Tom Jones International

Please don’t forget the Swptember Question of the Month (below)!

It was a one-sentence review, but People Magazine gave Praise and Blame 3.5 stars this week. The only other album reviewed to do that well was God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise by Ray LaMontagne (whom I am going to see in concert tonight at one of the greatest venues anywhere).

Sir Tom Jones has added his name to the list of performers who will appear at Twickenham Stadium September 12 in a benefit for Help For Heroes, an organization that aids England’s service men and women.

Also at the event will be Robbie Williams and James Blunt, among many, many others.

Tickets range in price from £60 up to £155 depending upon location and amenities.The profits all go to the cause. Tickets are available here.

Please do not forget to answer the September Question of the Month below!

On September 15, Sir Tom will be performing Praise and Blame at Union Chapel in London.

This appears to be a rather singular venue with moderately priced entertainment of an unusual sort. For example, actor Tim Robbins is doing one of his few European gigs there with his band. Tom’s show there will be £30 + booking fee. Tickets are being sold through LiveNation.

It will be curious to see how the P&B-only set is received.

(Moderator’s Note: Several days ago I was invited by a public relations company in Las Vegas to interview a singer who is playing The Pearl, the outstanding venue at The Palms Hotel and Casino. I had heard this guys’ music when I was writing about Ethan Johns, who produced his first three records. I liked what I heard and was, thus, eager to do the interview. Maye you’ll like Ray LaMontagne’s music, too. Check out the interview in theHuffington Post.com)

Yesterday, August 30, BBC Radio Wales presenter Mal Pope hosted a two-hour tribute to Sir Tom Jones on the occasion of his 70th birthday. Maybe this was broadcast earlier — like, say, on June 7 — but I don’t think so.

Anyway, it is a lovely show with lots of tributes, a partial replay of Sir Tom’s Latitude Festival interview with Bethan Elfyn on BBC Radio Wales and some reminiscing by people who knew Tom when.

It is posted in two parts and you’ll find it in the TJI Video Library. (There’s a strange grinding noise at the beginning of the show. That’s the broadcast, not an error I made. And, there might be a break in the recording for news. Sorry, didn’t have a lot of time to edit.)

And! I awoke to an email from someone on the BBC Radio Wales Call-In Show asking if I was interested in participating in a discussion of the question: “Who looks better at 70…Cliff [Richard, — photo right — from his new calendar] or Tom?” Even if the guy who wrote knew I live in Las Vegas and there’s an eight-hour time difference I wouldn’t have been interested in participating. But, while they were able to find a fan of Cliff’s the best they could come up with for Tom is Gwen Russell, author of that awful, rumor-laden, gossip-heavy, full of old-news biography of Tom. She is the worst kind of celebrity leech and never talked to Tom for the book. Now, she’s acting as if she’s his official spokesperson. Gross.

Anyway, the show was silly and pointless. If you want to hear it, go here and forward to approximately 1:35.

Chart Update: Praise and Blame is #32 on the UK Top 100 album chart and #35 on the Scottish charts.

First, a note: Gail has written TJI saying that at the Friday, August 6 show at the MGM Grand a fan took photos of her and her mother with their British flags. With permission, they were on the stage after the show. She was hoping, since the photographer had asked her about TJI, that the pictures might have been sent to me. They haven’t. But, if you are the photographer, please email the photos using the “contact” link below right and I’ll pass them on.

So, for today we have about 12.5 minutes of a half-hour interview Sir Tom did on Jazz FM Radio in the UK with presenter Anthony Davis (with Tom at left) that was broadcast July 29. Oddly, Jazz FM is not an FM station and, also oddly, the entire interview was not posted. This is a jazz outlet, so there’s a bit of Satchmo’ and Sir Tom gives his definition of the term “jazz.”

And, after a couple of views and four requests, I’ve decided to post this season’s thus-far “wow” performance on the UK show X Factor. It’s a 50 year-old Irish grocery store checker named Mary Byrne singing a stunning rendition of I (Who Have Nothing). Check it out here. And look for a big smile from Simon Cowell. (The other judges are Louis Walsh, Cheryl Cole and, on this episode, seated between Walsh and Cole is guest judge Katy Perry. Producer and judge Simon Cowell is bringing the show to Fox in the USA next year. This episode was recorded in Dublin.

