She's a Different Lady)," "I've Got Love on My Mind" and "Our Love."

All the while, Cole tried her hardest to distance herself from her father.

"Like crazy," she told E! Online. "How about 15 years? It took the better part of 15 years of doing my own thing, struggling, still being compared to my father ... the extreme significance this man had in the music business was just so incredible that no matter what I did it became very, very difficult to get away from being his daughter."

Meanwhile, the title of Cole's 1977 album turned out to be prophetic: "Unpredictable."

As she details, in great depth, on her 2000 "VH1: Behind the Music" special, financial success brought drugs into Cole's life. Experimentation that began during her college years led to addiction.

"In the early '70s it was heroin, in the mid-'70s to '80s it was cocaine," Cole told one reporter. "But it was the lifestyle, the risk -- taking drugs with me across the border, going out of the country. Being so high, flipping my car a couple of times."

More concerned with drugs than her career, Cole earned the reputation of an addict who was prone to blow off concert dates and the other duties associated with being a famous singer.

Capitol Records dropped Cole in 1981; two years later, she entered rehab, but it didn't take, at least not at first. She hit the interview circuit claiming she was on the straight and narrow, but appeared on "Good Morning America" (among other shows) while under the influence.

A second trip to rehab, this time a six-month stay, did the trick, but Cole's career had hit a low point. She recorded several albums for different labels, none of which made much of a commercial impact until 1987's "Everlasting."

In 1991, Cole finally embraced her familial past and released "Unforgettable," a collection of songs made famous by her father. For the title track, she used technology to sing a duet with Nat King Cole. The original "Unforgettable" first hit the charts when Natalie Cole was still a toddler.

"It was a surprising risk that paid off handsomely -- both commercially and artistically," raved the All Music Guide.

"Unforgettable" went on to sell 7 million copies and win seven Grammy Awards.

As Cole told Oprah Winfrey: "There are two ways to come out of tragedy. Bitter or better."

From that career high point, Cole went on to record a series of well-regarded, sophisticated pop records. She also published her autobiography "Angel on My Shoulder" and began a modest acting career, appearing in a number of made-for-TV movies.

As she told one reporter, she remains a positive person willing to believe in the best.

"(I'm) the eternal optimist. And, you know, believing that love can conquer all keeps the frowns out of my forehead."

Ross Raihala covers music and entertainment for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5406 or OlyRoss@aol.com.

'CenterFest 2002: An Evening with Natalie Cole'

- What: A benefit for The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, featuring Natalie Cole.

- When: Gala reception at 6 p.m. Jan. 25, with the concert following at 8 p.m.

- Where: The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. S.E., Olympia.

- Tickets: $175 gala party package tickets are sold out. Some concert seats (priced at $38.50 to $63.50) may become available, although there is a waiting list. For more information, call The Washington Center box office at 360-753-8586.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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