Shirley Bassey

Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, born on 8 January 1937 in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, Wales, is a Welsh singer whose Broadway credits include the show Shirley Bassey, in which she appeared on Broadway between 1979 and 1986. The youngest of six children born to Henry Bassey, who was Nigerian, and Eliza Jane Start, who was English and came from New Marske, North Yorkshire, Bassey grew up in the Cardiff community of Splott. She left school at age 14, working at Curran Steels while singing in local pubs and clubs during evenings and weekends.

Bassey began her professional career in 1953, signing her first contract to tour with Memories of Jolson, a variety show based on the life of Al Jolson. The following year she appeared in the touring production Hot from Harlem. In September 1955, impresario Jack Hylton noticed her performing at the Astor Club and invited her to appear in Al Read's Such Is Life, which opened at the Adelphi Theatre in London's West End on 14 December 1955 and ran until 3 November 1956. During that run, Philips record producer Johnny Franz offered her a recording deal after seeing her on television. Her first single, "Burn My Candle," was released in February 1956 and was banned by the BBC for lyrics deemed too suggestive. In February 1957, she scored her first chart hit with "The Banana Boat Song," which reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart.

In January 1959, Bassey became the first Welsh artist to reach number one on the UK Singles Chart, with "As I Love You," which held the top position for four weeks. That same chart period also saw her recording "Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me" occupy the top three simultaneously. She signed to EMI's Columbia label in April 1959, and her debut album for the label, The Fabulous Shirley Bassey, reached number 12 on the UK Albums Chart. Between 1960 and 1961 she placed four singles in the UK Top 10, including "As Long As He Needs Me" from Lionel Bart's Oliver!, which peaked at number 2 and charted for 30 weeks, and the double A-side "Reach for the Stars"/"Climb Ev'ry Mountain," which reached number one in 1961.

Bassey made her American television debut on The Ed Sullivan Show on 13 November 1960 and her Carnegie Hall debut on 15 February 1964. She signed to United Artists Records in August 1961 and the following month began a five-week engagement at the Persian Room in New York's Plaza Hotel. In January 1963, she performed at a gala marking the second anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's inauguration in Washington, D.C., and in March of that year appeared on the cover of Ebony magazine. Her cover of Ben E. King's "I (Who Have Nothing)" reached number 6 in the UK in 1963, and her collaboration with Nelson Riddle on the album Let's Face the Music reached number 12 on the UK Albums Chart in 1962.

Bassey is the only artist to have recorded more than one official James Bond theme, having performed "Goldfinger" in 1964, "Diamonds Are Forever" in 1971, and "Moonraker" in 1979. "Goldfinger" became her only US Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hit, peaking at number 8 in January 1965, and was later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008. She has also charted a number one on the UK Dance Chart with "History Repeating," bringing her total UK top 40 hits to 27, including her two number-one singles.

Since her first appearance at the Royal Albert Hall in 1971, Bassey has performed at the venue 45 times. She has hosted her own BBC variety series, Shirley Bassey, and has been the subject of numerous BBC television specials. In 2011, the BBC aired Shirley, a television film based on her life and career. Bassey received the inaugural award for Best British Female Solo Artist at the 1st Brit Awards in 1977 and was appointed a Dame in 1999 for services to the performing arts. In 2003, she was named among the "100 Great Black Britons." Over a career spanning more than 70 years, she has sold more than 140 million records worldwide and is the first woman to place a Top 40 album in seven consecutive decades in the United Kingdom.