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.
February Brings the Rain
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Breaks the winter′s icy chains
That's the song I learned so long ago
Little did I dream one day
Those words I heard that yesterday
With every strike so very close to hold
We drank champagne to toast the brand new year
So certain that the world was yours and mine
But January′s gone and February's here
Here am I without a valentine
Twenty-eight long days remain
Gone my love the gay champagne
February February brings the rain
The song "February Brings the Rain" by Julie London is based on the idea that the month of February breaks the winter's icy chains and brings the rain. The first verse of the song is about how the singer learned the words of the song a long time ago, and how she never thought that it would have any significance in her life. However, as she grows older, she realizes that the lyrics are becoming more meaningful, as she finds herself alone in February without a valentine.
The second verse describes how the singer and her lover drank champagne to celebrate the brand new year, and how they were so certain that the world was theirs. However, January is gone, and February has arrived, with only 28 long days remaining. The singer's love is gone, and she is left with nothing but the rain.
In summary, the song is a melancholic reflection on the passage of time and the loss of love. While it is a tribute to the power and beauty of music, it is also a reminder that even the most innocent and carefree moments can hold deeper meaning as we grow older.
Line by Line Meaning
February brings the rain
February is a month which is characterized by a lot of rainfall
Breaks the winter′s icy chains
The heavy rainfall in February marks the end of the cold winter season
That's the song I learned so long ago
The lyrics refer to an old song that the singer learned a long time ago, which talks about February and the rain it brings
Little did I dream one day
The artist never imagined that the lyrics of this song would one day be so personal to her
Those words I heard that yesterday
The artist heard these same lyrics just the other day
With every strike so very close to hold
The singer is close to someone they desire, but they are unable to fully attain this person
We drank champagne to toast the brand new year
The singer and a loved one celebrated the new year with some champagne
So certain that the world was yours and mine
The artist and their loved one believed that they controlled their own future and could make anything happen
But January′s gone and February's here
The previous month of January has passed and February has now arrived
Here am I without a valentine
Despite the artist's hopes, they do not have a romantic partner on Valentine's Day
Twenty-eight long days remain
There are 28 days left in February, which is a long time for the singer to be alone without a valentine
Gone my love the gay champagne
The happy feelings of the artist's previous toast to the new year are now gone
February February brings the rain
The refrain of the song, repeating the idea that February brings rain
Writer(s): Bobby Troup
Contributed by Aaliyah E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.