Speaking of Nat “King” Cole…

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Today I was in Montgomery, Alabama. I spent the morning and early afternoon at a museum devoted to the slave trade business in the early centuries of this country (that was heartbreaking, let me tell you). After lunch, I decided that, since I used Nat “King” Cole in my music countdown earlier this month, I should pay my respects. The photos on the left are of the mural near downtown Montgomery. Appropriately, it’s titled “Unforgettable,” after the title of one of Cole’s most iconic songs. It features artwork depicting his hit “Ramblin’ Rose,” a line from “Unforgettable,” album covers, and a marquee from the Apollo Theater. The photos on the right are the house Cole was born in, on March 17, 1919. It’s just outside the entrance to Alabama State University, a historical black university. That’s not the original location of the house (nor of civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy’s birthplace, which sits next door). It appears that it has been open for tours in the past, but was not today. Part of the joy of Alabama travel is all the great music you can find celebrated. I left Nat “King Cole’s birthplace and headed down a stretch of I-65 known as the “Hank Williams Memorial Lost Highway.” Here’s to you, Nat. Here’s Cole singing an abridged version of “Unforgettable” on his TV series: