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It’s A Great Night For The Welsh in Las Vegas; Calzaghe Wins, Tom Sings, Crowd Behaves
Saturday, April 19th, 2008Please be sure to recheck the bottom of this post, as we are adding comments from — and links to — newspaper articles about the relevant parts of the fight that we believe fans will enjoy. And do check comment #25, in which we find the BBC talking about Tom’s anthem.
Before what announcer Jim Lampley called a “relatively healthy crowd” (meaning a large but by no means sold-out arena) Welsh fighter Joe Calzaghe defeated American Bernard Hopkins in a split decision to claim the title of Light Heavyweight Champion of the World.
The fight, held off the Las Vegas Strip in the Thomas and Mack Center’s new Planet Hollywood Arena at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, may not have been a sellout but the crowd — which included Catherine Zeta-Jones, Whitney Houston, Pete Sampras, Sylvester Stallone and lots of other stars — was enthusiastic and, during Ray J’s somewhat bizarre rendition of Star-Spangled Banner not a “boo” could be heard. Calzaghe entered the ring favored at odds up to 4:1 to win.
To sing “the first of two national anthems,” ring announcer Michael Buffer introduced “a Welshman and a true legend the world over, Sir Tom Jones.” Sporting a daffodil on his lapel over his heart, Tom sang Land of Our Fathers (Hen Wlad fy Nhadau) in Welsh. Click to see Tom singing the Welsh anthem.
Before the match there was a pre-fight party at Planet Hollywood. Click to read some more about the fight, some commentary on the singing of the anthems and to see the photos from the event and . Tom and Catherine Zeta-Jones are celebrating their Welshness in three of the photos. The others are self-explanatory.
ICWales has a nice piece about the fight (mentioning Tom). Our only quibble is the phrase about the “balmy Nevada night.” Winds were howling, as they often do in the desert and that made it less-than-balmy.
theage.com from Australia had some comments about the singing of the anthems. In part, they said, “YESTERDAY’S live telecast of the Bernard Hopkins-Joe Calzaghe light-heavyweight fight (Main Event channel) provided a tremendous show of bravery, and not just by the boxers. There was also the “internationally renowned recording artist” known as either J-Ray or Ray-Jay (His international renown stops a little short of certain lounge rooms). Those other guys only had to fight. J-Ray had to follow Tom Jones.”
The Guardian wrote about the fight and concluded by writing about celebrities at this fight and the December Mayweather-Hatton bout. We love their phrase, “…the Welsh celebrity diaspora.” That’s deeply elegant writing.
“Faces in the crowd Half of the Welsh celebrity diaspora, Tom Jones and Catherine Zeta-Jones, led Calzaghe’s ringside A-Listers but Sir Anthony Hopkins and H out of Steps were nowhere to be seen. Theatre of cruelty talent show judges, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Simon Cowell, were among the daffodil-wavers but were outshone in Hopkins’ corner by Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Jay-Z and Whitney Houston lined up behind Hopkins as did Michael J Fox and, the one we had to Google, Luke “Him off 90210″ Perry. But Hatton v Mayweather won the battle with Sly, Arnie and Jones the Voice augmented by Brangelina, David Beckham and Denzel Washington.”
MVN.com had this to say about anthems: “Say, does anyone have a clue how the U.S. keeps getting screwed on its home turf in ‘choice of who sings the national anthems?’ Wales gets Tom Jones, a legendary if not slightly campy performer, for its anthem, just as the U.K. got Jones in the December Ricky Hatton-Floyd Mayweather, Jr. fight. What’d we get in December? Tyrese. What’d we get Saturday night? Ray-J. That’s right, Ray-J. A dude who’s really only famous for being the cousin of an actual singing talent, Brandy, and for co-starring in the Kim Kardashian sex tape. (Even then, he’s arguably got third billing, if you catch my drift.)”
