If anyone needs evidence on how hard the late '60s and '70s were on jazz-based pop singers, look no further than the infamous
Yummy, Yummy, Yummy. The beautiful
Julie London was connected to the West Coast jazz scene of the 1950s and specialized in downbeat torch songs, but on this album she sings "sexy" covers of rock and kiddy hits. While an album of
London doing songs such as "Louie, Louie" and "Light My Fire" in her trademark low-key style has been rediscovered and celebrated by Generation X ironists and kitsch cretins, it must have been disheartening to
London herself. Whether it was cutting this album that led to
Julie London's early retirement from singing isn't known (and while she loved to sing, she did suffer from stage fright and shyness). But
Yummy, Yummy, Yummy (the title itself is a wincer) became her final album and recording-wise, it wasn't exactly the best way to exit graciously from the stage. While most fans of classic pop and jazz should steer clear of it, lovers of kitsch and sincere fans of soft rock will probably want to check this one out, because no matter how hard you try to fight it, there really is something "yummy" about
London slyly asking you to "light her fire." Still,
London and so many of her peers deserved to be treated better by the music business during this period. The fact that so many of
London's jazz-related discs are still in print while tracks from this one find their way onto "joke" compilations may suggest that it was
Julie London who got the last laugh. ~ Nick Dedina