Shirley Luster was born in Springfield, Illinois, and moved with her family to Decatur, Illinois, when she was three years old. She began to sing with the Decatur-based Bill Oetzel Orchestra at thirteen. While attending Decatur High School she appeared with Oetzel and his society band, the Ben Bradley Band, and Bill Madden's Band. After high school she moved to Chicago, changed her name to Sharon Leslie, and sang with a group led by Boyd Raeburn. Later she joined Benny Strong's band. In 1944, Strong's band moved to New York at the same time Christy was quarantined in Chicago with scarlet fever.
In 1945, after hearing that Anita O'Day had left Stan Kenton's Orchestra, she auditioned and was chosen for the role as a vocalist. During this time, she changed her name once again, becoming June Christy.
Her voice produced successful hits such as "Shoo Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy," the million-selling "Tampico" in 1945, and "How High the Moon". "Tampico" was Kenton's biggest-selling record. When the Kenton Band temporarily disbanded in 1948, she sang in nightclubs for a short time, and reunited with the band two years later in 1950.
Beginning Sept. 28, 1959, Christy began a five-week road tour of 38 performances called "Road Show". The all-star billing: Stan Kenton and his orchestra, June Christy, The Four Freshmen. Capitol recorded highlights on October 10 at Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana, for a two-disc LP, reissued in 1991 on CD.
From 1947, she started to work on her own records, primarily with arranger and bandleader Pete Rugolo. In 1954, she released a 10" LP entitled Something Cool, recorded with Rugolo and his orchestra, a gathering of notable Los Angeles jazz musicians that included her husband, multi-instrumentalist Bob Cooper and alto saxophonist Bud Shank. Something Cool was re-released as a 12" LP in 1955 with additional selections, and then entirely rerecorded in stereo in 1960 with a somewhat different personnel. Christy would later say that the album was "the only thing I've recorded that I'm not unhappy with." Something Cool was also important in launching the vocal cool movement of the 1950s, and it hit the Top 20 Charts, as did her third album, The Misty Miss Christy.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Christy appeared on a number of television programs, including the short-lived CBS show Adventures in Jazz (1949), Eddie Condon's Floor Show (1949), The Jackie Gleason Show (1953), The Tonight Show (1955), The Nat King Cole Show (1957), Stars of Jazz (1958), The Steve Allen Show (1959), The Lively Ones (1963). and The Joey Bishop Show (1967). She also appeared on the first sponsored jazz concert on television, The Timex All-Star Jazz Show I (December 30, 1957), which also featured Louis Armstrong, Carmen McRae, Duke Ellington and Gene Krupa.
Christy embarked on dozens of concert tours, playing in Europe, South Africa, Australia and Japan. She toured to such an extent that eventually it began taking a toll on her marriage. She began to pull back from touring in the early 1960s.
R.M. Cook and Brian Morton, writers of The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings, appreciated the singer's body of work: "Christy's wholesome but particularly sensuous voice is less an improviser's vehicle than an instrument for long, controlled lines and the shading of a fine vibrato. Her greatest moments—the heartbreaking 'Something Cool' itself, 'Midnight Sun,' 'I Should Care'—are as close to creating definitive interpretations as any singer can come."
Christy semi-retired from the music business in 1969, in part due to her battle with alcoholism.
In 1972, she sang at the Newport Jazz Festival in New York City, where she was reunited with the Kenton Orchestra. She also performed at a handful of jazz festivals during the late 1970s and 1980s, playing with a band of all-star West Coast jazz musicians led by Shorty Rogers, as well as taking part in a number of world tours.
Christy returned to the recording studio in 1977 to record her final solo LP, Impromptu. She recorded an interview for a Paul Cacia produced an album in 1987 called "The Alumni Tribute to Stan Kenton" on the Happy Hour label. A number of other Kenton the alumni-Shorty Rogers, Lee Konitz, Jack Sheldon, among them, plus Mort Sahl - interspersed their tunes with reminiscences of the man and the years on the road.
Christy toured one final time in 1988, again with Shorty Rogers. Her final performance was sharing the stage with Chet Baker.
Christy died at her home in Sherman Oaks, California of kidney failure on June 21, 1990, at the age of 64. Her remains were cremated and scattered off the coast of Marina Del Rey.
Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
June Christy Lyrics
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Pay no attention to what's said
Why people tear the seam of anyone's dream is over my head
Do nothin' till you hear from me
At least consider our romance
If you should take the word of others you've heard
Don't you know, I haven't a chance
True I've been seen with somebody new
But does that mean that I'm been untrue?
When we're apart the words in my heart reveal how I feel about you
Some kiss may cloud my memory
And others arms may hold a thrill
But please do nothin' till you hear from me
And baby you never will
June Christy's song "Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me" is a bittersweet plea for trust from a lover who fears that rumors and gossip will be enough to end their relationship. The opening lyrics set the stage for the singer's argument: "Do nothin' till you hear from me / Pay no attention to what's said." She begs her lover to withhold judgment and not listen to the naysayers who try to tear them apart.
As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the singer's fears are rooted in her love for her partner. She argues that they should at least consider their romance before giving in to hearsay: "If you should take the word of others you've heard / Don't you know, I haven't a chance." Although the singer admits that she has been seen with another person, she insists that this doesn't mean she's untrue: "True I've been seen with somebody new / But does that mean that I'm been untrue?"
The song's clever lyrics also suggest that even if the singer were to have a momentary lapse in judgment with someone else, it would be meaningless in the larger context of her feelings for her partner: "Some kiss may cloud my memory / And others arms may hold a thrill / But please do nothin' till you hear from me / And baby you never will."
Overall, "Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me" is a song that speaks to the importance of trust, communication, and faith in a relationship. The singer's plea for her lover to listen to her side of the story rather than restricting themselves to hearsay is a reminder that love requires effort and understanding.
Line by Line Meaning
Do nothin' till you hear from me
Don't take any actions until you receive my message
Pay no attention to what's said
Don't listen to rumors or gossip
Why people tear the seam of anyone's dream is over my head
I don't understand why people criticize or want to destroy another person's dreams
At least consider our romance
Please think about our relationship and give it a chance
If you should take the word of others you've heard
If you believe what other people tell you about me
Don't you know, I haven't a chance
You should know that I don't have a chance if you believe those rumors
True I've been seen with somebody new
It's true that I've been seen with another person
But does that mean that I'm been untrue?
Does that mean that I've been unfaithful?
When we're apart the words in my heart reveal how I feel about you
When we're not together, my heart speaks of my true feelings for you
Some kiss may cloud my memory
I may have had a kiss that made me forget momentarily
And others arms may hold a thrill
I may have felt excitement in someone else's embrace
But please do nothin' till you hear from me
But don't take any actions until you hear from me
And baby you never will
And you won't if you wait for my message
Lyrics © Freibank Musikverlags und vermarktungs GmbH, MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DUKE ELLINGTON, BOB RUSSELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind