Natalie Cole at the Bowl: 'Healthy and whole and 100%'
You got the feeling Wednesday night that Natalie Cole couldn’t have been happier to be pulling into the Hollywood Bowl nearly two months late for her gig.
“I never thought I’d be standing here healthy, whole and 100% again,” the 59-year-old singer told the crowd, which cheered her return to the concert stage following a kidney transplant in May that prompted the postponement of her scheduled July 15 concert.
Her recovery -- guest gospel singer Kurt Carr called her “a walking miracle” when his 10-member choir joined her near the show’s end -- made for a warmly emotional backdrop to a performance dominated by music drawn from the Great American Songbook. She tapped that trove anew last fall in “Still Unforgettable,” the successor to her multiple-Grammy-winning 1991 collection, “Unforgettable With Love.”
Backed by a big band plus the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, conducted with snap by “Still Unforgettable” co-producer Gail Deadrick, Cole, looking dazzling in a strapless purple gown, reclaimed her birthright in tastefully arranged, masterfully sung pop standards such as “The Man That Got Away,” “Come Rain or Come Shine,” “Walkin’ My Baby Back Home” and “Smile.”
A smart arrangement of “The Man That Got Away” downshifted from a blazing swing that let her show off her precise articulation to a half-tempo section in which she could more gently caress the song’s melodic curves, then back to full speed and down once more.
She took equally great care with Nan Schwartz’s Grammy-winning arrangement that recast “Here’s That Rainy Day,” distinguishing it from the signature Stan Kenton version. One of the key strengths of her outings in this field is her avoidance of the vocal acrobatics that mar so many pop and R&B singers’ attempts to sing jazz.
“Walkin’ My Baby Back Home” gave her another chance to duet posthumously with her father, whose elegantly silky voice came through the Bowl’s P.A. system in perfect sync with her own. She clearly inherited Nat King Cole’s effortlessness as a singer, casually remaining behind the beat in most of the ballads. Nat became a video as well as an audio presence on the screens flanking the stage when Natalie got around to “Unforgettable,” looking unforgettably cute in vintage photos of her when she had recently lost her two front teeth.
Cole followed the standards with a four-song R&B set that pulled in her ‘70s and ‘80s pop numbers “This Will Be,” “Inseparable,” “Mr. Melody” and the bluesy “I’m Catching Hell.”
“This Will Be” positively crackled from her joyfulness, aided by lockstep harmonies from her two backup singers on that effervescent chorus that spews its piled-up expressions of love breathlessly. Indeed, she appeared to be huffing a bit at the end, understandable in what was her first concert since the kidney transplant. But she got her second wind in a final stretch in which she made good on a vow to take the 9,737-strong crowd to church with her.
“Be Blessed” and “He’s Done Enough” gained firepower from Carr’s group, and she offered a string of thank-yous for her own blessings, ultimately kicking up her heels in some footwork straight from the pulpit when the orchestra kicked into a double-time coda on “He’s Done Enough."
Would that all divas might get in touch with their humility, and live to sing about it, the way Natalie Cole has.
--Randy Lewis
Photo credit: Alex Gallardo / Los Angeles Times
The concert was the best. She looked simply BEAUTIFUL!!!!! I would pay to see her over and over again.
Posted by: Karen | September 10, 2009 at 08:35 AM
Couldn't agree more! Natalie rocked the Bowl last night in a great show. She only seems to get better and better! She was in great voice, she was beautiful and she did genuinely seem thrilled to be there.
Posted by: Greg | September 10, 2009 at 08:49 AM
I was there. It was a "MiraCole" concert. The way Natalie "managed" her voice like a master at a studio console. She looked good too and I did not see any sign of exhaustion at all. Her voice was in great shape and singing live is a tell all. What her voice told us is that she's got a gift directly from God and she knows how to use it. I love that she sings all different styles and make some people's head spin when she goes from Rainy Day to an updated I'm Catching Hell. Natalie Cole "Positively Beautiful."
