
This rare photo of
Nat Cole came from the scrapbook of my guitar teacher
John Collins. John was Nat’s guitarist from 1951-1965 and also played with
Art Tatum,
Billie Holiday,
Slam Stewart,
Dizzy Gillespie, and many other pioneers of swing & bebop. This photo was taken while on tour in 1959 and is a rare glimpse of a very informal Nat Cole behind the scenes.