"Unforgettable" is a popular song written by

Irving Gordon Irving Gordon (February 14, 1915 – December 1, 1996) was an American songwriter. Biography Irving Gordon was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Jewish family, and later lived on Coney Island. He was named Israel Goldener but later changed his na ...

. The song's original working title was "Undeniable"; however, the music publishing company asked Gordon to change it to "Unforgettable". The song was published in 1951.

Nat King Cole version

The most popular version of the song was recorded by

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 ...

in 1951 from his album '' Unforgettable'' (1952), with an arrangement written by

Nelson Riddle Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...

. A non-orchestrated version of the song recorded in 1952 is featured as one of the seven bonus tracks on Cole's 1998 CD reissue of 1955's otherwise completely instrumental album, ''

Penthouse Serenade ''Penthouse Serenade'' is an instrumental jazz quartet album by Nat King Cole. It was released initially as a 10-inch LP in September, 1952, on Capitol Records. An expanded (12 track) version was reissued in 1955 and a 19 track version (13-19 ...

''. On March 30, 1961, Nat King Cole recorded the tune anew in a stereo version (with Ralph Carmichael and his Orchestra) of the Riddle arrangement, for the album ''

The Nat King Cole Story ''The Nat King Cole Story'' is a 1961 album by Nat King Cole. The album was a retrospective of Cole's recording career, designed to present many of his earlier hits in new recordings featuring stereo sound. Cole is accompanied on the re-recording ...

'' (1961). In 1991, after

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

's musical director Joe Guercio had the idea, Cole's original 1951 recording of the song was edited and reworked to create a duet with his daughter,

Natalie Natalie may refer to: People * Natalie (given name) * Natalie (singer) (born 1979), Mexican-American R&B singer/songwriter * Shahan Natalie (1884–1983), Armenian writer and principal organizer of Operation Nemesis Music Albums * ''Nata ...

. The remixed version reached number 14 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

, matching the peak position of the original version on the Billboard Best-Selling Pop Singles chart, and also number three on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

chart. The song also won three awards at the 34th Annual Grammy Awards (1992): Song of the Year,

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

and

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album is an award presented to recording artists at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories are presented ...

. Nat Cole's original recording was inducted into the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

in 2000.

Chart history

Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole version

American singer

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

included a cover of the song on her album '' Unforgettable... with Love'' (1991). The song, reworked as a "virtual duet" with her father,

, reached number three on the US ''Billboard''

chart, number one on the Canadian ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Adult Contemporary chart, and number two on the Australian Singles Chart. The performance of the song at the 1992 Grammy Awards was released on the 1994 album ''Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume I''.

Critical reception

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' commented, "Through the magic of digital technology father and daughter duet on this timeless song that swells with lush orchestration and moving harmonies."

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Other cover versions

Semprini Alberto Fernando Riccardo Semprini (27 March 1908 – 19 January 1990), known as Alberto Semprini (), or by his stage name Semprini, was an English pianist, composer and conductor, known for his appearances on the BBC, mainly on radio. E ...

with Rhythm Acc. recorded it in London on March 26, 1952, as the third melody of the medley "Dancing to the piano (No. 14) - Part 1. Hit Medley of Foxtrots" along with " Slow Coach" and "

Cry Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state, or pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, and even happiness. The act of crying has been defined as "a complex secreto ...

". It was released by

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

on the

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

label as catalog number B 10263. Other cover versions were performed or recorded by:

Sampled by song

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

on "

Can't Forget About You "Can't Forget About You" is the second and final single from American hip hop artist Nas' 2006 album ''Hip Hop Is Dead'', released on January 23, 2007. Can't Forget About You ''Allmusic.com''. (2007-1-27). Retrieved on February 10, 2007. It fea ...

" (2006)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unforgettable (Song) 1950s jazz standards 1951 songs 1991 singles Capitol Records singles Elektra Records singles Nat King Cole songs Natalie Cole songs Grammy Award for Record of the Year Grammy Award for Song of the Year Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Sia (musician) songs Song recordings produced by David Foster Songs written by Irving Gordon Music published by Bourne Co. Music Publishers Pixar songs Pop standards Walt Disney Records singles