Tom Jones International

If you haven’t answered, please don’t forget the TJI Question of the Month in the post below. Thanks to those who have already answered. We will have a good video, I bet.

This is a photo from a collection calling itself OffiCIAL Tom Jones Flickr Group.

Does this photo look “official” to you? Or does it look….um, stupid? Or juvenile? Or insulting and obvious ? Whatever, this crap has been posted for almost four years and, despite the fact that Tom’s Management is aware of this — has the link — it still sits on flickr, calling itself “official” and no one cares.

Why does it bother me? Well, I’ll tell you — yes, Tom Jones is thought of by many people as sexy. that’s been his trademark and he’s had a lot of fun with it. Terrific.

To me, the very bad, very amateur collection of photos posted there don’t deserve the “official” tag. (Although, in fairness, I admit I did find a very good one of Herman Matthews and sent him a copy.) I, for one, don’t want that designation and never have. But the fact that they are allowed to get away with calling themselves official — and you know a lot of the members from comments elsewhere (for some reason they still list one dear friend who passed away 11 months ago) means someone is asleep at the wheel.

Even Management might find it appropriate to step in an not allow these idiots to represent them by saying they, not Management, are official.

Tom Jones deserves better, doesn’t he?

Yeah, it is a graphic, unsophisticated and unsubtle depiction of Sexbomb, but one wonders who thinks this is funny and who believes that it deserves the title “official.”

The video I posted was done in four parts by a fan in Israel named David. He’s posted lots of Tom Jones stuff but these, fr a change, don’t have him talking about the music. He clearly put a lot of care and time into his project and it does total more than one hour of music video. You can check it out in the TJI.com Video Library.

On Saturday night I went with friends to see Engelbert in Primm, about 40 minutes west of Las Vegas.

There, like at any TJ show, I met fans from around the world, people who have been following his series of one-nighters.

After the show we were welcomed backstage. If the guy with Enge in the photo at right looks familiar — doesn’t he? — it’s because he’s a Tom Jones tribute artist. His name is Harmik and people actually thought he was Tom (clearly they haven’t seen Sir Tom in several years).

We were fortunate to be given — without asking — front row seats. When the fan chosen from the audience was being escorted by security up onto the stage so Enge could sing to her, she passed Harmik’s seat, looked at him and shouted, “I love you, Tom!!” It was funny.

Backstage after the show was, as always, a very cordial affair, with good food, good drink and good company. One of Enge’s sons looked at Harmik, extended his hand and said in all seriousness, “It’s good to see you, Mr. Woodward.”

You may recognize Harmik because you’ve seen his show. You may also recognize him from a video he did with the real TJ. That was the first time he’d actually met Tom and he was ecstatic. Check him out in the video of Tom Jones International. (Harmik’s the guy wearing the same suit as Tom who’s not Tom Jones.)

If you missed the first reports from the recording of The Voice, check the post below.

Kat, a very devoted TJ fan,spent a great deal of time putting together a Chinese horoscope for Sir Tom Jones, born in the year that is just beginning — the Year of the Dragon. Kat also created the wonderful symbolic art at the top of the post. With many thanks to her, TJI invites you all to read:

SIR TOM JONES
Born 7th JUNE 1940
The year of THE DRAGON
Chinese name; L’ong.

Ranking order: Fifth; Season & principal month — Spring, April.
Hours ruled; 7am to 9 am 9am.
Direction: East/southeast
Corresponds with western sign: Aries
Element: Wood.
Yin/Yang; Yang (positive)

Dragon Poem:
I am unquenchable fire,
The center of all energy
The stout heroic heart
I am truth and light
I hold power and glory in my sway
My presence disperses dark clouds
I have been chosen to tame the fates.
I AM THE DRAGON

Dragons have the following characteristics;
They are excitable and possess strength; success; enthusiasm; pluck; good health; sentimentality,

Dragon’s sins may include; rigidity; mistrust; infatuation; volubility; dissatisfaction; stubbornness.

According to legend many years ago Buddha summoned all the animals in the kingdom to his side. Only twelve showed up. The Dragon was the Fifth one to appear to Buddha and, to compensate the dozen animals that answered Buddha’s request, they were each awarded a year in the Chinese calendar, and the years were assigned in the order that the animal appeared to Buddha.

The first was the Rat, followed by the Ox, Tiger, Cat, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and finally the Pig.

