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As I love You

The complete Shirley Bassey 1956-1962

By Olivier Julien

Known for her powerful voice, Shirley Bassey is one of the most popular British artists. Originally from Wales, she performed in clubs from the age of sixteen before achieving recognition in the United States and worldwide. Along with Barbra Streisand, she holds the record for longevity on the music charts. Her inimitable voice led her to sing jazz, funk, and soul music with equal prowess. With 140 million records sold, she is one of the essential figures in song from the second half of the twentieth century.

Shirley Bassey was born on January 8, 1937, in Cardiff, Wales, into a blended family of six children. Her mother, Elizabeth Jane, was English, originally from New Marske in North Yorkshire, and her father, Henry Bassey, was a Nigerian sailor. She had two half-sisters from her mother’s first marriage, and two full sisters and one brother. The couple’s second child died before Shirley’s birth.

Shirley grew up in the Splott district of South Cardiff; she attended Moorland Road School, where her voice was quickly noticed. Her parents separated before she was six, but the siblings remained close. She left school at fourteen and found a job in a local packaging factory; she performed by singing in local pubs and clubs in the evenings and on weekends. At sixteen, she was noticed and went on to perform in the touring revue Memories of Al Jolson. On December 17, 1953, Shirley Bassey signed a contract with Columbia Productions for two performances for a fee of ten pounds sterling. She then joined the troupe Hot from Harlem, where she portrayed a Black American alongside other mixed-race performers from Cardiff. She soon had to abandon her role due to pregnancy and joined her sister Ella in London, where she gave birth to her daughter Sharon.

While singing in Jersey, Shirley Bassey met Mike Sullivan, who would become her first manager. In 1955, she performed in various theaters before being spotted by impresario Jack Hylton at the Astor Club in September 1955. He offered her a role in Al Reed’s show, Such a Life, which opened on December 14, 1955, at the Adelphi Theatre in London and ran until November 3, 1956. During the show’s promotion, Johnny Franz, a record producer for Philips, noticed her on television and offered her a recording contract. Her first song, Burn My Candle, from Such a Life, was released in February 1956. This cabaret-style song was banned by the BBC for its overly suggestive lyrics. Five 45-rpm singles would be released before her first album, Born to Sing the Blues. It wasn’t until the release of “The Banana Boat Song” that she achieved success, reaching number eight on the UK charts.

After a series of acclaimed concerts at the Café de Paris in London, she began a singing tour at the El Rancho Vegas in Las Vegas in February 1957. A five-track live album, Shirley Bassey at the Café de Paris, London, was released but quickly censored due to the explicit track “Sex.” She then performed at Ciro’s on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood on February 15, 1957, before recording the single “If I Had a Needle and Thread / Tonight My Heart She Is Crying” in New York with American producer Mitch Miller. Upon her return to Great Britain, she made her first appearance on the television show Sunday Night at the London Palladium on April 28, 1957. Shirley recorded a new single that would become a classic in her repertoire: “Hands Across the Sea / As I Love You.” The record didn’t sell well until her subsequent appearance at the Palladium on November 30, which propelled it to number one in January 1959, where it remained for four weeks. This marked the first time a Welsh artist topped the charts. The song “Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me” simultaneously reached number three.

Her new album, The Fabulous Shirley Bassey, now released on Columbia, reached the twelfth position in the UK. Between 1960 and 1961, she placed four singles in the Top 10, including “As Long as He Needs Me” from Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver, which became number 2; the single “I’ll Get By” at number 10, “You’ll Never Know” at number 6, but most notably the double A-side single “Reach for the Stars / Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” which reached the top spot.

Shirley made her first television appearance in the United States on The Ed Sullivan Show. She began to gain recognition in the American market and in September 1961, she took up a five-week residency at the Persian Room of the Plaza Hotel in New York. Her collaboration with Nelson Riddle on the album Let’s Face the Music reached number twelve on the UK charts. She married Kenneth Hume and gave birth to her second daughter, Samantha, in 1963.

