Singer Natalie Cole, who opened the 2013-14 season at the Mayo Performing Arts Center, was remembered as a “tremendous talent” by MPAC.
“All of us at MPAC are saddened by the loss of Natalie Cole,” Allison Larena, MPAC president and CEO, said in a statement on Saturday.
“Natalie Cole was a tremendous talent who brought so much joy to our patrons over the years,” Larena said.
Cole, the daughter of the legendary Nat King Cole, died on New Year’s Eve. She was 65.
At her October 2013 show, Cole included a duet with a video of her late father. A 1991 comeback was capped by such a recording, of Unforgettable.
“What grace,” MPAC trustee Theresa DeLeon said after the 90-minute concert. “No gimmicks. She relied on her artistry and her talent.”
Cole beat a drug habit in the early 1980s, but struggled with hepatitis-C as an after-effect. Both kidneys failed, and she received a kidney transplant in 2009.
The entertainment world has remembered Natalie Cole with great fondness.
Tony Bennett hailed Natalie Cole as “an exceptional jazz singer,” adding “it was an honor to have recorded and performed with her on several occasions. She was a lovely and generous person who will be greatly missed.”
“As the new year was ushered in, an angelic instrument moved on,” Lenny Kravitz posted on Instagram. “Natalie Cole’s voice was perfection. And what a lady… You will be missed my dear. Love.”
Beautiful voice. She and her dad were just wonderful !
Such a talented family.
Sad to see her leave us.