DESCRIPTION:
Veteran vocalist/entertainer Shirley Bassey recorded these two songs twenty (20) years apart. The first song, Memory, was recorded by Shirley in 1984, and it is a favorite song of mine, no matter who has recorded it. My favorite renditions of this song are from Vikki Carr, Barbra Streisand, Elaine Paige, Johnny Mathis, Jose Carreras, Susan Boyle, and of course Shirley Bassey. Each artist brings their own vocal style and abilities to the table, but what is consistent is that all these artists are in the high stratosphere when it comes to vocal talent. What I enjoy about Ms. Bassey's version is that she takes a Broadway style musical and adds a POP arrangement/flavor to it. (Shirley seldom sings songs from musicals as they are written specifically for the musical). Shirley has recorded many songs from musicals over her almost 60 years in show business, and she usually does change up the arrangement a bit to give it her own unique 'Bassey Stamp.' Shirley recorded this song again in 1993 on her, 'Shirley sings the songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber' CD.

Shirley may be the only person that I know of who has recorded this second song, 'NOW,' which was released in 1964 as a Columbia Single. This is just another example where she soars to unbelievable high fidelity heights with an energetic vibrato intensity that few other mezzo pitched vocalists, past or present, are able to achieve. If this song would have been written and performed for a musical, then this rendition by Shirley Bassey would be what it would take to receive an instant standing ovation!

ABOUT the musical, 'CATS:
Cats (stylized as CATS) is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot. It introduced the song standard "Memory". Cats first opened in the West End in 1981 and then on Broadway in 1982, each time directed by Trevor Nunn and choreographed by Gillian Lynne; it won numerous awards, including both the Laurence Olivier Award and the Tony Award for Best Musical. The London production ran for twenty-one years and the Broadway production ran for eighteen years, both setting long-run records. Actresses Elaine Paige and Betty Buckley became particularly associated with the musical. One actress, Marlene Danielle, performed in the Broadway production for its entire run (from 1982 until 2000). The show tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make what is known as "the Jellicle choice" and decide which cat will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life. Cats is the second longest-running show in Broadway history, and the fourth longest-running West End musical. It has been performed around the world many times and has been translated into more than 20 languages. In 1998 Cats was turned into a made-for-television film.

LYRICS - Memory:
Midnight Not a sound from the pavement
Has the moon lost her memory?
She is smiling alone
In the lamplight
The withered leaves collect at my feet
And the wind begins to moan

Memory
All alone in the moonlight
I can smile at the old days
I was beautiful then
I remember the time I knew what happiness was
Let the memory live again

Every streetlamp
Seems to beat a fatalistic warning
Someone mutters
And the streetlamp gutters
And soon it will be morning

Daylight
I must wait for the sunrise
I must think of a new life
And I musn't give in
When the dawn comes
Tonight will be a memory too
And a new day will begin

Burnt out ends of smoky days
The stale cold smell of morning
The streetlamp dies, another night is over
Another day is dawning

Touch me
It's so easy to leave me
All alone with the memory
Of my days in the sun
If you touch me
You'll understand what happiness is

Look
A new day has begun

LYRICS - NOW:
LYRICS:
Now, the roundabout is running down for me
Now, there is no one at the fair
Now, there never was a clown like me
Painted Face
Hiding tears
Nothing like it quite appears

Don't you know
There is no one in the world for me
No one is taking your place

Please come back
We'll face the future somehow
Not some other time
Not some other day
But now!

Now, the masquerade is full of painted smiles
Now, there is no one with a song
Now, the road of life has lonely miles
How can I travel on
Now that my love is gone

Can't you see
You will be all I ever need
Lead me to where I belong

Take my hand
We'll face the future somehow
Not some other time
Not some other day
But, Now!

Special Thanks to Pieter and Astrid from the Shirley Bassey blog and all those who have provided wonderful pictures of Shirley!