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18.05.12 MusicWeek 13
I did, yeah, especially when we got it going. Because when you first walk in and you try a couple of things and you think ‘Hmmm, I don’t know, can we pull this off?’ Then you do a song and you hear it and you think fuck me, we really hit a nerve there. Then you get confidence and momentum and it’s a terrific feeling. You take more risks, you kick it up, you have fun.
And it was great working with Ethan because he feels the same way, plus he’s playing alongside you. He’s not just a producer listening in a booth, he’s a musician, right there with you.
Did the level of critical acclaim and chart success surprise you? It did, yes. I was shocked. I thought it was a solid album that showed a different side of me that people hadn’t seen before. So I thought it would do well, but it went off with a bang. And the critics! They were saying, ‘Finally we can hear Tom Jones’ voice’ – and I thought, really? Fuck me, I thought you could always hear my voice, of all people’s. But it wasn’t that, it was hearing it in a new way, stripped right down, if you like.
Was there always a plan for a sequel? And is it right to call Spirit in the Room a sequel? It is a sequel yes, very much in the same vein. Ethan was talking about it even before Praise & Blame was released. He said he couldn’t wait to get it out there and get back in the studio. And he’s said the same thing now we’ve finished this. He sent me the rough [cut] and I said this
sounds great, and you’re playing your bollocks off. And he said yeah, great, but let’s get it out there and get back in the studio again. So he’s on fire. And I feel the same way, so hopefully we’ll get a trilogy out of this at least.
What’s the song selection process? With this one it was about songwriters, about picking songwriters that I loved. Tom Waits, for instance, I had his record [last year’s Bad As Me album] and I said to Ethan can we do one of these? He suggested Bad As Me, the title track, and again, I thought I love the song, but we need to bring something, we need to kick it. Which is, hopefully what we did, we made it even more… wicked I guess the word is.
What are your favourite songs on the new album? Well I was talking to Jools Holland yesterday about Tower Of Song, before I sang it on Later, and he said ‘That sounds like it was written for you’. And he’s right. ‘My friends have gone and my hair is grey’; ‘I was born like this I have no choice/I was born with the gift of a golden voice’. I mean, fuck me, talk about singing from the heart. It’s true, I had no choice. My voice was so
powerful as a child, if I’d done anything else it would have been stupid. God would have said, ‘Oi, what’s the matter with you? I’ve given you something, use it’. But when Ethan sent me the rough cut and I
listened all the way through for the first time the three that really stuck out and really called out to my basic rhythm and blues roots were Travelling Shoes, Soul Of A Man and Dimming Of The Day. I thought wow, yeah, they’ve really come off.
What makes a soul voice, do you think? Do roots
I don’t think I know anybody who doesn’t like
her. She’s such a natural. I went to see her at the Roundhouse and she was bloody great. She even affected me, to be honest. She talks like a north Londoner, so she’s saying ‘Cor it’s great to be back’ and everything, but then boom, she’s into the song and she creates a moment, a beautiful moment, full of emotion. And then she’s back and this normal girl’s back, ‘Yeah, nice weren’t it?’ And it’s such a talent, such a likeable person with an incredible voice. She can be real and funny and then wham, the serious stuff hits you in the soul, in the heart. A little while later I was up at T In The Park,
and experiences have anything to do with it? I mean you don’t get too many middle-class soul singers… First of all it’s the tone of my voice, apparently; this is what black singers have told me. And my syncopation, there’s a natural rhythm to it, even when I’m doing a ballad. Y’know, they were playing It’s Not Unusual on black radio stations in New York because they thought I was black – and that was a pop song, so it wasn’t the material, it was the voice, and I was more than happy for them to think that. It’s not only the tone, it’s what you do with it, which for me is instinctive and it’s always been in me.
What was it like working with Jack White? Great. We were in tune right away, kindred spirits. I knew his stuff, I knew The White Stripes, so I knew where he was coming from. Being in the studio just confirmed it. First of all he called and said do you know
Jezebel? I said sure. And he asked about Evil, by Howlin’ Wolf. And again I said sure. He told me he had some new arrangements and ideas for both. When I got there, he played the arrangements, with a band, and he said we’ll do it live. You can hear him shouting at one point, yelling out ‘Hey!’, cos it’s happening, you know, there and then. So that was a great experience and I said to Mark straight afterwards, I’d love to do an album with this guy. He said, well we can’t do it now, we’re a bit busy! But one day maybe. We definitely clicked. He loved what I did with his songs and we both love the originals.
What do you think of Adele’s voice and why do you think she has connected with so many people? First of all, it’s very human. But she also has modern phrasing. She’s great at that. She’s soulful, there’s a bit of Gladys Knight in there perhaps. But don’t get me wrong, she’s unique, she has the feeling, she has the technique – and let’s not forget the songs she’s written. They’re commercial, and she sings the shit out of them. I saw her on a PBS special in the States with just a piano and that’s where she sounds best. Just amazing. That girl can sing.
“As old as I am, and as long as I’ve been around, this girl, this young girl [Adele], got to me and affected me and affected the way I approach my job” TOM JONES
and I was chatting with the crowd, but then really going for it when the serious business started. And afterwards Mark said, ‘You know what, I think Adele got to you, because you were really digging into those songs’. And I think that must have been it. So, as old as I am, and as long as I’ve been around, this girl, this young girl, got to me and affected me and affected the way I approach my job.
How are you enjoying your experience as a coach on The Voice and how big a star do you think it might produce? I think there are a few on there that can really go a long way. There are some great singers on there and lots of different types of voices. What I’m concerned about for my team is finding the right song for that person and that person wanting to do it, believing they can do it. Sometimes people can be tentative, they don’t think they can go down certain routes. Well, just try it. And that’s what we do, we sing it round a piano together.
So as much as technical tips, you’re giving them confidence? Yeah, that and telling them when to hold it and when to fly. Because some of them are technically already there, they just need reining in, learn how to make an impact by holding something back.
Do you ever get annoyed by the modern trend to ‘oversing’ – to fill everything with showy little runs? Do you ever want to shout ‘Pick a note!’? It depends on the song. You’ve got to know where those areas are. If it calls for it, do it, but don’t just do it because you can. Always remember what the song is saying, don’t lose the story of the song just because you want to show off.
BELOW The Voice on The Voice: “I’d have entered [a TV talent show]. I’d have charged into it,” says Jones
Would you have entered a TV talent show as a teenager and how would you have got on? Well I don’t know how I’d have got on, but I’d have entered, yeah. I’d have charged into it. But there is a downside to it, because these kids are being thrown in the deep end. And maybe they need that grounding before they get to that point, to have played the small places before the hit record. These kids are getting exposed to
millions of people before they even have a record contract. But this is what’s happening, you
can’t say it’s no good, let’s go back to the old days, because that’s not going to happen. This is the way it is, and the only thing I can do on a personal level is try and prepare them as best I can.
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