The biggest contribution Nat King Cole made as an artist occurred early in his career as the pianist for his storied jazz trio. Overall, though, his biggest impact was as a singer, an incredibly graceful crooner of ballads. He had a great impact on Clyde McPhatter, Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, and more, and he blazed a trail for greater acceptance of black artists in society-at-large. Smooth though it often was, his singing could be sensous and gritty, as well.

I'll leave a broader discussion of his work for others, but I heartily recommend purchasing at least one good Cole retrospective - either 1994's The Greatest Hits (pictured) or a remastered The Unforgettable Nat King Cole. Jazz fans will enjoy the boxed version of The Best Of The Nat King Cole Trio, a compendium of three separate releases. Cole's self-titled 5-CD boxed set (from which Greatest Hits is excerpted), has been deleted, but the 4-CD Classic Singles (2003) is a worthy replacement. Finally, it almost goes without saying that Cole's timeless rendering of "The Christmas Song" (and its accompanying album, beautifully repackaged in 1999) is a must-own, too.