Australian Singer Marcie Jones Dies Aged 79

Marcie Jones, the pioneering Australian singer best known as the lead vocalist of the 1960s girl group Marcie And The Cookies, has died at the age of 79 after a battle with leukemia. Jones began her career as a teenager performing in Melbourne ballrooms and gained recognition joining "The GO Show" in 1963 before forming Marcie And The Cookies in 1967, a rare all-female vocal group in a male-dominated Australian music scene. The group toured extensively across Asia, the UK, and Europe, opening for major acts like Tom Jones and The Monkees. Jones embarked on a solo career in the 1970s, releasing the album "That Girl Jones" and continuing to record sporadically into the late 1990s with a country music EP. She was regarded as an unsung Australian music legend who remained dedicated to performing and songwriting throughout her life, also authoring a memoir titled "Runs In The Blood." Her death was announced by her daughter-in-law, who shared heartfelt tributes highlighting Jones's influence and legacy in Australian music.