Posted by: JW | September 10, 2009 at 10:55 AM
Go Natalie. "After Monterey" a Michael Jackson Tribute album by Robert K Walcott of Blue Ribbon Press.
http://www.blueribbonpress.net/AfterMonterey.htm
Posted by: Robert Walcott | September 10, 2009 at 12:19 PM
She was wonderful last night and looked sexy and as if the recovery is complete! Which is great news since I have a friend Francois, who also just recovered from Hep C after an even longer 5 year treatment with interferon- treatment which is exhausting and stops a person cold... he also had almost-kidney-failure but recovered after being rushed to the hospital in France so although he did not have to have a transplant it is like they are brother/sister from the experience! Makes me cheer her recovery even more seeing her look and sound so great. She sounded better this time than even the last time I saw her at the Bowl...two years ago in 2007. We missed her last year when she had to cancel being there with Winton Marsalis but this year.... she blew us all away! Thanks Natalie! You are a gem!
Posted by: Edwin | September 10, 2009 at 06:11 PM
Phenomenal! She rocked it! Natalie both looked and sound absolutely terrific! Raves! Bravo! And she did an encore...something some many artist don't do anymore. We just loved it!
Posted by: DAY | September 10, 2009 at 06:54 PM
Natalie was amazing and her voice was impeccable.
The show was great and you left feeling great.
Posted by: Rashidi | September 10, 2009 at 07:17 PM
Ms. Cole was absolutely amazing last night. Bravo Natalie Cole…
Posted by: Edward Padgett | September 10, 2009 at 08:03 PM
As a loooong time Natalie and Nat'lay fan, I must say she was absolutely stunning last Wednesday night at the Hollywood Cole, I mean, Bowl...hehehe! Both looking and sounding great! Making my heart smile with joy, even after all these years!
Posted by: El Aye | September 11, 2009 at 02:35 PM
I was there! It was a "MiraCole" concert. Natalie stepped onto the stage in that gorgeous jeweled purple gown looking amazing and sounding even better. I was so impressed with the way she "managed" her voice like a live studio console. Live singing is tell all and what her singing told us is that her voice IS in top shape after her kidney transplant. Cole sang jazz, r&b and gospel and her voice got stronger with each genre shift. Her Rainy Day froze time at the bowl, the voice, the phrasing, the lighting, the orchestra, the miracle night. She ended her jazz set with Let There Be Love showing her voice was as brilliant as the trumpet she dueted with. Then Natalie unleashed her mega hit Unforgettable before soaring through her hits, Inseparable, Mr. Melody and This Will Be, but her updated "I'm Catching Hell" really was a show stopper. THEN she went Gospel, returning in a short green dress and shawl to join the Carr singers in a rousing gospel arrangement in which she unleashed a voice that showed no fatigue. Finally LA audiences gave it up for Natalie Cole screaming for more after her final song "Our Love." Cole did return and sang accompanied only by piano. She delivered "Lush Life" as her encore as though she had not done a full concert at all. She eased and cooed and stunned the crowd with her clear effortless singing after an hour long show.
Posted by: Joseph Lorenzo Wise | September 11, 2009 at 05:58 PM
This was the first time I attended an event at the Hollywood Bowl, and I must say without a doubt, Natalie Cole lit up the entire stage with her personality and her performance! Wonderful event!
Posted by: Terre Stefan | September 14, 2009 at 04:36 PM
This was the first time I attended an event at the Hollywood Bowl, and I must say that Natalie Cole lit up the stage with her personality and performance. What a wonderful experience!
Posted by: Terre Stefan | September 14, 2009 at 04:38 PM
Natalie, Congradulations. Wish I could have been there. I have everything that you've recorded for these 30 plus years. I prayed for you after we met in Wisconsin in 2004. PLEASE RESCHEDULE MILWAUKEE. I would love to have my Posner Cosmetics poster signed. I thank GOD for allowing us to share your extended life. I would love to hear, "Still in love", "Heaven is with you", or "Keep smiling". You are simply, THE BEST. By the way, where is that gospel album you've been procrastinating? THE LORD WAITING. Love, T.RENEE
Posted by: T.Renee Carson | September 15, 2009 at 09:16 PM
Was this concert recorded? Would love to see it. Is Natalie planning to travel to the Tampabay Florida area? Would love to see her live. Has she ever put out a DVD of any of her concerts? It would be awesome for her fans. Thanks, Joshua
Posted by: Joshua | October 05, 2009 at 10:48 PM