Book Preview - Go Slow: The Life of Julie London.

For those who, myself included, have, at times, been scathing about the song Cry me a River and it's seemingly obligatory - along with Summertime - part of the wannabees repertoire, may like to read this essay by Michael Owen. It's a prequel to his soon to be published book - Go Slow: The Life of Julie London.

Cry me a River was such a tremendous, albeit low-key, influence on just about everyone who heard it and bought the record. It invaded Hollywood in the Jayne Mansfield film The Girl Can't Help it. Did Ms. Mansfield ever imagine that a smoky-voiced, unseen, unknown, artist, would eclipse her more obvious physical charms? I left the cinema that night in Newcastle - was it the Odeon or the Essoldo? I can't remember. All I can remember was this haunting song, sung by a singer who made me want to cry a river myself because there was an ocean dividing us!

The years rolled by and I cried a few personal rivers, thankfully not vocally, until, suddenly, Cry me a River became the number that every singer sang. It may have begun with Mari Wilson - her of the beehive hairstyle. Wilson's version was ok but not quite Julie.

Every girl still sings it, maybe it's a rite of passage...

Ella recorded Cry me a River but, even the 'First Lady'  couldn't trump Julie! 

Thanks to Maurice  Summerfield for bringing this to my attention and providing the author with info re Barney Kessel.

Lance.