The Ultimate Diva

Diva, virtuoso, assoluta, demigod, phenomenon, superstar, divine one, glamazon, icon, whatever term you choose to use, Dame Shirley Bassey is all of them and more!

Celebrating her 75th birthday today, La Bassey has outshone, out-lasted (and out-belted) the best of the camp idols over the years, and remains at the pinnacle of her fame - seven decades on from her debut as a teenager back in the murky depths of Cardiff's club circuit.

Dame Shirley is indeed the Number 1 "patron saint" of our pantheon here at Dolores Delargo Towers. She has only today (remarkably) made her debut in the Dolores Delargo Towers Museum of Camp in celebration!

Less surprisingly, Shirley Bassey has featured here many times since the misty beginnings of this blog in 2007 - notably, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and indeed here. Phew! I think she's a little bit popular.

The great diva's back catalogue is an endless realm of gay standards, drag queen arm-waving classics, belters, melodramas and tearful ballads. It is a difficult thing for a show queen such as I to choose an appropriate selection of favourites with which to wish the magnificent Tigress of Tiger Bay many happy returns - but I'll just limit it to a "few" favourites...

Shirley Bassey - Goldfinger

Shirley Bassey - Diamonds Are Forever

Yello featuring Shirley Bassey - The Rhythm Divine

Shirley Bassey - This Is My Life

Shirley Bassey - Never Never Never

Shirley Bassey - If You Don't Understand

Shirley Bassey - The Living Tree

Propellerheads featuring Miss Shirley Bassey - History Repeating

Shirley Bassey - After The Rain

There are always the inevitable rumours that The Dame is on her way to retirement, and it is true she has stated she has no intention of putting herself through a full tour any more. However, she has said she will still continue to perform at gala events. So let us hope there's a big gala this year so I can (finally) get to see her on stage!

There is apparently a new tribute show by someone called Carolyn Rowe that is coming to the Leicester Square Theatre in March 2012, but somehow it won't be quite the same...

Facts about Dame Shirley Bassey:

• She is the youngest of Nigerian sailor Henry Bassey and Englishwoman Eliza Jane Start's six children, although she also has four step-siblings from her mother's previous relationships.
• Her nicknames include "Bassey the Belter" and the "Tigress of Tiger Bay" - she was born in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, an area which has since been renamed Cardiff Bay.
• Bassey landed her first job in show-business in 1953 in touring variety show Memories of Jolson, based on the life of singer/comedian Al Jolson, but she briefly quit her burgeoning career when she fell pregnant with her eldest daughter, Sharon, at the age of 16.
• The star scored her first recording contract in 1956 and released her debut single, Burn My Candle - the track was banned by the BBC due to its risqué lyrics, but it still became a popular chart hit.
• Bassey suffered a tragedy in 1985 when her second child, daughter Samantha, was found dead in a river in Bristol, England. The singer maintains the 21 year old's death was not suicide, although a fresh police investigation into her passing ruled in 2010 that there was "no evidence of any criminal act involved".
• She has recorded three James Bond theme tunes - the title tracks for 1964's Goldfinger, 1971's Diamonds Are Forever and Moonraker in 1979.
• In 2000, Bassey celebrated a double whammy - she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire and was named the Most Successful British Female Singer by officials at the Guinness Book of Records.
• She was appointed a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Artist for Peace in 2004.
• She marked her 50th year in the entertainment industry in 2003 with the release of her album Thank You for the Years.
• Her smash hit Goldfinger was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.

The Bassey Blog