The singer left a decade of fine albums from the fifties and sixties, but today she seems mostly forgotten
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Why is one of the best jazz stylists of the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s not as well known as other vocalists of her time? This has been a perplexing question since I first discovered June Christy. I grew up surrounded by this music and I don’t recall ever hearing any of her recordings. And digging into my father’s passed-down record collection, I only found two June Christy LPs, both purchased as used copies. It seemed he had discovered her late in life as well.
So why isn’t June Christy remembered like recording contemporaries: Julie London, Doris Day or Peggy Lee? Christy recorded for Capitol Records, home to Lee, Judy Garland, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra, with a host of the finest musicians and A&R people at her disposal. And even though she never made a perfect album, there’s much to recommend on each of the seventeen studio LPs she released for the label between 1955 and 1965. Like Sinatra, she made concept records, but instead of following The Chairman’s method of alternating slow and fast albums during his Capitol days, Christy mixed the two on her recordings, with a balance of swing, ballads and jazzy charts. I’m partial to the slower numbers where her jazz roots accentuate the drama found in the story in the song. Monk wrote the music for the classic “Round Midnight” and, later, when new melancholic lyrics were added, it became ideal for the sultry vocal style of Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. I count June Christy’s rendition on The Misty Miss Christy as one of the best. With haunting strings, harp and vibes setting the mood, her vocal approach is more torch than downcast, yet just as heartbreaking. It’s magnificent.
My discovery came through David Johansen’s Mansion of Fun radio show. He plays her often—almost every week, it seems—and each tune he picks is exceptional. The program selection is built around a theme and Christy’s songs are, likewise, pulled from her “themed” albums. Christy recorded her LPs amongst friends: Pete Rugolo or her husband Bob Cooper arranged her records—both whom she met when she sang with the Stan Kenton Orchestra, along with a key contributor: alto saxophonist and flautist Bud Shank. But, even with all the right elements around her, June Christy’s albums just didn’t sell.
The exception was the first one out of the gate: Something Cool, originally a 10” release with seven tracks in 1954. The record became a hit and Capital reissued it a year later as a 12” LP with four additional songs. Something Cool continued to be her most popular album, even as new records appeared, and Christy later rerecorded all eleven tracks for stereo release in 1960. Any remake of a classic album will receive its share of criticism, but the updated technology and Christy’s mature vocals give the stereo version an edge on the original. “Lonely House” and “Midnight Sun,” two highlights from the first set, are examples of how they got it right. Both have a richer sound and the broad orchestra offers the listener a more intense presentation.
Christy made her mark in Stan Kenton’s group, joining in 1945, replacing Anita O’Day. She performed with Kenton for five years where she earned her “Miss Christy” byname. They scored their first hit “Tampico” in 1945 and, along with touring with the group, Christy also began making solo recordings for Capitol in the mid-forties. A terrific collection of her early work is on The Capitol Transcriptions 1945-1946 release, a cool collection with members of The Kentones highlighted by Christy’s young, sensual vocals. After departing The Stan Kenton Orchestra in the early fifties, Christy concentrated on making solo singles, earning her biggest solo hit in 1953 with “My Heart Belongs to Only You.” And after Something Cool became a smash, and the 12” LP format became the standard in 1955, Christy and Rugolo switched their attention to crafting solo albums.
Christy’s LP covers expressed the narrative with each album concept: arms outstretched for a bear hug on Fair and Warmer, a relaxed walk in the wilderness on Gone For The Day or tossing snowballs for a holiday release. Others provided the listener with insight into the musical contents. An inviting smile and finger-snaps beckons you over for brassy swing on This is June Christy!, as does Christy’s image splashed in watercolor for the smooth and majestic June’s Got Rhythm. Ballads for Night People, a somber effort with glowing jazz club cover art, is a favorite; a smoky collection of late-night serenades, arranged by her husband. Each new release was consistently excellent, but none matched the triumphant sales of Something Cool.
Of all her records, The Intimate Miss Christy is the one I find to be the most striking. Released in 1963, as her recording career was winding down, the bare-bones arrangements feature Bud Shank on flute, Don Bagley on bass and the incomparable Al Viola on guitar. The stark production is like Julie London’s first few records but with flute adding the extra spice. Familiar songs like “I Fall in Love Too Easily,” “Misty” and “Spring is Here” are beautifully sung, and they work amazingly well with this elegant backing. The record is the rare June Christy release that maintains a consistent atmosphere throughout, and I can’t help but admit that I wished she had made more records like this. Unfortunately, The Intimate Miss Christy also has her least appealing album cover—a concert performance photo that seems more like an afterthought. It’s a record that could easily be mistaken for a live recording or budget sampler, and one that might get overlooked.
The question for all the pre-rock vocalists in the 1960s was just how long they would continue to release records when faced with dwindling sales as standards fell out of favor. Many turned to bossa nova and Latin arrangements as Christy did for Something Broadway, Something Latin in 1965, the same year Doris Day released Latin for Lovers. It would be Christy’s final Capitol record and Day would also throw in the towel that same year after one additional release. Julie London hung around until 1969, making her last release a collection of “modern” hits, singing “Mighty Quinn,” “Louie, Louie,” and “Yummy, Yummy, Yummy.” Christy probably bailed at just the right time.
June Christy never saw a need to stray away from jazz and standards. She performed occasionally in the seventies and eighties and released Impromptu in 1977, her last album, through an independent label. Christy passed away in 1990 at age sixty-five, leaving behind a remarkable discography of music. Is it possible that the focus on albums over singles is what has kept June Christy’s music out of the public’s consciousness? Perhaps. Capitol released a few singles from her LPs but it doesn’t compare to those put out by their top artists. These often-overplayed tunes are how vocalist of her time are best remembered, and with streaming, a lack of hit songs may keep her music from being heard on many platforms. Luckily, we have David Johansen, and all of Christy’s albums are still readily available. June Christy is a singer waiting to be rediscovered.