April 19th, 2008 at 8:51 pm
Wow. You guys are fantastic getting this posted so quickly! I guess this proves that no matter what Tom sings, it still sounds great. What a horrific language it must be to learn.
April 19th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Wow is right, Mary. TJI got it up before youtube. Mary is also right I think about the Welsh language — difficult to learn and very gutteral. I remember that famous photo of the railroad station platform in Wales with the name of the town on a sign that was longer than the platform. But Tom sure sounded great and looked yummy. What a guy!!!!!!
April 19th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
You did it again ladies, GREAT JOB! Didn’t he look and sound wonderful. Enjoyed the pics and the recording. Thanks and keep up the good work.
April 20th, 2008 at 12:30 am
What an absolute treat…and you are brilliant to get this up so quickly. Tom……..what can you say? He’s just amazing. Seeing (and hearing) his superb rendition of the anthem has made my day: thank you.
April 20th, 2008 at 4:12 am
Wow what a treat! thanks for posting!
Welsh is a wonderful language, I wish I had continued learning. It’s sad that a whole generation (mine) didn’t learn Welsh anymore. I’m not Welsh but my ex-boyfriend is, and he didn’t speak Welsh in school. It’s good that younger generations get to go to school in Welsh nowadays.
April 20th, 2008 at 4:23 am
Tom’s voice sounds great as usual. However….Seems like in his time away from Wales, though, that he has forgotten the lyrics, as he made up some of his own words which to those not familiar with the words would have gone un missed but to anyone from Wales would have been noticed…. Next time Tom, don’t embarrass yourself by doing this….not in front of so many proud Welsh people expecting better. Learn the words properly!!
April 20th, 2008 at 6:10 am
I watched the fight last night and yes, Tom, was GREAT and looked even better! After watching the ring announcer, Michael Buffer, announce Tom at several fights, you can see that he really has the utmost RESPECT for Tom.
Also, the first couple rows of the crowd did look like a who’s-who. Besides the people mentioned above, there was also Simon Cowell (sitting next to Sylvester), Jim Belushi (sitting behind them) and Gov. Arnold S. sitting behind and to their right and beside Tom. Catherine Zeta-Jones was in front of Tom and Arnold. It was a great fight and I would have loved to have been at the great party afterwards! My thanks to you ladies, as always, for posting this so fast. What a great way to start my day!
April 20th, 2008 at 6:24 am
Wow thanks. Happened to tune in last night by chance and what a treat to watch TJ sing the Land of Our Fatheres even though I did’nt understand a work he said. Thakka for the posting it and the picture as well
April 20th, 2008 at 6:35 am
Good morning and thank you so much for posting it
and I agree this language sounds difficult to learn! Does TOM speak Welsh or did he learn lyrics for the song? Lovely opening for the match - Nice to see Catherine with TOM there too 
April 20th, 2008 at 7:35 am
You often hear Tom saying greetings in Welsh when he is on TV here. Not many singers could hold a tune so well unaccompanied. It was great.
April 20th, 2008 at 8:11 am
Well, I have always heard Tom say, he doesn’t speak Welsh, but I think he did a great job and sounded wonderful as usual.
April 20th, 2008 at 8:53 am
I’m in two minds about his rendition. His vocals were obviously very impressive but I was surprised how poor some of his pronunciation was. He got the majority of the lyrics right, but unfortunately there were a few lines which descended into gibberish.
Tom’s not a Welsh speaker and so perhaps he deserves credit for his attempt in an unfamiliar language. But on the other hand it IS the Welsh national anthem, it’s sung by Welsh and English speakers alike, and he’s performed it - alongside other singers - before international matches over the years so he should know it by now.
Any solo rendition of a national anthem at an event like today’s, when the slightest mispronunciation is glaringly obvious, needs to be spot on, and “close enough” reflects badly on the performer. I’m just surprised that Tom hadn’t checked with someone beforehand that the lyrics he’d always sung were actually the right ones.
Thanks for posting, by the way!
