''25th Anniversary Album'' is a compilation album by

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists ...

. Released in 1978 to mark her 25th year in show business, the album was a double set, comprising 40 tracks. The songs included span just 20 of the 25 years from 1957 to 1976, however, her first professional contract (which is reproduced within the album's inner sleeve) is dated 1953. Bassey had toured extensively throughout 1978 to mark her 25 years. This collection, including her biggest hits and some lesser-known recordings, became one of her biggest in the UK, where it reached No.3 and spent 12 weeks on the album chart.

Overview

1978 marked the 25th anniversary of Shirley Bassey's professional singing career. Her first contract was signed on the 17 December 1953 for a fee of £10 for two shows on the 20 December. Her first recordings however, didn't come until 1956, with her first UK hit single arriving in 1957. For her 25th anniversary, Bassey embarked on an extensive tour throughout 1978. For 20 years, Bassey regularly hit the charts with the biggest of her hits being included on this, her first compilation to span her entire career. The most recent songs included were three tracks from her 1976 album ''

Love, Life and Feelings ''Love, Life and Feelings'' is the 21st studio album from Shirley Bassey, released in 1976 on the United Artists label. The album peaked at #13 in the UK album chart, and charted at #149 in the Billboard 200. ''Love, Life and Feelings'' was award ...

''. The double album was released in October 1978 on her regular

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

label. The album entered the UK charts in early November and reached a peak of No.3, remaining on the chart for 12 weeks. The album was certified Platinum by the BPI at the end of the year, her only album to go higher than Gold certification. At the time of the album's release, Bassey hit the headlines when she was arrested after she was accused of being drunk and disorderly following a party for the album's launch in London. She performed a show the following month in the presence of

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

while on bail and hit the headlines again. The album was released in a lavish gatefold sleeve with a stapled four-page insert, showing photographs of Bassey's career as well as a photocopy of her very first contract. One contemporary review said it was one of the most important releases United Artists had ever undertaken.

Track listing

Side One # "Fire Down Below" (Lester Lee /

Ned Washington Ned Washington (born Edward Michael Washington, August 15, 1901 – December 20, 1976) was an American lyricist born in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Life and career Washington was nominated for eleven Academy Awards from 1940 to 1962. He won the Bes ...

) – 2:46 (Originally released: non-album A-side, 1957) # "

As I Love You "As I Love You" is a 1958 hit song by Shirley Bassey with Wally Stott & His Orchestra, written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the Universal International motion picture, '' The Big Beat'' (1958). From 20 February 1959, it was number one on t ...

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Jay Livingston Jay Livingston (born Jacob Harold Levison, March 28, 1915 – October 17, 2001) was an American composer best known as half of a song-writing duo with Ray Evans that specialized in songs composed for films. Livingston wrote music and Evans t ...

/ Raymond Evans) – 2:53 (Non-album A-side, 1958) # "

Banana Boat Song "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" is a traditional Jamaican folk song. The song has mento influences, but it is commonly classified as an example of the better known calypso music. It is a call and response work song, from the point of view of ...

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Alan Arkin Alan Wolf Arkin (born March 26, 1934) is an American actor, director and screenwriter known for his performances on stage and screen. Throughout his career spanning over six decades, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award ...

/ Bob Carey / Erik Darling) – 2:43 (Non-album A-side, 1957) # "You You Romeo" (Fred Elton) – 2:44 (Non-album A-side, 1957) # "Kiss Me Honey Honey Kiss Me" (Albon Timothy /

Michael Julien Michael Julien (1 August 1927 – 29 December 2020), also known as Peter Warne, was a British songwriter, who was the co-writer of a number of hit songs around the world. He wrote the lyrics of " Let's Live for Today", and co-wrote both " Kis ...

) – 2:26 (from ''

The Bewitching Miss Bassey ''The Bewitching Miss Bassey'' is the second studio album by Welsh singer Shirley Bassey. Consisting of new and previously released material, this was the first album by Bassey to be issued on the 12" Long-playing record format. Tracks were take ...

'', 1959) # " With These Hands" (

Abner Silver Abner Silberman (28 December 1899, in New York City, New York, United States – 24 November 1966) as pen name Abner Silver, was an American songwriter who worked primarily during the Tin Pan Alley era of the craft. Career Usually composing the m ...

