Anne Shelton

Though Anne Shelton put out multiple recordings across her career, her greatest renown stems from the many tours she undertook at Army, Navy, and Air Force bases. Born on November 10, 1923, in Dulwich, London, England, she first sang publicly at age 13 and landed a solo recording contract by 15. Starting in 1942 she began appearing at military installations throughout England; rising demand soon brought her the radio series Calling Malta, which stayed on the air five years. In 1944 the Glenn Miller Orchestra asked her to perform with them, and although portions of those concerts were captured, no complete recordings have surfaced. Miller urged her to remain with the band for further dates in Versailles, yet earlier British engagements forced her to decline—an outcome that proved fortunate when his plane crashed shortly afterward. Shelton did team up with another visiting American, Bing Crosby, first on the Variety Bandbox radio program and then at a joint concert where the pair duetted on “Easter Parade” and “I’ll Get By.” Stateside momentum built in 1949 with the charting singles “Be Mine” and “Galway Bay,” which led to her first U.S. tour in 1951 even as she continued entertaining troops. Her strongest following remained at home, where “Lay Down Your Arms” reached number one on the U.K. singles chart in September 1956 and held the top spot for four weeks. No comparable follow-up success arrived, but she stayed a steady concert draw, performing until her death on July 31, 1994. Numerous compilations appeared afterward, among them Early Years: Lili Marlene and At Last: The Very Best.