April 20th, 2008 at 9:05 am
Wondering how they prevented the boo-ing? Any warnings from the ticket collectors as people entered the Arena? Great clip!
April 20th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Hi, All:
To respond, first, to Marisa: No, people in Wales were well-aware of the behavior (or, “behaviour”) of the fans at the Mayweather-Hatton fight in December. But Calzaghe was widely quoted that he (against all reason) believes Hatton lost because the referee — the same who would officiate at his fight last night — was angry at the booing. We think the Welsh fans took his words to heart and didn’t respond to the US anthem. (Or, maybe, they’re just ore respectful?) In countless news stories before the event the Welsh people interviewed decried the booing of The Star-Spangled Banner in December.)
To respond, next, to Dragonfire and Bethan, the Welsh anthem — which we’d only heard once before last night — is difficult to sing. In that respect it’s not unlike The Star-Spangled Banner, is it? In fact, we’re told, that as in the US they often substitute God Bless America or America the Beautiful for the official anthem, in Wales they’ll substitute Cwm Rhondda for Land of Our Fathers. The point is that Tom did a brave thing by singing the difficult song in what to him is essentially a foreign language. He did it a capella and, as one who is not a native Welsh speaker, we think he acquitted himself well.
Now, before we make the next point, we want to underscore the fact that we welcome civil discussion here and are not attacking any individual. But we cannot help observe, as we’ve done several times before, that Tom always draws the harshest criticism in Wales and England and we find that fact astounding. One minute UK fans are praising his “Welshness” and his refusal to become a US citizen (as Tracey Ullman and Craig Ferguson recently did, saying they live and work here and it was right to “join the team”). Next, they’re criticizing his tan, his living in the US and anything else they can find to carp about.
We don’t get it.
Tom is, as he was introduced last night, “a Welshman and a true legend the world over.” If he made some errors singing a song that even many Welsh do not know and now replace with another, easier to sing tune, it’s not a big deal. Tom may be from Wales but, today, Sir Tom Jones is a citizen of the world. We sadly observe, finally, that there may be what the Aussies call “tall poppy syndrome” going on; that a love-hate relationship develops with people who leave their native country to find great success. Sometimes we cannot help thinking that the UK never quite got over the American Revolution. Joe Calzaghe — like Richard Burton, Anthony Hopkins and, yes, Tom Jones and many others who came (and went) before him — is one of many born and raised in the UK who found success there but who still said that to really make it, he had to come to the USA.
In so many ways we are one world (especially in the “World of Tom Jones”). We should behave like we are.
—With respect, Ellen & Ursula
April 20th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Well said, Moderator: I couldn’t agree more. I speak as someone who has also found it necessary to leave the UK for work reasons and find the mean-spirited attitude of some of my fellow countrymen utterly bewildering and depressing.
Tom did a splendid job last night. He is always a complete professional and Wales…..indeed the whole of the UK……. should be proud of him.
April 20th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
I do not speak Welsh and as I just learned from the postings neither does TOM apart from a few words and phrases. I imagine that he sung the anthem with an accent or maybe used other words because for him it’s an foreign language so I understand how difficult this must have been for him to sing. That’s not an embarrassment; not for TOM or the Welsh people. TOM was singing proud and loud and beautifully!!! with an accent how wonderful - thank you - merci - gracias - danke schön TOM
April 20th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
A fan site such as this is supposed to support the performer for whom it was created. I don’t get the negative comments about Tom’s pronunciation whilst singing in Welsh, etc. Folks, there is not a perfect person, performer or place. Tom simply has a spectacular voice and popped out of the womb that way. Let’s just appreciate him for that and enjoy the time he has to share it with us.
Laura
April 20th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
You go Laura!!!
