FROM THE ARCHIVE 453 -1965-

The year 1965 saw the release of the albums Shirley Stops The Shows. (The USA Release was called Shirley Bassey Belts The Best!) and the Live At The Pigalle album (which was called in the USA Live In Person)

Vinyl Single: No Regrets/Seesaw Of Dreams
Vinyl Single: It’s Yourself/Secrets
Vinyl Soundtrack Album: The Liquidator.Contains the following by Shirley Bassey
The Liquidator (title theme) My Liquidator (end title)

That year there was also a dispute about Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang the title song for the James Bond movie Thunderball that was out that year. Below some newspaper articles about that.

Shirley Bassey’s row
over ‘Mr, Kiss Kiss’:
No hurry, say judges

The hearing of an action involving singer Shirley Bassey and the new James Bond film “Thunderball” wil NOT be speeded up, three  Appeals Court judges decided yesterday. The action is being brought against Eon Productions to stop the release of the film unless a song Miss Bassey recorded “Mr. Kiss Kiss, Bang, Bang.” is included in the title sound track. The British film premiere has been fixed for December 29. Lord Justice Sellers said that if S.V.B. Ltd. suing on behalf of Miss Bassey were right, the remedy would be in damages, and there was no point, in ordering a speedy trial. An injunction against Eon Productions, he said. would create great difficulties. New written evidence by Mr. Albert Broccoli, a director of the company and one of the producers of “Thunderball.” was before the court. Mr. Broccoli said that while it might be technically  possible to incorporate Shirley Bassey’s existing recording of “Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” it would not enhance her considerable reputation because it was “artistically unmeritorious.” It was contemplated that if used at all the song would follow a whimsical ending as the end-tunes were being shown .
DRAMATICALLY
In this context, said Mr.Broccoli, both the arrangement of the song and her rendition of it were dramatically in apposite. Mr. Broccoli added that to incorporate the song in the soundtrack would mean reconnaissance the music and reprocessing all the sound in the last reel of the film. The cost of production of “Thunderball” was about £500,000 and a delay in distribution and exhibition would incur interest charges on that sum.

Shirley Bassey giving a farewell song to Liverpool football players on the evening of their departure to Milan for a European Cup game. With Ron Yeats on piano, the team sang one of Shirley’s numbers, ‘As long as he needs me’ 10th May 1965.