For the people of China the Dragon is a national emblem, he symbolizes the emperor or the male, a symbol of power and strength. Those born in the year of the Dragon are said to wear the Horns of Destiny.

The Dragon is the splendid and magnificent leader of the carnival who brings with him four great blessings, long life; virtue; harmony and wealth.

For the rest of the Dragon horoscope, to learn of other famous people born under the sign of the dragon and to discover the relationship between the Dragon and Gemini, please click here to (more…)

Blacked Eyed VIPs
The Voice judges form supergroup

The Sun |Exclusive | By LAURA CAROE | Published: 22nd January 00:21

BBC bosses have created a pop supergroup with the coaches on new talent show The Voice.

Veteran crooner Tom Jones, US rapper Will.i.am, singer-songwriter Jessie J and heart-throb Danny O’Donoghue join forces to sing the Black Eyed Peas hit I’ve Gotta Feeling on the show.

Set to rival The X Factor, filming has already begun and it has been leaving studio audiences jumping out of their seats.

The foursome wowed hundreds of onlookers as they belted out their own version of the song in an intimate introduction to the talent contest at the BBC TV Centre in London on Thursday.

Do It Like A Dude singer Jessie — dressed in a print catsuit — got up close and personal with legend Tom as they twirled across the stage.

Meanwhile, Dubliner Danny, from The Script, played the piano as Black Eyed Peas star Will.i.am wowed the crowd with his energetic performance.

An onlooker said: “It was incredible to see such big names in music perform together. Hopefully this has set the bar for the rest of the show.

“Everyone was jumping out of their seats and dancing along. It was really exciting. The whole concept seems to be very different from The X Factor, which will be very refreshing.”

The Voice — hosted by Reggie Yates and Holly Willoughby — is a singing contest with a difference — wannabes are judged solely on their voice and not their looks.

The new talent competition will see the coaches compete against each other to pick their teams of ten acts.

The mentors each sit in a huge red chair with their backs to the stage.

When a voice blows one of them away, they can choose the act by pressing a button which spins the chair around — giving the singer a stab at stardom. If more than one judge chooses a performer, then it is up to the contestant to choose who they want as their coach.

Intense one-on-one sessions will follow as the stars share the secrets of their success before the acts go head-to-head.

Two singers from each team are then pitted against each other and after singing the same song, one is eliminated.

Remaining contestants will compete in a series of live broadcasts with the TV audience helping the mentors to decide who will proceed. It will see one singer rise from obscurity to hit the big time by landing a recording contract.

Pop Idol winner Will Young was left fuming, having been lined up as a coach then dropped at the 11th hour.

The show is expected to air on BBC1 in March.

We all know that one of the songs Tom Jones is most famous for recording is Delilah, by Les Reed (music) and Barry Mason (lyrics). But Tom was not the first to record the number. That distinction goes to P.J. Proby, (photos above right) a Texan who made a name as a singer in the UK. He also made a name as a singer whose pants always ripped onstage. The press cast the two as rivals but a few books have said that wasn’t really true. When Proby recorded Delilah and had to choose songs for a single, he chose another, so Reed brought the tune to Tom and his manager, Gordon Mills. They liked it and recorded it.

Ironically (“ironic” in retrospect, now that Tom has recorded the vinyl to be released March 7), composer Barry Mason told the International Songwriters Association’s Songwriter magazine that, “For Delilah, I was inspired by Jezebel, the old Frankie Laine hit. I used to love ‘story songs’ when I was a kid. I did a thing called Drive Safely Darlin.”

Delilah was recorded on December 20, 1967 and released as a single with the B-side being Smile written by Gordon Mills, not the standard we all know composed by Charlie Chaplin. It entered the UK chart on February 23, 1968, staying on the chart for 17 weeks and peaking at #2. Song entered the US chart on March 16, 1968, peaked at #15 and was on the chart for 15 weeks.

In other countries, it did very well: German, Swiss and Irish Singles Charts it reached #1. It got to #2 in Norway, #3 in Austria and #5 in Canada.

