Tom
IE: First, my condolences on the loss of
your wife. 59 years together is just amazing.
TOM JONES: Yeah. 50 years! And it was
amazing how strong she was. When they
was lung cancer. And she was calm. She
said, “So this is it, then?” And the doctor
said, “Yeah, I’m afraid so.” So I had to get
back as soon as possible. I talked to the
doctor, and he said it was terminal, and
aggressive. Very aggressive. And when
my son and myself went to the hospital,
Cedar-Sinai in L.A., she said, “This is it.
But don’t worry – you’ll be okay.” She
was telling me that I would be okay. And
I said, “I don’t know about that.” But she
had eight days, as it turned out. And it’s
still hard to believe, especially how calm
she was. It was a very strange thing.
Tom Jones, circa 1979
IE: But she insisted that you keep touring,
right? She was adamant about it.
TJ: Yes. But I didn’t know if I’d be able to
10•2016
told me she was ill, I had just done an
Australian tour, and then we went to the
Far East, and I was in the Philippines. And
the doctor had said that she had some
fluid on the lungs, because she had
emphysema, you see, and she just thought
the emphysema was getting worse with
her breathing. She used to smoke, but she
gave it up when she found out she had
this emphysema a few years ago. But it
was a strange thing when I talked to her
on the phone and said, “How are you?”
She said, “Not too well.” Then she went to
the hospital to get checked out, and they
found fluid. But when they tested it, it
do it, to be honest with you. I didn’t know.
I didn’t know how I’d be onstage, because
I’m an emotional singer, and I get into the
songs that I sing. All of them, every single
song. I live it – I see the songs vividly, I see
the story of the song that I’m singing, And
I thought, “How the hell am I going to do
that?” But my son said, “Maybe we
should go to England.” Because a British
tour was coming up after the funeral. So I
went to England and got a couple of my
musicians together and just tried it – we
did a little rehearsal thing. Slowly. Just
trying to see what it was like, if I could
sing. If I could actually sing, and think
545 Penny Road • South Barrington IL • (847) 428-0562 • corner of Old Sutton & Penny Rd • www.pennyroadpub.com • Open until 4AM
OCT 29
DYSFUNCTIONAL MARIACHI
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SAT OCT 22
FRI OCT 28
SAT OCT 29
FRI NOV 11
Current to Classic Rock Hits
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Chained
Penny Road Pub
plus
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847-754-6003
[email protected]
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SLAMMIN' SATURDAYS
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OCT 29
SEET
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8 illinoisentertainer.com october 2016