April 20th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Laura: You are right. Sometimes constructive criticism is healthy and even the most ardent supporter of a performer (or a politician or a child or a cause) is entitled to provide thoughtful criticism. But, very often, someone like Tom draws very harsh criticism and sadly, when that happens, we suspect the root of the criticism is jealousy, or misplaced anger or a variety of issues that have little to do with Tom and nothing to do with being thoughtful or constructive. That’s a pity. We’ll post any valid criticism — not criticism that we necessarily believe is valid or with which we agree, but criticism that is written thoughtfully and with care for Tom. We believe that doing so is part of what we should be doing to serve the Tom and you, the fans.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
We all obviously respect Tom and his accomplishments. It’s exactly because of that respect that we feel free to react emotionally and honestly to his performances when we feel that he might have been capable of doing better. We feel protective of his extraordinary talent and of the very high standard that he has set for himself. I feel that being complimentary only, when it’s not sincere, is patronizing.
As a speaker of a couple of somewhat “obscure” languages, I’m often surprised by less than accurate pronounciation by singers. Singers especially, are naturally sensitive to sound, emphasis. rythm and any other factors that make an accent convincing to a native speaker. On the other hand, I admire and am grateful for the respect shown by non-native speakers, whether singers or not, when they’ve learned to pronounce the language accurately.
We are somewhat spoiled because Tom has set an amazingly high bar in his own standard of rendering every syllable intentionally, when he sings in English. Whatever the reason, it appears, according to the native Welsh speakers, that he hasn’t accomplished that with this performance in Welsh.
No one seems to be claiming that his vocals of this difficult song are at all in question. We seem to agree that his singing was spectacular and up to his usual standard. I think it would be disrespectful of those proud native speakers, to ignore their honest observations and lump them in with others who are truly unfair to Tom and disrespectful to him. I don’t think that this applies to anyone on this site.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Maria: Thanks. We cannot discuss posts we receive for moderation and do not post but, suffice to say, some really, really nasty things come in. We don’t believe in censorship but we do believe is respectful discourse. We hope the posts here reflect that belief.
As for Tom’s skills in Welsh, we’ve seen nothing in any Welsh media criticizing him. We are positive they’d criticize loudly if it were called for. Thus, we’ve gotta go with the silent majority who said nothing. For the record, we heard Tom miss a few words in Delilah earlier this month. We didn’t post it or make an issue of it. He is, as Laura said, human and that stuff happens. One must move on.
We hope this site and every post reflects the joy Tom and his music have the power to bring to us.
In short, it’s meant to be fun and it should be. Let’s keep it light. Remember, it’s entertainment, not life-or-death.
April 21st, 2008 at 2:56 am
I’m slightly taken aback by some of the responses to my post. I didn’t feel I was unduly critical; in Wales we’re certainly very proud that Tom retains his Welshness and his obvious pride for his country, and we delight in his continued success. As many of you have admitted, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau (Land Of My Fathers) is an unfamiliar anthem in a strange tongue. But as someone whose national anthem it is, I didn’t see anything wrong in expressing surprise that his rendition fell some way short (vocals: great; pronunciation: 80 percent good, 20 percent poor).
Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau is a much-loved national anthem, sung frequently in all walks of Welsh life (at rugby and football internationals, concerts, theatrical performances, schools, etc). It’s certainly never replaced by Cwm Rhondda or any other Welsh song. It would not have been a new or unfamiliar piece to Tom either, even as an English speaker. He would have sung it countless times over many years, although I think this may well have been his first solo performance. Singing solo, and at such a huge event, he really should have ensured that he’d been singing it correctly all these years.
If it helps to put my point across, imagine a sporting event held in a non-English speaking country, and a singer with little command of English being chosen to sing, say, the American national anthem. If some of the words came out completely wrong, with two or three lines rendered nonsensical, I’m sure there’d be much amusement, some ridicule and a little criticism directed at the singer.
The implication here seems to be that because it was “only” Welsh, the mistakes made (and there were several) were somehow less important than had they been made in English, which is unfortunate.
Obviously I’d be delighted to help him out with the correct words in time for his next performance!
