Seal's rendition of Nat King Cole's Smile will send shivers down your spine

Publish date: 2024-06-25

16 March 2021, 12:08 | Updated: 16 March 2021, 12:34

Seal uploaded a video of him singing Nat King Cole's 'Smile' on the eve of Mother's Day. Picture: Seal/Instagram

By Giorgina Hamilton

Facebook share X share

Seal's voice is best known for big hitting songs like 'Kiss From A Rose' but the singer's delicate version of Nat King Cole's 'Smile' is enough to make your heart melt...

Seal singing Nat King Cole's classic 1954 hit 'Smile' is absolutely stunning.

The 58-year-old singer uploaded a video of him singing the romantic song on the eve of Mother's Day with the caption: "There’s a million reasons to smile."

The video joined others on the star's Instagram page where he often posts snippets of past gigs and messages to cheer up his fans.

Grammy Award-winning British singer Seal, best known for his 1990s soul and R&B hits, released his own version of Nat King Cole's track 'Smile' on his 2017 album Standards (pictured). Picture: Seal/Instagram
Seal released classic album 'Standards' in November 2017 (pictured). Picture: Getty

The Grammy Award-winning British singer, best known for his 1990s soul and R&B hits, released his own version of the Nat King Cole track on his 2017 album Standards.

The collection of songs paid tribute to some of music's biggest legends including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Cole Porter and Nina Simone.

"One has got to be really careful with that because the songs have withstood the test of time," Seal said when he released the album.

"I feel that the songs from that era, they sing you. You've just got to trust them and trust the melody because the melodies are immaculate. They are sublime."

The album, recorded at the famous Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, included hits such as Frank Sinatra's 'I've Got You Under My Skin', 'I'm Beginning To See The Light' by Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone's 'I Put A Spell On You.'

The melody for 'Smile' was written by Charlie Chaplin in 1936, before songwriters John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons added the lyrics in 1954 that would be sung by Nat King Cole.

Nat King Cole (pictured) released the hit song 'Smile' in 1954. The track has since been covered by Seal, Judy Garland and Michael Jackson. Picture: Getty

Seal Standards - The New Album

Judy Garland performed the song on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1963 and Michael Jackson often said 'Smile' was is favourite song.

The King of Pop recorded his own version for his 1995 album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I but its release as a single was cancelled at the last minute and promos of the rare record are incredibly valuable, making Michael Jackson's 'Smile' one of the rarest and most collectible of all the singer's releases.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tLnOqKuhqpGZtrB6wqikaKaVrMBwudSsoJxno5qurXnSpqClnV2jrrV5yqKloGWTpLmmecKorZ6qXau2pbHOaA%3D%3D