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.
Girl Talk
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We chew the fat about our tresses and the neighbours' fight
Inconsequential things that men don't really care to know
Become essential things that women find so apropos
But that's a dame, we're all the same it's just a game we call it
Girl talk, girl talk
The who, the how, the why, we dish the dirt, it never ends
We're weaker sex, the speaker sex you mortal males behold
But though we joke, we wouldn't trade you for a ton of gold
It's all been planned
So take my hand
Please understand
The sweetest girl talk, talks of you
It's all been planned
So take my hand
Please understand
The sweetest girl talk, talks of you
You
Julie London's song "Girl Talk" is a playful and lighthearted ode to the conversations and interactions between women. The lyrics introduce us to the typical topics women love to discuss -- from dresses, tresses, and neighborhood gossip to the ups and downs of their friends' lives. These may seem like trivial matters to men, but to women, they are significant and meaningful.
The chorus of the song reinforces this idea that all women engage in this "girl talk" game, regardless of their status or background. It's a game that women love to play and take part in. Although there can be some teasing and joking about the topic, it's all done in good fun and camaraderie.
However, the song's final lines are quite a surprise, as they reveal that the sweetest girl talk of all is "talks of you." This shift in the song's tone suggests that despite all the chit-chat and gossip, women still deeply value and appreciate their relationships with men.
Overall, "Girl Talk" is a charming and upbeat song that celebrates the unique bond between women and their love for conversing about anything and everything.
Line by Line Meaning
We like to chat about the dresses we will wear tonight
We enjoy talking about what we plan to wear for our evening plans
We chew the fat about our tresses and the neighbours' fight
We discuss our hair as well as the latest gossip in the neighborhood
Inconsequential things that men don't really care to know
We talk about things that may seem trivial or unimportant to men
Become essential things that women find so apropos
But to us women, these things seem important and necessary to discuss
But that's a dame, we're all the same it's just a game we call it
We recognize that we may be seen as stereotypical women, but we enjoy this type of conversation nevertheless
Girl talk, girl talk
This type of conversation is commonly referred to as girl talk
We all me-ouw about the ups and downs of all our friends
We tend to gossip about the successes and failures of our friends
The who, the how, the why, we dish the dirt, it never ends
We discuss the details of other people's lives endlessly
We're weaker sex, the speaker sex you mortal males behold
We may be viewed as weaker by men, but we're often the ones doing the talking
But though we joke, we wouldn't trade you for a ton of gold
Despite our teasing, we value the men in our lives
It's all been planned
This type of conversation is intentional and expected
So take my hand
Join in on the fun and talk with us
Please understand
Realize that this type of conversation is important to us
The sweetest girl talk, talks of you
We also enjoy discussing the men in our lives, including you
Lyrics © MUSIC ASSET MANAGEMENT (MAM)
Written by: Bobby Troup, Neal Hefti
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dwayne McDowell
Here is the lyrics :
We like to chat about the dresses we will wear tonight
We chew the fat about our tresses and the neighbours' fight
Inconsequential things that men don't really care to know
Become essential things that women find so apropos
But that's a dame
We're all the same
It's just a game
We call it girl talk, girl talk
We all me-ouw about the ups and downs of all our friends
The who, the how, the why, we dish the dirt, it never ends
The weaker sex, the speaker sex, you mortal males behold
But though we joke, we wouldn't trade you for a ton of gold
Its all been plan,So take my hand
Please understand
The sweetest girl talk
Talks of you
But that's a dame
We're all the same
It's just a game
We call it girl talk, girl talk
Its all been plan so take my hand
Please understand
The sweetest girl talk
Talks of you
Paul Sickleville
My only regret and lament is that the vibe that was happening when music like this was written seems gone forever....
I can only imagine hearing this in a swanky apartment, view of a twinkling city and the clink of ice in a cocktail glass ... the charm and sophisticated style of generation that fought for freedom, relaxing to a melody of a cool night ...
Magic
Why does the world have to be so real and ugly now ...
Smith's Freedom Party
@Wendy M mesmerizing
Wendy M
Bring it back you young’uns!!!
T Newland
Here’s a possible answer to your query about why “so real and ugly now”. High expectations of more free stuff coupled with a lack of consequences for bad acts will eventually color our world. Oops, too late....
Mark Johnson
Truely we are not forced into seeing things within our own thoughts as any different then or now. I first heard this song in the 1970s sung by a really cool guy at a piano smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer. The vibe is still within me just as it was then. All i need do is focus on it.Be grateful friend you ever felt it at all. Its yours as long as you feel it.
jslasher1
Julie London was a class act. Perfect intonation and phrasing.
nydeco
Absolutely the definitive version this amazing lounge song. Julie London affects such a sultry, almost melancholy mood with her smoky, quiet, sexy voice. I can't help loving her and this song. It brings me right back to classy, jazzy 60's. Thank you Ms. London.
Bob Wagner
Think I've listened to almost every cover now--female and male--and Julie is the best. Thank you.
Chris Morgan
Yep you are too damn right
Marianne Wade
One of my go-to songs. I close my eyes, let this voice this pace these notes fill my head. I just sway and feel utterly at peace.