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Guitar Songs, Tabs & Lessons

Nat King Cole

1 guitar song · Tabs, Lessons & Tone Guide Christmas

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Artist Overview

Nat King Cole (1919-1965) is remembered primarily as one of the greatest vocalists in American popular music, but guitarists should know that he started his career as a jazz pianist and bandleader of the King Cole Trio, one of the most influential small combos of the 1940s. The trio format (piano, guitar, bass) was groundbreaking, and the guitar chair was held by the legendary Oscar Moore and later Irving Ashby and John Collins. These guitarists helped define the sound of jazz guitar in the pre-bebop and early bebop eras, making this group essential listening for anyone interested in chord-melody playing, comping in a small ensemble, and warm, clean electric guitar tone. Oscar Moore, who played with Cole from 1937 to 1947, is the guitarist most associated with the classic trio sound. Moore's style featured sophisticated single-note lines, tasteful chord voicings, and an impeccable sense of swing. He favored archtop guitars and a clean, round tone that sat perfectly beneath Cole's piano and vocals. His interplay with Cole was conversational and dynamic, making the trio recordings a masterclass in how to support a vocalist and pianist without stepping on toes. Irving Ashby, who replaced Moore, brought a slightly more modern bebop-influenced approach, while John Collins contributed a polished, understated elegance. For guitarists, Nat King Cole's catalog is valuable for learning jazz comping, chord-melody arrangements, and tasteful fills behind a vocal melody. Songs like "The Christmas Song" are commonly arranged for solo guitar or small ensemble, making them great vehicles for practicing chord extensions (major 7ths, 9ths, 13ths) and smooth voice leading. The difficulty level is moderate to advanced, depending on your arrangement. Simple strummed versions are beginner-friendly, but authentically capturing the harmonic sophistication of the trio recordings requires solid knowledge of jazz harmony and fingerboard navigation. If you are looking to develop your skills as a rhythm guitarist, accompanist, or chord-melody player, studying the guitar work behind Nat King Cole is incredibly rewarding. The restraint, taste, and harmonic intelligence on display make these recordings timeless reference points for any guitarist who wants to play with more musicality and less flash.

What Makes Nat King Cole Essential for Guitar Players

  • Oscar Moore's comping style behind Cole's piano and vocals is a lesson in dynamic sensitivity. He would vary between full chord voicings and sparse two-note fragments, always listening and leaving space. Practicing this approach will transform your rhythm playing in any genre.
  • The King Cole Trio recordings are perfect for studying voice leading on guitar. Moving between extended chords (Cmaj9 to Dm11 to G13, for example) with minimal finger movement is a core skill you'll develop by learning these arrangements.
  • Oscar Moore frequently used single-note fill lines between vocal phrases, blending scale tones with chromatic approach notes. These fills are great exercises for connecting your knowledge of arpeggios and scales over common jazz progressions.
  • Songs like 'The Christmas Song' feature rich harmonic movement through multiple key centers, making them excellent etudes for practicing chord substitutions, tritone subs, and secondary dominants on the fretboard.
  • The trio format (no drums) means the guitar carries significant rhythmic responsibility. Learning to provide a steady rhythmic pulse through your comping patterns while also adding harmonic color is a skill that translates directly to acoustic gigs, duo settings, and singer-songwriter accompaniment.

Did You Know?

Oscar Moore won the Down Beat magazine poll for best guitarist multiple years running in the 1940s, beating out heavyweights like Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian. His work with the King Cole Trio was that influential among musicians of the era.

The King Cole Trio's format of piano, guitar, and bass (no drums) directly inspired countless later combos and is considered one of the templates for the modern jazz trio. Guitarists in that chair had to fill a huge rhythmic and harmonic role.

Oscar Moore played a Gibson ES-250 and later a Gibson L-5, both hollow-body archtops that defined the warm, woody jazz guitar tone of the 1940s. These guitars were fitted with single-coil Charlie Christian-style pickups.

