Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas Jones Woodward OBE[1][2][3] (born 7 June 1940) is a Welsh singer. His career began with a string of top 10 hits in the 1960s and he has since toured regularly, with appearances in Las Vegas from 1967 to 2011. His voice has been described by AllMusic as a "full-throated, robust baritone".[4]
For other people named Tom Jones, see Tom Jones (disambiguation).
Jones's performing range has included pop, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, soul, and gospel. In 2008, the New York Times called him a "musical shapeshifter [who could] slide from soulful rasp to pop croon, with a voice as husky as it was pretty".[5] He has sold over 100 million records, with 36 Top 40 hits in the UK and 19 in the US, including "It's Not Unusual", "What's New Pussycat?", the theme song for the James Bond film Thunderball (1965), "Green, Green Grass of Home", "Delilah", "She's a Lady", "Sex Bomb", and a cover of Prince's "Kiss".[6]
Jones has also occasionally dabbled in acting, first making his debut in the lead role of the television film Pleasure Cove (1979). He also appeared as himself in Tim Burton's film Mars Attacks! (1996).[7][8] In 1970, he received a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy nomination for hosting the television series This Is Tom Jones. In 2012, he played his first dramatic acting role in an episode of Playhouse Presents.[9] He received a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1966, an MTV Video Music Award in 1989, and two Brit Awards: Best British Male in 2000 and Outstanding Contribution to Music in 2003. He received an OBE in 1998 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2006 for services to music. He experienced a resurgence in popularity in the 2010s due to his role as a coach on the talent show The Voice UK (2012–2015, 2017–present).
Early life
Thomas John Woodward[10] was born at 57 Kingsland Terrace in Treforest in Wales on 7 June 1940,[11][12][13][14][15] the son of Freda Jones (1914–2003) and coal miner Thomas Woodward (1910–1981).[10] He is primarily of English descent; his maternal grandfather was Welsh, his maternal grandmother was born in Wales to English parents from Somerset and Wiltshire, his English paternal grandfather was from Gloucestershire, and his English paternal grandmother was from Wiltshire.[16] He attended Wood Road Infants School, Wood Road Junior School, and Pontypridd Central Secondary Modern School.[17] He began singing at an early age; he would regularly sing at family gatherings, weddings, and in his school choir. He did not like school or sports, but gained confidence through his singing talent.[18] At the age of 12, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis. Many years later, he said, "I spent two years in bed recovering. It was the worst time of my life." During this time, he could do little else but listen to music and draw.[10]: 9–10
Career
Rise to fame
Jones's voice has been described as a "full-throated, robust baritone".[4] According to Jones himself, his young voice was a tenor voice. He said: "What you lose on the top end, you gain on the bottom end. I used to be able to hit a top C when I was young now it's a B flat."[19] He became the frontman in 1963 for Tommy Scott and the Senators, a Welsh beat group. They soon gained a local following and reputation in South Wales. In 1964, the group recorded several solo tracks with producer Joe Meek, who took them to various record labels, but they had little success. Later that year, Decca producer Peter Sullivan saw Tommy Scott and the Senators performing in a club and directed them to manager Phil Solomon, but the partnership was short-lived.
The group continued playing gigs around South Wales. Gordon Mills met Jones, became his manager, and introduced him to London, where Mills worked in music.[20] Mills renamed him "Tom Jones", to exploit the popularity of the Academy Award-winning 1963 film.[21]
Eventually, Mills got Jones a recording contract with Decca. His first single, "Chills and Fever", was released in late 1964. It did not chart, but the follow-up, "It's Not Unusual", became an international hit after offshore pirate radio station Radio Caroline promoted it. The following year was the most prominent of Jones's career, making him one of the most popular vocalists of the British Invasion. In early 1965, "It's Not Unusual" reached No. 1 in the United Kingdom and the top ten in the United States. During 1965, Mills secured a number of film themes for Jones to record, including the James Bond film Thunderball,[22] and What's New Pussycat? (written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David).[22][23] Jones was sceptical about the latter song when first approached about it. He said when it was offered to him, he felt it was "sort of a backhanded compliment: 'I've got to have you, but this is the song.'"[23] Jones said it took convincing from Bacharach to perform "What's New Pussycat?":
Personal life
