In The Wee Small Hours by -Bev-

-Bev- - In The Wee Small Hours

-Bev-

May 28, 2025 05:49pm

Love this song and I know she sang this one with her sultry singing voice I couldn't resist trying to sing it in a low register <img src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSHgxqz-qOFSa4pz9ULFpfFE41hSYyl7YHQsA&s" alt="Julie London Musician - All About Jazz"> TriviaJulie London (born Julie Peck; September 26, 1926 – October 18, 2000) was an American singer and actress whose career spanned more than 40 years. A <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torch_song" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">torch singer</a> noted for her <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contralto" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">contralto</a> voice, London recorded over thirty albums of pop and jazz standards between 1955 and 1969. Her recording of "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cry_Me_a_River_(Arthur_Hamilton_song)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Cry Me a River</a>", a song she introduced on her debut album <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Is_Her_Name" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Julie Is Her Name</a>, was inducted into the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammy_Hall_of_Fame" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Grammy Hall of Fame</a> in 2001. In addition to her musical notice, London was nominated for a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Awards" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Golden Globe Award</a> in 1974 for her portrayal of Nurse Dixie McCall in the television series <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency!" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Emergency!</a>Born in Santa Rosa, California, to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaudeville" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">vaudevillian</a> parents, London was discovered while working as an elevator operator in downtown Los Angeles, and she began her career as an actress. London's 35-year acting career began in film in 1944, and included roles as the female lead in numerous <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_film" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Westerns</a>, co-starring with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Hudson" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Rock Hudson</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fat_Man_(film)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">The Fat Man</a> (1951), with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Taylor_(American_actor)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Robert Taylor</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cassavetes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">John Cassavetes</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddle_the_Wind" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Saddle the Wind</a> (1958), with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Cooper" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Gary Cooper</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_of_the_West" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Man of the West</a> (1958) and with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mitchum" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Robert Mitchum</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wonderful_Country_(film)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">The Wonderful Country</a> (1959).In the mid-1950s, London signed a recording contract with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Records" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Liberty Records</a>, marking the beginning of her professional musical career. She released her final studio album in 1969, but achieved continuing success playing the female starring role of nurse Dixie McCall in the television series <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency!" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Emergency!</a> (1972–1979), in which she acted with her husband <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Troup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Bobby Troup</a>. The show was produced by her ex-husband <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Webb" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Jack Webb</a>.After divorcing Webb in 1954, London resumed her career, appearing in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fighting_Chance_(1955_film)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">The Fighting Chance</a>, filmed in May 1955 and released by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20th_Century_Fox" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">20th Century Fox</a>. Earlier in 1955, London was spotted singing at a jazz club in Los Angeles by record producer <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Waronker" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Simon Waronker</a>, who was recommended to her by her friend (and future husband) Bobby Troup. Despite her notable stage fright, Waronker was impressed by London's vocals and delivery, and later recalled that "The lyrics poured out of her like a hurt bird." Waronker convinced London to pursue a recording career, and signed her with Liberty Records. London recorded 32 albums in a career that began in 1955 with a live performance at the 881 Club in Los Angeles. Her debut album <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Is_Her_Name" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Julie Is Her Name</a> was released in December of that year, and 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."Predominantly a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torch_song" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">torch singer</a>, London was described by critics as both "sultry" and "low-keyed". Her recordings were often noted by critics for being "intimate", typically featuring sparse guitar and bass arrangements. A BBC Legends episode noted: "Some singers sing as though they are addressing a crowd; some sing as though they are in a bar with a lot of people—[London] sings as though she's in one room, with you—and that's the difference."Music journalist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_O%27Brien" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">Lucy O'Brien</a> stated: "[In] the mid-'50s...pop [was] in a period of transition from big band swing to small jazz combos; you've got rock'n'roll, you've got <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhythm_and_blues" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(51, 102, 204);">R&B</a>—and she managed to incorporate all those influences and feed that into her music. She was very much of her time." As her career progressed into the 1960s, London's recordings incorporated more elaborate instrumentation, with her vocals backed by larger ensembles.