In Celebration of Shirley Bassey

Have you heard Shirley Bassey sing? Of course, we all know the classics like "Big Spender" and "Diamonds Are Forever"—it’s said she took her bra off to let loose that incredible final climatic note of "Goldfinger". 

Dressed to impress, always, yet nothing overshadows the voice. That voice. The alto-mezzo with the belt, the vibrato, the power and the glory. Bassey and her voice were always destined for the bright lights of both Bond and Broadway, but the journey there wasn’t a smooth one.

She rarely speaks of her early years, but it can’t have been easy growing up as a biracial kid in 1950s Wales, the youngest of six to a single parent mum. 

Two years later, she had a child of her own to support, daughter Sharon, but Shirley Bassey was clearly never one to be held back. Not with that voice. 

While she never quite matched the international chart success of "Goldfinger", which went to No. 8 on the US Billboard charts, Bassey has remained a star of the stage, selling out shows and tours across the world for decades now.

There have been a staggering 35 albums and 105 singles, TV specials, endorsement deals, performances with Elvis and Sinatra, as well as the Pet Shop Boys and the Manic Street Preachers.

In 2007, at the age of 71 and wearing £3,000 diamond-encrusted wellies, Ms Bassey headlined Glastonbury.

The woman with the golden voice was awarded the freedom of her hometown, Cardiff—a place she says remains close to her heart—in 2019. She may not perform as much now, but that voice, her voice, it’ll live as long as those diamonds.