10 Best Songs Named After Julia or Julie

10 Best Rock Songs Named After Julia or Julie

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The names Julia and Julie have a rich history that stretches back centuries, deriving from the Latin Julius and becoming enduring names across many cultures. Notable Julias and Julies range from historical figures to contemporary icons such as Julia Roberts and Julie Andrews, but the names have also found a long life in popular music, where songwriters have used them for everything from intimate family reflections and romantic longing to surreal dreams and political satire.

Our 10 Best Rock Songs Named After Julia or Julie list crosses decades and styles, from Carly Simon’s tender “Julie Through the Glass” and The Clash’s politically charged “Julie’s Been Working for the Drug Squad” to David Bowie’s obscure “Julie,” Pink Floyd’s psychedelic “Julia Dream,” and John Lennon’s deeply personal “Julia.” Each song uses the name differently, which is exactly what makes this such an interesting group of recordings.

# 10 – Julie Through the Glass – Carly Simon

Carly Simon’s “Julie Through the Glass,” from her 1971 album Anticipation, opens our list with one of its most intimate songs. Written entirely by Simon, the lyric addresses a baby born only a day earlier and looks ahead with warmth to the life, love, and self-knowledge waiting for her. Produced by Paul Samwell-Smith, the recording is gentle and uncluttered, letting Simon’s affectionate vocal and the simple idea at the song’s center carry the emotional weight. It was never a major single, but its tenderness makes it a beautiful example of how a name in a song title can represent hope rather than heartbreak.

Read More: Top 10 Carly Simon Songs

# 9 – Julie’s Been Working for the Drug Squad – The Clash

The Clash’s “Julie’s Been Working for the Drug Squad,” from 1978’s Give ‘Em Enough Rope, is not really about a fictional undercover woman named Julie as the original article suggested; the title refers to Operation Julie, the massive 1977 British police operation that dismantled a major LSD-manufacturing network. Produced by Sandy Pearlman and recorded by Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon, and Topper Headon, the song turns the bust and the severe prison sentences that followed into fast, sarcastic punk-rock commentary. It remains one of the clearest examples of The Clash taking a real contemporary event and turning it into something both funny and unsettling.

Read More: Top 10 Clash Songs

# 8 – Julia’s Song – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

“Julia’s Song,” from Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark’s 1980 self-titled debut album, is one of the most unusual entries on this list because the Julia in the title was actually part of the song’s creation. Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys wrote the music, while Julia Kneale—who had been involved with the band’s earlier incarnation, The Id—wrote the lyrics. Recorded in Liverpool and produced by OMD with Chester Valentino, the track combines early electronic minimalism with lyrics that question superficiality, social expectations, and the search for something more meaningful. Its strange, fragmented mood made it an important deep cut from OMD’s experimental beginnings.

# 7 – John and Julie – The Turtles

“John and Julie” appears on The Turtles’ 1969 album Turtle Soup, the band’s final studio album and the only Turtles LP produced by Ray Davies of The Kinks. Rather than being credited only to Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman, the song belongs to the group writing credit shared by Kaylan, Volman, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, and John Seiter. Its hazy story of two characters seemingly drifting into their own private world fits the more reflective and experimental character of Turtle Soup, an album that found the band moving well beyond the bright pop sound most listeners associated with “Happy Together.”

Read More: Top 10 Songs From The Turtles

# 6 – Julie – David Bowie

David Bowie’s “Julie” is one of the lesser-known recordings from the Never Let Me Down period. Written by Bowie and produced by Bowie with David Richards, the song was recorded during the 1986 sessions for the album but was released in 1987 as the B-side of “Day-In Day-Out” rather than appearing on the original LP. Its comparatively restrained arrangement gives Bowie’s vocal room to carry a story filled with jealousy, memory, regret, and the repeated plea for Julie to remember him. It may never have had the exposure of the album’s singles, but that obscurity is part of what makes “Julie” such an interesting entry in the Bowie catalog.

# 5 – Julie, Do Ya Love Me – Bobby Sherman

Bobby Sherman’s “Julie, Do Ya Love Me” captures the uncomplicated emotional directness of early-’70s pop. Written by Tom Bahler, produced by Jackie Mills, and released in 1970 on With Love, Bobby, the song became one of Sherman’s biggest hits, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart. The repeated question in the title is essentially the whole emotional engine of the record: a young man separated from Julie wants reassurance that the relationship is still waiting for him. It may be far less complicated than some of the songs surrounding it here, but its melody and sincerity made it one of the era’s defining teen-pop hits.

# 4 – Julia – Eurythmics

Eurythmics’ “Julia” was written by Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart for the 1984 soundtrack album 1984 (For the Love of Big Brother), created in connection with the film adaptation of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. Produced by Stewart, the song is named for the novel’s heroine and love interest and uses Lennox’s restrained vocal over sparse electronic textures to create a feeling of tenderness inside an oppressive world. “Julia” also plays over the film’s closing credits, and it was released as a single in early 1985, making it one of the most explicitly character-driven songs on this list.

# 3 – Hey Julia – Robert Palmer

Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley (180 Gram Emerald Green Audiophile Vinyl/Limited Edition)

“Hey Julia” is the second track on Robert Palmer’s 1974 debut solo album Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley, sitting between Lowell George’s “Sailin’ Shoes” and Allen Toussaint’s title track in the seamless three-song sequence that opens the record. Written by Palmer and produced by Steve Smith, the song mixes flirtatious lyrics with the funk, soul, and New Orleans influences that shaped the album. Palmer worked with musicians connected to The Meters and Little Feat during these sessions, and “Hey Julia” is a perfect early example of the genre-blurring instincts that would remain a defining part of his career.

Read More: Top 10 Robert Palmer Songs

# 2 – Julia Dream – Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd’s “Julia Dream”—singular, not “Julia Dreams” as the original heading stated—was written by Roger Waters and released in 1968 as the B-side of “It Would Be So Nice.” Recorded at Abbey Road Studios and produced by Norman Smith, the song is notable as the first released Pink Floyd track to feature David Gilmour on lead vocals. Richard Wright’s Mellotron helps give the recording its floating, dreamlike character, while Waters’ imagery moves through fear, desire, uncertainty, and a mysterious dream figure named Julia. The song was later collected on releases including The Early Singles and remains one of Pink Floyd’s most beautiful early psychedelic deep cuts.

# 1 – Julia – The Beatles

The Beatles (The White Album) (50th Anniversary

Closing out our list is The Beatles’ “Julia,” one of the most intimate recordings John Lennon ever made. Recorded at EMI Studios on October 13, 1968, for The Beatles—better known as The White Album—the track is unique in the Beatles catalog because Lennon performs it entirely alone on voice and acoustic guitar. Written by Lennon but credited to Lennon-McCartney, the song draws most directly on the memory of his mother, Julia Lennon, while also weaving in imagery connected to Yoko Ono. The fingerpicking style Lennon used was learned from Donovan during the Beatles’ stay in India, and the spare arrangement leaves nothing between the listener and Lennon’s mixture of grief, tenderness, memory, and love.

Read More: Top 10 Beatles Love Songs