London's 35-year acting career began in films in 1944 and included playing opposite Gary Cooper in Man of the West (1958) and Robert Mitchum in The Wonderful Country (1959). She achieved continuing success in the TV medical drama Emergency! (1972–1979), co-starring her real-life husband, Bobby Troup, and produced by her ex-husband, Jack Webb, in which London played the female lead role of nurse Dixie McCall. She and Randolph Mantooth, who played one-half of her medical students, a paramedic, in the series, were very close to her family, until her death in 2000.
Born in Santa Rosa, California, she was the daughter of Jack and Josephine Peck, who were a vaudeville song-and-dance team. When she was fourteen the family moved to Los Angeles. Shortly after that, she began appearing in movies. She graduated from the Hollywood Professional High School in 1945.
London began singing under the name Gayle Peck in public in her teens before appearing in a film. She was discovered by talent agent Sue Carol (wife of actor Alan Ladd), while working as an elevator operator. Her early film career, however, did not include any singing roles.
London recorded 32 albums in a career that began in 1955 with a live performance at the 881 Club in Los Angeles. Billboard named her the most popular female vocalist for 1955, 1956, and 1957. She was the subject of a 1957 Life cover article in which she was quoted as saying, "It's only a thimbleful of a voice, and I have to use it close to the microphone. But it is a kind of oversmoked voice, and it automatically sounds intimate."
London's debut recordings were for the Bethlehem Records label. While shopping for a record deal, she recorded four tracks that would later be included on the compilation album Bethlehem's Girlfriends in 1955. Bobby Troup backed London on the album, for which London recorded the standards "Don't Worry About Me", "Motherless Child", "A Foggy Day", and "You're Blasé".
London's most famous single, "Cry Me a River", was written by her high-school classmate Arthur Hamilton and produced by Troup. The recording became a million-seller after its release in December 1955 and also sold on reissue in April 1983 from the attention brought by a Mari Wilson cover. London performed the song in the film The Girl Can't Help It (1956), and her recording gained later attention in the films Passion of Mind (2000) and V for Vendetta (2006). The song "Yummy Yummy Yummy" was featured on the HBO television series Six Feet Under and appears on its soundtrack album. London's "Must Be Catchin'" was featured in the 2011 premiere episode of the ABC series Pan Am. Her last recording was "My Funny Valentine" for the soundtrack of the Burt Reynolds film Sharky's Machine (1981).
Other popular singles include "Hot Toddy", "Daddy", and "Desafinado". Recordings such as "Go Slow" epitomized her career style: her voice is slow, smoky, and playfully sensual.
She was married to Jack Webb, of Dragnet fame. Her obvious beauty and self-poise (she was a pinup girl prized by GIs during World War II) contrasted with his pedestrian appearance and stiff-as-a-board acting technique (much parodied by impersonators). This unlikely pairing arose from his and her love for jazz; their marriage lasted from July 1947 to November 1953. They had two daughters, one who was killed in a traffic accident in the 1990s and one who survived London. In 1954, having become somewhat reclusive after her divorce from Jack Webb, she met jazz composer and musician Bobby Troup at a club on La Brea Blvd. They married on December 31, 1959 and remained married until Troup's death in February 1999. Together, they had one daughter and twin sons.
London suffered a stroke in 1995, and was in poor health until her death in Encino, California, at the age of seventy-four, survived by four of her five children. She died on18th October 2000, and was buried in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Broken Hearted Melody
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Tu-tu-du-tu-tu-tu-du-tu-du)
Broken hearted melody
Once you were our song of love
Now you just keep taunting me
With the memory of (ba-da-da)
His tender love, oh
Broken hearted melody
Must you keep reminding me
Of the lips I long to kiss
And the love I miss
Since he went away
Night and day I play
That broken hearted melody
That he used to sing to me
When our love was young and bright
And he held me tight
Suddenly I found
I was heaven bound
Broken hearted melody
Once you were our song of love
Now you just keep taunting me
With the memory of (ba-da-da)
His tender love, oh
Broken hearted melody
Won't you bring him back to me
Sing to him until he yearns
For when he returns
No more will he play
Since he went away
Broken hearted melody
Broken hearted melody...
The lyrics of Julie London's song Broken Hearted Melody are a poignant reflection of the feelings of loss and heartbreak that come with the end of a relationship. The repetitive refrain of "broken hearted melody" creates a haunting and sorrowful mood that captures the pain of the singer as she reminisces about the love she once shared with her former partner. The song's verses speak to the singer's longing for the return of her lover and the sweet memories that she holds onto, despite the fact that he has moved on from their relationship.
What is particularly interesting about the song is how well it captures the feelings of heartbreak that are so universal and relatable. This is a testament to the songwriting talents of the team of Hal David and Jimmy Van Heusen, who worked on the lyrics and music, respectively. Additionally, the song has been covered by a number of other artists over the years, including Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Dionne Warwick, demonstrating its lasting appeal.
Overall, Broken Hearted Melody is a touching and evocative song that speaks to the complexities of love, loss, and heartbreak. Its lyrics are powerful and insightful, and its melody is hauntingly beautiful, making it one of the classic songs of the mid-twentieth century.
Line by Line Meaning
Broken hearted melody
The feeling of heartbreak is compared to a melody or song that keeps playing on a loop.
Once you were our song of love
The melody used to represent the love shared between two people, but now it's a painful reminder of what was lost.
Now you just keep taunting me
The melody feels like it's purposely teasing and mocking the singer, reminding them of their loss.
With the memory of (ba-da-da)
The melody is closely associated with the memory of a particular moment or feeling (represented by the 'ba-da-da' sound).
His tender love, oh
The memory that the melody brings up is the singer's lover's love.
Must you keep reminding me
The singer pleads with the melody to stop bringing up these painful memories.
Of the lips I long to kiss
The memory that the melody brings up is the desire to kiss the singer's lover.
And the love I miss
The melody brings up the loss of the love that used to be there.
Since he went away
The loss of love started when the singer's lover left.
Night and day I play
The melody plays in the singer's head nonstop.
That broken hearted melody
The melody that represents the singer's broken heart.
That he used to sing to me
The melody is associated with the lover singing to the singer.
When our love was young and bright
The memory that the melody brings up is a time when the love was new and exciting.
And he held me tight
The memory that the melody brings up is being held close by the lover.
Suddenly I found
The singer's realization happened all of a sudden.
I was heaven bound
The singer was utterly happy when the love was alive.
Won't you bring him back to me
The singer pleads with the melody to bring the lover back.
Sing to him until he yearns
The singer wants the melody to evoke the same intense feelings in the lover as it does in them.
For when he returns
The singer is willing to wait for the lover's return.
No more will he play
The singer won't need to hear the melody play anymore once the lover is back.
Broken hearted melody
The melody that represents the singer's broken heart.
Broken hearted melody...
The song ends with a repeated reminder of the melody that carries so much emotional weight.
Writer(s): Hal David, Sherman Edwards Copyright: Casa David LP, Keith-valerie Music Corp.
Contributed by Camden N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.