So next time you see a used copy of Natalie Cole’s masterpiece, don’t just look at the cover. Flip it over. Read the fine print. You just might be holding the elusive "Elektrarar"—a beautiful mistake in an otherwise perfect album.
For audiophiles and hardcore collectors, however, the album’s standard release is only half the story. A niche, often misspelled, and highly sought-after variant exists in the collecting community known as the But what is an "Elektrarar"? Is it a typo, a promo-only pressing, or a specific mastering cut? Let’s dive deep into the history of the album and the lore of its rarest physical formats. The Genesis of a Masterpiece In 1990, Natalie Cole was at a crossroads. Despite early success as an R&B star ("This Will Be," "I've Got Love on My Mind"), the late 1980s had been less kind. Drug addiction and label disputes had stalled her momentum. Her then-manager, and future husband, Andre Fischer, proposed a radical idea: a tribute album to her father, who died of lung cancer in 1965 when Natalie was just 15. natalie cole unforgettable with love 1991 elektrarar
If you own a copy with Japanese liner notes and a catalog number like WPCP-4020 (CD) or JWL-110 (vinyl), check the matrix runout. It might contain "ELEKRAR" stamped in the dead wax, indicating a test pressing for the Japanese market. Perhaps the most bizarre "Elektrarar" is a specific CD pressing from a plant in Terre Haute, Indiana. A handful of collectors have reported a misprint where the spine of the back cover reads "ELEKTRARAR 60999-2" instead of "ELEKTRA 60999-2." So next time you see a used copy
The concept was risky. A pop/R&B singer tackling the Great American Songbook, backed by the London Symphony Orchestra? The label, Elektra Records, was hesitant. But Cole was determined. The result was a 22-track double LP (and later, a single CD) featuring classics like "The Very Thought of You," "Mona Lisa," "L-O-V-E," and the titular "Unforgettable." The album’s crown jewel, "Unforgettable," was a digital miracle. Using state-of-the-art (for 1991) recording technology, producer David Foster and engineer Al Schmitt extracted Nat King Cole’s original 1961 vocal track from a Capitol Records master tape. They then had Natalie sing a new duet part in the same key, syncing her phrasing to her father’s. You just might be holding the elusive "Elektrarar"—a
If you search for this exact phrase, you will find a fascinating subset of record collector forums (Discogs, Steve Hoffman Music Forums, and eBay listings) where users discuss a specific, rare pressing. The term "Elektrarar" appears to be a hybrid typo or a promotional abbreviation combining (the record label) with RAR (an abbreviation for "Rare" or possibly a reference to a specific pressing plant code, like "RCA Records Pressing Plant, Indianapolis").