Watch Tom's Performance of "It's Not Unusual" at T In The Park

Remember to Tune into BBC Radio 2 Tomorrow Morning and BBC 1 Tomorrow Evening

Just to remind you, Tom will be co-hosting the Chris Evans breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2 tomorrow morning from 8am. If you are able to tune in, please do as it will be a fantastic show.

Also, later that evening Tom will be live on The One Show on BBC 1 at 7pm.

What a great day!

Surprise Guest on American Idol Tonight... Can You Guess Who It Is?!

The list of performers of tonight's (Wednesday) American Idol finale has been leaked, and it includes some very big names. We at TomJones.com have been desperate to let all the fans know that Tom will be performing tonight, but went with the shows protocol.

However, now that it has been leaked we are thrilled to announce Tom as one of the special guests on tonight's live final!

Gladys Knight, Lil’ Jon, Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood are also on the schedule; along with Lady Gaga, Bono and The Edge, and Jack Black, who have been rumored all week.

The two-hour season finale of American Idol starts tonight at 8 p.m. EST on FOX.

To All The Guitar Geeks of the World, Check This Out

A Tom Jones gospel album? The image that first comes to mind is probably something like Elvis’ How Great Thou Art – big production, choirs – and Jones certainly has the lungs to deliver that in spades. But his son/manager, Mark Woodward, obviously had a different idea when he called Ethan Johns to produce. The 32-year-old son of famed Glyn Johns (and nephew of Glyn’s brother, Andy), Johns adds U2, Emmylou Harris, Joe Cocker, John Hiatt, CSN, Ryan Adams, Glen Phillips, Counting Crows, the Jayhawks, Ray LaMontagne, Kings Of Leon, Crowded House, and others to the family’s who’s-who resume of credits. But whereas Glyn and Andy are producer/ engineers, Ethan handles those roles in addition to playing guitar, keyboards, drums, bass, mellotron, steel, banjo, Omnichord – just about anything except fiddle.

Anyone who saw director Mike Figgis’ “Red, White & Blues” chapter of Martin Scorsese’s PBS blues series likely had their eyes and ears opened if they thought Jones’ range ended with “What’s New Pussycat?” – as he displayed ample familiarity and ability belting out Howlin’ Wolf and Ray Charles tunes.

Here, Johns takes the Welsh singer back to the basics – not unlike Ry Cooder’s production on Mavis Staples’ We’ll Never Turn Back. The rhythm section (sometimes just Johns playing guitar and kick drum) set up in a circle and played live in the studio – Jones laying down vocals without even using headphones – and were done in 12 days flat.

Instead of copying source materials, they came up with mostly new arrangements – in some cases, barely referencing the old recordings. Hence, the lowdown riff Johns plays on Jessie Mae Hemphill’s “Lord Help” has nothing to do with what the blues singer/guitarist originally played. Likewise, the definition of gospel is flexible enough to accommodate John Lee Hooker’s “Burning Hell” – again, with Johns’ distorted slide riff utterly distinct from the Hook’s version.

It would be sacrilegious (no pun intended) to compare Tom Jones’ version of “Don’t Knock” to Mavis Staples’ reprise of the Staple Singers’ ‘60s standard on her new CD, but, while Staples is more expressive, atop a loping groove, Jones rocks out over Johns’ one-note garage riff.

Johns played a different guitar on virtually every track – a Firebird on “Burning Hell,” a Phantom Teardrop on “Run On,” for instance – mainly through a late-’50s tweed Champ. (Among others, a Tele with a bender and Andy Blake Pickup Wizard pickups, a Harmony archtop, a ’69 Martin D-18, a ’62 Gretsch 6120 Nashville with Filtertrons were also employed – through Premier or Kay reverb tanks.)

In addition to such gospel fare as Blind Willie Johnson’s “Nobody’s Fault But Mine,” Mahalia Jackson’s “Didn’t It Rain” (penned by Roberta Martin), and traditional favorites “Run On” and “Ain’t No Grave” – the liners mistakenly crediting Jones and Johns as writers instead of arrangers – Jones is equally comfortable on the folk/country side of gospel, as evidenced by Dylan’s “What Good Am I?” and Susan Werner’s “Did Trouble Me.”

What direction Jones will take next is anybody’s guess, but after his recent riveting Letterman appearance, one hopes he’ll give this repertoire a nice long run on the road.