Personally, Tom’s version (especially the updated one he did on Mr Jones) is still my favorite but I think Byrne’s take beats Shirley Bassey’s by a mile.

As usual, if you cannot play it, drop me a line using the “Contact TJI” link at the bottom right and I’ll email it to you.

And the radio interview? Of course, you can listen to it in the TJI.com Video Library.

Finally, a bonus: Sunday night the Primetime Emmy Awards celebrating the best in primetime American television, were broadcast.

For the last several years the Emmy Awards have gotten very low ratings and, I’d guess, this was the producers’ attempt to recoup. You’ll especially enjoy this clip if you watch Glee and, since it is broadcast in so many countries worldwide, I figured there’s be a good chance you are familiar with it.

For an award show it was spectacular and it got started on a high note that was maintained throughout the entire three hours.

I loved this number, just smiled the entire time it was on and I thought, even though it’s not TJ-related, it’s worth posting. I think it’d be great if Sir Tom were to do a visit to Glee as Madonna, NPH, Kristen Chenoweth and lots of others have done.

You’ll recognize the evening’s host, Jimmy Fallon (it was on his show that Tom played with The Roots band), and lots of others, including many from the cast of Glee and cast members from 30 Rock (Tina Fey), Mad Men (John Hamm), Lost (Jorge Garcia) and others, including Tim Gunn from Project Runway,

I hope you enjoy this performance set to Bruce Springsteen singing the terrific, rousing Born To Run as much as I did.

According to tj.com and several news outlets, a “double A-side” release of Run On / Didn’t It Rain is set to come out in the UK on 20th September through Island Records and will be available as a limited 7″ single and digital download, which comes with the added bonus track of Lord Help. No word on any US release yet.

The site also said that Praise and Blame has reached gold status. In the UK, a record is certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) when it has shipped (not “sold”) 100,000 units; a platinum, 300,000 units. (In the US, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)-certified gold status means 500,000 shipped; platinum, 1,000,000 units shipped.

Mazel tov, Sir Tom!

You will absolutely want to read the review posted below! It says, at the top, “Jones is aging with Paul Newman’s elegance and grace. Amazing grace, as it happens; Jones’ new release, Praise & Blame, his latest in a catalog exceeding 60 studio, live and greatest hits albums, is a raw, raucous, Gospel-drenched, Soul-infused marvel.” And it gets better from there!

Tom Jones: Praise & Blame

By Brian Baker/CityBeat.com (Cincinnati, Ohio) / August 17, 2010

If there was any justice, the panties thrown at Tom Jones these days would be the size of parachutes, but the fact is that Jones, who turned 70 in June, has built an audience populated with the granddaughters of his original fans. He covered Prince’s Kiss with Art of Noise in 1988, and his 1999 album Reload was a set of hip cover duets with the likes of the Cardigans, Portishead and the Stereophonics. Jones is aging with Paul Newman’s elegance and grace. Amazing grace, as it happens; Jones’ new release, Praise & Blame, his latest in a catalog exceeding 60 studio, live and greatest hits albums, is a raw, raucous, Gospel-drenched, Soul-infused marvel.

Jones has long claimed Mahalia Jackson as an early influence and he proves it conclusively on Praise & Blame, a collection of traditional and contemporary songs concerning the search for salvation. Jones opens with a reflective acoustic take on Bob Dylan’s What Good Am I, his extraordinary voice exhibiting equal measures of restraint and power over the track’s tribal pulse, followed by Lord Help, an explosion of snarling Blues electricity. Jones goes pure Gospel on Did Trouble, swings with chapel-rattling force on Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s Strange Things Happen Every Day and tears into John Lee Hooker’s Burning Hell with a visceral glee, while his robust and defiant take on Ain’t No Grave stands in stark contrast to Johnny Cash’s end-of-life resignation.

Praise & Blame easily stands among Jones’ best work. If he and producer Ethan Johns translate this vibe into his next Pop album (Rick Rubin and T Bone Burnett must be kicking themselves that they didn’t pull this assignment), Tom Jones’ triumphant return to the top of the charts will be assured.

