Customer Reviews

This is Tom Jones

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is great fun....and features some brilliant vocals by Tom Jones...who like Elvis was a sex symbol who actually had some powerful pipes! The guest stars are a who's who of the era...well, like the Who, Joe Cocker, Aretha Franklin , Janis Joplin, Little Richard and Stevie Wonder...wow! The comic support by a young Richard Pryor, Pat Paulson, Peter Sellers are wonderful. The quality of the video is very good and Mr Jones spiced the production up with fun intros and a half hour interview from this year. All great stuff...and not lip synched! very edgy versions of some of these tunes and a bit raw and unpolished at times.

Oh..and to the "EXPERT" who reviewed this title months before it came out..
and complained about the 8 times Tom Jones sings "Its Not Unusual"? 6 of em are the same SERIES OPENING...another is a duet with Stevie Wonder ..with Stevie taking the lead and likewise with Aretha Franklin. Tom only performs it ONCE in this set during his "Concert" segment. Seems the "Expert" might benefit from viewing the DVDs he or she reviews.

I wanted to report to the community that I am EXTREMELY disappointed in the This Is Tom Jones DVD set. None of the shows are complete, most are less than half their original running time, one is about 38 minutes, most are about 25 minutes on average, and Tom gives a 1-2 minute introduction to each of the shows as well. The bonus features aren't very exciting either, but I didn't really care about that. It's really disgraceful, I am going to write to Time Life too. I plan to keep the set, mainly because the music clips that are on there are upgrades in quality from what I already had acquired in the collectors circles, and a few I didn't have at all, but I am just so terribly disappointed. If they put out a set like this, it should at least have a warning that the shows are incomplete. I remember fondly watching this show and the Johnny Cash Show with my father when they were first on the air, so they bring back a lot of memories for me, but this set is just a mess, here are the actual running times.

This Is Tom Jones DVD set

Disc 1
2/4/69 Premiere Show 38 minutes
4/18/69 (Show only survives Black & White - 24 minutes)
9/25/70 33 minutes

Bonus Material:
ABC Network promo for the series Premiere 1 minute
Mid-day KATU Portland, Oregon Interview 1969 6 minutes
Tom Tells his Burt Bacharach Story 5 minutes

Disc 2
11/27/69 21 minutes
12/4/69 26 minutes
2/19/70 25 minutes

Disc 3
4/25/69 22 minutes
10/9/70 30 minutes

Bonus Material:
Tom Jones interview, videotaped in Los Angeles February 11, 2007 35 minutes

I got my set from Time-Life ahead of street date. The transfer quality is quite good (the episode with the Who is in black & white--Tom Jones in his intro to the episode says that they don't have a color version of the episode). However, none of the episodes are complete. The initial episode is 38 minutes is the longest of what is on this set. (A 60 minute show in the late 1960's ran approx 47-50 minutes plus commercials) Some of the shows run as short as 20 minutes, which means over half of those episodes are missing footage. (One of the episodes has Glen Campbell's performance absent.) I do enjoy the Tom Jones performanes as well as many of the other musical performances (& it is a delight to see rare footage of Janis Joplin and Crosby Stills Nash & Young), but I would prefer to see the episodes in their entirety. Let's hope future volumes will have complete episodes. Extras include Tom Jones intros, 2 interviews with Jones (from 1969 & a current one), and an ABC promo from 1969 of "new Friday Night shows" (besides Tom Jones, the other two shows were a night-time version of Let's Make A Deal and a game show called The Generation Gap which lasted all of 3 months).

Back in the good ol' days of TV, critics and viewers would say How come Milton Berles' gotta be in every scene? Comedy to him was an uncontrollable impulse - we appreciate and understand that today. Years later, on This Is Tom Jones, folks remarked that he was too dominant on the medleys done with guests - yeah, he shoulda laid back just a taste in harmony mode not in call-and-response mode. But how can you contain a guy whose love of music, whose artistic exuberance defied all laws of physics. Forgot to add, the man who brought Opera to Pop, or at least continued the tradition started by Jackie Wilson, Roy Orbison, and Jay Black. (Elvis Presley had his moments, too, in this endeavour). They really could have saved on amplification.
For years me and a good buddy ruminated on the great void created by *zero* VHS representation of the super-dude from Wales. Well, it's happening now, and upon reflectioon, it's fantastic that the medium of DVD has captured it.
Here we go, with Part Two. The show itself is flawless, all aspects Emmy-worthy. The audio and video chromatics are spectacular. Technical direction is a lesson to those "youngers" with the hyperactive edit command. Keep three cameras rolling and....guess what? Point a lens at that big blon' babe in the second row. {Sexist, yeah, yeah.....).
This package has many highlights: for the unitiated, beyond-belief renditions of "You'll Never Walk Alone" and "It's A Man's, Man's Man's World" [finale mini-concert pieces]; a time-capsule encounter with a 34 year-old "Killer" [aka JLL] - and maybe the best "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" you've ever heard by this Sun Records originator. Jones' admiration for the Ferriday Fireball is obvious.
Seems that the producers focused heavily on those names which have obviously time-traveled well: Sammy Davis, Jr. [what an incredible impression of Billy Eckstine!]; Tony Bennett; Liza Minelli; Pat Cooper; Jerry Lee Lewis; Johnny Cash.
The great Bobby Darin is in a folky mood, in a pre-Springsteen era denim outfit, looking relaxed as "Bob Darin". He does a nice solo shot playing a typical-for-the-time introspective beat ballad - it's okay - wonder what a duet on "Dream Lover" might have sounded like, though.
Diahann Carroll is absolutely stunning - all she had to do was stand in the spotlight for three minutes and no one would have objected, but she does a nice arrangement of "Traces"/"You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling".
Comedy relief by the Ace Trucking Company, sporadically hilarious, with one thud; David Steinberg - apparently found his niche as big-time Producer. At this time he was lower than low-key "hip" comedian for the Woodstock generation - minus zero mirth content.