By Dan Forte for Vintage Guitar Magazine

Return of the Mack: Tom Jones dazzles at Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater

You'd be hard pressed to find an entertainer who better defines the term "superstar" than Tom Jones. The Welsh-born singer rose to fame in the mid-1960's and racked up a string of hit singles, starred in his own variety show and gained the admiration of millions of overzealous female fans who showed their affections by launching their undergarments at him during live performances. Fast forward several decades and you'll still find Jones every bit the dazzling entertainer. Jones has retained a large core audience that has faithfully followed him through changing trends and styles as evidenced from the eager crowd awaiting his taking the stage last Friday at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater.

One of the loudest and rowdiest roars I've heard from an awaiting audience in a long time was steadily belted from the plush seats until Jones took the stage at 8:15 p.m. No need for an opening act; the crowd was here for one reason only: to be treated to the timeless, sexy, soulful voice that Tom Jones has entranced his fans with for years.

Clad in bright purple silk shirt, shiny black blazer and black slacks, Jones slowly emerged amid a sea of sultry red lights. A guitarist preceded Tom's entrance and filled the hall with some tasty, nasty slide guitar blues giving the feel of a seedy blues club rather than a pristine performance hall. Jones quickly launched into "Burning Hell," a cut from his newest album, the excellent gospel-blues tinged Praise and Blame. In fine voice, the 70-year-old Jones boldly opened with this relatively unknown selection from a current work rather than relying on a tried and true nugget from his vast career. Pretty ballsy move, without a doubt. But, in actuality, it set the tone for the bold course Jones opted to trudge all night long.

The evening's set was filled with constant surprises and jaw-droppers. Sure, we were treated to classics like "Green Green Grass of Home" and a savory, Mariachi-styled version of "Delilah." But Tom seemed to really soar when delivering his versions of some pretty unpredictable covers ranging from Little Feat's "Dixie Chicken" to "Hey Pocky Way" by the New Orleans-based party band The Meters.

Showing no signs of slowing (ok, so Tom doesn't swivel his hips as ferociously as he used to), Jones proved for nearly two hours that he is still as entertaining and charismatic as ever. Jones was, after all, the one entertainer who Elvis Presley admittedly feared; supposedly, Elvis was always worried that Jones would surpass him in terms of popularity and stardom, and that he'd eventually steal all his fans away from him. At this, my first ever Tom Jones concert, it's easy to understand Presley's anxieties. As if it weren't enough of a threat that the man can sing, select hip material to cover AND whip an adoring crowd into a frenzy, he was also born with the gift of the gab. Almost as enchanting as the performance itself, Jones playfully told several engaging stories and anecdotes that found him name-dropping artists like Jerry Lee Lewis, Ry Cooder, Bob Dylan and Elvis.

The funniest moment came when Jones was chiding a female audience member with a thick New York accent who repeatedly crowed, "Take your jacket off!!" Jones didn't miss a beat and fired back with witty quips of his own: "Don't worry ... before the night is over, EVERYTHING is coming off!" he flaunted. It was obvious by crowd's reaction to that comment that many of the females approved.

For nearly two hours sans intermission, the veteran superstar and consummate entertainer wielded his carefully honed skills and showed us why he's still so highly revered. Still taking chances and not relying on past glories, it's obvious that Tom Jones is more interested in remaining vital and taking chances than being reduced to a corny nostalgia act.

Jones seemed as comfortable belting his signature song "It's Not Unusual" as he did his fine cover of Prince's coy "Kiss" (complete with a fantastic intro of Prince's naughtier "Sexy MF").

Tom Jones is without a doubt one of the greatest performers of all time. Geared and primed in an age that didn't have to rely on flashy gimmicks, costumes or shock value, Tom Jones was (and still is) the true definition of a star. And the near-capacity crowd that were jammed into Ruth Eckerd Hall last Friday night have known that for a long, long time.

Complete Setlist:

Burning Hell Run On Let’s Have A Ball I’ll Never Fall in Love Again Strange Things Dixie Chicken Green, Green Grass of Home Detroit City Delilah St. James Infirmary Blues What Good Am I? Nobody’s Fault But Mine Don’t Knock Didn’t It Rain Mama Told Me Not to Come You Can Leave Your Hat On If I Give My Soul It’s Not Unusual Encore Kiss Hey Pocky Way

By Gabe Echazabal for Creative Loafting. Click here to read full article

Tom to Perform at Theatre Jean-Deschamps at the Carcassonne Festival in France

Tom will be performing at the Carcassonne Festival in Carcassonne, France on Sunday July 24th at the Theatre Jean-Deschamps.

Please note that from April 2nd till April 8th, tickets will be on sale only in the city of Carcassonne and restricted to physical buying. The online on sale date will be April the 9th.

Please check our Tour Dates section for more ticket info.