Carroll Gibbons & Marjorie Stedeford - Black Coffee, 1935

Marjorie Stedeford attracted immediate attention when she first appeared in London in 1935. She was a fine singer with an unusual voice—deeper than usual. One reviewer described her as ’an Australian girl with a unique baritone voice ... of soft quality and great charm’. During her few years in London, she found herself at the centre of an international ’hot spot’ in the entertainment world, recording with many of the top names in popular music. The bands she sang with sound like a Who’s Who of Thirties entertainment - she recorded with The Six Swingers, Jack Jackson and His Orchestra, Mario Lorenzi and His Rhythmics, Brian Lawrence and His Lansdowne House Sextet, Billy Thorburn and His Music and Carol Gibbons and His Boy Friends. Marjorie became a very successful artist and soon had a regular slot in Arthur Askey’s show on Radio Luxemburg, described in publicity material as “The voice you love to hear“. Unfortunately, the onset of WWII broke her career. Marjorie went home t