Gayle Shepherd born 31 May 1936

Gayle Shepherd (born Joyce Gayle Shepherd, May 31, 1936 – May 7, 2018) was a singer and member of the vocal quartet the Shepherd Sisters, best known for the 1957 hit “Alone (Why Must I Be Alone),”

The Shepherd Sisters (also known as The Sheps) were an American vocal quartet of four sisters born and raised in Middletown, Ohio to Douglas and Pearl Shepherd. Their father was a steelworker, her mother a homemaker.

The sisters were born into a family of eight children, six sisters and two brothers, with Judith being the youngest. Gayle Shepherd, the second youngest of eight siblings, grew up singing in church in Middletown, Ohio. She graduated from Middletown High School before her singing career took off. Gayle and two sisters, Martha and Mary Lou, performed locally as the Shepherd Sisters beginning when they were teenagers, with Gayle often singing lead.

They had a harmonious style that was typical of the popular girl groups from the 50s and 60s. Their group broke through in the mid-fifties and performed during the variety show 'Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts', which juxtaposes young musicians to see. Their first regional hit, in 1956, was a version of the song "Gone With the Wind" from 1937 (not related to the movie or novel with the same title). The song caught the attention of Dick Clark, and the sisters kept appearing repeatedly on his television program "American Bandstand".

                             

They added a fourth sister, Judith, to the group in 1957 In New York City, Morty Craft had a song he wanted them to record, "Alone (Why Must I Be Alone)". "Alone" would become their biggest hit and their signature song. In the U.S. it reached No.18 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; in the UK Singles Chart it made No.14. Its chart progress may have been hindered by several rival cover versions on both sides of the Atlantic. 

The song was later recorded by the Four Seasons and Petula Clark. In all the Shepherd Sisters recorded over thirty songs, many of them on one of Morty Craft's record labels such as Melba and
Lance.

The Shepherd Sisters played on Alan Freed's "America's Greatest Teenage Recording Stars" concert tour, along with rock and roll artists such as Buddy Holly and The Everly Brothers. They recorded more than 20 singles, including "Congratulations to someone" and "Don't Mention My Name. Besides rock and roll the Shepherd Sisters were also a stage and cabaret act. They performed at hotels, nightclubs, New York's Apollo Theater, and casinos in Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada. They also sang in the Philippines, Canada, South America, and parts of Europe

The Shepherd Sisters stopped performing and recording in the mid-1960s after they decided to settle down. Gayle married the record producer Jimmy Miller, best known for his work with the Rolling Stones, in the early 1960s. That marriage ended in divorce. About a decade later she married Martin Vale, from whom she later separated.  MaryLou, Gayle and Judith performed until 1965. They returned to record three songs with Charles Strouse in 1976.

Gayle is survived by her sister Mary Lou Brooks. Her sister Martha died in 1992, her sister Judith in 2009.  Gayle Shepherd died from dementia on 7^th May  2018  at a care facility in Allentown, Pa. She was 81.

(Edited from various sources mainly Wikipedia & NY Times)