'The Christmas Song' (also known as 'Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire') was recorded multiple times by Cole between 1946 and 1961, each version featuring different orchestrations, giving guitarists several arrangement styles to study and adapt.

Irving Ashby, who replaced Oscar Moore, had previously played with Lionel Hampton's big band and brought a more aggressive, bebop-tinged attack to the trio. Comparing his recordings to Moore's is a great way to hear how right-hand touch changes everything.

Nat King Cole himself was an accomplished pianist whose left-hand voicings often occupied the same harmonic territory as guitar chords. The trio guitarists had to be exceptionally creative with their voicings to avoid clashing, a skill every guitarist should develop when playing with keyboard players.

Essential Albums for Guitarists

The Complete Capitol Recordings of the Nat King Cole Trio album cover
The Complete Capitol Recordings of the Nat King Cole Trio 1991

This box set compiles the trio's essential recordings from 1942 to 1961 and is the definitive resource for studying Oscar Moore's and Irving Ashby's guitar work. Tracks like 'Route 66,' 'Straighten Up and Fly Right,' and 'Sweet Lorraine' showcase jazz comping, single-note fills, and chord-melody techniques at their finest.

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After Midnight album cover
After Midnight 1956

This album sees Cole returning to a small-group jazz format with guitarist John Collins, and it features relaxed, swinging arrangements perfect for studying tasteful comping and blues-inflected fills. Songs like 'Just You, Just Me' and 'Sweet Lorraine' (re-recorded) give guitarists clear examples of how to support a vocalist with economy and style.

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The Christmas Song (Expanded Edition) album cover
The Christmas Song (Expanded Edition) 1967

For guitarists learning 'The Christmas Song,' this collection provides multiple versions to compare arrangements and harmonic choices. The lush chord progressions move through several keys and are packed with jazz harmony, making it an ideal study piece for chord extensions, smooth transitions, and ballad-tempo comping.

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Tone & Gear

Guitar

Oscar Moore primarily played a Gibson ES-250 in the early years and later a Gibson L-5 CES archtop. Irving Ashby favored a Gibson L-5 as well, and John Collins played various Gibson archtops. These are all full-bodied or thinline hollow-body guitars that produce the warm, rounded tone synonymous with 1940s and 1950s jazz guitar. For modern players, any quality archtop (Epiphone Emperor, Ibanez AF series, or a Gibson ES-175) will get you in the ballpark.

Amp

In the 1940s, the trio guitarists used small tube amplifiers typical of the era, such as Gibson EH-150 or early Fender models. The goal was clean, warm amplification with no breakup. Modern equivalents would include a Fender Princeton Reverb or a Roland JC-40 set completely clean, with treble rolled back slightly to avoid harshness. Volume was kept moderate to blend with piano and upright bass.

Pickups

Oscar Moore's Gibson ES-250 featured a Charlie Christian-style bar pickup, a single-coil design known for its warm, dark, slightly midrange-focused tone. Later Gibson archtops used P-90 single-coils or early humbuckers (on the L-5 CES). These lower-to-moderate output pickups are ideal for jazz because they preserve dynamics and produce a smooth, articulate fundamental without excessive brightness or compression.

Effects & Chain

No effects whatsoever. This is straight-into-the-amp territory. The tone comes entirely from the guitar's tone knob (typically rolled back to around 4-6), the player's right-hand touch, and the natural warmth of the tube amp. For 'The Christmas Song' and other Nat King Cole material, focus on getting a clean, round, warm tone and let your fingers and chord voicings do all the expressive work.

How to Practice Nat King Cole on GuitarZone

Every Nat King Cole song page on GuitarZone includes a built-in Practice Toolbar. No app to download, no account needed. Open any song, then use the toolbar to slow the video to 0.5× speed, set an A/B loop around the exact riff you're working on, and jump between song sections instantly.

The toolbar appears automatically on every guitar tab, lesson, and cover page. Pick a song below, hit play, and start practicing at your own pace.

Practice The Christmas Song - Guitar Lesson