Inseparable | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 11, 1975 | |||
Recorded | 1974–75 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Soul [1] | |||
Length | 29:54 | |||
Label | Capitol | |||
Producer |
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Natalie Cole chronology | ||||
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Singles from Inseparable | ||||
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Inseparable is the debut studio album by American singer Natalie Cole, released on May 11, 1975, by Capitol Records. The album became her first gold-certified album and spawned the number-one R&B hits "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" and "Inseparable". The hit album and its singles earned Cole two Grammy Awards for Best New Artist and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. .
By 1974, Natalie Cole, the daughter of legendary jazz/pop crooner Nat King Cole, was struggling to get her own music career off the ground. Ever since she had started performing at clubs and festivals, Cole had tried to forge her own path away from the one that several of her father's fans thought she would turn to. Cole refused to record jazz material in fear she would be accused of riding her father's coattails. A longtime fan of soul and blues singers such as Janis Joplin and Aretha Franklin, Cole had instead inspired to follow in their footsteps. After performing at one club, she was spotted by musicians Chuck Jackson (step-brother of Jesse Jackson) and Marvin Yancy, who was shopping songs that had been turned down by Franklin herself. Cole, Yancy and Jackson recorded demos for songs that later led to Cole being signed to her father's label, Capitol Records.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Christgau's Record Guide | B [3] |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) [4] |
Released in the spring of 1975, Inseparable shot to the top of the R&B album charts and was also a top twenty hit on the Billboard pop album charts sparked by the album's first single, "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)". The song's Franklin-inspired production's catchy melodies and hooks helped to make it a number-one hit on the Hot Soul Singles chart while also reaching number six on the Billboard Hot 100. The title track also became a hit reaching number-one on the R&B chart while reaching number thirty-two on the Billboard Hot 100. Altogether, the album went gold selling over a million copies and helping Cole win two Grammy Awards including Best New Artist and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, where she broke the winning streak set by Aretha Franklin, who had won the award eight years in a row. (For a time before Cole's win, the award was nicknamed The Aretha Award.) The album's success was the beginning of Cole's mid-1970s successes, as an R&B star releasing five gold albums and two platinum albums during her Capitol tenure.
All tracks are written by Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy, except where noted
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Needing You" | 2:45 |
2. | "Joey" | 2:57 |
3. | "Inseparable" | 2:26 |
4. | "I Can't Say No" | 3:30 |
5. | "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" | 2:50 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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6. | "Something for Nothing" | 2:57 | |
7. | "I Love Him So Much" | 3:24 | |
8. | "How Come You Won't Stay Here" | 3:03 | |
9. | "Your Face Stays in My Mind" | 2:45 | |
10. | "You" | Jackson, Yancy, Kay Butler | 3:30 |
Chart (1975) | Peak [5] |
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U.S. Billboard Top LPs | 18 |
U.S. Billboard Top Soul LPs | 1 |
Year | Single | Peak chart positions | ||||
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US [5] | US R&B [5] | US A/C [5] | US Dance [5] | UK [6] | ||
1975 | "This Will Be" | 6 | 1 | 45 | 5 | 32 |
"Inseparable" | 32 | 1 | 20 | — | — | |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United States (RIAA) [7] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Natalie Maria Cole was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to prominence in the mid-1970s, with the release of her debut album Inseparable (1975), along with the song "This Will Be ", and the album's title track. Its success led to her receiving the Grammy Award for Best New Artist at the 18th Annual Grammy Awards, for which she became the first African-American recipient as well as the first R&B act to win the award. The singles "Sophisticated Lady" (1976), "I've Got Love on My Mind", and "Our Love" (1977) followed.
You is the twenty-second studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, released on October 16, 1975, by Atlantic Records.
A Rose Is Still a Rose is the thirty-fourth studio album by American recording artist Aretha Franklin. It was released on March 24, 1998, by Arista Records. Conceived after a longer hiatus and a complete departure from her previous studio album What You See Is What You Sweat (1991), the album includes influences of 1990s hip hop as well as modern-day contemporary R&B and soul music. Throughout the project, Franklin worked with many famed hip hop producers and rappers, such as Lauryn Hill, Sean "Puffy" Combs, Jermaine Dupri, and Daryl Simmons. With the latter acts producing most of the album, A Rose Is Still a Rose deviated from the adult contemporary sound of Franklin's older work.