Jones was married to his high school girlfriend, Melinda Rose "Linda" Trenchard, from 2 March 1957 until her death from cancer on 10 April 2016.[110] They were married at the age of 16 when she became pregnant; their son, Mark, was born shortly after the wedding.[111] To support his young family, Jones worked in construction and at a glove factory before finding success as a singer.[112][113] He stayed married to Trenchard despite his many well-publicised infidelities.[114] After his wife's death, Jones sold the family's Los Angeles mansion and its contents (apart from treasured photos) and moved into an apartment in London, which was his wife's dying wish.[115]
Jones has stated that he had sex with up to 250 groupies a year at his peak of fame.[8] He had affairs with famous American women such as singer Mary Wilson, presenter Charlotte Laws,[116] and former Miss World Marjorie Wallace.[117] Actress Cassandra Peterson (better known as her character Elvira, Mistress of the Dark) revealed in 2008 that she lost her virginity to Jones, calling the experience "painful and horrible" and stating that she required stitches afterwards.[118] One of his affairs resulted in a son. While on tour in the U.S. in October 1987, he had a brief relationship with model Katherine Berkery, who later discovered she was pregnant. After a legal battle that included DNA testing, a U.S. court ruled in 1989 that Jones was the boy's father. He denied the court's findings until 2008, when he admitted they were true but expressed no interest in meeting his son, singer Jonathan Berkery.[119]
Following the UK's 1974 election of a Labour government, Jones became a tax exile to avoid a 98% income tax.[10] In 1976, he purchased the mansion at 363 Copa De Oro Road in the East Gate Bel Air area of Los Angeles from Dean Martin for $500,000.[120] He sold it to Nicolas Cage in 1998 for a reported $6.4 million.[50][121]
Jones met his idol Elvis Presley in 1965 at the Paramount film stage, when Elvis was filming Paradise, Hawaiian Style.[122][22] They became good friends, spending more time together in Las Vegas singing and carousing until the early hours at Presley's private suite. The friendship endured until Presley's death in 1977.[22] One year after the death of Jones' wife, rumours began that he had started dating Presley's wife Priscilla. In 2021, he said they had known each other since the 1960s and simply enjoyed spending time together.[123] People had thought they were dating because they had been seen together dining and at Jeff Franklin's house.[124]
In 2015, Jones' autobiography Over the Top and Back was published by Michael Joseph.[125] Reviewing the book in the Daily Express, Clair Woodward said, "In the tradition of so many autobiographies these days, Tom Jones's doesn't tell you what you really want to hear. [...] What you are left with is a riotously enjoyable story of Jones 'The Voice' which nicely doubles as the story of British pop and light entertainment from the Sixties onwards."[126] In 2021, Jones revealed that he uses inversion therapy to stay in good health.[127]
Artistry and influence
Jones' singing style developed out of the sound of American soul music. His early influences included blues, R&B, and rock and roll singers such as Little Richard, Solomon Burke, Jackie Wilson, Brook Benton, Elvis Presley (his idol and later close friend), and Jerry Lee Lewis.[122]
Space and Cerys Matthews released "The Ballad of Tom Jones", a song about a fighting couple who are calmed down by listening to Jones's music on the radio. The song reached No. 4 in the UK in 1998.[128]
A musical, Tom: A Story of Tom Jones, based on his life and recordings, produced by Theatr na nÓg, opened at the Wales Millennium Centre in March 2016.[129] Another jukebox musical, What's New Pussycat? based on Henry Fielding's 1749 novel The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (set in the 1960s) which uses Jones' music opened at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre in October 2021 to critical acclaim. It is written by Joe DiPietro, directed by Luke Sheppard, and choreographed by Arlene Phillips.[130]
Similar to Presley with his impersonators, Jones has his own imitators around the world.[131][132][133]
In the 2006 film Flushed Away, the main character, Roddy, is mistaken for Jones by another character while Roddy performs "She's a Lady". Jones' song, "What's New Pussycat?", is played during the ending credits.
In the video game Team Fortress 2, the Scout character is a collector of Tom Jones merchandise, and Jones is depicted being murdered by the Soldier character in the tie-in comics. The Spy character later uses his shape-shifting ability to convince the Scout that Jones is his father. Jones is also depicted using the phrase "What's new pussycat?" several times.[134]
Compositions
Jones wrote or co-wrote the following songs: "And I Tell the Sea",[135] "Looking Out My Window",[136] "Feel the Rain" from the 2002 Mr. Jones album,[137] "Jezebel",[137] "The Letter",[137] "Younger Days",[137] "Tom Jones International",[137] "Holiday",[137] "The Road",[138] "24 Hours",[139] "Seasons",[139] "We Got Love",[139] "Seen That Face",[139] "Give a Little Love",[139] "If He Should Ever Leave You",[139] "Whatever it Takes",[137] and "Traveling Shoes" from the 2012 album Spirit in the Room.[140]