Tom Jones International

Any problems with the video posted yesterday (link at the end of this post) have been solved. Sorry for any inconvenience. It was working when posted. I’ve learned to check. Guess, however, I’d better check the next day after posting, too.

Women bombard Tom with undies

The Henley Standard< | July 11, 2011

The 71-year-old Welsh crooner had the crowds on their feet as he performed some of his best-known songs, including Delilah, It’s Not Unusual and Mama Told Me.

Women dressed formally threw underwear at the star as he pulled off his jacket to sing You Can Leave Your Hat On on the “floating” riverside stage.

Jones gave a thumbs-up to a number of Welsh flags being waved in the audience and dedicated a song to his friend Cilla Black, who was there with Reading FC chairman John Madejski.

“It’s a pleasure to be back here in Henley,” he said. “I have family in the area and often come here. I often go for walks along the towpath for my exercise and the last time I came here I stopped at the Flower Pot pub in Aston, which is risky for me — especially before a performance.”

Jones was the headline act on the first night of five-day festival, which will see performances by stars including Blake and Jools Holland.

Artist Rolf Harris, who was among the crowd, said: “It’s a wonderful event. Me and my wife actually had a nightmare because we were halfway here when I read the ticket and realised that it was a black-tie event, so we had to turn back so I could change.”

The evening finished with a spectacular firework display, although high winds meant a helium balloon carrying an aerial acrobat could not fly during the performance.

Stewart Collins, the festival’s artistic director, said Jones was the biggest name to appear in the event’s 29-year history.

“It’s brilliant to get a star like Tom to perform,” he said. “Over the last few years the festival has been cranking itself up year on year, getting bigger and bigger and clearly it’s what people want because we were sold out.”

To see 22+ minutes of Tom’s T In The Park performance, go to the TJI.com Video Library. Songs included are: Green Green Grass of Home, Detroit City, Mama Told Me Not to come, You Can Leave Your Hat On, It’s Not Unusual.

The band is: Jamie Moses, guitar; Toby Chapman, keyboards; Christoph Papendieck, organ; Dave Bronze, bass; Ben Stone, drums; Henry Collins Trumpet ,Trevor Mires Trombone, Frank Walden, Sax; Sophie Hiller and Laura Critchley, vocals.

First, a personal note: Many, many thanks for all the birthday wishes and the gifts. This community is the best!

Apparently Tom drew the largest audience ever at T In The Park. How cool is that?! Just below the article is a video from that Festival. The photo here is one of three more from T In The Park that you’ll find in TJI’s flickr set, Sir Tom Jones at Festivals & Special Events.

According to one report, Tom’s setlist at T In The Park was: Burning Hell, Run On, Strange Things, St. James Infirmary, Green Green Grass of Home, Detroit City, Didn’t It Rain, Delilah, Mama Told Me Not To Come, You Can Leave Your Hat On, It’s Not Unusual, Kiss. Don’t know if it’s accurate because on July 10 in Rotterdam he sang Sex Bomb. Maybe there are different sets for different audiences as he did down South in April/May?


T in the Park: Music legend Sir Tom Jones says festival is one of the greats

Jul 10 2011 By Billy Sloan | Daily Record

SUPERSTAR Sir Tom Jones told us he loved his first T so much that he wants to come back for more.

The 70-year-old Welsh music legend revealed he jumped at the chance to play the festival, saying: “I’d heard about T in the Park for years. Earlier this year, I did Celtic Connections in Glasgow and that was great. I was invited to do this and thought, ‘Why not?’

“I’ve loved playing in Scotland since I first came in 1965. Scottish audiences have always been great to me. “There’s absolutely no bull**** with the Scots. If they like you, they love you and, if they don’t, forget it. So thank God they liked me.

“Christ, I used to play the Apollo in Glasgow. That was rowdy. They were never quiet, very enthusiastic. T In The Park is more of the same, just bigger.”

Tom slayed the T audience on Friday night. He performed gospel and blues hits from his 2010 No.1 album Praise And Blame plus classics such as It’s Not Unusual, The Green, Green Grass Of Home and his chart-topping cover of Kiss by Prince.

T bosses claimed that his 60,000-audience was one of the biggest ever for a Main Stage act.

