Sir Tom Jones 'nowhere near' being turned into hologram for gigs

21 July 2023

Sir Tom Jones hopes he’s “nowhere near” being turned into a hologram version of himself for gigs.

Sir Tom Jones hopes he’s ‘nowhere near’ being turned into a hologram version of himself for gigs

The ‘Delilah’ singer, 83, is back performing as part of his new tour, but says he isn’t even thinking of retirement or being projected on stage as Abba have done with their ‘Abbatars’ due to being too old or ill to perform for his fans.

He said when asked by the Metro newspaper if he would like to see an Abba-style hologram show of Tom Jones happen, or his voice used in AI if he lost his voice or was forced to quit showbiz: “I don’t know – hopefully that’s nowhere near! I’m still able to get up there and do it live.

“I don’t know, it's a good question because I’ve never really thought about that. “If people want to see it– like when they put up the film of Elvis and they’d have a live band in front.

“As long as they could see him on the screen it was almost like he was there. It’s a hard call, because if people want to go and see that, then fine.

“If that’s all you've got left of that person and you still want to go and see that, because it’s a film of a person you love, then – I haven’t seen the Abba hologram – I’ve seen it advertised but I haven’t actually seen what it looks like on stage.”

Sir Tom added about his six-decade long career: “I’ve got a very good memory so I can still see things that I did – singing in working men's clubs in Wales, for instance. That was before I came to London, that was 1960-’64. They were fantastic.

“There are many (stand-out moments.) Elvis Presley being the biggest one for me because I was a teenager in the 1950s.

“I was 15 when Rock Around The Clock was released, the first rock'n'roll album. It was life-changing.

“And Elvis was the king of rock’n’roll. I’ve met (Little) Richard, Bill (Haley) Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry, and all those people that I had listened to in the 1950s. I met them and sang with them. It was mind-boggling.

“When you're actually doing it, you’re just full of, ‘Wow, that's great!’

“But when you look back– I see the pictures on my wall, and that’s when I think, ‘My God, is that really me? Standing with Elvis Presley?’