Delilah was also recorded and/or performed by Connie Francis (1969); Engelbert (1971); Jerry Lee Lewis (1971); Jay Black and the Americans (1981); The Sensational Alex Harvey Band (charted in 1975); the Finnish group, the Leningrad Cowboys who performed it with the Russian Army Choir (1995); Luciano Pavarotti sang the song with at his annual benefit in 2001; Ray Conniff (! yes, it surprised me, too) in 2001; Christopher Walken — who began his career as a dancer — danced to it in the 2003 Jim Jarmusch indy movie Coffee and Cigarettes with Susan Saranodon; a version by the Platters was released in 2008. To celebrate the release of his 70th birthday album, P.J. Proby performed the song. And, of course, Delilah is a regular part of just about any tom Jones show. In the summer of 2009 sang the song at Glastonbury.

Here are some of the versions noted above and if you check the link at the end of the post, you’ll find the rest, including a TJ rendition.

Click here to listen to P.J. Proby’s original Delilah.

Here’s Connie Francis singing Delilah in 1969.

This is Elvis rehearsing Delilah.

Now, Engelbert Sings Delilah in Las Vegas in 1971.

Even Jerry Lee Lewis had a go at Delilah on his TV show in 1971.

Here’s Delilah as elevator music by Ray Conniff in 2002.

The Platters released Delilah on a 2009 album.

You can watch more Delilah by Jay and the Americans (first video), The Sensational Alex Harvey Band (1975, the second video); The Russian Army Choir with the Finnish group, the Leningrad Cowboys in the third video; Tom and Luciano Pavarotti in a 2001 performance at Pavarotti’s annual fundraiser in Modena, Italy (fourth video); Christopher Walken dancing to Delilah in 2004 in the Jim Jarmusch film Coffee and Cigarettes in the next video.

In the last two videos the singers are each getting up there. First is what looks like a cellphone video of P.J. Proby singing the song at the celebration marking the release of his 70th birthday album in 2008. Last — worth waiting for — is Tom at Glastonbury in 2010.

You can see all of this — and I hope you like it because it honestly took hours to organize — in the TJI.com Video Library.

And, happy birthday Carole. May all your pizzas be appropriately celebratory!

Because it’s been an extraordinarily busy several days, I apologize for not updating TJI.com. But, check back Tuesday for a veritable orgy of Delilah.

When Tom’s recordings with Jack White were announced, some people asked who he is. I tried to answer as best I could, but now I can show you who Jack White is!

The video here is from a TV show that I watch (actually, DVR) faithfully, along with Pawn Stars on the History Channel Monday nights. It is called American Pickers and it follows two guys — Frank (with the beard) and Mike — as they wander the nation from their home base in Iowa searching for lost treasures in barns, garages and homes.

In this episode, they’ve opened a store, their second, in Nashville and, for that, they’ve picked a taxidermist’s collection, spending a bundle on an elephant’s head (fake tusks). They get to Nashville and Danielle, their assistant, tells them she’s had the elephant sent to a potential customer, Jack White and hasn’t given him a price. You can watch the video here. (Note, too, that at the beginning, in Third Man’s photo studio they encounter a redhead who they learn is named Tempest Storm. She’s a stripper born Leap Year day, 1928 (!). She lives in Las Vegas and I’ve seen her at several events. She’s amazing!)

Now for some Tom! In 1997, Mark and Brian, DJs at KLOS, 95.5 in Los Angeles, had Tom as a guest on their radio show.

On Wednesday night, driving home from the Bellagio, I set my iPhone music on “shuffle” and this song came up. I knew I’d heard it before but couldn’t remember where. So, thanks to Patti, Tom and Lois for refreshing my memory. It’s an hilarious three minutes-sixteen seconds.

It’s well worth taking the time to listen to Tom Jones when he sang Help Yourself with Mark and Brian playing backup horns. Have fun!

Clearly, the server hosting TJI.com was having lots of problems. Sorry for the inconvenience.

TOM’S OFFICIAL SITE FINALLY UPDATED/POSTING NEWS ABOUT THE JACK WHITE-PRODUCED RECORDINGS: Tom’s official site yesterday posted “news” about the Jack White “side project” (their words, not mine). They’ve still not commented on the lack of 2011 Las Vegas dates. Their announcement isn’t exactly kind to White and Mojo. (And what, pray tell, is the “bonkers-epic” approach to music ascribed to White? And if Tom loved the recording experience, why are they so rude? His Management is very perturbed that:

“As you all know, Jack White unexpectedly let the cat out of the bag regarding his collaboration with Tom in a yet-to-be-published article in Mojo Magazine. This was unintentional, as the interview would have been published after the announcement of the project, so talking about it would have made sense. But someone at MOJO decided, without any consideration to the parties involved, that this was an interesting tidbit of info to get out to the press. This caught us all unawares, and consequently the announcemen’t [sic] was a bit slap-dash.