Benny Davis Benny Davis (August 21, 1895 - December 20, 1979) was a vaudeville performer and writer of popular songs. Biography Davis started performing in vaudeville in his teens. He began writing songs when working as an accompanist for Blossom Seeley. In ...

) – 3:19 (Non-album A-side, 1960) # " As Long As He Needs Me" (

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical '' Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...

) – 3:00 (Non-album A-side, 1960) # " Reach for the Stars" (

Norman Newell Norman Newell (25 January 1919 – 1 December 2004) was an English record producer, who was mainly active in the 1950s and 1960s. He was also the songwriter, co-writer of many notable songs. As an A&R manager for EMI, he worked with musicians su ...

/ Udo Jurgens) – 2:58 (Non-album A-side, 1961) # " You'll Never Know (Just How Much I Love You)" (

Harry Warren Harry Warren (born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ...

Mack Gordon Mack Gordon (born Morris Gittler; June 21, 1904 – February 28, 1959) was an American composer and lyricist for the stage and film. He was nominated for the best original song Oscar nine times in 11 years, including five consecutive years betwee ...

) – 3:07 (Non-album A-side, 1961) # "

I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You) "I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You)" is a popular song with music by Fred E. Ahlert and lyrics by Roy Turk. The song was published in 1928. Versions by Nick Lucas, Aileen Stanley and, most successfully, Ruth Etting, all charted in America in 1929 ...

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Fred E. Ahlert Frederick Emil Ahlert (September 19, 1892 – October 20, 1953) was an American composer and songwriter. Early life He received a degree from Fordham Law School, but instead of pursuing a legal career he began work as an arranger, initially ...

Roy Turk Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise to ...

) – 2:29 (Non-album A-side, 1961) # "

Climb Ev'ry Mountain "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ''The Sound of Music.'' It is sung at the close of the first act by the Mother Abbess. It is themed as an inspirational piece, to encourage people to take every s ...

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Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popu ...

) – 3:12 (from ''Shirley Bassey'', 1961) Side Two # " Far Away" (Lionel Bart) – 3:12 (Non-album A-side, 1962) # "

Ave Maria The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's s ...

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Charles Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...

) – 3:52 (Non-album A-side, 1962) # " What Now My Love" (

Carl Sigman Carl Sigman (September 24, 1909 – September 26, 2000) was an American songwriter. Early life Born in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York to a Jewish-American family, Sigman graduated from law school and passed his bar exams to practice in ...

Gilbert Bécaud Gilbert Bécaud (, 24 October 1927 – 18 December 2001) was a French singer, composer, pianist and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et maintenant", a 1961 release t ...

) – 2:56 (from ''

Let's Face the Music ''Let's Face the Music'' is the sixth Shirley Bassey studio album, released in 1962, and arranged by Nelson Riddle. Kenneth Hume, Shirley Bassey's husband and manager wrote the sleeve notes for this album, in which he gives an insight into how t ...

'', 1962) # "

Tonight Tonight may refer to: Television * ''Tonight'' (1957 TV programme), a 1957–1965 British current events television programme hosted by Cliff Michelmore that was broadcast on BBC * ''Tonight'' (1975 TV programme), a 1975–1979 British current ...

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Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

) – 2:34 (Non-album A-side, 1962) # "

What Kind of Fool Am I What Kind of Fool Am I may refer to: *"What Kind of Fool Am I? "What Kind of Fool Am I?" is a popular song written by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley and published in 1962. It was introduced by Anthony Newley in the musical ''Stop the World ...

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Anthony Newley Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest leading ...

Leslie Bricusse Leslie Bricusse OBE (; 29 January 1931 – 19 October 2021) was a British composer, lyricist, and playwright who worked on theatre musicals and wrote theme music for films. He was best known for writing the music and lyrics for the films ''Do ...

) – 3:18 (Non-album A-side, 1963) # "

I (Who Have Nothing) "I (Who Have Nothing)" (sometimes billed as "I Who Have Nothing") is an English language cover of the Italian song "''Uno dei Tanti''" (English: "One of Many"), with music by Carlo Donida and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. The initial version ...

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Carlo Donida Carlo Donida Labati (30 October 1920, in Milan – 22 April 1998, in Porto Valtravaglia) was an Italian composer and pianist. Carlo Donida Labati was born in Milan on 30 October 1920. He graduated in piano and composition from the Giuseppe Verdi ...

Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as " Hound Dog" ( ...

