| Tom Jones at Terminal 5 |
| Written by Jay Catlett | |||
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posted on 02/02/09
Feb. 24, 2009   In 1963 Jones became the frontman for Tommy Scott and The Senators, a local beat group. Clad in black leather, he soon gained a reputation in the South Wales area of the United Kingdom, although the Senators were still unknown in London. In 1964 they laid down seven tracks with maverick "Telstar" producer Joe Meek, and took them to various labels in an attempt to get a record deal, with no success. The plan was to release a single, "Lonely Joe / I Was A Fool", but the ever-flighty Meek refused to release the tapes. Only after "It's Not Unusual" became a massive hit was Meek able to sell the tapes to Tower (USA) and Columbia (UK). The group returned to South Wales and continued to play gigs at dance halls and working men's clubs. One night, at the Top Hat in Cwmtillery, Jones was spotted by Gordon Mills, a London-based manager originally from South Wales. Mills became Jones's manager, and took the young singer to London. He also renamed him "Tom Jones," an ingenious moniker that not only linked the singer to the image of the title character—a good-looking, low-born stud—portrayed in Tony Richardson's film of Henry Fielding's The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, which was a huge contemporary hit, but also subtly emphasized his nationality. Gordon Mills gave many rock stars their stage names, among them Engelbert Humperdinck (born Arnold George Dorsey). The Senators became the Playboys, and later still the Squires. It was the beginning of the second phase in Jones's career. Record companies were finding his style and delivery to be too abrasive and raw. Jones's vocals were considered to be too raucous, and he moved like Elvis (whom he later cited as one of his influences). But eventually, Decca rekindled their early interest, and Jones recorded his first single, "Chills And Fever" in late 1964. The single didn't chart, but the follow-up, "It's Not Unusual," which Mills wrote and composed jointly with Les Reed, was an instant hit, released in early 1965. The BBC initially refused to play it, but an offshore pirate station, Radio Caroline, picked it up. Its orchestrated arrangement, coupled with Jones's energetic delivery, proved infectious, and by March the song reached number one in the UK and the top ten in America. In the same year, Jones sang the theme song to the James Bond film Thunderball. Jones was awarded the Grammy Award for Best New Artist for 1965. In 1966 Jones's popularity began to slip somewhat, causing Mills to redesign the singer's image into a more respectable, mature, tuxedoed crooner. Inspired by long-time influence Jerry Lee Lewis's country version, Jones released his most successful single ever, "Green Green Grass of Home" (written by Claude "Curly" Putman Jr. in 1965), and began to sing material that appealed to a broad audience, as well as a string of hit singles and albums including "What's New Pussycat?", "Help Yourself," and "Delilah." The strategy worked, as he returned to the top of the charts in the UK and began hitting the Top 40 again in the US. Tom Jones: "Sex Boob"
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