“Here’s the story: Jack and Tom had been chasing each other for a session for a few years. They admired each others work and knew instinctively that a collaboration would be great fun and had the possibility of turning into something special. Many dates to get together were put forward, but between the two busy diaries, none ever seemed to work. Then last year Tom was in Nashville, booked to play at the Ryman, and Jack just happened to be home at the time. A session was hastily put together with Jack and his band, Tom hopped over to Jack’s place (he has an amazing studio in the grounds of his house) and in about 3 hours, they had the two tracks. Tom loved the experience, loved Jack and the way he worked, and we’ve heard the feeling was mutual.

“The two tracks, Jezebel and Evil are sensational – Jack’s bonkers-epic approach is in full flight, the band plays out of it’s skin, and Tom shows how he does it, nails it, and why no-one else can do it like he can. The release is on Jack’s label Third Man Records, which is a dead-cool little business that specialises in vinyl.

The added that this is a “side project” (which TJI knew was done when Tom was in Nashville in April) and that his follow-up to Praise and Blame>, another work produced by Ethan Johns, will be out in the summer when — I assume — Tom will tour again as his TV stuff will be complete by then.

If you missed the post below, be sure to check it out to read the article about Tom from Wales On Sunday and for info on tickets to see The Voice.

From the Third Man Records website:

January 6, 2012 WHAT’S NEW PUSSYCAT?

Third Man Records is proud to announce the most virile entry in the history of its Blue Series singles: The man, the legend himself Mr. Tom Jones laying his unmistakable voice over Howlin’ Wolf’s Evil and the Frankie Lane classic Jezebel (as covered over the years by the likes of Edith Piaf and Anna Calvi). Both tracks were produced by Jack White at Third Man studios and will be available on 7” and iTunes March 5th.

Third Man Records was originally founded by Jack White in Detroit, MI in 2001. In March of 2009 a physical location was established in Nashville, TN. Third Man Records in its current state contains a record store, record label offices, photo studio, dark room and live venue with analog recording booth.

Almost all of our records are recorded, printed and pressed in Nashville, TN and produced by Jack White. In this fashion TMR strives to bring a spontaneous and tangible aesthetic back into the record business.

UPDATE: Early reports said that the version of Jezebel is the one written by Wyclef Jean, Jerry Duplessis and Tom for the Wyclef collaboration, Mr. Jones. It is not.

According to Third Man Records, Tom will be singing the Wayne Shanklin-composed Jezebel as recorded by Jezebel as recorded by Frankie Laine. It won’t be an exact duplicate, as it’ll be bluesy and a lot funkier. I like it much better than his other song titled Jezebel. Click here to listen to Tom sing Jezebel from the Mr. Jones CD.

According to Third Man Records, the WORLDWIDE RELEASE DATE FOR BOTH THE VINYL AND DIGITAL VERSIONS OF THE RECORDING IS TUESDAY, MARCH 6. It’ll be available wherever records are sold and on any iTunes in the world. Links will be posted on TJI.

Finally, I like the picture above, but wonder if I am the only one who finds the angle or the lens used on the photo a bit odd? When I look at it, Tom’s face looks extraordinarily long and lean. Or, am I wrong?

I hope you all had a very nice new year holiday and that 2012 is good to all of us. Please take a moment to answer the Question of the Month in the post below.

The only real TJ news (if you can call it that) is that Tom drank Brains beer, his favorite manufactured in Wales, when he was in Russia, as the company is starting to export the product. So, they bragged about Tom having a pint. No photo, though.

Comment From A Singer-Songwriter:
On December 18 I posted a fun song called Living Next Door To Tom Jones and Ceri Haggett, the singer-songwriter, to whom I wrote at the time, just responded. He read the (mostly negative) comments and wrote:
Thank you for taking the time and trouble to listen to my little ditty and to join this thread…comments good and bad…ha!..the song is just a bit of fun, not intended to ridicule tom at all….he is indeed a great man with whom i actually sang with once…….he was on the radio and i was on the toilet!…..peace!