April 21st, 2008 at 3:48 am
I agree with Maria that being complimentary only is not sincere, and I totally agree with Bethan, and, yes, Moderator, you are right. Many Brits haven’t got over the fact that Tom has left the U.K. That said and done, I am over the moon that Joe won the fight. I haven’t been so happy since Tom received his knighthood. I don’t mind admitting that when Tom started singing the anthem tears were rolling down my face. Yes he did get some of the words wrong, which the Welsh reporter soon picked up on. As the song went on I could feel the passion and power in his voice. It was lovely to hear Tom say a few word’s and (see him) wearing a daffodil. What a formidable pair. With Tom’s voice and Joe’s punch this pair of Welshmen will knock the world dead.
April 21st, 2008 at 7:53 am
Bethan: Sorry we couldn’t respond to your comment immediately (but there’s an eight-hour time difference between Wales and Las Vegas). We want it to be clear again that no one was dismissing the anthem because it was “only” Welsh. Read, if you will, what we posted about Ray J’s rendition of our anthem.What we were saying — and what we’ve said many times before — is how the Welsh people seem to be of two minds about Tom Jones. They praise him with one hand and smack him with the other. It was not, as we tried to make clear, a comment directed at any individual who posted. We’ve said this before, particularly in connection with the UK press. It’s not new. As we’ve noted above (and, if you have some time, please look over this entire site) tji.com is “meant to be fun and it should be. Let’s keep it light. Remember, it’s entertainment, not life-or-death.”
April 21st, 2008 at 8:44 am
OK, Welsh people who criticized Tom’s anthem. You have a point:
The venerable BBC says: “Where else could Tom Jones claim a bigger cheer than Arnie, Willis, Stallone and Beyonce combined after his somewhat dodgy-sounding rendition of the Welsh national anthem?”
We still believe that it’s not that big a deal, but we are obligated to post this.
April 21st, 2008 at 8:58 am
Moderator: Thank you for reminding us to keep it light. You’re right and I think that we usually do. Music is very entertaining and it often brings out strong emotions related to many important aspects of our lives. That’s why we get so excited about it and some performers who touch our emotions especially deeply. I think what makes this website more interesting than some others on this subjest is also that we feel free to discuss other aspects related to Tom as an internationally-recgnized citizen — music in general, the music business, cultural pride and cultural differences etc. Of course we may sometimes get carried away, but if we do it respectfully and sincerely, it can be really interesting and informative.
This discussion reminds me of another world citizen who was originally from Britain. Like Tom Jones, Charlie Chaplin was a uniquely talented young man who came to American attracted by its creativity in the entertainment business. He did phenomenally well and at one time was the most recognized citizen of the world.
When he went back to England, he wasn’t always well received, as sometimes happens when family members return home after a long absence. When he later left America, for complex political and personal reasons, he didn’t return to England but settled in Switzerland where he remained with his family for the rest of his life. Shorly before he died, he returned briefly to America in order to receive a long overdue honor.
Another interesting correlation is that Charlies Chaplin was a very talented composer. He was originally a chellist. and he composed all the music for all his films. This beautiful, emotional music is available on several recordings and some of it is very familiar and not many people know that it was composed by the multi-talented Charlie Chaplin.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:56 am
When I heard the announcer call Tom “a true legend the world over”, I thought…Yes, he is. Then after actually thinking about that statement all day, I thought…Wow! That is quite a statement. Can you imagine being referred to as that? And even after all that he’s achieved, Tom is still close and gracious to his fans. A man like that only comes around once in a lifetime. The world is truly a better place with him in it. A while ago, this site had a question about a tag-line for Tom. I think “Sir Tom Jones, a legend the world over” says it all.
April 21st, 2008 at 10:04 am
Tom Jones allways makes every song, his song, his version and mostly very succesfull, you can read also in several reviews the audience just loved it and that’s what tom jones is all about, so what’s new.