In 1965, the soundtrack for the new James Bond film, Goldfinger, reached eighth place on the US Top 100, her highest charting in the United States. Although she didn’t achieve the same level of chart success there as in Great Britain, her American career always allowed her to fill venues from New York to Las Vegas. Shirley Bassey placed only two singles in the UK Top 40, then two albums (including a compilation) from 1966 to 1970. Her career saw a resurgence in the 1970s; she reconnected with success, notably thanks to her cover of The Beatles’ “Something,” which charted at number ten in the United States, and “Never, Never, Never,” which hit number one in Australia and South Africa. She then returned to the James Bond film franchise with Diamonds Are Forever (1971) and Moonraker (1979).

Her marriage to Sergio Novak, assistant manager of the Excelsior Hotel in Venice, lasted from 1968 to 1979; they adopted Shirley’s young nephew, Mark Novak, born in 1969.

In the 1980s, Shirley Bassey entered what she called “semi-retirement,” dedicating herself prima­rily to charity work and occasional concerts in Europe, Australia, and the States. Her daughter, Samantha, was found dead in Bristol’s River Avon. Shirley Bassey consistently maintained that her daughter had been murdered, and while the police initially confirmed this, they later retracted their conclusions. Shirley temporarily lost her voice during this period.

Through the 1980s and 1990s, she only recorded occasionally, collaborating with various artists including Yello, Chris Rea, and notably the group Propellerheads for “History Repeating,” a remix of which reached the Top 10 of the US dance chart. In 1999, she performed the official Rugby World Cup song with Bryn Terfel. Shirley Bassey sang for the Duke of Edinburgh’s 80th birthday in 2001, then in 2022 for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, celebrating her own fifty years in music the following year. She auctioned off her stage costumes for various charities, raising £250,000, and continues to perform for various causes, including The Elton John AIDS Foundation, supporting AIDS research.

A biography titled Diamond Diva was published in 2008, while the BBC aired a drama dedicated to her early life. On February 24, 2013, she sang “Goldfinger” on stage at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles for the 85th Academy Awards ceremony, celebrating fifty years of the film. Her 2020 album, I Owe It All to You, saw her chart for the seventh consecutive decade.

Shirley Bassey was appointed a Dame Com­mander of the Order of the British Empire in 1999 by the Queen of England and received the Légion d’Honneur in France that same year. She is also a UNESCO Artist for Peace. She was one of the first Black British artists to achieve national and international renown, becoming a trailblazer for the pop music divas who emerged in the latter decades of the twentieth century. Indissociable from the James Bond film theme songs, this box set allows for a rediscovery of the early years of a rich and impactful career.

OIivier Julien

© Frémeaux & Associés 2025

As I Love You

The complete Shirley Bassey 1956-1962

CD1

1 - Stormy Weather (Ted Koehler / Ted Arlen)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.558. 26219H - 1956

2 - The Wayward Wind (Stanley Lebowsky / Herb Newman)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.598. 26232H - 1956

3 - After The Lights Go Down Low (Allen White / Leroy Lovett)

4 - If You Don’t Love Me (Alan Goodchild / Arthur Price)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.651. 26248H - 1956

5 - Trala La (Johnny Parker)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.668. 26260H - 1957

6 - If I Had A Needle and Thread (Eve Jay)

7 - Tonight my Heart She Is Crying (Irving Reid / Vic Abrams)

Avec Jimmy Carroll

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.673. 26261H - 1957

8 - Puh-Leeze! Mister Brown (Don Ray / Gene de Paul)

9 - Take My Love, Take My Love (Herb Parry)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.757. 26289H - 1957

Born to Sing the Blues

10 - Born to Sing The Blues (Lenny Adelson / Imogen Carpenter)

11 - Beale Street Blues (W.C Handy)

12 - Wabash Blues (Fred Meinken / Dave Ringle)

13 - Basin Street Blues (Spencer Williams)

14 - The birth of The Blues (Ray Henderson / Buddy G. DeSylva / Lew Brown)

15 - Careless Love Blues (Traditionnel) (W.C. Handy / Spencer Williams / Martha E. Koenig)

16 - Blues in The Night (My Mama Done Told Me) (Harold Arlen / Johnny Mercer)

17 - The St. Louis Blues (W.C. Handy)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

33 tours 25 cm Philips BBR 8130 - 1958

Shirley Bassey at the Café de Paris

18 - Born to Sing the Blues (Lenny Adelson / Imogen Carpenter)

19 - Somebody Loves Me (George Gershwin / Ballard MacDonald / Buddy de Sylva)

20 - My Body’s More Important Than My Mind (Ian Grant / Christopher Hodder-Williams)

21 - Sex (Arthur Reviley)

22 - I’ve Got You Under My Skin (Cole Porter)

Accompagnée par Les Paul au piano et Arthur Coppersmith et son orchestre.

