The Nat King Cole Trio
The Nat King Cole Trio was formed by Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole, in the late 1930s. Initially called King Cole and His Swingsters, the trio included guitarist Oscar Moore (later replaced by Irving Ashby) and bassist Wesley Prince (later replaced by Johnny Miller). The group was notable for its swing music style, characterized by the absence of a drummer and the unique voicing of piano and guitar, often creating the effect of a single instrument. The trio became the top-selling group and the only Black act on Capitol Records in the 1940s, influencing small jazz ensembles that followed.
Their first chart success came with "Straighten Up and Fly Right" in 1943, followed by hits like "Sweet Lorraine," "It's Only a Paper Moon," and "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons." The trio's success was further cemented with the release of "The Christmas Song" in 1946, which became a holiday standard. Despite personnel changes and Cole's eventual shift to a solo singing career, the trio's legacy as a pioneering jazz group remained influential.
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