April 21st, 2008 at 10:15 am
From an article:
And he didn’t disappoint, belting out a passionate rendition of Land of my Fathers, that sent the auditorium into a frenzy.
The apparently ageless Jones attacked the Welsh national anthem with his characteristic, turbo-charged gusto. Dedicated musicologists may well have summarised the rendition as “a right seeing-to”. In Jones’ wake Calzaghe must have barely regained his composure after Tom Jones’ thunderous rendition of Land of My Fathers
April 21st, 2008 at 12:12 pm
I am completely informed now that we have given Tom, this anthem and boxing match a thoughtful and thorough critique! Whew! I enjoyed it for what it was — a boxing match with lots of celebs having a bit to drink and enjoying the fighter of their choice! Glad Tom or Ray J or R Jay didn’t get the boo monsters. I’m also glad a fighter didn’t get irreperable brain damage and that Joe won. Now, I’m off to learn Land of my Fathers.
April 21st, 2008 at 4:31 pm
Holly: We have to add that someone from the UK wrote and said Tom had a “John Redwood moment.” We looked at the youtube video of this Welsh politician who tried to lip-synch to the Welsh anthem and completely blew it. We still don’t get what the big deal is about Tom. In 2006 Prince Philip sat down and resumed dining when God Save The Queen still had verses to be played. Tom’s moment was not that bad. We believe that the Welsh people who are upset should (1) just chalk it up in the “s*** happens” category and (b) be happy that people around the world got to see the wonder that is Tom Jones standing up for his country so well. Relatively few people knew he missed some words. And, despite that, he’s a great representative of Wales.
Here in the US, it’s common for native English speakers — Americans who speak English every single day — to forget the words to The Star-Spangled Banner. and people barely notice and do not carp on it. It is clearly recognized that it is a difficult song to sing. Singers as diverse as Michael Bolton, Bobby Vinton, Macy Gray and Steven Tyler have messed up the US anthem. And, remember Leslie Nielson’s spoof as opera singer Enrico Palazzo in The Naked Gun? Then there’s Roseanne…..Time to accept that the Welsh tune is also a difficult one to sing and to go back to talking about how good Tom looked….until, that is, Holly is called upon to sing an anthem — any anthem — at an event.
April 21st, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Dear Moderator - golly, gee, thanks! I got a gig without even trying. I would be proud to represent! I have to say, this crowd is tough and if I had to sing for them in any language I don’t know if I could get through it without falling flat on my face. But, at least I would be in good company seeing that others have had the misfortune of forgetting a word or two. The horror!
April 21st, 2008 at 5:55 pm
I couldn’t agree more with Laura.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Americans feel that the Star Spangled Banner is a much-loved anthem also. I’ve seen it sung by many a US singer and butchered beyond belief. I just give a chuckle and go on with my life. No harm, no foul. I certainly don’t criticize them or ridicule them — that is left up to our wonderful media. I have more important things to worry about such as how I am going to afford my next 10 gallons of gasoline.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:46 am
For what it’s worth I’m a Welsh speaker & I think for a non-Welsh speaker Tom had a good crack at the anthem — fair play to him. By the way, did you know that the anthem was written in Tom’s hometown of Pontypridd in 1856 by father & son Evan & James James? Legend has it that it was inspired by Evan replying to a brother who had emigrated to America who was full of praise for his new home and wanted Evan to join him. Evan wrote a letter back (in Welsh) saying he couldn’t leave because “mae hen wlad fy nhadau yn annwyl i mi” (”the old land of my fathers is precious to me”), and so a song was born! Family legend has it that Jesse James was descended from Evan’s brother.
Well done Joe!
April 22nd, 2008 at 8:12 am
Thanks, Dean. We knew the song was written by a father and son from Pontypridd, but didn’t know the story.
May 30th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Thank you, AF! I also believe as a human species we elevate ourselves when we learn to appreciate rather than criticize.