Please click here to see Tom performing at T In The Park. Check it out and compare the terrifically fit Tom Jones today to the Tom in the CBS interview (link just below).

CBS Sunday Morning repeated the profile of Tom they ran in October when Praise and Blame was released. The only difference was the intro in which Tom’s age was updated to 71. Watching it, I was struck by how terrific Sir T. looks today — much more fit than he did nine months ago. Good for him! You can watch the entire interview in the TJI.com Video Library.

Please don’t forget to answer the TJI July Question of the Month in the July 5 post below!

If you missed it the first time, check out the story about Sir Tom on CBS Sunday Morning tomorrow, July 10. If there’s anything new, TJI will have it for you here.

The photo here is one of seven from T In The Park that you’ll find in TJI’s flickr set, Sir Tom Jones at Festivals & Special Events.

Tom Jones doesn’t need to leave hat on to wow T in the Park

Review: Forget any of the young pretenders, Tom Jones landed an early knockout blow as he took to T in the Park’s Main Stage on the sunny Friday evening for a bellowing, hip-shaking set.

STV.com | Michael MacLennan | 08 July 2011 20:10 GMT

The sun out, it was just the right time for a bluesy slide guitar to lurch out of the speakers, the bass drum beat then brazenly thudding away as – head to toe in black – the one and only Tom Jones sauntered on to the Main Stage, his wondrous sensual bellow of a voice wrapping itself around menacing new tune Ain’t No Grave.

‘Is everyone feeling alright? Are we going to have a good night?’ Tom purred before playing one of Elvis’s favourite songs Run On, the band grooving away readily behind him with a healthy vigour. (The rousing audience reaction probably gave him all the answers he needed to those pre-song queries.)

The opening part of the set culled more from recent album Praise and Blame, the festival crowd seemed content though a little restless before the swooning Green, Green Grass of Home introduced itself as the first classic of the evening, thus receiving the most gentle and heart-warming singalong likely to be witnessed at T in the Park all weekend, hands swaying in the air and couples’ arms around each other becoming that much tighter.

It was a relaxed and soulful set for the most part – no place for more fast-paced hip-swingers like Sex Bomb. Instead this was a chance to laze back in the cool summer breeze and appreciate the joys of being at a festival. (Especially one that’s not a washout – well, not yet anyway…)

The lack of a deluge might have dampened the impact of Didn’t It Rain (no pun intended), but by goodness it helped for the resplendent Delilah, the crowd ably doing the work the perfectly adequate backing singers were employed for. (Well, perhaps not as tunefully, though the paying punters more than made up for it in terms of spirit.)

For another photo and more reviews, please click here to (more…)

Please don’t forget to answer the TJI July Question of the Month in the post below!

The UK Olympics announced that Sir Tom will headline BT British Olympic Ball at Kensington Olympia on the 7th October. Tables of 12 guests may be had at the gold, silver and bronze levels. They range from £7,128 to £14,340, including VAT. Get them here. The full announcement is below. (Do you think the Sir Clive Woodward who chairs the gala committee is related to Sir Tom? Nah, I don’t either.)

The photo here is one of 10 from Tom’s show at Jazz á Vienne in France last week. To see more, you can go to TJI’s flickr set, Sir Tom Jones at Festivals & Special Events.

Video: Here in the US, Howard Stern — the self-proclaimed “King of All Media” — is what was called a “shock jock,” a radio personality who did his thing each day with no holds barred. He said whatever came into his head and, clearly, his guests loved it because they continued to be guests. He also had a TV show on which Tom was a guest in 1994. Vince has provided video (25+ minutes) of that show and of Stern’s birthday show when Tom was on.

Before you look, please be aware that the posting of this material was done after discussing it with several people. In the end, as one ardent fan said, “Tell people there’s lots of personal stuff in the video and that they may find it offensive. If they think they will, they don’t have to watch.”

That’s very correct. But if you do decide to watch you can do so in the TJI.com Video Library. Enjoy!

To read the full announcement about the Olympics gala, with a quote from Tom, please click here to (more…)

Sorry the Question of the Month for July is late but, truthfully, I got distracted and forgot. At any rate, here’s one I hope will be provocative and lead to some lively discussion:

At times we’ve talked about what, if anything, an entertainer owes his or her fans. In the end, we concluded that a good performance is all that is owed. But some people emailed the moderator with further thoughts.

