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.
Every Time We Say Goodbye
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Every time we say goodbye, I wonder why a little
Why the gods above me, who must be in the know
think so little of me that they allow you go
When your near there's such an air of Spring about it
I can hear a lark somewhere begin to sing about it
There's no love song finer but how strange
Every time we say goodbye
"Every Time We Say Goodbye" by Julie London is a classic jazz standard that talks about the pain of saying goodbye and the strange emotions that come with it. The song describes how every time the singer and her lover say goodbye, it's like a little piece of her dies. She wonders why the gods above would allow her lover to leave her life, and she questions her own worth as a result. The lyrics capture the sadness and melancholy that come with the inevitable end of a relationship.
The song also describes how when the singer is near her lover, there is an air of spring around them. She can hear a lark singing in the distance, and everything feels romantic and wonderful. However, the moment they say goodbye, everything changes. The love they share is no longer in the major key, it's now in the minor key, which speaks to the sadness and grief that comes with saying goodbye.
The song is a beautiful tribute to the pain of saying goodbye and the bittersweet emotions that come with it. It shows how even in the midst of sadness, there can be moments of beauty and joy.
Line by Line Meaning
Every time we say goodbye, I die a little
Each time we part, it feels like a little part of me is dying
Every time we say goodbye, I wonder why a little
I can't help but question why we have to say goodbye each time
Why the gods above me, who must be in the know
I can't understand why the higher powers allow us to be separated
think so little of me that they allow you go
It makes me feel insignificant that our separation is allowed
When your near there's such an air of Spring about it
When you're close to me, it feels like the freshness of Spring surrounds us
I can hear a lark somewhere begin to sing about it
I feel as though even the birds are serenading us with their songs
There's no love song finer but how strange
Our love is beautiful, yet there's an odd feeling that comes with our goodbyes
The change from major to minor
The shift from happiness to sadness each time we part
Every time we say goodbye
The act of saying goodbye to each other is always difficult
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Sentric Music, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Cole Porter
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@128bernardo
Every time we say goodbye, I die a little
Every time we say goodbye, I wonder why a little
Why the gods above me, who must be in the know
Think so little of me that they allow you go
When your near there's such an air of Spring about it
I can hear a lark somewhere begin to sing about it
There's no love song finer but how strange
The change from major to minor
Every time we say goodbye....
@marianchacon5289
ABSOLUTELY EXQUISITE,
BODACIOUS, SULTRY,
SWEET, MELLOW BEAUTIFUL VOICE!!!
JULIE LONDON ABSOLUTELY WAS A BEAUTIFUL LADY,
+ ACTRESS!!!!! PRECIOUS
LYRICS!!!! TQ FOR A LOVELY RENDITION!!!!!
@missdee4927
This is enchanting. I love her vocal delivery. No showing off. Allowing the spirit of the song to be center stage.
@JohnSmith-fc1yj
Still tuning in after 50 plus years and I never found anyone classier than Julie along the way ...
@protrudamus
Julie sings to you, not at you. Her dreamy delivery is so very nice.
@joehallen4510
Bill Long A
@wicomms
I think they all do sing to us.
@musicmann059
I love Julie. Last July, I met someone that I fell in love with and eventually broke my heart. During our time together, I shared Julie to her and we both enjoyed her music. Our love/hate relationship is tearing me apart because now we cant even look at each other. we work together. Julie has comforted me throughout many hurtful moments. I miss u Kat... I miss our moments listening to Julie. I am so sorry for loving u that brought us to this. I miss our friendship. I hope u still listen 2 Julie
@bewianin
in my opinion it's the most beautiful vocal performance of this track. I heard a lot of versions of this one and Julie is singing in so slow , lazy and sleepy way, that it's so gentle and pleasant. that it's unbelievable. mmm, how nice :]
@joehallen4510
Michał Wojciechowicz m
@normkunesh5694
The most under rated star EVER !