Tom Jones has long been regarded as the British answer to Elvis Presley, and now it would appear the boy from the valleys is dating the King of rock n’ roll’s ex-wife Priscilla Presley.
Although the relationship is in the early stages, reports suggest that the woman who captured Elvis’s heart, is helping to put a smile back on the Welsh singer’s face after his wife and childhood sweetheart Linda passed away last year.
Before his death on August 16, 1977, at the age of 42, Elvis Presley was a close buddy of Sir Tom, whose 50-year career began way back in the swinging sixties when he rocketed to fame on the back of such classics as “It’s Not Unusual” and “What’s New Pussycat.”
As a teenager growing up in the South Wales Valleys, Tom was a massive fan of Presley and used to tell friends that he would meet the King of rock n’ roll one day.
[Image by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images]
It wasn’t just an idle boast. One fateful day in 1965 Tom found himself on the lot of Hollywood’s Paramount Studios, at Presley’s request.
“Presley starts walking towards me and begins singing my new single (‘With These Hands’). He said to me, ‘How the hell do you sing like that?’ And I said, ‘Listening to you, for one thing’ — and Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Mahalia Jackson, and things that he was influenced by. He said, ‘Yeah, but I was brought up there. I went to black gospel churches. Is there anything like that in Wales?’ I said, ‘No, I was listening to it all on the radio.’ Like all of us did in Britain.”
Elvis revealed to Tom that prior to meeting him he thought that a man with such a soulful voice had to be black.
“He asked me: ‘Do all people sing like that in Wales?’ He said, ‘When I heard ‘What’s New Pussycat’ I thought it was a black fella singing it’.”
“I think he was the only person I’ve spoken to who felt the same way about music as myself, as far as versatility is concerned. Because he loved ballads, as well as rock and roll, he loved Gospel, he loved pop. And we would sit in the suite and talk about music and we would sing. He felt that I was the closest thing to him; I had a similar approach. My stage presence was very similar to his.”
Jones recalls that Priscilla in particular greatly approved of his and her husband’s relationship, revealing how happy it made Elvis.
“Priscilla, told me that when Elvis and I were together he seemed to be a different person, much happier in himself. We spent some time in Hawaii together, just sitting side by side playing guitar and singing.”
“With no one else around. We were like two kids, best friends, doing what they do best. We would sit and jam all through the night.”
[Image by Keystone/Getty Images]
Fate, as they say, is a strange things, and now all these years later it would appear Priscilla and Tom are finding comfort and happiness in one another’s arms.
A source said, “Tom has had a tough year following the death of Linda, but he has enjoyed Priscilla’s company.”
“They have been seen out in Hollywood and although it is early days they are taking each one as it comes.”
Voice UK coach Sir Tom has revealed, “We have been friends for a long time. She’s a lovely lady. We do enjoy our nights out together.”
In January Tom and Priscilla were seen arriving at Hollywood’s trendy Craig’s eatery together. In a bizarre twist of fate, when Sir Tom stepped out of his White Rolls Royce he was spotted wearing blue suede shoes.
[Featured Image by Hulton Archive/Getty Images]
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