WalesOnline* Sunny Spells with only patchy cloud* 11C - 11 kph windUpdated 8:49am 5 September 2009:Welcome bynwaltersShirley Bassey is back with new album after 20 yearsSep 5 2009 by James McCarthy, Western MailSUPERSTAR Shirley Bassey is releasing her first studio album in more than 20 years this November.Now aged 72, the queen of Tiger Bay appears to have taken a leaf out of Tom Jones reinvention manual by recording an album of songs penned by young guns from the music industry. The Manic Street Preachers, Take That frontman Gary Barlow, The Pet Shop Boys, Kaiser Chiefs and Bond theme legends John Barry and Don Black have all stepped up to pen tunes for The Performance.The album producer David Arnold scored Bond films Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, Die Another Day, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace.The 47-year-old said: All these songs were just songs, until Dame Shirley Bassey sang them. Now theyre Shirley Bassey songs hopefully classic and contemporary, like that voice.Theres something about a Bassey performance that can knock the wind out of your sails, make you laugh, make you cry, let you in on the joke or be led to a more exotic place.I tried to make a record that made the most of that voice and one that could sit alongside her other classic recordings.There isnt a next Shirley Bassey, there never really was and I doubt if there ever will be. Shes as unique and wonderful today as she has ever been and I hope this record will reach an audience who may never have heard her before.Jo Mills is the widow of Gordon Mills, who wrote songs for Tom Jones, including Its Not Unusual.The 69-year-old, a huge fan of Dame Shirley, said: Mark, Toms son, did a fabulous job when he did Reload. I dont know whether Gordon, had he been alive, would have thought along those lines.It takes a young mind to think along those lines and someone has seen that and thought along the same lines [with The Performance]. Im sure they did.That was what brought him [Sir Tom] back into the young sphere and maybe she is trying to do that.HMVs Gennaro Castaldo thought the record would be huge but that stiff competition from the likes of Robbie Williams and X Factor contestants would keep her from topping the charts.She said: The timing is great with the run up to Christmas. It is the ideal gift for older members of the family and something the kids will maybe pick up, particularly with the collaborations with contemporary artists.It worked well for Tom Jones and Im sure it will work well for Shirley Bassey.None of the songs are duets but talks are underway about involving artists in promo videos.Dame Shirley impersonator Ceri Jones, who performs as Ceri Dupree, began pretending to be the star when he was in school.The 41-year-old, of Penarth, Cardiff, said: For all those artists to write all those songs, it goes to show how much of an icon she is.There are only a few singers they would do this for. One would be Streisand and another would be Tina Turner. Madonna has not reached that status.He added: Youve got the Bassey fans and youve got the fans of people whove written for her. Take That fans will buy it for Gary Barlow.Its got success written all over it.And the Manics song The Girl from Tiger Bay! I dont know what the song is like but the titles great.Dame Shirley, who has sold 135 million records and now lives in Monte Carlo, has just released new pictures of herself in a figure-hugging red dress, dripping with diamonds.The image consultant Wenda James-Rowe who runs The Style Team in Cardiff Bay, thought she looked great.The 41-year-old said: She has been around for a long time, something like 40 years, and she never lets you down in the bling and glamour stakes.The Performance is out on November 9.bynwalters wrote:40 years? She was making records in the 50's, and, I'm glad to say, my father was buying them.