Pre-Owned Cole Español and More, Vol. 2 (CD 0077774648226) by Nat King Cole

0077774648226. Pre-owned: Good condition. CD. Nat King Cole recorded three albums of songs sung in Spanish, Cole Español (1958), A Mis Amigos (1959), and More Cole Español (1962). In 1987, Capitol Records reissued this material on two collections confusingly called Cole Español and More, Vol. 1 and Cole Español and More, Vol. 2. This second volume begins with ten of the 12 tracks from the More Cole Español LP, excluding "Aqui Se Habla en 'Amor'" and "A Media Luz." The next five selections (Tracks 11-15) are drawn from A Mis Amigos; they are the final five tracks on that LP. More Cole Español was recorded in Mexico City with Mexican singers and musicians, but arranged and conducted by Ralph Carmichael. It demonstrated that Cole had made significant advances as a singer in Spanish in a few years. Cole Español had found him providing tentative, phonetically learned syllables over prerecorded tracks imported from Cuba, giving him the sound of someone trying to avoid making mistakes. A Mis Amigos, cut in Rio de Janeiro during the South American tour promoting Cole Español, was better, but still not a truly complete fit for Cole. He still didn't sound like he always knew what he was singing, and he still seemed to be working on his pronunciation, but on More Cole Español he was clearly having a lot more fun. In part, this had to be because the arrangements were more rhythmic and up-tempo, and Cole must have been taking enthusiasm from the local musicians who accompanied him. And he must have been more familiar with material that included crossover hits like "Vaya con Dios." Whatever the reasons, More Cole Español was his most successful effort at making music for fans south of the border, and most of that album is reproduced on this compilation. ~ William Ruhlmann, Rovi