Shirley Bassey

莎丽·贝希 作为英美流行歌坛和舞台剧领域的传奇巨星，莎丽·贝希有着极为显赫的地位。她那无与伦比的豪放歌声40年来征服了世界各地，为无数人带来了难以磨灭的美好回忆。莎丽·贝希1937年出生于英国的威尔士，母亲是白人，而父亲则是尼日利亚海员。在16岁时，莎丽·贝希便展现出令人惊异的演唱才华，1957年她因为翻唱著名黑人歌手哈里·贝拉方特的一首“香蕉船之歌”，一举打入英国排行榜的前10名，从此一发不可收拾。在50年代末60年代初，莎丽·贝希以其别人难以望其项背的独特歌喉，接连唱出后来几十年来令无数人传唱的流行名曲，成为当时英国最走红最具人气的流行女歌手。1961年莎丽·贝希进军美国歌坛，很快在纽约百老汇奠定了自己的地位。她的迷人光彩和神奇歌声几乎令人晕眩，激荡人心的演唱和热力四射的舞台表演，被认为是对现场观众实施 “迷幻攻击”，极度的受欢迎。 整个70年代和80年代，莎丽·贝希依然是欧美流行歌坛最活跃的老牌歌手，她除了参与不少电影的主题曲演唱；更在电视等媒体亮相；在卡内基音乐厅等著名的音乐厅开演唱会；录制了不少狂销一时的专辑。像安东尼·耐维尔、乔治·哈里森、莱昂·罗素、比利·乔尔等著名的音乐人都与她有过密切的合作，为她创作过许多优秀的歌曲。
by John Bush
Known to Americans most for her belting rendition of the theme to Goldfinger, the 1964 edition in the James Bond series (as well as 1971's Diamonds Are Forever and 1979's Moonraker), Shirley Bassey was one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century. Known as Bassey the Belter and also the Tigress of Tiger Bay, her early career in touring shows and cabaret brought her a recording contract with Philips by the late '50s. After reaching the top of the British charts in 1959 with "As I Love You" and later "Reach for the Stars/Climb Every Mountain," Bassey was tapped to swing the theme song to the third James Bond vehicle. Her voice, brassy and sexy, conveyed the James Bond myth perfectly and became a big hit in America. Though later chart placings in the U.S. were few, she continued to do well in Great Britain, France and the Netherlands into the mid-'70s.
Born in January 1937 in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, Wales, Shirley Bassey was the youngest of seven children. Her parents, a Nigerian sailor and an English woman, divorced before she was three years old, but they kept the family together for the most part, and Shirley was able to sing duets with her brother at family get-togethers. After finishing school, she found a job at a local factory, and earned extra money singing at men's clubs after-hours. Bassey traveled around the country in revues during the early '50s, and made her big breakout in 1955 at a London Christmas show given by comedian Al Read (though it was promoted by bandleader Jack Hylton, who had caught Bassey's act at the nearby Albany Club). Soon after, Shirley Bassey began appearing in Read's revue, Such Is Life. The show ran for over a year, and gained her a recording contract for Philips Records. "Banana Boat Song" hit the British Top Ten in early 1957, followed by her number one hits, 1959's "As I Love You" and 1961's "Reach for the Stars/Climb Every Mountain." A 1962 pairing with arranger Nelson Riddle increased her prestige in America, and a vaunted live show gained her headlining spots in both New York and Las Vegas during the early '60s. Popular recognition in the United States came in early 1965, when "Goldfinger" hit number eight in the American charts, instantly becoming her signature song across the Atlantic. (Strangely though, it missed even the Top 20 in Great Britain.)
Bassey's hits in the U.K. continued into the mid-'70s, led by Top Ten entries such as "Something," "For All We Know" and "Never Never Never." After the crowning achievement of her career, a 1977 Britannia Award for Best Female Solo Singer in the Last 50 Years, Shirley Bassey gained her own highly rated BBC-TV show in the late '70s, but gradually slowed down her busy schedule during the next decade. Semi-retired to Switzerland by 1981, she nevertheless emerged quite frequently, spurred by the recording of several television specials and LPs, including a 1987 date with the synth-pop group Yello. Bassey became much more visible during the '90s, opening a nightclub in Cardiff, and touring the world several times.