Arise Sir Tom Jones

From the Welsh town of Pontypridd to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, from selling vacuum cleaners door-to-door to sell-out Las Vegas shows, Tom Jones is Britain's best-loved singer-songwriter. Having recently received the ultimate accolade - a knighthood from the Queen - this comprehensive biography celebrates Tom's remarkable career and reveals the man behind the icon. In his time Tom has tried his hand at pop, rock, country, big band, dance and jazz - and he's still going strong today. As a child he regularly sang at family gatherings and his mother's Women's Guild meetings, and by the late 1950s had become entranced by the rock'n'roll on his radio. But he soon became something of a tear away, missing school, drinking and chasing girls. Celebrity biographer Gwen Russell traces Tom's phenomenal journey from his first South Wales gigs as an unsigned front man to his breakthrough hit "It's Not Unusual" and beyond to his superstardom as the voice behind "What's New Pussycat", "Delilah"and "She's a Lady". But it has not all been plain sailing for the legendary Grammy- and Brit Award-winning entertainer whose shows are renowned for knicker-hurling frenzies. Tom was struck down by tuberculosis and bed-ridden for almost a year; he has had affairs; lost his long-time manager to cancer; and ridden the quiet times in his career to come out on top. This informative and affectionate account is based on Tom's own memories and recollections from famous friends, relatives and contemporaries. It paints a complete portrait of one of Britain's most talented men; a true national treasure.