Tom Jones

Tom Jones biography

Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE (born 7 June 1940), known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer. Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music - pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel - and sold over 100 million records. He has been confirmed as one of the judges on upcoming talent show, The Voice UK, where he will judge alongside Jessie J, Danny O'Donoghue of The Script, and Will.i.am.

Tom Jones was born at 57, Kingsland Terrace, Treforest, Pontypridd in South Wales. His parents were Thomas Woodward (died 5 October 1981), a coal miner, and Freda Jones (died 7 February 2003). His family was mainly of English descent, both of his paternal grandparents having been born in England and his maternal grandmother having English parents. Most of his ancestral roots appear to lie in Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset.

Jones began singing at an early age: he would regularly sing at family gatherings, weddings and in his school choir. Jones is dyslexic and did not like school or sports but was able to gain confidence through his singing talent. At 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 convalescence he could do little else but listen to music and draw.

Jones' bluesy singing style developed out of the sound of American soul music. His early influences included blues and R & B singers Little Richard, Solomon Burke, Jackie Wilson and Brook Benton as well as Jerry Lee Lewis's music.

In March 1957 Jones married his high school girlfriend, Melinda Trenchard when they were expecting a child together, both aged 16. The couple had a son named Mark who was born the month following their wedding. To support his young family Jones took a job working in a glove factory and was later employed in construction.

Rise to fame

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 the group recorded several solo tracks with producer Joe Meek, who took them to various 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 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. The stage name "Tom Jones" linked him to the image of the title character in Tony Richardson's then-recent hit film and emphasised his Welsh nationality.

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" became an international hit. The BBC initially refused to play it, but the offshore pirate radio station Radio Caroline promoted it. In early 1965 "It's Not Unusual" reached number one in the United Kingdom and the top ten in the United States. During 1965 Mills secured a number of movie themes for Jones to record including the themes for the film What's New Pussycat? (written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David) and for the James Bond film Thunderball. Jones was also awarded the Grammy Award for Best New Artist for 1965.

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