June Christy (November 20, 1925 – June 21, 1990), born Shirley Luster, was … Read Full Bio ↴June Christy (November 20, 1925 – June 21, 1990), born Shirley Luster, was an American singer, known for her work in the cool jazz genre and for her silky smooth vocals. Her success as a singer began with The Stan Kenton Orchestra. She pursued a solo career from 1954 and is best known for her debut album Something Cool. After her death, she was hailed as "one of the finest and most neglected singers of her time."

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.

I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me
June Christy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yesterday you came my way,
And when you smiled at me,
In my heart I felt a thrill you see,
That it was love at sight and
I was right to love you as I do.
Still I never dreamed that you could love me too.

Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,

I never knew what they could do.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.

You're telling ev'ry one I know
I'm on your mind each place we go
They can't believe that you're in love with me.

I have always placed you far above me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
And after all is said and done,
To think that I'm the lucky one.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.

Skies are gray. I'm blue each day
When you are not around.
Ev'ry thing goes wrong, my dear I've found
But when you're by my side I fill with pride
For I'm so proud of you
It all seems too good to me to all be true

Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,
I never knew what they could do.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.

You're telling ev'ry one I know
I'm on your mind each place we go
They can't believe that you're in love with me.

I have always placed you far above me.
I just can't imagine that you love me.
And after all is said and done,

To think that I'm the lucky one.
I can't believe that you're in love with me.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to June Christy's song "I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me" describe the disbelief and gratitude of the singer that someone they have admired from afar and considered above them has reciprocated their feelings of love. The lyrics begin with the singer recounting the moment they first felt a thrill upon seeing the person smile at them. They had loved the person from afar, never even considering the possibility that the feeling could be mutual.

The chorus describes the amazement the singer feels that this person is actually in love with them. The singer is telling everyone they know that their love interest loves them, but others find it hard to believe. The singer speaks of their own disbelief and feeling of unworthiness, having always considered the person to be above them. Despite their doubts, the singer feels lucky and proud to be loved by this person.

The second verse describes the sadness and feeling of loss the singer experiences when the love interest is not around. They emphasize how everything seems to go wrong without the person's presence. When the love interest is there, however, the singer is filled with pride and joy at being loved by them. The chorus is repeated, emphasizing the singer's disbelief and gratitude in being loved by this person.

Overall, the lyrics describe the feeling of disbelief and gratitude that comes with unexpected love. The singer can hardly believe that someone they admired from afar and considered above them could actually be in love with them.

Line by Line Meaning

Yesterday you came my way,
Just yesterday, you came into my life

And when you smiled at me,
When you smiled at me, I had a feeling of excitement and joy

In my heart I felt a thrill you see,
I had a thrilling feeling of love and passion

That it was love at sight and
I fell in love with you instantly

I was right to love you as I do.
I knew from the beginning that I was right to love you as I do

Still I never dreamed that you could love me too.
I never imagined that you could love me back

Your eyes of blue, your kisses too,
Your blue eyes and sweet kisses left me amazed

I never knew what they could do.
I had no idea that your eyes and kisses had such an effect on me

You're telling ev'ry one I know
You're telling everyone around us

I'm on your mind each place we go
That I'm always on your mind no matter where we go

They can't believe that you're in love with me.
People around us find it hard to believe that you love me

I have always placed you far above me.
I have always thought of you as being far superior to me

I just can't imagine that you love me.
I can't even imagine that you have feelings for me

And after all is said and done,
Even after everything has happened

To think that I'm the lucky one.
I still can't believe that I'm the lucky one you chose to love

Skies are gray. I'm blue each day
Days are gloomy and I feel sad

When you are not around.
When you're not by my side

Ev'ry thing goes wrong, my dear I've found
Everything seems to go wrong when you're not with me

But when you're by my side I fill with pride
But when you're with me, I feel proud and happy

For I'm so proud of you
I feel proud of you for being in my life

It all seems too good to me to all be true
Sometimes it feels like it's all too good to be true

I can't believe that you're in love with me.
I still can't believe that you love me

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Capitol CMG Publishing, Spirit Music Group, Songtrust Ave, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CLARENCE GASKILL, JIMMY MC HUGH

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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