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What can you say about Shirley Bassey that hasn't been said before? Very little. All you can do is to reaffirm all that has already been said about a performer who is unique. She is, as far as British divas go, in a different league -' there is simply no one to touch her. Even on the world stage, she has to be regarded as up near the top of the premiership. And what's more, she's been in that exalted position for almost fifty years!

Everything about her is larger than life. Her voice; which can belt out the show numbers with a power that can leave you breathless, yet can also caress a song so softly it's like a summer breeze passing over a rose petal. Her stage presence; she has a command of the stage like no other. She seemingly fills it. There's no way you're going to ignore the fact that she is on stage. Her expression; her movements are very theatrical, giving a dynamic to her performance unmatched by any other singer. (I could also mention her facial expressions which can be so exaggerated that they have proved a boon to anybody wanting to do an j impression of her. Finally her costumes; I doubt whether there is any one in the whole of the music business who can boast such an I extensive and spectacular wardrobe. What's more, it is said that she only ever wears a costume ONCE.

"Bassey the Belter" came into the world on January 8th 1937 in a little town called Tiger Bay near the Welsh city of Cardiff and was christened Shirley Veronica Bassey. Her parents, an English woman and a Nigerian father, divorced before she was three years old. Despite this, the large (she was the youngest of seven children) family kept together. Her early singing experience was at family gatherings singing duets with her brother.

She left school at sixteen and I worked in the packing department of a local factory, but at night a transformation took place and she supplemented her factory wages by singing in the working men's clubs in the Cardiff area. It was here that she developed the power and range in her voice because let's face it, clubland was -and still is - a harsh environment, especially for a young girl just starting out in the entertainment business. You HAD to make yourself heard above the tumult of voices.

It wasn't long before Shirley had turned professional and was touring in a revue called 'Memories of Al Jolson'. It was during a performance of this revue at the Albany Club in London that she was noticed by the bandleader Jack Hylton. He was so impressed with her that he signed her to sing in the 1955 Christmas show at the Adelphi Theatre starring the great Lancastrian comedian AI Read. From there she appeared in Read's revue called 'Such is Life' which ran for over a year to enthusiastic audiences. Thanks to the exposure gained in these shows, Shirley was signed to a recording contract with Philips Records and her first hit 'Banana Boat Song' was a Top Ten hit early in 1957.

She had five hit singles on the label in two years; the last one being the Number One hit 'As I Love You'. In fact, she had two singles out at the same time - the other being 'Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me' - and at one time they were BOTH in the top three! Shirley then signed for EMI's Columbia label and the floodgates opened. She had no less than fifteen hits in the next five years. In the summer of 1961 Shirley hit the top of the charts again with a double a sided record. 'Reach for the Stars' was written by Udo Jurgens, (who would later win the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest for Austria) with English lyrics by David West (Shirley's producer Norman Newell under a pseudonym). The other track was 'Climb Ev'ry Mountain' from the phenomenally successful musical 'Sound of Music'.

Hit after hit followed, more than thirty of them, making Shirley Bassey- 'The Tigress of Tiger Bay' - the most successful British female singer ever.

America beckoned, and it didn't take her long to conquer it. She'd already performed a smash hit concert in New York when she recorded the album 'Let's Face the Music' with Frank Sinatra's arranger Nelson Riddle. She also headlined at venues in both New York and Las Vegas. Her American standing was further augmented when she had a Top Ten hit with the theme song to the third James Bond film 'Goldfinger'. Her phrasing and power in this song has made it widely regarded as the "definitive" Bond theme; yet strangely in the UK it failed to enter the Top Twenty. (Shirley was later to record two more Bond themes - 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'Moonraker' - and is the only person thus far to record more than one theme). Mention also has to be made of her rendition of the George Harrison song 'Something' - surely one of the best female vocals ever!

With all the singles success - and let's not forget the albums too, as she had over thirty album hits as well - it is strange to think that her records were not her biggest strength. It was and is her live performances that Shirley really comes into her own. As I said previously she had the voice, persona and wardrobe to make any live performance unforgettable. Don't just take my word for it, just ask any of the thousands of people who clamour for tickets when she announces concerts. They usually sell out almost immediately.

She emigrated to Switzerland in 1969, and she began to take things a bit easier into the eighties and is nowadays semi-retired. However, she still tours occasionally proving that she still has "pulling power".

She has been applauded and acclaimed al over the world. In 1977 she won the Britannia Award as the Best Female Solo Singer in the past 50 years. In 1983 she was awarded a CBE and became Dame Shirley Bassey in 2000; and in 1993 in her home town of Cardiff a nightclub was called "Bassey's"

All in all, not a bad little career for a little Welsh girl. OK, a little Welsh girl with a BIG voice.

Ladies and gentlemen I have pleasure in presenting for your musical delectation....

Miss Shirley Bassey!!