Rumor or Reality?, Sir Tom In the News, What's New, Pussycat?
Rumors about Sir Tom pass from ear to ear to chat room to discussion list to forum. Of course, we hear them, too, and are frequently asked by site visitors about the truth of a given story they see or hear. In an effort to separate fact from fiction, we’ll occasionally post a rumor — a possibly credible thing we hear and try to get at the real story. The only rule about the rumors we’ll post is that they must be about Tom’s professional life. Nothing personal. We leave that stuff to others. So, if you hear something and would like us to help check it out, send us an email. Of course no rumor is considered fact until it’s confirmed on Tom’s official site but, meanwhile, we’ll try to fill you in.
Rumor or Reality? Tom Jones, ?uestlove and A Word (Again) On Critic Robert Christgau
Sunday, June 15th, 2008On May 28 it was reported in an online blog that ?uestlove (that’s “Questlove”) has said he’ll produce Tom Jones. He says, too, that he has a meeting with Tom in July.
According to wikipedia, “Ahmir Khalib Thompson (left) (born on January 20, 1971), known professionally as ?uestlove or Questlove, a.k.a. BROther ?uestion or Brother Question, is an American drummer, DJ, music journalist and record producer. He is best known as the drummer for hip hop band The Roots and has produced for artists such as Common, D’Angelo, and more recently, Al Green. He is a member of the production teams the Soulquarians, the Grand Negaz, and The Grand Wizzards.” If you read his full bio, you’ll see that his music credentials are really solid.
We first heard of him when someone told us what a terrific drummer he is. He’s certainly played with some great people. We don’t doubt, at the least, that there’s a meeting set for next month. Still, we’d sure like the CD still being worked on now to be completed before a new project is begun. (Unless this is merely but one cut on that CD.)
We have to give ?uestlove props for his comments about critic Robert Christgau in the same article. The former Village Voice music critic used to write for Newsday, the daily on Long Island and, a few months ago, we posted his review of Tom and Enge from the Westbury Music Fair in 1972. These reviews are well-worth reading again. (Photo of Tom at right was taken in 1972.)
So, it might be jumping the gun to say for sure what’s going to happen, but it is great that artists from every music sector admire Sir Tom.
June 15th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Impressive credentials! Speaking of Esquire magazine…did they every do an article on our Knight?
June 15th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
Marisa: We found two mentions in Esquire: The first is in a story about the last days of the Clinton presidency when the President got into a limo. “The man is singing as he falls into the back of his limo, a Tom Jones number first popularized by George Jessel in the late 1920s: One bright and shiny light, That taught me wrong from right, I found in my mother’s eyes.
“He croons the lyrics, smiling, sweetly drawing out the i’s and o’s. With his hands, he beats a soft rhythm on his knee. There’s something a little vulnerable in his singing, though in the safety of his black capsule, he’s just being himself, a bit showy and contagious. He’s in a high mood; after being in a crowd of people, he usually is. But there’s something more today. Beyond the window, in the middle of a back-to-school afternoon, they’ve lined the route here in Princeton, New Jersey, waiting for him to lift a hand in their direction. And he does”
The other is in a review of the new Neil Diamond CD: It begins, “Tom Jones did it. So did Johnny Cash. Now it’s Neil Diamond’s turn for a second (or is it third?) coming.”
That’s all we could find. Just ask and we shall look.
June 16th, 2008 at 9:58 am
Fresh and new sounds, that’s what is needed for the new cd, like Mousse T and his Sexbomb! Way to go!
June 16th, 2008 at 10:59 am
Looking forward to a smash hit with ?uestlove …maybe a remix of the TJ version of Al Green’s “So tired of being alone”