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.
Three Little Words
June Christy Lyrics
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To hear those three little words, that's all I'd live
For the rest of my days
And what I feel in my heart, they tell sincerely,
No other words can tell it half so clearly,
Three little words, eight little letters,
Which simply mean "I love you"!
In June Christy's song "Three Little Words," the singer expresses her deep desire to hear the three little words, "I love you," from her beloved. She emphasizes the importance of those words, being willing to give anything for that "wonderful phrase." The significance of the words is asserted when she claims she would only need to hear them once in order to live contently "for the rest of my days." According to her, nothing else could express her sentiments as accurately and genuinely as these words. The eight letters are powerful enough to convey her love and the depth of her emotions.
The song reflects a universal human desire to feel loved and appreciated, as well as the power of words. It is reassuring to know that regardless of how complex a relationship may seem, expressing genuine love with just three little words can make an immense impact. The lyrics also imply that the singer has expressed love before, but these three little words have not been reciprocated, highlighting the vulnerability that comes with confessing feelings to someone.
Line by Line Meaning
Three little words, oh what I'd give for that wonderful phrase
If only I could hear those three little words expressing love, it would mean the world to me.
To hear those three little words, that's all I'd live
The singer's desire to hear those three little words is so strong that hearing them would give her purpose in life.
For the rest of my days
The singer's love for the person who says those three little words is so powerful that it will last for the rest of her life.
And what I feel in my heart, they tell sincerely,
The artist's love for the person is so strong that those three little words would convey her feelings with utmost sincerity.
No other words can tell it half so clearly,
Those three little words are the only way to express the depth of the artist's love for the person.
Three little words, eight little letters,
Despite being a small phrase, those three little words made up of eight letters carry tremendous weight and meaning in the context of love.
Which simply mean "I love you"!
In the end, the three little words convey a simple yet profound message - the singer loves the person deeply and unequivocally.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind