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.
The More I See of You
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The more I want you
Somehow this feeling
Just grows and grows.
With every sigh, I become mad about you
More lost without you
And so it goes.
How much I'll love you
The more I'll see you
As years go by
I know the only one for me
Can only be you.
My arms won't free you
My heart won't try.
My arms won't free you
My heart won't try.
Julie London's song "The More I See You" is a commemoration of the overwhelming effect that love has on the human emotion. The more we are in the presence of those we cherish, the stronger the feeling becomes. She is absorbed into the thought of the other person, with "every sigh" proclaiming her love for them. It's evident that this emotion is devouring her whole, and she is "lost without" whoever it is. The lyrics suggest that she feels an insurmountable love that will exist through the years, a love that, as time passes, only gets more powerful. No one else will suffice to fulfill her because they were born to be together.
London's "The More I See You" reflects the common and ageless theme of love. The feelings portrayed in the song are relatable, and the innocence displayed can take one back to that first experience with a loved one. The lyrics' simplicity helps it to connect to the audience and strengthens the message's profoundness. Anyone who has been captivated by love can connect on a personal level, allowing this melody to become an anthem to their experience.
Line by Line Meaning
The more I see you
The more I see you, the more my desire for you increases.
The more I want you
As I see you more, my desire for you grows stronger.
Somehow this feeling
This unexplainable feeling I have for you.
Just grows and grows.
It continues to intensify every day.
With every sigh, I become mad about you
Every time I think about you, my adoration for you becomes greater.
More lost without you
I feel incomplete when you're not around.
And so it goes.
It persists in this way without fail.
Can you imagine
Can you fathom just how much I adore you?
How much I'll love you
My love for you will only increase in magnitude.
The more I'll see you
The more I come to know you, the greater my love for you will become.
As years go by
With each passing year.
I know the only one for me
I am certain that you are the one I am meant to be with.
Can only be you.
No one else can compare to you in my heart.
My arms won't free you
I do not want to let you go.
My heart won't try.
My love for you is unwavering and will never diminish.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Mack Gordon, Harry Warren
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Isabelle Frost
Beautiful voice and gorgeous Lady !!!
S. Y
I've heard a lot of Julie London songs, but it's my most favorite song. It will be remembered 100 years later.
Edwin Mangum
Absolutely stunning.
MJ Lejer
I had Julie's two albums, "Julie" and "Julie is her name" years ago, and when I came home from school, my mother took them away from me, she thought the covers and her voice were too sexy! I found them years later in an old trunk and took them back. I still have them with my collection of old LP"s. Her rendition of "The More I See You" is how I learned this song and many performed it, including me! No one has ever been able to duplicate Julie London though a few have tried, (Diana Krall for one) but they can't compare with the original, incomparable Julie London!
bbcisrubbish
It's as if she was in the room singing to me personally, just me. The feeling is indescribable, just like the sensation given by Deana Durbin.
wonderglory
Actually, Julie London did one final project in 1981. It was her rendition of, "My Funny Valentine." That was done for the motion picture, "Sharky's Machine."
Pepper Williams
That sexy voice was so invigorating! Great actress, singer and beauty! She had it all!
EricLehner
What a pleasure it has been to live during the golden era of Western civilization. So sad to see its decline. If young men only knew what women used to be like....
SPECTRE1961
How can i say ? America's finest music ! Kid Tex, Thanks, so much !
jesusita44
What a lovely song she has such a sexy voice..I love this song..Jessie