And What Is...Doing?: Sandie Shaw Rings in the New Year

United Kingdom – Sixties pop icon Sandie Shaw was one of the headline acts on Jools Holland’s Annual Hootenanny; which aired on UK BBC2 on the night of New Year’s Eve. Appearing alongside acts such as Cyndi Lauper, Caro Emerald, Jessie J, James Morrisson and Imelda May, 64-year old Shaw delighted the audience with energetic performances of her chart-topping hits Always Something There to Remind Me and Long Live Love.

Sandie Shaw was the very first UK winner of the Eurovision Song Contest in 1967, with Puppet on a String – which became her third UK #1 single and a massive hit all over the world. She has since expressed some ambivalence towards the song, which she considered unrepresentative of her material, but in recent years she appears to have made peace with it, and often performs a slowed-down version of the song in her many live appearences.

Although her popularity dried up during the 1970s, Shaw enjoyed a considerable comeback in 1984 with her cover version of The Smiths song Hand In Glove which returned her to the UK charts for the first time in fifteen years. She is credited as having been a major source of inspiration to their lead singer Morrissey, with whose support she released the critically acclaimed album Hello Angel in 1988. In the 1990s she pursued a new career as a psychotherapist, but in recent years has returned to the stage,most recently headlining a UK tour with Jools Holland.

In addition to her distinctive voice and timeless hits, Shaw was also famous for her habit of performing barefoot on-stage. She remained faithful to this trademark on New Years Eve, dressed in a daring mini-skirt that showcased her admirably well-preserved legs. She once remarked ““I don’t intend to age gracefully. I intend to do it quite disgracefully with a lot of kicking my legs in the air!” Prowling seductively around the stage and briefly planting herself onto James Morrisson’s lap during Long Live Love, it was clear that Shaw will be kicking those legs for a long time to come.

Here are her performances:

Posted by John Lucas (twitter)

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