In the winter of 1991, the music world was still recovering from a seismic shift. Grunge was crawling out of Seattle, hip-hop was claiming its throne, and the glossy pop of the '80s was crumbling like old paint. It was an odd time for a 41-year-old singer to release an album of her dead father’s old standards.
But Natalie Cole had a ghost to chase.
The project was titled Unforgettable… with Love. Elektra Records, her label, had initially balked. "Standards?" the executives asked. "Nat, you’re a funk-soul diva. You gave us 'This Will Be.' You don’t do Cole Porter."
Natalie just smiled. She knew the ghost.
The studio was a dimly lit room in Los Angeles. A 24-track analog board hummed with warmth. Natalie stood behind a vintage Neumann microphone, wearing a simple black dress and her father’s old signet ring on a chain around her neck. The producer, Tommy LiPuma, nodded from the booth.
"Let's try 'Unforgettable' again," he said softly. "But this time, don't sing at him. Sing with him."
They rolled tape. The orchestra—arranged with lush, romantic strings by Nelson Riddle’s old protégé—began the familiar, slow climb of chords. Then came Nat King Cole’s voice, isolated from a 1961 master tape, warm as bourbon, floating through Natalie’s headphones: “Unforgettable… that’s what you are…”
Natalie closed her eyes. She was five years old again, sitting on the living room floor of the Hancock Park house, watching her father practice at the piano. She remembered the way his hands hovered over the keys like they were blessing them. She remembered the Camel cigarettes and the quiet cough he tried to hide. She remembered December 15, 1965—the day the man with the velvet voice went silent.
She opened her mouth.
“Unforgettable… though near or far…”
Her voice entered the left channel. His voice lived in the right. The engineer, Al Schmitt, had worked magic—aligning the tempos, matching the keys, making a dead man breathe again. But the real magic was Natalie’s restraint. She didn’t imitate. She didn't compete. She leaned into the space between their voices like a daughter leaning in for a hug.
Halfway through the song, she hit the line: “Never before… has someone been more…”
Her voice cracked—just a hair, just a human moment of grief. She didn’t stop. She let the tear fall onto the mixing console. In the booth, LiPuma took off his headphones and wiped his own eyes. natalie cole unforgettable with love 1991 elektrarar
When the final note faded—“in every way… and forever more…”—silence filled the room. Not the silence of a mistake. The silence of something finished.
Natalie opened her eyes and whispered to no one: “Did I get it right, Daddy?”
The engineer played back the take. And for three minutes and twenty-nine seconds, Nat King Cole was alive again, duetting with his daughter across the divide of death.
The album was released on June 11, 1991. It debuted at number 65 on the Billboard 200. Critics were kind but cautious. Then something strange happened. Word of mouth spread. Grandparents bought it. Their children borrowed it. College students who had never heard of "Straighten Up and Fly Right" found themselves humming it.
By Christmas, Unforgettable… with Love was number one. It sold over seven million copies in the U.S. alone. It won seven Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for that impossible duet.
At the Grammy ceremony, Natalie stood at the podium, holding the gold gramophone. She looked up at the ceiling—or beyond it.
“This is for you, Daddy,” she said. “For teaching me that a song isn’t just notes. It’s a place where people who love each other never have to say goodbye.”
And somewhere—in the grooves of a vinyl record, in the static of an old radio, in the quiet of a living room where a daughter sang with her father’s ghost—the music played on.
Unforgettable… that’s what you are.
Natalie Cole achieved what many in the music industry thought was impossible: she successfully transitioned from a contemporary R&B star to a jazz chanteuse by embracing the shadow of her legendary father, Nat King Cole . Her twelfth studio album, Unforgettable… With Love , released under Elektra Records
, became a cultural phenomenon that defined a new era of "virtual duets" and revived interest in the Great American Songbook. A Bold Departure
Before 1991, Natalie Cole had largely avoided her father's repertoire to establish her own identity in soul and pop. However, her debut for In the winter of 1991, the music world
saw her dive headfirst into his catalog. At a time when grunge and hip-hop were beginning to dominate the airwaves, a 22-track collection of mid-century jazz standards was a massive gamble that her own label initially feared would not sell. The Technological Marvel: "Unforgettable"
Album Review: Natalie Cole, “Unforgettable…With Love” (1991)
Released on June 11, 1991, Unforgettable... with Love is the twelfth studio album by Natalie Cole
and a tribute to the legendary standards made famous by her father, Nat King Cole. It served as her debut for Elektra Records and became the most successful album of her career, selling over 7 million copies in the US and more than 14 million worldwide. 🏆 Key Achievements
Grammy Success: Swept the 1992 Grammy Awards with 7 wins, including Album of the Year.
