Oh you can colour my world with happiness all the way

Happy belated birthday to another of our Patron Saints, Miss Petula Clark - who blew out 90 candles on her cake yesterday!

We saw her [for the second time - we went to see her one-woman show nine years ago] "on stage" earlier this year in the gala Sondheim's Old Friends: a celebration, and she certainly did not look anywhere near such a venerable age. She sang a beautiful rendition of I'm Still Here; most appropriate, given the fact that she is one of the UK's longest-serving singers, with a career spanning an amazing eight decades from WWII to date [she's still singing Feed the Birds in Mary Poppins on stage in the West End eight times a week!]..

Never one to stick to a musical genre, she's tackled French chanson, Music Hall, rhythm'n'blues, musical theatre [her "Norma Desmond" in Sunset Boulevard and "Mrs. Johnstone" in Blood Brothers were much-lauded], and of course pop - but in 2013 she surprised everyone with this very cool number:

Petula Clark - Cut Copy Me

Of course, it is for her string of classics from the 1960s that everyone loves her most - so let's have a wallow, shall we?

Petula Clark - C'est ma chanson/This Is My Song

Petula Clark - Don't Sleep In The Subway

Petula Clark - Colour My World

...and, bien sûr, this:

Petula Clark - Downtown

Many happy returns, Our Pet!

Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15th November 1932)

Our Pet, a modern lady

I'm obviously having a bit of a "Diva Day" (when don't I?).

For, having listened to another of our Patron Saints Miss Petula Clark being interviewed on Terry Wogan's Radio 2 show this morning, I remembered I haven't yet mentioned the grande dame's new album!

Most ladies of 80 might be happy to spend their quality time with their knitting, or perhaps a Whist Drive, but not Our Pet! Not content with constantly touring - she is back in the UK in October 2013 - she has released Lost in You (her 35th UK studio album, a mere 57 years after her first) which has some very modern tracks, and unique takes on recent standards such as Gnarls Barkley's Crazy (as well as versions of Imagine, Love Me Tender and her own Downtown). It is surprisingly good.

It just goes to show you cannot keep a great singer down! Here's the brilliant single Cut Copy Me, which reviewers have variously compared (favourably) to Lana del Ray and St Etienne. Praise, indeed...

Petula Clark - Cut Copy Me

There are some rather good remixes available, too.

And here, for your delectation, is the entire album stream on Soundcloud:
[If the widget doesn't work for you, visit The Guardian website.]

[2022 UPDATE: Gone from Soundcloud. Here's a link to Spotify.]

We love Pet.

Petula Clark official website