'Unforgettable' singer Natalie Cole dead at 65

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK - Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole, whose biggest hit came in a virtual duet with her late father, pop legend Nat King Cole, of his decades-old hit "Unforgettable," has died at the age of 65, her family said on Friday.

The family's statement said Cole died on Thursday night at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles from "ongoing health issues."

Cole's career spanned five decades in the R&B, soul, jazz and pop genres. In 2015, she had canceled appearances citing medical reasons.

"It is with heavy hearts that we bring to you all the news of our Mother and sister's passing," the Cole family statement said. "Natalie fought a fierce, courageous battle, dying how she lived - with dignity, strength and honor. Our beloved Mother and sister will be greatly missed and remain UNFORGETTABLE in our hearts forever.”

The statement was signed by Cole's only child, Robert Yancey, and her twin sisters, Timolin and Casey Cole.

Tributes quickly poured in for Cole, with singer Tony Bennett saying on Instagram he was "deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Natalie Cole, as I have cherished the long friendship I had with her, her father Nat, and the family over the years."

Bennett added: "Natalie was an exceptional jazz singer and it was an honor to have recorded and performed with her on several occasions."

‘Unforgettable’ comeback

Cole broke out in 1975 with the hit "This Will Be," which won the Grammy for best R&B female performance and also earned her the Grammy for best new artist. Critics compared her to Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin but her career floundered in the 1980s when she ran into problems with heroin.

She bounced back, and her career reached the superstar level in 1991 when she recorded "Unforgettable ... With Love." The album contained songs associated with her father, the silky-voiced baritone who was one of the most popular performers of the 1940s and '50s but died before his daughter began her solo career.

Using technology that was cutting edge at the time, studio engineers merged her voice with her father's in the song "Unforgettable," which had been a hit for Nat King Cole in 1951. The result was a moving, sentimental No. 1 hit 40 years later, that actually sounded as if the two were singing a duet.

The song and the album it came from earned Cole three Grammy Awards.

"I thank my dad for leaving me such a wonderful, wonderful heritage," Cole said in accepting her awards.

Cole's other hits included "Everlasting," "Sophisticated Lady," "I've Got love on My Mind," and "Good to Be Back." In all, she won nine Grammys.

The success of "Unforgettable" capped her comeback after a dark period of heroin, crack and alcohol abuse. In "Angel on My Shoulder," her 2000 memoir, Cole said she turned to drugs because of unresolved issues in her life, including being molested as a child and her father's death when she was 15.

She spent six months in a rehabilitation program at the Hazelden Clinic in Minnesota and told CBS in 2006 that "those people gave me my life back one day at a time."

Cole was diagnosed with hepatitis in 2008 from sharing needles with drug addicts, and underwent kidney transplant surgery in 2009. This past autumn, she canceled several concerts scheduled for November and December, citing a recent medical procedure.

Her 2008 album of pop standards, "Still Unforgettable," included another duet with her father, "Walkin' My Baby Back Home." Her most recent work was 2013's "Natalie Cole en Espanol."

Cole was only 11 when she first sang professionally, with her father. But she went to the University of Massachusetts in Amherst with no plans of an entertainment career. While in college, she performed with bands and set aside plans for being a child psychologist.

Cole's mother, Maria Cole, also had been a singer with the Duke Ellington and Count Basie bands.

Cole portrayed herself in "Livin' for Love: The Natalie Cole Story," a 2000 television movie that depicted her drug addiction. She was married three times.

"We’ve lost a wonderful, highly cherished artist and our heartfelt condolences go out to Natalie’s family, friends, her many collaborators, as well as to all who have been entertained by her exceptional talent," Neil Portnow, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Singer Patti LaBelle tweeted “Sending prayers and condolences to all the loved ones of my friend #NatalieCole! She will be truly missed but her light will shine forever!”

Singer Lenny Kravitz posted on Instagram: "As the new year was ushered in, an angelic instrument moved on. Natalie Cole's voice was perfection. And what a lady... You will be missed my dear. Love."

source: interaksyon.com

Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett ‘cheek-to-cheek’ at Montreux jazz fest

MONTREAUX | Pop star Lady Gaga and crooner Tony Bennett brought a mix of Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra and even Edith Piaf to a sell-out crowd spanning generations at the Montreux Jazz Festival on Monday night.

Legendary producer Quincy Jones introduced the odd American couple, praising Gaga as a singer who had “blown his mind.” He also recalled working on the musical arrangement for Bennett’s 1966 hit “Girl Talk.”

“This would be Claude’s definite dream,” Jones said, referring to Claude Nobs, the late founder of one of Europe’s most prestigious summer music festivals, now in its 49th edition.

Bennett, the only person in the famed Stravinski Auditorium wearing a jacket and tie, and the blond Gaga, appearing first in a long shiny silver dress with plunging neckline, opened with “Anything Goes,” a Cole Porter tune of the 1930s.

The pair of New Yorkers then sang “Cheek to Cheek” by Irving Berlin, the title track from their 2014 album of jazz standards for which they won a Grammy Award in February.

Bennett, just weeks shy of his 89th birthday, and Gaga, already a six-time Grammy winner at age 29, delivered 30 songs during their 100-minute non-stop show, backed by nine musicians.

“We’re selling our album around the world, please buy it. She really needs the money,” Bennett quipped.

Gaga, born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, is better known for her hits “Paparazzi” and “Poker Face.”

Gaga hit the high notes in Montreux in half a dozen eye-popping outfits, changing backstage during Bennett’s solos. During love ballads, she gave him hugs or kisses on the cheeks.

For their “I Won’t Dance” duet, she wore a black dress and long gloves, with glittering eyebrows.

In “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love,” Gaga played the vamp in a red feathered dress with transparent top. For “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” her silver dress with chain belt gave her the allure of the swinging 60s.

She sat back-to-back with pianist Michael Renzi cabaret style for “Everytime We Say Goodbye,” another Cole Porter hit.

SINATRA CENTENARY

Bennett paid tribute to Sinatra, born 100 years ago, saying the late star had been “opening his soul” with the song “I’ve got the World on a String.” He then performed his personal favorite, “In the Wee Small Hours.”

Introducing the song “Smile,” Bennett told the crowd that he had once received a fan letter from Switzerland about the best-selling theme song from the 1936 movie “Modern Times.”

“I couldn’t believe it. It was from Mr. Charlie Chaplin,” he said of the British actor who lived in nearby Vevey.

Gaga, dressed in a vintage pink satin dress with huge bow at the waist, sang “La Vie en Rose,” earning the biggest applause of the night for her moving version of Piaf’s signature song.

source: interaksyon.com