Click photo to enlarge
Welsh entertainer Tom Jones gives a consummate performance
in Dunedin last night. Photo by Jane Dawber.
Welsh entertainer Tom Jones last night treated a
remarkably enthusiastic Dunedin audience to a master class of
entertainment.
Make no mistake, the only thing he left on the stage last
night was sweat.
Everything Jones had to offer from his vast array of talent
was on display in the Dunedin Town Hall.
He sang, he danced, he gyrated - still a lovely mover - for
90 minutes without a break.
Sublime.
From the moment he walked on to the stage, the personality of
Jones filled the auditorium.
It would be surprising if anyone in the nearly packed Town
Hall felt he was not singing directly to them; such was the
strength of his presence.
The audience responded readily to any calls for participation
through clapping or singing some of the ballads.
Jones drew them in and kept them enthralled throughout the
night.
Fittingly, for a man ready to celebrate his 70th birthday in
June, the first song was off his new album 24 Hours.
Sugar Daddy had the audience moving and clapping from the
first chord.
The line "I've been singing this song since before you were
born" could not have been more true for some in the audience.
In fact, if you were under 50, the line was particularly
relevant.
The favourites rolled out throughout the night.
Thunderball, Delilah, Help Yourself and What's New Pussycat?
had the crowd singing and dancing.
Jones sang three country songs, including The Green Grass of
Home and Put Your Sweet Lips, in the rhythm style from his
pub and club days in Wales.
Every time he swaggered, wiggled his backside or did some
gentle pelvic thrusts, women in the audience whistled,
clapped and cheered and it did not take long before the Town
Hall stage was littered with knickers and a few flowers.
The audience erupted when an older woman walked purposefully
to the stage and flung her knickers at the feet of the Welsh
master as he sang She's A Lady.
The energy of the singer and his classy band remained at the
highest possible levels throughout the performance.
The voice of Jones remains powerful and full of emotion.
It was a consummate performance.
Anna Coddington opened the evening.
Her 30 minutes of songs displayed some of this country's
flourishing song-writing and singing talent.
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