Nat 'King' Cole Trio - Transcriptions, Vol. 4 (1939-1940)

Between 1938 and 1941 Nat provided the instrumental backings on about 200 broadcast transcription discs issued on the Keystone, MacGregor and Standard labels, many of which remain unpublished. These featured various artists (including The Dreamers, vocalists Lake, Juanelda Carter and Pauline Byrns & Her Perils) and the solo and instrumental items are invariably prefaced by Nat's florid, Hinesian one-note-run intros, characterised by vocals by trio members ad hoc in which scat alternates with lyrics. The majority of the transcriptions predate the Trio's first commercial discs, (Deccas, recorded in December 1940) and in general they represent a fair cross-section of the many jazz and Tin Pan Alley standards the Trio would have aired in clubs.