45 tours EP 17 cm Philips 425 030 BE - 1957

23 - Hands Across the Sea (Fred Jay / Irving Reid / Ira Kosloff)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.845. 26323H - 1958

24 - There’s Never Been a Night (Irwin Schuster / Bob Davie)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Philips P.B.845. 26330H - 1958

CD2

The Bewitching Shirley Bassey

1 - Burn My Candle (Ross Parker)

2 - Night and Day (Cole Porter)

3 - Crazy Rhythm (Irving Caesar / Joseph Meyer / Roger Wolfe Kahn)

4 - The Wall (Dave Dreyer / Ormay Diamond / Cliff Owens)

5 - The Banana Boat Song (Alan Arkin / Erik Darling / Bob Carey)

6 - The Gypsy in My Soul (Clay Boland / Moe Jaffe)

7 - Love For Sale (Cole Porter)

8 - From This Moment On (Cole Porter)

9 - Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me (Al Timothy / Michael Julien)

10 - You You Romeo (Fred Elton)

11 - My Funny Valentine (Richard Rodgers / Lorenz Hart)

12 - How About You? (Ralph Freed / Burton Lane)

13 - Fire Down Below (Ned Washington / Lee Lester)

14 - As I love You (Jay Livingston / Ray Evans)

Avec Wally Stott et son orchestre sauf 4 : avec Jimmy Carroll et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm Philips BBL 7325 - 1959

The fabulous Shirley Bassey

15 - A foggy Day in London Town (George Gershwin)

16 - I’ve Got You Under My Skin (Cole Porter)

17 - Cry Me A River (Arthur Hamilton)

18 - April in Paris (E.Y Harburg / Vernon Duke)

19 - I’ve Never Been in Love Before (Frank Loesser)

20 - The Man that Got Away (Harold Harlen / George Gershwin)

21 - ‘S Wonderful (George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin)

22 - I’ll Remember April (Don Raye / Gene DePaul / Patricia Johnston)

23 - Easy to Love (Cole Porter)

24 - No One Ever Tells You (Carroll Coates / Hubert Atwood)

25 - They Can’t Take that Away From Me (George Gershwin)

26 - The Party’s Over (Adolph Green / Betty Comden / Jule Styne)

Avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm MGM Records – SE3862 - 1959

CD3

1 - If You Love Me (Geoffrey Parsons / Marguerite Monnot)

2 - Count On Me (Don Wolf / Ben Raleigh)

The Rita Williams singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

78 tours 25 cm Columbia DB.4344 - 1959

Showboat

3 - Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Jerome Kern / Oscar Hammerstein II)

4 - Bill (Jerome Kern / Oscar Hammerstein II)

Avec Michael Collins et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm His Master’s Voice – CSD 1279 - 1959

5 - With These Hands (Abner Silver / Benny Davis)

The Williams singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4421 - 1960

6 - As Long As He Needs Me (Lionel Bart)

7 - Above All Others (Philip Green / John Moran / Norman Newell)

The Rita Williams singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm United Artists Records UA 511 - 1960

Shirley

8 - In Still of The Night (Cole Porter)

9 - Let There Be Love (Ian Grant / Lionel Rand)

10 - All At Once (Déjà) (Dorcas Cochran / Eddy Marnay / Émile Stern)

11 - For Every Man There’s A Woman (Harold Arlen / Leo Robin)

12 - I’m In The Mood for Love (Dorothy Field / Jimmy McHugh)

13 - So In love (Cole Porter)

14 - If I Were A Bell (Frank Loesser)

15 - There Will Never Be Another You (Harry Warren / Mack Gordon)

16 - Hooray for Love (Harold Arlen / Leo Robin)

