Edward Bennett Coles (October 29, 1910 – June 18, 1970), known professionally as Eddie Cole, was an American jazz musician and brother to musicians

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

Freddy Cole Lionel Frederick Cole (October 15, 1931 – June 27, 2020) was an American jazz singer and pianist whose recording career spanned almost 70 years. He was the brother of musicians Nat King Cole, Eddie Cole, and Ike Cole, father of Lionel Cole, a ...

, and

Ike Cole Isaac Cole (July 13, 1927 – April 22, 2001) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He was the brother of musicians Nat King Cole, Eddie Cole, and Freddy Cole, and uncle of Natalie Cole, Lionel Cole, and Carole Cole. Life and career Ik ...

Biography

Eddie Cole was born to Rev. Edward J. and Perlina (Adams) Coles in Montgomery, Alabama, on October 29, 1910. He was the second oldest of ten children and the oldest son. His brothers

(1919–1965),

Ike Ike or IKE may refer to: People * Ike (given name), a list of people with the name or nickname * Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969), Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States Surname ...

(1927–2001), and Freddy (1931–2020) also each pursued careers in music. He studied both piano and bass from a young age and formed his first band at age 17. Three years later at age 20, he joined Noble Sissle's band the Sizzling Syncopators, staying there six years and performing with greats such as

Sidney Bechet Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. He was one of the first important soloists in jazz, and first recorded several months before trumpeter Louis Armstrong. His erratic temp ...

and Clarence Brereton. He married Thelma Madison in Detroit, Michigan, in 1933 but later married actress Betty King. After a tour of Europe in 1936, Cole left Sissle's band to join Nat Cole's group, the

Rogues of Rhythm A rogue is a person or entity that flouts accepted norms of behavior. Rogue or rogues may also refer to: Companies * Rogue Ales, a microbrewery in Newport, Oregon * Rogue Arts, a film production company * Rogue Entertainment, a software com ...

. He appeared in the TV show ''

Bourbon Street Beat ''Bourbon Street Beat'' is a private detective television series that aired on the ABC network from October 5, 1959, to July 4, 1960, starring Richard Long as Rex Randolph and Andrew Duggan as Cal Calhoun, with Arlene Howell as detective agency s ...

'' in 1959 and later appeared on ''

The Law and Mr. Jones ''The Law and Mr. Jones'' is an American legal drama series starring James Whitmore. The series aired on ABC in two nonconsecutive seasons from October 7, 1960 to June 2, 1961, and again from April 19 to July 12, 1962. The program was created and ...

'' and ''

The Jack Benny Program ''The Jack Benny Program'', starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th century American comedy. He played one role throughout his radio and televis ...

''. He retired in the 1960s, and died on June 18, 1970, at the age of 59.

References

1910 births 1970 deaths Musicians from Montgomery, Alabama Jazz musicians from Alabama {{US-jazz-musician-stub