They noted that in today’s digital world fans are owed digital stuff. This means an info-packed website with news and, when applicable, new music.

For fans the payoff is up-to-date information.. Simple. But, for the entertainer, the payoff may be more. The payoff is, for certain, heightened interest in the entertainer, a sense on their part that they, as fans, are appreciated and, thus, a desire to spread the word to others.

So, the TJI.com Question Of The Month is:
As a fan, what would you like to see/do you believe, is necessary on Tom’s website? Or, does it already fulfill your fan “needs?”

Be sure to check TJI on Thursday, July 7, for some terrific, fun (but not for prudes) video and really good new photos!

First, apologies for not wishing TJI’s Canadian friends a Happy Canada Day on July 2. I, personally, should have remembered, as July 2 was a significant day in my life. But, sadly, I forgot all aboot it. So, better late than never, hope it was as grand as your nation deserves. And, of course, today is Independence Day here in the USA. Happy Fourth of July to all. And, may all of us — in the US, Canada or anywhere else — cherish and protect our freedom so that the concept will grow and expand throughout the world.

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DVR Alert!!! If you missed it, CBS Sunday Morning is rebroadcasting the interview they did with Tom (posted here) last October. Sometimes they add new footage, so you may want to check it out. I think it’s very nice of them to show it on my birthday (as I am sure that was the reason they’re doing it that day).

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Tom Jones — 1985 Publicity Photo

From 1985, here’s an article from the New York Daily News. If you were in AC on July 4, 1985, do you remember anything about the firecrackers? Let us know, please. And, one cannot help noting that Tom’s grandson Alexander clearly had good taste in music even at the age of 2:

Firecracker day for Tom Jones

by Tom Poster and Phil Roura

Welsh singer Tom Jones, who is proud to be British, was shooting off firecrackers on the boardwalk of Atlantic City over the holiday weekend before and after his performance at Resorts International. Why was a Britisher saluting the day of American independence from the crown?

“I think the Fourth of july is a wonderful celebration,” Jnes said. “You know, I’m a student of the American Revolution and read everything I can about it. I don’t understand fully why it ever came to happen, but I’m glad it did, because it came out right and, as we see now, it was the best thing for everyone. I know that King George III was not a very nice man, but to set the record straight, he was German. And George Washington caught him with his pants down!”

Jones did big bsiness over the holiday weekend, and several times a day e calls his grandson, Alexander, 2, at hom in California. “He calls me grandsha, which is Welsh for grandpa,”said the sexy grandfather. “And he can sing, too! He listens to music and then repeats the words. He will definitely be a singer when he grows up. I’m also teaching him soccer. When we’e at home, we all have dinner at my house every night he comes and tugs at my leg, saying ‘Grandsha, come play!’ and we go off to kick the soccer ball around our back yard.”

What is the favorite song of Tom Jones’ grandson? It’s Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A. Well, Alexander was born in the U.S.A.

If you’re planning to be in Atlantic City during July, try to catch Legends In Concert at Ballys. TJI’s friend (and TJ’s friend) Steve McCoy (photo left) will be there with his tribute to Tom and it is a good show. Lots of fun and tickets are most reasonable at $30. If you go, say hi to Steve after the show.

On Wednesday, June 29, Tom performed at the Jazzl á Vienne, France. A very nice French fan was considerate enough to send an email review. She wrote:

I’ve just come back from Tom’s first jazz festival in France (Vienne) and I will say only one word : Fan-tas-tic !!

Tom looked in a very good shape and his voice sounded the same as when he was 30 years old. He got the crowd crazy (the arena was full of people from all generations.)

My sister who is 40 and who had never seen him on stage, was totally mesmerized and now, she regrets not to have seen him before. I heard some of my neighbours in the crowd say the same.

The new version of Delilah was followed by a thunder of applause, we LOVED it. He talked and joked a lot and even if the majority of the audience didn’t understand a word of what he said, they appreciated it because Tom accompanied his words with a lot of funny expressions and gestures.

Well, Ellen I haven’t come back to earth yet, Tom is definitely a wonderful and unique entertainer. What a man and what a great professional!

I can’t wait for the next gig in Carcassonne (south of France) on the 24th of july.

You can see clips from Tom’s show in France in the TJI.com Video Library.