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.
Shadow Woman
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Leave my man alone
Let all of him belong to me
Haunt the other men you've known
Set him free, set him free, set him free
If you're thinking of his welfare, say fare well
Don't torture him with yester glow
Let him go, let him go, let him go
Let him love me for me
The woman I am
Instead of one I not
I'm all the woman he should have
He's all the man I've got
When he looks at me
It's you he sees
It's you he wants to kiss I know
But I 'm a woman too, so please
Let him go, let him go, let him go
Shadow woman
, as the title suggests, is a song about a woman who feels threatened by the presence of another woman in her relationship. Julie London sings about the "haunting" effects of this woman, how she is casting a "spell" on her man, and how she must be persuaded to let him go. The lyrics suggest a sense of powerlessness on the part of the singer, as she implores the other woman to "set him free". It seems that she is afraid of losing her man, and is desperately trying to hold onto him.
The singer of the song makes a compelling case for why the other woman should leave her man alone. She asks her to think of his welfare and to say farewell if she really cares about him. She also implies that the other woman is living in the past, caught up in some "yester glow" that is preventing her from seeing the reality of the situation. Only she, the singer, can break the spell and allow her man to find happiness with her. She appeals to the other woman's sense of decency, asking her to let him go, so that he can love her for who she really is.
The song is a poignant reminder of the complexities of love and relationships. It speaks to the fears that we all have when we love someone deeply, and the lengths we will go to protect that love. It also highlights the pain that can come from jealousy and possessiveness, and how it can ultimately drive people away from us.
Line by Line Meaning
Shadow woman
Addressing the other woman who is trying to come between her and her man.
Leave my man alone
Asking the other woman to stop pursuing her man and to respect their relationship.
Let all of him belong to me
Asking the other woman to give up her claim on him and allow him to be completely committed to her.
Haunt the other men you've known
Suggesting that the other woman should focus her attention on someone else, and leave her man alone.
Set him free, set him free, set him free
Repeating the request for the other woman to let her man go, and allow him to be with her fully.
If you're thinking of his welfare, say fare well
If the other woman truly cares about the man's wellbeing, she should say goodbye and let him go.
Don't torture him with yester glow
Referring to memories of their past relationship, and asking the other woman not to bring them up or dwell on them.
Only you can break the spell
The other woman has the power to end the relationship, and should do so to allow him to move on.
Let him go, let him go, let him go
Repeating the request for the other woman to let him go.
Let him love me for me
Asking the man to love her for who she truly is, not for the woman that the other woman is pretending to be.
The woman I am
Being honest about who she is, and asking for love and acceptance from her man.
Instead of one I not
Asking the man to stop loving the other woman who is pretending to be someone else.
I'm all the woman he should have
Believing that she is the only woman that her man needs or should have in his life.
He's all the man I've got
Acknowledging that he is the only man she wants, and that she is deeply committed to him.
When he looks at me
Describing how he sees and interacts with her.
It's you he sees
Acknowledge that he may see glimpses of the other woman in her, but ultimately he wants and loves her.
It's you he wants to kiss I know
Feeling jealous that he may still have feelings for the other woman, but accepting that ultimately he loves her.
But I 'm a woman too, so please
Asking the other woman to respect her as another woman, and to not continue trying to come between them.
Let him go, let him go, let him go
Repeating the request for the other woman to let him go, so that they can be together without interference.
Contributed by Lauren H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.