Historical Milestone: Natalie Cole became the first African-American woman to win the Grammy for Album of the Year.
Chart-Topper: Spent five weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
The "Virtual Duet": The title track used multitrack technology to create a duet between Natalie and her late father, winning Record of the Year. 💿 Tracklist
The original release contains 22 tracks of jazz and pop standards: The Very Thought of You André Fischer Paper Moon Tommy LiPuma André Fischer David Foster André Fischer This Can't Be Love André Fischer André Fischer David Foster That Sunday That Summer David Foster Orange Colored Sky Tommy LiPuma Medley: For Sentimental Reasons / Tenderly / Autumn Leaves Tommy LiPuma Straighten Up and Fly Right André Fischer David Foster Don't Get Around Much Anymore André Fischer David Foster Nature Boy André Fischer Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup André Fischer Almost Like Being in Love David Foster Thou Swell André Fischer Non Dimenticar Tommy LiPuma Our Love Is Here to Stay André Fischer Unforgettable (Duet with Nat King Cole) David Foster 🎹 Musical Credits Producers: David Foster, André Fischer, and Tommy LiPuma.
Special Guest: Natalie's uncle, Ike Cole, provides piano accompaniment on several tracks.
Style: Features lush orchestration, big band arrangements, and intimate small-group jazz settings. 💡 Looking for something specific? I can help you find:
Since you included the tag "elektrarar" (likely referring to the Elektra Records release or a rare pressing), this guide focuses on the audiophile appreciation, track-by-track analysis, and physical collecting aspects of Natalie Cole’s masterpiece, "Unforgettable... with Love" (1991). The album was released on June 11, 1991
This album is a landmark in audio engineering and a triumph of musical legacy.
Now, let’s address the keyword: "Natalie Cole Unforgettable With Love 1991 Elektrarar."
If you search for this exact phrase, you will find a fascinating subset of record collector forums (Discogs, Steve Hoffman Music Forums, and eBay listings) where users discuss a specific, rare pressing. The term "Elektrarar" appears to be a hybrid typo or a promotional abbreviation combining Elektra (the record label) with RAR (an abbreviation for "Rare" or possibly a reference to a specific pressing plant code, like "RCA Records Pressing Plant, Indianapolis").
In collector slang, the "Elektrarar" generally refers to one of three potential rarities:
The album includes 22 songs, most famously:
If you are digging through your parents’ attic or a dusty record store, here is how to spot a potential "Natalie Cole Unforgettable With Love 1991 Elektrarar":
9 61099-2 (CD) or 1-61099 (LP). Any number with an extra R, a P, or a misprint is a candidate.The centerpiece of the album, and undoubtedly its most famous moment, was the title track. "Unforgettable" had been one of Nat King Cole’s signature songs. The 1991 version transformed it into a "virtual duet."
Using modern studio technology, engineers isolated Nat King Cole’s original 1961 vocal track. Natalie then recorded a new vocal arrangement to accompany her father. The result was spine-tingling. It wasn't just a duet; it felt like a conversation across time. When the two voices harmonized in the chorus, the emotional weight was palpable, creating a sense of closure and connection between a daughter and the father she lost too soon.
Accompanied by a music video that utilized archival footage of Nat, seamlessly inserting Natalie into the frame, the song became an instant classic, heavy with nostalgia and technical brilliance.
1. The Very Thought of You
2. Paper Moon
3. Route 66
Released on Elektra Records (9 61330-2), this album is considered an audiophile reference disc.