Introduction
Tom and Linda’s bond began in their hometown of Pontypridd, South Wales, where they met as children and later became high school sweethearts.
Their journey together started early: they got married in 1957 when they were both just 16 and Linda was eight months pregnant with their son, Mark.
To support his young family, Jones worked in construction while chasing his dream of singing at night. He credits that tough upbringing for his success, saying:
“If you can get over in a Welsh coal-mining working-man’s club, you don’t have to worry about the Copacabana… Because you got to be able to sing in order to get up in front of these people.”
Theirs was a complex marriage that survived the stormy years of Tom’s worldwide fame and the widely publicized infidelities he confessed to having while on tour.
Despite his betrayals, Tom always maintained that Linda was the love of his life and that she remained his anchor.
Tom says that because of their deep history, he can never marry anyone else: “I couldn’t, because there’s no history with anybody else.”
Even after Tom became a superstar and was friends with people like Elvis Presley, Linda was his rock—the only person who could keep him in line.
She would tell him:
“I married Thomas Woodward (Jones’ real name), so don’t try that Tom Jones bulls— with me.”
When Linda was sick, Tom canceled his tour. He told her he wasn’t sure if he could sing anymore. But Linda said:
“You’ve got to… There’s no way out for me, I know where I’m going. But don’t die with me.”
After she died, Tom felt lost:
“Who is going to save me from myself now?”
He says he almost quit singing entirely:
“I almost packed it in. I didn’t think I could sing anymore because you can’t get too emotional when you sing because your voice won’t come out.”
With the help of his son, Mark (now his manager), and a therapist, he found the strength to sing again by performing Bob Dylan’s “What Good Am I?”
He says performing that song made him think of his wife and whether he could have changed anything.
But he got through it: “I got some musician friends together in a hotel room, and I sang it. I got through it.”
He tells them how to handle deep feelings on stage: “You take the emotion and then you work it into the song, get it through, but don’t get too involved with it because then you’ll cry and you won’t be able to sing.”
In his remarkable six-decade career, Sir Tom Jones has sold over 100 million records worldwide, with hits like “It’s Not Unusual,” “Delilah,” and “Sex Bomb.” By continuing to sing and share his story, he is living proof of Linda’s final, loving command.
By continuing to sing and share his story, Sir Tom Jones is living proof of Linda’s final, loving command.
Their love was a beautiful, complicated journey—the ultimate anchor through life’s storms.
Her love is still the light that guides him, allowing him to face each day and sing for an audience of millions.
Their bond was so strong, so rooted in shared history and deep understanding, that it didn’t end with Tom’s infidelities. And it didn’t end with Linda’s death.
>We Are Human Angels<
Authors
Awakening the Human Spirit
We are the authors of ‘We Are Human Angels,’ the book that has spread a new vision of the human experience and has been spontaneously translated into 14 languages by readers.
We hope our writing sparks something in you!