There were two good things to come out of that idiotic site host indulging in name-calling and unnecessary bitchiness yesterday: TJI had an uptick in visits (always welcome) and I remembered that I hadn’t posted some vid from last month’s Latitude Festival in the UK. I also forgot a slew of photos, screen shots, that are quite good. (And thanks to all of you who sent me such nice notes.)

So, two of those photos are posted here and the rest will be added to the appropriate TJI flickr set in the next few days (I’ll let you know).

Meanwhile, here’s almost 12 minutes of Tom singing at the Latitude Festival. The first few minutes are bits of Strange Things and Burning Hell. This is followed by the complete Nobody’s Fault But Mine and Didn’t It Rain. I included the first part because it gives an excellent idea of what the crowd was like that summer Sunday. The last two songs are very good and it’s especially fun to watch the musicians and singers with Tom. Of course, that’s Ethan Johns with the beard. (If you can ID any others, please email me.)

You can watch it in the TJI.com Video Library.

A year ago readers of this site met Portia, the fan from Indiana who asked Tom to sign her right shoulder which she proceeded to have tattooed as a permanent memento. Now, Portia (the dark-haired woman with another fan named Chris in the photo at left) certainly wasn’t the first to have Tom’s signature perma-inked onto her body.

In 2008 there was a rather obstreperous fan from Australia who, she explained, had flown to Las Vegas for the sole purpose of getting Tom Jones to put his John Hancock (no, she probably didn’t say “John Hancock” and, if you don’t know what that can you can google it in the assurance it is not dirty) on her ankle. He signed and that night she had it tattooed.

Chris wanted to do the same and came to Las Vegas with Tom’s logo dragon already in place on her right shoulder. He tried to add his signature during the show August 14 but the Sharpee wouldn’t cooperate. Chris, a patient sort, waited until she saw him in the corridor and, recognizing her as the woman with the unsigned dragon, he quickly signed it (photo, right). Chris went to a party and, shortly before the tattoo parlor closed for the evening(it was Vince Neil Ink on the Las Vegas Strip, owned by the former Mötley Crüe lead singer and Las Vegas resident ) had the tattoo finished.

Another woman I remember had a wrist tattoo of Tom’s signature and another, who wanted her tattoo out of sight, had him discreetly sign her thigh. (He did so in public and it was, as noted, discreet.)

Anyway, it’s all in good fun. And those who got tattooed in Las Vegas and went home to a significant other sporting the TJ tat, should hold fast to those significant others. They are very understanding.

For a terrific review (by a reporter who actually got to speak to Sir Tom) and an odd photo you may not have seen before, please click here to (more…)

MONDAY MORNING UPDATE: MORE CHART NEWS: In its fourth week on the UK chart, Praise and Blame is at #17, down from #7 last week. For what it’s worth, Eminem was finally knocked out of the #1 slot by — of all people — Iron Maiden.

WOW!! New chart, new category! Check out the cover at right of Cashbox Magazine — which TJI hadn’t seen in so long that it was barely remembered. It has a category called “Top 40 Beach Music Singles” and #16 — one of three marked as a “Hot Track” is Tom Jones singing — are you ready??? — If He Should Ever Leave You. How do you like that?! And, for the second week in a row, Cashbox Magazine’s “Top 30 Inspirational Albums” has Praise and Blame at #1, where it debuted last week. Way to go, Tom!!! (And thanks, Pam!)

On the Billboard Christian chart, Praise and Blame has fallen to #12.

(Too bad the album wasn’t on sale in the merch booth at MGM. People were looking for it and it surely would have sold lots.)

Editorial Comment: As the site moderator I’ve seen lots of discussion lately of Sir Tom’s new direction and that, in truth, is what a site like this is for. When something’s happening, this is a forum to express your thoughts. (Update 12:22 pm PDT: Please be aware that until a few minutes ago I didn’t know who posted the video discussed below. If I had, I would never have used it as a focal point for an editorial. But, if I take down the post, people will misinterpret that, too. So, I apologize to that individual.)

