Tom Jones

At the beloved Ballroom at the Bowery presents some of the most admired musicians from both the past and the present. For instance, last Saturday night the impressive 72-year old Tom Jones was on hand with a four-piece band backing him up, and he proved our admiration is well-deserved.

Jones is a mighty presence on stage. He is tall, with a wonderfully deep, resonant voice that fills the room with energy. Jones also likes to show off a bit. He also loves to engage the audience with chitchat between songs, with much humor and warmth. At one point he remembered when he first arrived in New York, “48 years ago. I thought, ‘How can that be? I’m only 35!” From the audience’s response, that comment struck a chord.

Tom Jones’ 96-minute performance was a wonderful venture into the musician’s world of swampy blues, rock, soul and country. Unbelievably, it was Jones’ first appearance at the Bowery Ballroom, and it was a show to remember.