17 - Too Late Now (Alan Jay Lerner / Burton Lane)

18 - I’m Shooting High (Jimmy McHugh / Ted Koehler)

19 - Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye (Cole Porter)

Avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm Columbia – SCX 3352 - 1961

CD4

1 - You’ll Never Know (Harry Warren / Mack Gordon)

2 - Hold Me Tight (Roy Lister)

The Rita Williams singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4643 - 1961

3 - Reach for The Stars (David West / Udo Jürgens)

Avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4685 - 1961

4 - I’ll Get By (As long as I have you) (Roy Turk / Fred E. Albert)

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4737 - 1961

Shirley Bassey

5 - Love Is A Many Splendored Thing (Paul Francis Webster / Sammy Fain)

6 - The Nearness of You (Hoagy Carmichael / Ned Washington)

7 - Fools Rush In (Johnny Mercer / Rube Bloom)

8 - Who Are We? (Jerry Livingston / Paul Francis Webster)

9 - Angel Eyes (Earl K. Brent / Matt Dennis)

10 - Till (Carl Sigman / Charles Danvers)

11 - A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening (Harold Adamson / Jimmy McHugh)

12 - This Love of Mine (Frank Sinatra / Henri Sanicola / Sol Parker)

13 - You’re nearer (Richard Rodgers / Oscar Hammerstein II)

14 - Goodbye Lover - Hello Friend (Michael Carr / Norman Newell)

15 - Where or When (Richard Rodgers / Oscar Hammerstein II)

16 - Where Are You (Harold Adamson / Jimmy McHugh)

17 - Climb Ev’ry Mountain (Richard Rodgers / Oscar Hammerstein II)

The Williams Singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm Columbia 33SX 1382 - 1961

18 - Tonight (Leonard Bernstein / Stephen Sondheim)

19 - Let’s Start All Over Again (Lionel Bart)

The Rita Williams Singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4777 - 1962

CD5

1 - You’ll Never Walk Alone (Richard Rodgers / Oscar Hammerstein II)

2 - Ave Maria (Gounod / arrangements Raymond Long)

The Rita Williams Singers avec Tony Osborne et son orchestre (1)

The Rita Williams Singers avec Geoff Love et son orchestre (2)

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4816 - 1962

3 - Far Away (Lionel Bart)

4 - My Faith (Cliff Adams / Howard Barnes)

Avec Geoff Love et son orchestre (3)

Avec Tony Osborne et son orchestre (4)

45 tours 17 cm Columbia 45-DB.4836 - 1962

5 - Angel D’amore (Dominic John / Kurt Strom / Peter Poll / Utta de Avilés)

6 - Where Shall I Find Him (Noel Coward)

7 - It Might As Well Be Spring (Richard Rodgers / Oscar Hammerstein II)

Dirigé par Tony Osborne (5)

Dirigé par Geoff Love (6 et 7)

45 tours EP 17 cm Columbia SEG8200 - 1962

Let’s face the music

8 - Let’s Face The Music and Dance (Irving Berlin)

9 - I Should Care (Axel Stordahl / Paul Weston / Sammy Cahn)

10 - Let’s Fall In Love (Harold Arlen / Ted Koehler)

11 - The Second Time Around (Sammy Cahn / Jimmy Van Heusen)

12 - Imagination (Johnny Burke / Jimmy Van Heusen)

13 - All The Things You Are (Jerome Kern / Oscar Hammerstein II)

14 - I Get A Kick Out of You (Cole Porter)

15 - Everything I Have Is Yours (Burton Lane / Harold Adamson)

16 - Spring Is Here (Richard Rodgers / Lorenz Hart)

17 - All of Me (Gerald Marks / Seymour Simons)

18 - I Can’t Get You Out of My Mind (Vic Lewis)

19 - What Now My Love (Carl Sigman / Gilbert Bécaud)

Avec Nelson Riddle et son orchestre

33 tours 30 cm Columbia SCX 3454 - 1962

20 - What Kind of Fool Am I (Anthony Newley / Leslie Bricusse)

Avec Frank Barber et son orchestre

45 tours 17 cm United Artists Records - UA 503 - 1962