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Tom jones appeared on the Andrew Marr show on the 27th May , among other thinks discussed leonard Cohen and performed 'Tower of Song'.
Not a great version in my view but good to hear him attempt it
For those who can access it, it can be seen on BBC i player for the next 7 days

I may we swimming against the tide here but I like Tom's version of the song. I also like that he's thought about its meaning and most of all I like that he chose a song that meant something to him rather than doing what so many other people do and churning out yet another version of Hallelujah. There is far more to Tom Jones than Delilah and Green Green Grass of Home as the quality of the music on his excellent recent albums shows IMHO.

Having said all that, I have to admit I have found it quite disturbing to hear snippets of Tower of Song whenever I catch a few minutes of a magazine programme or the ads. I sincerely hope that Tower of Song doesn't become the next Hallelujah because of the air time Mr Jones is getting for it.

Wendy

Agree with you Wendy. For my taste, Tom's rendering of Tower of Song works VERY well! Not being subjected to the snippets you mention and sounds as though it's a blessing that I'm not.

I was not sure of Tom's version when I first heard it, but hearing again today on TV I thought it sounded good.
He spoke well of Leonard too. Yes. I liked it.

Mabeanie1 wrote:I may we swimming against the tide here but I like Tom's version of the song. I also like that he's thought about its meaning and most of all I like that he chose a song that meant something to him rather than doing what so many other people do and churning out yet another version of Hallelujah. There is far more to Tom Jones than Delilah and Green Green Grass of Home as the quality of the music on his excellent recent albums shows IMHO.

Having said all that, I have to admit I have found it quite disturbing to hear snippets of Tower of Song whenever I catch a few minutes of a magazine programme or the ads. I sincerely hope that Tower of Song doesn't become the next Hallelujah because of the air time Mr Jones is getting for it.

Wendy

yes - it was good to hear him talk about the meaning he finds in the song at this stage of his life , and his singing is informed by that meaning.i'll give him that !!
Where a singer finds meaning , covers of leonard's songs can be terrific . there are plenty of examples of that .
In some ways the real test is whether the version raises my emotions to the extent that tears emerge ! Always happens when i hear kd laing perform hallelujah.
Especially this version with leonard in the audience

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYiMJ2bC ... re=related

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Andrew Marr is clearly a Cohen fan.
"And here he is, with Leonard Cohen's 'Tower of Song'..." Glad they mentioned Leonard. Not all covers are introduced with acknowledgement of the songwriter.

would tom have been a better choice to represent britain at the eurovision song contest?

i think so - with the right song.

Do you think Tom Jones would have wanted to take part?

Thanks for the link!
I'm also a fan of Tom Jones and especially like his version of Billy Joe Shaver's If I Give My Soul from his Praise and Blame album:
http://youtu.be/ZSKfG9DmOes

I enjoyed the Tom Jones version of 'Tower of Song' and together with his band he seemed to put great emotion in to the performance and arrangement but somehow I doubt that he has been a 'fan' of LC or his music until recently.

Since Hallelujah appeared on the Shrek sound track and covered by many on Youtube etc., and then on major TV talent shows LC has become the flavour of the month and used by some to make them appear more credible. It has also however made LC the stellar star that he has become by many who are drawn to the person who wrote Hallelujah but again know little else about his other songs, a fact that I have witnessed at his concerts and which surprises me that people will pay so much to see an artist they barely know apart from a few songs.

I doubt very much that Tom Jones (and others) would have listened to LC or had any time for his music over most of his career and unlikely to have had any of his material in his record / CD collection.

Unspoken Words wrote:... many who are drawn to the person who wrote Hallelujah but again know little else about his other songs, a fact that I have witnessed at his concerts and which surprises me that people will pay so much to see an artist they barely know apart from a few songs.

That is so true for many other artists as well Unspoken Words. For example, we go to a lot of Van Morrison shows. Van is a fine exponent of R & B in the traditional sense and the music is always excellent with a setlist that usually varies significantly from one show to another. But it sometimes seems that the vast majority of the audience are only there to hear Have I Told You Lately, as featured in the Bridget Jones and, no doubt, numerous other film soundtracks.

I don't think it matters whether Tom Jones is a Leonard Cohen fan, whether he has any of his CDs or how long he has been listening to Leonard's music. The fact is, Tom has found a song which means something to him, which he wanted to perform and to which he has done justice. I regard it as one of the positive results of Leonard's new found stardom.

Wendy

I didn't get to see the clip of Tom Jones discussing Leonard Cohen, but did listen to his version of Tower of Song.

I DO like Tom Jones, a lot. However, I don't like his take on such a wonderful Cohen song.

Just adding my 2 cents here, that's all.

Robin

I wish I had seen this show and heard what Tom had to say about the song. Does anyone have a transcript? I saw him perform Tower of Song on Jools Holland a couple of weeks back and was well impressed by his version. I don't know how to put up the link but it's available on You Tube, search " Tom Jones - Tower of Song (Later with Jools Holland)".

Here it is Sheila.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWnzSCo0mWs