Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole

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Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 4, 2013
GenreJazz
Length40:50
LabelConcord Jazz
ProducerJohn Burk, Randy Waldman
George Benson chronology
Guitar Man
(2011)
Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole
(2013)
Walking to New Orleans
(2019)
Singles from Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole
  1. "Unforgettable (feat. Wynton Marsalis)"
    Released: 2013
  2. "When I Fall in Love (feat. Idina Menzel)"
    Released: 2014

Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole is a studio album by George Benson. The album was released by Concord Jazz on June 4, 2013.[1] It peaked at #89 on the Billboard album chart.

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
USA Today[3]

Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole has received very positive reception from music critics. Steve Leggett of Allmusic affirmed that "it all adds up to a sweet and very impressive album, full of warmth and heart, and it swings where it should."[2] At USA Today, Steve Jones praised it for "his smooth vocals [that] make this homage unforgettable."[3]

Formats[edit]

  • Vinyl LP
  • Regular CD
  • Best Buy Edition CD (incl. 2 Bonus Tracks)
  • Japanese Edition CD (incl. Bonus Track)
  • QVC Edition (Regular CD + 6-track Bonus Disc)
  • HD Tracks (High Definition Music Downloads)
  • iTunes (incl. Bonus Track)

Track listing[edit]

Best Buy bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."That Sunday, That Summer"George David Weiss, Joe Sherman3:02
15."Ramblin' Rose"Noel Sherman, Joe Sherman2:46
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."Almost Like Being in Love"Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe2:15
iTunes bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."Mona Lisa (Calypso Version)"Jay Livingston, Ray Evans2:45

Personnel[edit]

Henry Mancini Institute Orchestra

  • Shelton Berg – dean of music
  • Terence Blanchard – artistic director
  • Scott Flavin – artistic coordinator
  • Stephen Guerra – managing director
Brass and Woodwinds
  • Cassandra Eisenreich – flute
  • Neil Carson and Kevin McKeown – alto saxophone
  • Derek Smith – baritone saxophone
  • Mark Small and Alex Weitz – tenor saxophone
  • Major Bailey, Chris Gagne, Kendall Moore and Stephen Szabadi – trombone
  • Chris Burbank, Ryan Chapman, Jared Hall and Gilbert Paz – trumpet
  • Jon Anderson – French horn
Strings
  • Steffen Zeichner – concertmaster and violin soloist
  • Rachel Hershey, Jeff Kipperman and Yen-Ling Lin – bass
  • Joy Adams, Sarah Gongaware, Cecilia Huerta, Andrew Kromholz and Chia-Li Yu – cello
  • Christina Hardister – harp
  • Marcela Fernandez, Lauren Miller, Robyn Savitzky and Kathryn Severing – viola
  • Victor Colmenares, Tomas Cotik, Adam Diderrich, Michelle Godbee, Patricia Jancova, Michelle Mlacker, Karin O'Keefe, Jonah Osawa, Rob Patrignani, Zack Piper, James Reynolds, Katrina Schaeffer, Arianne Urban, Abby Young and Steffen Zeichner – violin

Production[edit]

  • Producers – John Burk and Randy Waldman
  • Recording and Mix Engineers – Seth Presant and Al Schmitt
  • Assistant Engineers – Chad Jolly, Chris Owens and Shinnosuke Miyazawa.
  • Recorded at The Village Studios (Los Angeles, California).
  • Orchestra recorded by Dave Polar at The Hit Factory Criteria (Miami, Florida).
  • Trumpet on Track 3 recorded by Jeff Jones
  • Additional piano recording by Randy Waldman at Randini Studio (Studio City, California).
  • Mastered by Paul Blakemore at CMG Mastering (Cleveland, Ohio).
  • Music Preparation – Brian Benison and Junko Tamura
  • A&R Administration – Mary Hogan
  • Creative Director – Larissa Collins
  • Art Direction, Design and Photography – Greg Allan at Omnivore Creative.
  • Management – Stephanie Gonzalez at Apropos Management.

Release history[edit]

List of release dates, showing country, record label, and format
Region Date Label Format
Germany May 31, 2013 Concord CD, Digital download
United Kingdom June 3, 2013
France
United States June 4, 2013
Japan June 5, 2013
Germany June 14, 2013 LP record
United Kingdom June 17, 2013
United States June 25, 2013
Japan

References[edit]

  1. ^ "George Benson Releases Heartfelt Homage to Nat King Cole Titled Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole June 4, 2013". Jazzcorner.com. Retrieved 2013-04-27.
  2. ^ a b Leggett, Steve (June 3, 2013). "Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole - George Benson : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Jones, Steve (June 3, 2013). "Listen up: Rimes, Benson serve up four-star tunes". USA Today. Retrieved June 4, 2013.