) – 2:40 (Non-album A-side, 1963) # "My Special Dream" (Freddy Douglass /

Howard Greenfield Howard Greenfield (March 15, 1936 – March 4, 1986) was an American lyricist and songwriter, who for several years in the 1960s worked out of the famous Brill Building. He is best known for his successful songwriting collaborations, including o ...

Sol Kaplan Sol Kaplan (April 19, 1919 – November 14, 1990) was an American film and television music composer. Life and career Kaplan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He worked as a successful concert pianist, including performing at Carnegie Hal ...

) – 2:55 (Non-album A-side, 1964) # "Gone" (Tony Osborne) – 2:40 (Non-album A-side, 1964) # " Goldfinger" ( John Barry / Anthony Newley / Leslie Bricusse) – 2:51 (from ''Goldfinger'', 1964) # " No Regrets" (

Tom Rush Thomas Walker Rush (born February 8, 1941) is an American folk and blues singer, guitarist and songwriter who helped launch the careers of other singer-songwriters in the 1960s and has continued his own singing career for 60 years. Life and ...

) – 4:25 (Should have been Non-album A-side from 1965 written by Charles Dumont but a track with the same name from the 1973 album ''

Never Never Never ''Never Never Never'' is a 1973 album by Shirley Bassey. It features the hit single title track, which was a UK top 10 hit, which became one of Bassey's best-known songs. The album also became a top 10 hit in the UK and was a moderate hit in th ...

'', was used in error) Side Three # "

Big Spender "Big Spender" is a song written by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields for the musical ''Sweet Charity'', first performed in 1966. Peggy Lee was the first artist to record the song for her album of the same name also that year. It is sung, in the musi ...

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Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, United States, to Eastern European Jewish parents ...

Dorothy Fields Dorothy Fields (July 15, 1904 – March 28, 1974) was an American librettist and lyricist. She wrote over 400 songs for Broadway musicals and films. Her best-known pieces include "The Way You Look Tonight" (1936), "A Fine Romance" (1936), "On th ...

) – 1:48 (from '' And We Were Lovers'', 1967) # "Does Anybody Miss Me" (

Johnny Worth John Worsley (21 June 1931 – 6 August 2021), more widely known under the pseudonyms Les Vandyke and Johnny Worth, was an English popular music songwriter from the 1950s to the 1980s, who started his career as a singer. As "Les Vandyke", he wr ...

/ Les Reed) – 2:25 (from ''

Does Anybody Miss Me ''Does Anybody Miss Me'' is a 1969 album by Shirley Bassey. In 1969 Bassey moved her home to Lugano, Switzerland, with her second husband Sergio Novak, whom she had married in Las Vegas in August 1968. Remaining as a tax exile prevented her fr ...

'', 1969) # "This Is My Life" (

Bruno Canfora Bruno Canfora (; 6 November 1924 – 4 August 2017) was an Italian composer, conductor, and music arranger. Life and career Born in Milan, Canfora studied piano at an early age, then studied oboe at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Milan. Du ...

) – 3:11 (from ''This Is My Life'', 1968) # "

Something Something may refer to: Philosophy and language *Something (concept) *Something, an English indefinite pronoun Music Albums * ''Something'' (Chairlift album), 2012 * ''Something'' (Shirley Bassey album), 1970 * ''Something'' (Shirley Scott a ...

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George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

) – 3:32 (from ''Something'', 1970) # "

The Fool on the Hill "The Fool on the Hill" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 EP and album '' Magical Mystery Tour''. It was written and sung by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The lyrics describe the ...

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John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

) – 3:19 (Non-album A-side, 1970) # "Diamonds Are Forever" ( Don Black / John Barry) – 2:40 (from ''Diamonds Are Forever'', 1971) # " Where Do I Begin (Love Story)" (Carl Sigman /

Francis Lai Francis Albert Lai (; 26 April 19327 November 2018) was a French composer, noted for his film scores. He won the 1970 Oscar for Best Music, Original Score and the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score for the film '' Love Story''. The s ...

) – 3:12 (from ''Something Else'', 1971) # "

For All We Know For or FOR may refer to: English language *For, a preposition *For, a complementizer *For, a grammatical conjunction Science and technology * Fornax, a constellation * for loop, a programming language statement * Frame of reference, in physics ...

