Does Nat King Cole have a "Rubber Soul" or "Wee Small Hours" album?

[Dennis S]

I have his Capitol Greatest Hits, but I would love to have a concept album or album where all the songs feel like they belong together.

[Seacrest]

Are you kidding?

[davester]

What Seacrest said.

[deckeda]

Uncouth ruffians.

Dennis S, Here are two to consider. FYI these links are to very well done vinyl rips. If you don't care that much about the sound quality to explore their possibilities you can find these elsewhere on CD (or worse, probably.)

After Midnight

From 1957, actual jazz, and yes Nat plays piano. (He was a delightful jazz pianist but essentially forsook it to be a pop singer before this was released. So this one was an 'old school Nat' album.)

The Very Thought of You

From the following year, and it lacks his piano but the songs are "grouped" ballads.

more info, http://www.classictvinfo.com/NKCDiscography/

... Nat's career falls into two periods. In the 1930s and 1940s, he led the King Cole Trio, featuring his own piano playing - and often singing - with guitar and bass accompaniment. In 1950, he switched gears to became a full-fledged pop singer, usually with orchestral accompaniment. Since LPs didn't come into their own until the mid-1950s, it's the pop singing that tends to be emphasized here (though there are a few albums of trio/piano instrumental material).

There are basically three types of Nat Cole LPs. Some are merely collections of his previously released singles. These albums are easy to spot, since the songs usually have a variety of recording dates and arranger/conductors. Examples of this type are Top Pops, Unforgettable, and Ballads of the Day. Others were planned specifically as albums, usually recorded on one date or several close-together dates with a single arranger/conductor. Examples are The Very Thought of You, Welcome to the Club, and Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays. In another typical scenario, Nat would initially record two sides of a single. If the single became a hit, he would go back into the studio months later and record enough additional songs to fill out an album. Ramblin' Rose, Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer, and L-O-V-E follow this pattern.