The Independents were an American R&B vocal group active from 1971 to 1975. They scored several hits on the U.S. Pop and R&B charts. Their 1973 song "Leaving Me" reached No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100, and remained on the chart for 14 weeks. Sales of over a million copies led to a gold record being awarded by the R.I.A.A. on May 23, 1973.
"Break It to Me Gently" is a song by American singer Aretha Franklin, released in 1977 as the first single from her album, Sweet Passion. The track was written and produced by Carole Bayer Sager and Marvin Hamlisch which was an R&B hit for Franklin, it reached number one on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart in June 1977.
So Damn Happy is the thirty-fifth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. Her first studio album in five years, the album featured the Grammy Award-winning track "Wonderful", a single co-written and produced by Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence.
Sweet Passion is the twenty-third studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was released on May 19, 1977, by Atlantic Records. Following Franklin's Gold-certified 1976 soundtrack album, Sparkle, she paired up with Motown producer Lamont Dozier to produce Sweet Passion. It was, however, a commercial and critical failure.
"This Will Be" is a song written by Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy, arranged by Richard Evans and performed by American singer Natalie Cole. Often appended with "(An Everlasting Love)" but not released as such, this was Cole's debut single, released in April 1975 and one of her biggest hits, becoming a number-one R&B and number-six pop smash in the United States, also reaching the UK Top 40. Cole won a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, a category that had previously been dominated by Aretha Franklin. It would also help her win the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.
Natalie is a 1976 album by American singer Natalie Cole. Cole's second studio album, It was released on April 9, 1976, by Capitol Records. The album features the hit singles, "Sophisticated Lady " and "Mr. Melody". The track, "Sophisticated Lady " peaked at No 1 on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles and No 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 Charts.
Unpredictable is an album by the American singer Natalie Cole. Released on February 22, 1977, by Capitol Records, the album includes the single "I've Got Love on My Mind", which peaked at No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and topped the R&B chart.
Thankful is the fourth album by the American singer Natalie Cole. It was released on November 16, 1977, by Capitol Records. In 1978, the album's first single, "Our Love", peaked at No. 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot R&B chart.
Everlasting is the eleventh studio album by American singer Natalie Cole, released on June 14, 1987 by Manhattan Records. The album peaked at number 8 on Billboards Top R&B Albums chart and number 42 on the Billboard 200 chart.
I Love You So is an album by American singer Natalie Cole. Released on March 19, 1979, by Capitol Records, The album reached peak positions of number 52 on the Billboard 200 and number 11 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart.
We're the Best of Friends is a 1979 duet album by American vocalists Natalie Cole and Peabo Bryson. It was released on November 2, 1979, by Capitol Records.
Don't Look Back is a 1980 album by American singer Natalie Cole. Released on May 15, 1980, by Capitol Records, The album reached peak positions of number 77 on the Billboard 200; number 17 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.
I'm Ready is the ninth studio album by American R&B singer Natalie Cole. Released on April 21, 1983, it was her only album released on Epic Records. The album peaked at No. 182 on the Billboard 200 and No. 54 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.
Natalie Live is a 1978 live album by American singer Natalie Cole. Released on June 13, 1978, this double-length live album was recorded at two different locations: In August 1977 at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles, California, and in March 1978 at the Latin Casino in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
Aretha Franklin Sings the Great Diva Classics is the thirty-eighth and final studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin and was released on October 17, 2014. It features ten covers of songs made famous by female recording artists.
Marvin Jerome Yancy was an American gospel musician, pastor and Grammy-winning record producer, and former pastor of Fountain of Life Baptist Church. He started his music career, in 1971, with The Independents, who were an American R&B vocal group. His lone solo album, Heavy Load, was released on January 1, 1985, by Nashboro Records, and it placed at No. 4 on the Billboard magazine Gospel Albums chart.
Leavin' is a studio album by American recording artist Natalie Cole, released on September 26, 2006, by Verve Records. The album consists of ten cover versions of various R&B and pop songs and two original songs: "5 Minutes Away" and "Don't Say Goodnight ". It was the second of Cole's albums to be released by Verve Records and her first album in four years, following Ask a Woman Who Knows (2002). Cole promoted the album as a return to her R&B roots, distancing herself from an identification as a jazz artist.