Julie London's Holiday Album (2024)

It's Christmas Day and once again it's time for the Julie London Christmas album that never was. I started this tradition 10 years ago because, for whatever reason, the jazz vocalist never recorded an LP of holiday favorites. All we have is the B-side of a Liberty 45 released in 1957—I'd Like You for Christmas, written by her soon-to-be husband, Bobby Troup. Why she'd release a single side but not a full-blown LP remains puzzling, to say the least. [Publicity still above of Julie London]

So in 2014, I assembled all of her seasonal tracks for a faux streaming release of my own. As JazzWax readers know, London is a favorite of mine. She had a cool, sultry singing style that never felt forced. Her sophisticated, hip phrasing was deeply nocturnal and consistently relaxed. And she loved off-beat songs and aced them with a beckoning delivery and terrific range backed by seemingly effortless vocal power. Her movie-star looks have nothing to do with her appeal. It's her underappreciated jazz voice and hip phrasing that knock me out. [Photo above of Julie London]

Did London avoid a holiday album because recording one would be square? Probably. Or did her label, Liberty Records, decide to avoid one to preserve her with-it dry-ice image? Or maybe she did record one but it's lost among dozens of other forgotten reels in some vault.

Whatever the reason, I decided in 2013 to gather her winter-themed tracks and playfully name the post Julie London Wishes You a Merry Christmas. On Spotify and YouTube, I see that others have taken my idea and turned them into playlists, going so far as to create a cover that looks as if London had recorded such an album. They even used my title and order of presentation. Makes no difference to me. Imitation is the most delightful form of flattery.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of my readers. Now, here are eight tracks of Julie London that are perfect for today:

Here's I'd Like You for Christmas with the Johnny Mann Singers and Mann conducting...



Here's Warm December...



Here's I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm...



Here's Sleigh Ride in July...



Here's November Twilight...



Here's The Thirteenth Month...



Here's The Party's Over...



And here's London with Pat Boone singing Winter Wonderland on TV's Pat Boone in Hollywood in 1967...