Tom Jones International

The Tom Jones tour has easily managed to further blur the lines of Mason and Dixon by planting the universal seeds of musical magic from south to north, east of the mighty Mississippi. The mostly sold-out shows continue to be successfully soulful in a way that takes the non-funky who, from birth, have always clapped on one and three, and turned them (albeit temporarily) into fleeting funkateers who can’t get enough of that funky stuff. After all, when the funk is good, you’ve got to let go and let it flow.

Tower has done a powerfully good job of starting the spark that lights the fire that has been heating up venues which, although very soggy on the outsides due to almost constant rain, have been plenty warm and smoldering on the insides. By the way, Mr. Jones agrees that shedding the jacket before show start is absolutely essential.

This writer likes the way Audrey in PA (post below) summed up how steamy equals sexy. “So the guy sweats. That’s no big news flash. To me it’s part of the Tom Jones experience, and always has been. He even commented that it works to his advantage because he said, ‘I can go to work, and lose weight at the same time.’ I am sure it is far more uncomfortable to have to work under those conditions, than it is to witness it. Wet, dry, or in between. Who cares, as long as he still performs?” And perform he does!

Tom Jones leaves it all out there on stage every single time. Those of you who are fortunate enough (like myself) to see him on the regular will testify to that. The power of the Jones cannot be denied. It must be experienced to be understood.

The boiling point during Saturday night’s show (at the very lovely Ferguson Center for the Arts on the campus of Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Virginia) came at 9:40 PM when Tom’s rock-solid band energetically led him to sing the trademark musical question What’s New Pussycat? The rockets’ red glare, bombs bursting in air as, suddenly, the onslaught of panties from heaven came floating in. It was as if the parachutes of the 82nd Airborne had suddenly gone pastel! The already-elated audience went wild with applause and gleeful cheers. It was the magic moment for sure. It spiked a night already filled with electricity.

Tom was in a relaxed and playful mood. He seemed quite at home and enjoyed his command of the massive theater. Mr. Jones spent more time than usual relating with his audience through song and story, especially before ballads. He shared his thoughts easily. The musical texture and the flow of the show was refreshingly unique. This same was true — and even more so — during Sunday’s show in Baltimore.

The Baltimore show was not to be topped. The Sunday funky go-to-meetin’ crowd was primed for a good time. As has been the case during this tour, Tower of Power set the tone from beat one. But Baltimore already knew what was hip. Suddenly we were all “groovin’, on a Sunday afternoon!” Then Mr. Jones led his flock on a musical journey replete with a few untold stories. This night unfortunately marked the last date Tom and TOP would work together during this run. Not to worry though. They’ve toured together before (last year at this same time) and it was good. This time out it’s been phenomenal. As sure as God must be hip to clapping on the two and four, there will be a next time for this musically dynamic duo to team up. Kudos Tower of Power! Continue to go forth and funk up the world!

As the Sunday show concluded, it was rather shocking to see that just outside of the Lyric Opera House a torrent had been raging. We just danced a funky version of Singin’ In The Rain all the way back to the car, then popped in a TJ CD and got Reloaded!

It was interesting to note that even though the venue made it quite clear that photography of any kind was prohibited, you’d a thought that pretty much every seat in the house was occupied by descendants of digital camera dynasties. In attendance were the Nike-wearing Nikon family, who jogged into the joint and found their seats first. Then Kodak’s arrived from the north pole with their good friends the Polaroids. They were still wearing their fur coats. How silly of them! The Olympus and Fuji families came down from the mountains to be here. A charter plane from Japan arrived earlier in the afternoon carrying the Casio’s, Sanyo’s and the Samsung’s. The Konica’s (who may have caught Monica) were right there in the front row! The camera never lies! The Hewlett-Packards drove in from Detroit. The (Buddy) Epsons arrived from Beverly Hills. Great minds came from Minolta. Canons lined the street in front of the theater loudly proclaiming their arrival. The Panasonics and Pentax had a “P” party in the balcony parlor just before the show. And then there was the Sony family. They arrived in style and paid a little more for their seats just for the name. Hot flashes were going off everywhere!

I’m going to see if I can start a business partnership with Mr. Jones’ T-Shirt guy. I think selling batteries might be a moneymaker at these shows. Heck, we could even sell you some for your camera too!

Scoop… out!