Some Comments on Comments:
The December 29th post, A Record-Setting Run In Las Vegas — 42 Consecutive Years — Is Over…And That’s Very Sad elicited 40 comments. That is, for this site and the (sadly) ever-more limited universe it draws, pretty good. So I checked back to see what other posts drew a lot of comments. I found two:

On November 28, 2009, a post entitled, It’s A Fact — The Tom Jones US Band ill Not Be Back drew 38 comments.

But the largest response — 95 comments — was for the on January 16, 2009 — Tom Opens In Las Vegas: Ladies And Gentlemen, THIS Is Tom Jones (Au Naturel!)

The photo here is from that post, the first ever photo of Tom with gray (or, if you’re a Brit, “grEy”) hair. I took it the night he opened and a friend in New York published it on his website. As I’d told him to expect, he got calls for the picture from the BBC and MediaWales. It was sold to them (I never saw any money:)) and it made big news in the UK.

Anyway, that post drew 95(!) comments. Looking back, they’re interesting to read.

So, here’s the question: It’s been three years since Tom went gray, or as he referred to the change, “au natural.” How do you feel about it now? If you commented on the original post, have you changed your mind? And, if you were there that evening, do you recall your first reaction?

Hope you all had a great weekend. If you missed the posts December 23 and 25, please take some time to check them out. Good music and good memories in each.

Rumor Or Reality? Last year, when Tom played at the Newmarket Racecourse summer concert series, his gig was sold out in June.

In an October 9 post, TJI wrote: “In October, 2011, the racecourse announced, “THE visit of Welsh crooner Tom Jones to Newmarket’s racecourse in August was the course’s most profitable ‘racing plus music’ night in its 25 years of hosting them.

The news was revealed by the course owner, The Jockey Club, which also announced that it had seen a record total attendance to its programme of racing plus music events in 2011 across its courses nationwide.

“The fixtures, which saw competitive racing followed by performances from a music act such as Sir Tom Jones, Scissor Sisters and Blondie, welcomed 302,032 people in 2011. This compares with 297,750 attendees in 2010.

“Paul Fisher, group managing director of Jockey Club Racecourses, said: ‘Our 2011 music programme has generated a seven-figure return on our investment, which we are directing straight into our sport, in line with The Jockey Club’s mission to act for the good of British horseracing.

“’Despite a very tough marketplace for music festivals and events, this was our third most profitable year ever from racing plus music fixtures.

“Sir Tom Jones, who joined other top acts to celebrate Newmarket Nights’ 25th anniversary, attracted a crowd of 21,980 – the course’s most profitable music night ever.”

As for the “Rumor Or Reality” part, TJI has learned from someone in Suffolk — not Suffolk County, Long Island (where I lived) or Suffolk County, Massachusetts, but the Suffolk County in England where the racecourse is located — that Newmarket Racecourse is negotiating to again offer Sir Tom in a racing and music event.

The gig will happen, TJI is told, “if the price is right.”

Let’s hope for more news soon — and maybe some news about North American gigs? The Hollywood Theatre at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas is free from January 31 through February 6 and, again, after March 4.

---

December 28 is the birthday of someone many of us know and of whom we are very fond — the world’s best drummer, Herman Matthews!

If you’re in the Los Angeles area, you can celebrate with him at:
Cafe Cordiale • 14015 Ventura Blvd • Sherman Oaks, CA 91423-3511 (818) 789-1985 • Live music starts at 9:00pm
On December 28, Herman will be playing with the band, Babylon Social Club that night and, the following night, he’ll be there playing with Never Not Broken. Same time, same place, same great drummer!

In 1969 and 1970, This Is Tom Jones happened to be broadcast on December 25. Naturally, Tom did Christmas material. The first year, among other things, Tom and the Treorchy Male Choir performed A Child’s Christmas In Wales, the by immortal Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas. In 1970, the Choir was back, along with Ella Fitzgerald and, in a departure from Tom’s usual variety material, he hosted ballet dancer Rudolph Nureyev and prima ballerina Merle Park, dancing the pas-de-deux from The Nutcracker Suite, an annual Christmas tradition in much of the world. (I saw Nureyev and Park dance — other ballets — and each is wonderful.)

You can watch a bit more than 40 minutes of Tom Jones holiday video (in two parts) in the TJI.com Video Library.

(And, if you have the free app, RealPlayer downloader you can download it. Go to the Real Player website.)