From reading so many of those thoughts, I get the sense that most of Tom’s fans approve of this and support him. Certainly his new material was very well-received from the vast majority of fans who saw him in Las Vegas. And, unlike those who saw him at various live performances and on TV in the UK recently, the Las Vegas audience is, more than anything, an audience of fans. Some go out of their way, traveling literally thousands of miles to see him. Others, unaware he is here but who are here on vacation or business, grab the unexpected opportunity to see him. He sold well and his show — his sound, the look of the show and the set list — was spectacularly received. No, he didn’t pick stuff up that was thrown on stage or converse with the audience the way he used to but, apparently, most people did get the memo and didn’t throw anything or try to talk. However, when fans wish him to succeed and who say they’re happy about his career direction, one must ask why one fan who seemed pleased with all this did what she did.

For the rest of this comment, please click here to (more…)

Please don’t forget to go to the post below and write your review for Tom in Las Vegas August 5-18.

The photo at left is from Denise who tells TJI, “I had the pleasure of meeting Tom Jones at the MGM pool on Aug. 15th. He was a true gentleman and very gracious.”

Next, the screen shot at right is in a youtube video that, if you are an American who reads the news or watches TV news, you’ve surely heard about. It was posted in March by a Republican Party partisan to trash the women who are among the nation’s leaders (Speaker of the House, Secretary of State, First Lady) and who happen to be in the other political party, Democrats.

For some odd reason, this just made the news. Sadly, it uses Tom’s recording of She’s A Lady to make the point and, to trash the leaders it uses Who Let The Dogs Out? (If you feel compelled to comment on this, please keep it non-partisan or your comment will be deleted.)

In other silly TJ news, the big rumor (or, rumoUr) around the Big Brother UK version, is that Tom Jones is supporting one of the contestants. What do you think — true or trash?

Finally, as you may have read, Wyclef Jean — he of Mr Jones — has declared his candidacy for the office of President in Haiti. His reasons for running seem solid. Should be interesting.

Tonight was a good show, nothing much changed but, as he entered the restaurant for his usual late supper, Tom finished something he was unable to do during the show when the Sharpee went dry — he signed the dragon on Chris’ back and at 12:30 a.m. she had the dragon and signature tattooed….More in a day or so. Then, as he left the restaurant, he was given a bottle — really, a Mason jar — filled with that special brew, Kentucky moonshine (“white lightening”). He seemed delighted to receive it. The fan who gave it to him is someone you know already. More about that, too, in days to come. I got to go to an after-premiere party at Lagasse Stadium, Emeril’s sports book at the Palazzo. The film was Takers, starring Matt Dillon, Hayden Christensen, Chris Brown, TI, Michael Ealy, Idris Elba, Steve Harris, Paul Walker and Marianne Jean-Baptiste. Film reviewers weren’t invited, so I’ll have to wait for the movie to open, but the party was nice, the food was great, we met TI and I had the fun of showing two TJ fans from the midwest a bit o’ Las Vegas nightlife. I appreciate them coming to the party with me.

News from Sunday, August 15: In this, it’s third week on the UK music chart, Praise and Blame has fallen two notches to #7.

---

Praise and Blame has fallen in the Billboard charts this week. It is #134 in the Top 200 (down from #79); #9 on the Christian chart (down from #4) and #11 on the European chart (#4 last week). It is certainly to be hoped that US promotion of this quintessentially American music will help it rise in the charts to get the recognition it deserves. Word is that the US promotion should begin next month, if not before. (BTW, is this Sir Tom’s first showing on the Christian chart?) Check back later Sunday for UK chart showing.

---

Saw Tom Friday night and, as usual, it was a good show. He eliminated Burning Hell and Too Many Lovers (Just judging from random comments by fans, if you polled the audience, Too Many Lovers would be eliminated permanently.)

Tonight, instead of Tom Jones, Mary — who finally agreed to see something other than a TJ show a time or two here in Las Vegas — and I went to the celebration that passes for an Al Green show. He was at the Hilton, in the same theater where Elvis played back in the day. Green sang all of his hits, as well as some Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and lots of others. We had a great time. (Green, the Reverend, confided in the audience that he’d agreed to eliminate the statement that “gamblers don’t go to heaven.” At least, he said in Las Vegas.

If you have an opportunity, check him out. You can see some of Tom’s style in Green’s because, even though Green started performing after Tom did, their musical roots are closely intertwined.