" ( Arthur James /

Fred Karlin Frederick James Karlin (June 16, 1936 – March 26, 2004) was an American composer of more than 130 scores for feature films and television movies. He also was an accomplished trumpeter adept at playing jazz, blues, classical, rock, and mediev ...

/ Robb Wilson) – 2:43 (from '' I Capricorn'', 1971) # " And I Love You So" (

Don McLean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...

) – 4:27 (from ''And I Love You So'', 1972) # "Make the World a Little Younger" (Denny McReynolds /

Karen O'Hara Karen O'Hara is an American art director. She won an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film ''Alice in Wonderland'' and was additionally nominated three times, for ''The Color of Money'' '' Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'', and ...

/ Terry Howell) – 3:34 (from ''

'', 1973) Side Four # " Never, Never, Never (Grande, Grande, Grande)" (

Alberto Testa Alberto Testa may refer to: *Alberto Testa (dancer) (1922–2019), Italian dancer *Alberto Testa (lyricist) (1927–2009), Italian composer and lyricist {{Hndis, Testa, Alberto ...

/ Norman Newell /

Tony Renis Tony Renis (born 13 May 1938), stage name of Elio Cesari, is an Italian singer, composer, music producer and film actor. Life and career Renis was born in Milan. In the mid-1950s he met with Adriano Celentano, and the two started performing an i ...

) – 3:35 (from ''

'', 1973) # "Nobody Does It Like Me" (Cy Coleman / Dorothy Fields) – 2:14 (from ''

Nobody Does It Like Me ''Nobody Does It Like Me'' is a 1974 album by Shirley Bassey. Bassey's recordings had been selling well since 1970, scoring three top ten singles and three ten top albums. ''Nobody Does It Like Me'' was recorded with a new producer, George Butle ...

'', 1974) # " Send In the Clowns" (Stephen Sondheim) – 3:18 (from ''

Good, Bad but Beautiful ''Good, Bad but Beautiful'' is a 1975 album by Shirley Bassey. In the first half of the decade, Bassey recorded nine albums, with three making the top ten. In March 1975, Bassey released a compilation that became her highest-charting album to dat ...

'', 1975) # "

Emotion Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definition. ...

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Patti Dahlstrom Patti Dahlstrom is a singer, songwriter, and teacher. She recorded four albums in the 1970s and co-wrote the Helen Reddy hit "Emotion". Career One of five children, Dahlstrom was born in Houston, Texas. She began writing songs before her teen y ...

/ Veronique Sanson) – 4:15 (from ''Good, Bad but Beautiful'', 1975) # "

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Clive Westlake Gerald Clive Westlake (25 December 1932 – 17 June 2000)The Way We Were ''The Way We Were'' is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Arthur Laurents wrote both the novel and screenplay based on his college days at Cornell University and his ...

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Alan and Marilyn Bergman Alan Bergman (born September 11, 1925) and Marilyn Keith Bergman (November 10, 1928 – January 8, 2022) were an American songwriting duo. Married from 1958 until Marilyn's death, together they wrote music and lyrics for numerous celebrated telev ...

Marvin Hamlisch Marvin Frederick Hamlisch (June 2, 1944 – August 6, 2012) was an American composer and conductor. Hamlisch was one of only seventeen people to win Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards. This collection of all four is referred to as an " EGOT ...

) – 2:45 (from Good, Bad but Beautiful, 1975) # " What I Did for Love" (

Ed Kleban Edward "Ed" Kleban (April 30, 1939 – December 28, 1987) was an American musical theatre composer and lyricist. Kleban was born in the Bronx, New York City, in 1939 and graduated from New York's High School of Music & Art and Columbia Univers ...

/ Marvin Hamlisch) – 3:43 (from ''

'', 1976) # "

Feelings Feelings are subjective self-contained phenomenal experiences. According to the ''APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; and feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations ...

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Morris Albert Maurício Alberto Kaisermann (born 7 September 1951), better known by his stage name Morris Albert, is a Brazilian singer and songwriter best known for his 1974 single "Feelings". Biography Albert was born into an Austrian immigrant family. At ...

) – 4:43 (from ''Love, Life and Feelings'', 1976) # "If I Never Sing Another Song" (Don Black / Udo Jurgens) – 4:02 (from ''Love, Life and Feelings'', 1976)

Charts and certification

References

{{Authority control 1978 albums Shirley Bassey albums United Artists Records albums 1978 compilation albums