I can't wait til VOL. 2 is released! The title of this E-mail says it all - WORTH WAITING FOR ALL THESE YEARS! I saw Tom Jones live the first time when I was 14...just saw him again at the MGM GRAND in Vegas for my 30th wedding anniversary last March...with my husband, of course...I am so thrilled to see the TV show released on DVD! My 82 yr old Mom is also enjoying the DVD and gives it 5 stars as well! She and I are both avid fans - and so was my Grandmother!
Inese and Mom (Nelda) in Williamsburg, VA

This is one of the COOLEST packaged dvd sets I've ever seen. Comes with a fabulous booklet. The shows are in pristine quality. Some amazing performances by Tom and the guest artists. I would say 90-95% of the performances are live (at least live vocals). Lets hope for a volume two...and three...and four!

Truth be told, I ordered this set for my wife who is a life-long, panty throwing fan of Mr. Jones. She, of course, was all a quiver over the set and really enjoyed it. I was surprised, though, by how much I enjoyed seeing these gems from the 60's. We both remarked at how much we miss the variety show format, once a TV staple, and this is a good way to revisit those good times. Tom is in his prime and displays his full vocal talents (just check out his rendition of, "Danny Boy," at the close of show #1). The guest list is impressive as well and gives you the chance to see stars like The Who, Richard Prior, etc. in the early stages of their careers. If you pine for the 60's, are a TJ fan or just miss the variety show venue, you should enjoy this DVD set.

I was born in 1967 and unfortunately too young to remember the phenomenon of Sir Tom's reign in the 60's-70's-- although my mom told me I would jump up and down & cry "Tojo, Tojo!" in my crib at the sound of "Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Tom Jones" intro. She put me in front of the TV to watch the show and I was, in her words, in a trance! I have been a fan since my youth and was teased for it many times by my peers. Now, he gets his props! I played my copy of the "This is Tom Jones" LP non-stop and purchased many of his records and CDS. This collection was a "must-have"! Omissions of some hits only confirm that there will be more volumes to come....its says it on the back cover of the box and it was stated in an interview with Paul Brownstein. Tom owns the rights to his show and will come through for his fans, folks! Sexuality aside, Tom Jones is an amazing singer- HIS VOICE is incompararble! A true living legend. Even Elvis admired him and praised his talents! I am a proud fan! I was very grateful and excited to see his show, and I really don't care that it is not "complete". For those concerned or bothered by this let me tell you that the "cuts" are quite subtle. They don't chop songs midsentence! Glen Campbell was only an intro to Tom's version of his song. Look. I am happy to be able to see Tom's youthful, affable, and amazingly vibrant performances at last!!! Yep! I still am entranced! I select the "Tom's songs only" option from the menu most of the time and skip the rest....however, I have to admit it is terrific to experience the 60's rock scene through this venue. Never really heard Joplin until this DVD and was blown away! Fab-u-lous! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Tom and Time-Life!! I can't wait for the next volume! If you are a Tom Jones fan, you will LOVE this DVD set without a doubt!!!!! Don't miss out!!!!!

Was so excited when I ordered these, but was disappointed after viewing! The credits on several episodes list performers that are to be on the shows, then they do not appear! Whats with this? It spoiled the entire disc!

I am pleased I own this latest DVD set. Tom sings a few incredible songs...."I Can't Stop Loving You", "You'll Never Walk Alone", "Without Love", "I Who Have Nothing" and "Mr. Bojangles" while Sammy Davis dances behind him!

The sound and picture quality was not as good as I expected. I give those two items 3 stars..."average". Tom's vocal abilities were incredible. This is an easy DVD set to review. If you are a life long Tom Jones fan...this is a must purchase.

I am hopeful they release at least one more DVD set from his old TV series....so that I can watch him sing "I'm Coming Home" one more time....before I die myself! He sang it on that show but they have not included it in the previous three DVD sets they have already released?

Hey Tom....give us old "ballad fans" what we all want! You singing the best ballads of your career at the top of your (vocal) career!