Nat "King" Cole: Unforgettable: Piano/Vocal/Chords Book

This collection captures the breadth of Cole's artistry across one of the most teachable repertoires in American music. The vocal arrangements are straightforward enough for students to tackle while retaining the harmonic sophistication that makes studying them genuinely rewarding; pianists get real comping challenges, and singers inherit interpretive problems that no amount of technical facility can solve alone. For voice studios or jazz classes, these songs are tools for understanding phrasing, lyric interpretation, and how to accompany yourself without competing with your own voice.

These arrangements breathe with restraint and warmth. There's no flash here; instead, you hear the sound of someone who knows exactly how many notes a song needs and exactly where silence serves the lyric better than sound. The harmonic language is rich without being cluttered, and the piano parts sit comfortably in a conversational range rather than demanding spotlight.

This book serves pianists who accompany singers, voice students building a standard repertoire, and jazz pianists looking to understand how to voice and comping function in an interpretive context. It works equally well for singers seeking to learn these songs with their own accompaniment and for ensemble directors assembling a cabaret or pops concert.

• Let the lyric shape your harmonic choices. Cole's genius was simplicity in service of the text; resist the urge to overcomplicte the piano part or add extra chords just because you can.
• Pay close attention to the chord symbols, particularly the extended and altered chords that appear throughout these arrangements. They define the harmonic color Cole's accompaniment relied on.
• If you're singing while playing, anchor your left hand and give yourself room to breathe. These are not pieces that demand virtuosic keyboard technique; clarity and support matter more than speed.
• Study how the melodies sit against the harmonic backdrop. Notice where Cole lands phrases early, where he holds back, and where the harmonic rhythm shifts to accommodate the lyric's emotional weight.

Program selections from this collection as solo features in a jazz or pops concert, letting the piano and voice do the storytelling. These songs also pair beautifully in a singers' workshop or masterclass context, where the simplicity of the arrangements lets everyone focus on interpretation and performance choices. For a cabaret-style evening, the breadth of the collection means you can build a coherent set that mirrors Cole's own range across uptempo swingers, ballads, and novelty numbers.

• Comping with extended and altered jazz chords
• Balancing vocal phrasing with harmonic rhythm
• Accompanying yourself without overpowering your own voice
• Interpreting standard song forms and their harmonic structures
• Left-hand independence and flexibility in jazz piano voicings