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.
How Long Has This Been Going On
June Christy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was kissed by my sisters, my cousins, and my aunties.
Sad to tell, it was hell, an inferno worse than Dante's.
So my dear I swore,
"Never, never more !"
On my list, I insisted that kissing must be crossed out.
Now, I find I was blind, and oh my! How I lost out!
I could cry salty tears,
Where have I been all these years?
Little wow, tell me now:
How long has this been going on?
There were chills up my spine,
And some thrills I can't define.
Listen, sweet, I repeat:
How long has this been going on?
Oh, I feel that I could melt,
Into Heaven I'm hurled!
I know how Columbus felt,
Finding another world.
Kiss me once, then once more.
What a dunce I was before.
What a break! For Heaven's sake!
How long has this been going on?
Dear, when in your arms I creep,
That divine rendezvous,
Don't wake me, if I'm asleep,
Let me dream that it's true!
Kiss me twice, then once more.
That makes thrice, let's make it four!
What a break! For Heaven's sake!
How long has this been going on?
How long has this, been going on?
The opening verses of June Christy & Stan Kenton's song "How Long Has This Been Going On" describe a young child's experience with unwanted kissing from family members. The child finds this experience unbearable, comparing it to the inferno described in Dante's "Divine Comedy". Vowing to never let anyone kiss them again, the child grows up and realizes that they had been missing out on something special all along.
As the song progresses, the singer confesses their feelings to a love interest, describing the overwhelming sensation of being held by them. The singer describes feeling like they are melting and being transported to heaven. They plead with the love interest to kiss them repeatedly, exclaiming that they have been missing out on this feeling for far too long.
This song captures the essence of new love, with all the excitement and uncertainty that comes with it. The lyrics paint a picture of a person who has been closed off to physical affection for much of their life, but after experiencing it with a special someone, they realize they were missing out on an important part of life.
Line by Line Meaning
As a tot, when I trotted in little velvet panties,
When I was a child, wearing soft clothing, playing and running around
I was kissed by my sisters, my cousins, and my aunties.
My female relatives showed me affection through kisses
Sad to tell, it was hell, an inferno worse than Dante's.
Unfortunately, these kisses were unwanted and unpleasant, comparable to an unbearable situation like in Dante's Inferno
So my dear I swore,
As a result of these experiences, I made a promise
"Never, never more !"
To never allow myself to be kissed again
On my list, I insisted that kissing must be crossed out.
I made a note specifically stating that kissing was prohibited
Now, I find I was blind, and oh my! How I lost out!
Looking back, I realize that I was naive and missed out on something valuable
I could cry salty tears,
I feel regret and sadness
Where have I been all these years?
Why have I not experienced this before?
Little wow, tell me now:
Could someone explain this to me?
How long has this been going on?
For how long have people been kissing and experiencing these feelings?
There were chills up my spine,
I experienced physical sensations, a shiver down my back
And some thrills I can't define.
There were also indescribable sensations, emotions that cannot be explained
Listen, sweet, I repeat:
I want to emphasize what I am saying
How long has this been going on?
I still want to know how long this has been happening
Oh, I feel that I could melt,
My emotions are so strong that I feel like I could melt
Into Heaven I'm hurled!
This experience brings immense pleasure, comparable to a trip to heaven
I know how Columbus felt,
I can relate to how Columbus felt when he discovered a new world
Finding another world.
Discovering something completely new and exciting
Kiss me once, then once more.
I want to be kissed twice
What a dunce I was before.
Realizing that I was foolish before
What a break! For Heaven's sake!
What a fortunate opportunity, it's unbelievable!
How long has this been going on?
Again, for how long has this been happening?
Dear, when in your arms I creep,
When I am in your embrace
That divine rendezvous,
This special meeting or encounter
Don't wake me, if I'm asleep,
I want to savor this moment and I don't want to be disturbed
Let me dream that it's true!
Allow me to dream and feel this is real
Kiss me twice, then once more.
I want to be kissed three times
That makes thrice, let's make it four!
That brings us to four kisses
How long has this been going on?
I am still curious about the history of this kind of experience
How long has this, been going on?
Once again, how long has it been happening?
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IRA GERSHWIN, GEORGE GERSHWIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind