[ Post a Response | The Dame Shirley Bassey Message Board ]
Posted by Diamondsrfvr
on July 20, 2008, 1:33 pm, in reply to "Re: I have my suit of armour on !"
207.200.116.69
Hello everyone, I really appreciate all your candid thoughts. I wanted to present you with another point of view: I have never had the unbelivable good fortune of being able to see Shirley perform live. Because of that, I would be thrilled to hear her sing anything! In an interview she once said that she did a concert one time without including "Big Spender" and left the stage at the end. Her mgr. came to her dressing room to tell her that the crowd wasn't leaving because they wanted to hear her sing "Big S". She said she had to put her gown on, go out again and sing it for them. I think this is why she sings "Goldfinger", "Diamonds Are Forever", etc., at every concert: They're classics and the crowds expect it....
Having said that, I think that Shirley's music from the mid-'60's and throughout the '70's is the MOST compelling. Who wouldn't love to see her perform "Excuse Me" again?! But let's not forget that Shirley sings songs from stuff right out of her own life, which is why she brought so much raw pain to "Excuse Me". I wouldn't blame her one bit for not wanting to revisit that painful time in her life! Plus who can say how many of the more positive/joyful songs, like "Till", may even bring back painful memories of people and relationships that she no longer has in her life?....But I hear you all and your feelings are valid....
I am looking forward to hearing Shirley sing "Back to Black" and other wonderful new material, or a fantasic album of jazz standards like "The Gown Guru" suggested. I would love to hear her record "I'm Still Here" (a perfect autobiographical song) and "Here's to Life"(from the late Shirley Horn-which I hear Shirley sang at "Another Audience With...", but which was not shown on TV).....
Also, Dear Adele2, you have been so, so fortunate to be able to see Shirley so many times, all over the world, and I can understand how you might be bored, but Shirley has a whole new generation now of people who have never seen her live, or even on TV! I personally don't think she sings for glory, I think she sings because, as she once said, "My singing was always this burning thing inside me". She sings because she's compelled to, because she loves it, and because she loves her audiences....and nowadays, we see less of her because she doesn't have the same amount of energy she used to have. Nevertheless, I'm still hoping to see this incredible singer and performer live one day!
.....Best Regards to You All!
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