Tom Jones 1967. Photo: Roy Cummings © 2010 JRC / The Hollywood Archive - All Rights Reserved
Sir Tom Jones, (born Thomas John Woodward on 7 June 1940) is a Welsh singer particularly noted for his powerful voice and overt sexuality. Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung nearly every form of popular music - pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, and techno. He has sold over 100 million records worldwide.
Jones became the frontman for Tommy Scott and the Senators, a Welsh beat group, in 1963. They soon gained a local following and reputation in South Wales.
In 1964, Jones recorded several solo tracks with producer Joe Meek, who took them to various labels, but had little success.
The group continued to play gigs at dance halls and working men's clubs in South Wales. One night, at the Top Hat in Cwmtillery, Wales, Jones was spotted by Gordon Mills, a London-based manager originally from South Wales. Mills became Jones' manager, and took the young singer to London. He contrived the stage name, "Tom Jones," which not only linked the singer to the image of the title character in Tony Richardson's hit film, but also emphasized Jones' Welsh nationality.
Many record companies found Jones' stage presence, act, and vocal delivery too raucous and raunchy. Eventually, Mills got Jones a recording contract with Decca. His first single, "Chills and Fever," was released in late 1964. It didn't chart, but the follow-up, "It's Not Unusual", which Mills wrote, became an international hit. The BBC initially refused to play it, but an offshore pirate radio station, Radio Caroline, promoted it. The heavily orchestrated pop arrangement perfectly meshed with Jones' swinging, sexy image, and in early 1965, "It's Not Unusual" reached number one in the UK and the top ten in the USA.
During 1965, Mills secured a number of movie themes for Jones to record, including the themes to What's New Pussycat? and the James Bond film Thunderball. Jones was also awarded the Grammy Award for Best New Artist for 1965.
In 1966, Jones' popularity began to slip somewhat, causing Mills to redesign the singer's image into a more respectable and mature crooner. Jones also began to sing material that appealed to a wider audience, such as the big country hit "Green, Green Grass of Home." The strategy worked and Jones returned to the top of the charts in the UK and began hitting the Top 40 again in the USA.
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Tom Jones
