Live4MusiC

(week starting 12th July)

Rock & Pop

• Orianthi - Believe II
• Avenged Sevenfold - Nightmare
• Eliza Doolittle - Eliza Doolittle
• Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse - Dark Night Of The Soul
• The Like - Release Me
• OST - Step Up 3D
• OCR - December Rain
  
  Jazz & Classical
• Tom Jones - Praise & Blame
  
  Dance & Urban
• Incognito - Transatlantic RPM
  
  Asian Pop
• Ayaka Hirahara - My Classics 2
• After School - Bang
• Orange Caramel - 1st Mini Album
• Jacky Cheung 張學友 - Private Corner Mini Concert

Tom Jones has revealed that his new album 'Praise And Blame' is ahead of Eminem's 'Recovery' in the UK albums chart today (July 27) – and has said he'd like to collaborate with him.

The Welsh singer's spokesperson revealed that the album is currently outselling 'Recovery' and is in the provisional Number One slot after being released yesterday (July 26).

"I couldn't be more proud of this album and I'm really blown away by the response from everyone," Jonessaid. "It's great to be top of the charts with Eminem, maybe next time we could be top together."

If Jones' album stays at the top spot on Sunday he will, at 70, become the oldest male musician to have a UK Number One album. The current holder is Bob Dylan, who hit the top spot last year aged 67 with'Together Through Life'.

- NME 

What: Engelbert Humperdinck's Legacy Of Love World Tour

Where: Singapore Indoor Stadium

When: Last Thursday

Attendance: 5,000

TOM Jones must be writhing in absolute annoyance.

Not only did his archrival, Engelbert Humperdinck, take to the stage last Thursday (an ill Jones was forced to cancel not once but twice on his Singapore audience in March) at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, but the 74-year-old also absolutely rocked it.

Heck, the guy - who last played a sold-out show here in 2006 - even has a talent for making corny jokes actually funny.

"Can you believe I've been doing this for four years?" joked Humperdinck (real name Arnold George Dorsey) to his full house after turning out classics like Can't Take My Eyes Off You (off the album Man Without Love, released in 1968).

"Actually, I've been doing this for 44 years," said the man, who has sold over 150 million albums worldwide.

But don't think that Humperdinck is content with his success, which includes many a gold- and platinum-selling album.

At his show, he also announced the release of a new single entitled Tell Me Where It Hurts, a heartrending ballad scheduled for release on iTunes on Wednesday, proving that the King of Romance just won't quit.

But I guess that makes sense, for, at his show, Humperdinck was a fountain of youthful energy who could dance with all the pizazz of a 20-year-old. His personality, too, was vibrant and youthful. And, man, can he turn on the charm.

During the song You Don't Know Me, he pulled an audience member onto the stage and directed that inimitable charm right at her.

She looked like she was ready to rip her shirt off for him, right in front of the crowd.

It's clear that his music gives him his mojo, and he knows it.

However, Humperdinck makes it clear he won't stand for being slapped with the "crooner" tag, even though he's put out ballads like The Way It Used To Be and After The Lovin'.

He insists on being referred to as a "contemporary singer", he said.

"No crooner has the range I have," boasted Humperdinck before leaving the stage.

"I can hit notes a bank couldn't cash."

Eat your heart out, Tom Jones.

myp@sph.com.sg MyPaper

WELSH singing veteran Tom Jones again cancelled his show at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) last night - this time for good. And it was no April Fool's Day joke.

After cancelling the original show last Friday because his voice apparently gave out on him after he performed two songs, the 69-year-old singer rested at the InterContinental Singapore and was rescheduled to perform last night.

He was subsequently diagnosed with acute laryngitis.

But the doctors attending to him in Singapore advised him against carrying on with the show as he 'could risk serious permanent damage to his vocal cords'.

At 3.26pm, five hours before the concert was scheduled to start, RWS issued a statement to the media announcing the cancellation of the concert and that full refunds would be given.

RWS and ticketing agent Sistic tried to contact some 4,000 ticket holders via telephone, SMS, e-mail, and notices on the RWS and official Tom Jones websites.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.

AN IRATE Indonesian concert-goer - one of the 4,000 disappointed by singer Tom Jones' walkout last Friday - has issued a letter demanding compensation from the veteran singer and concert organiser Resorts World Sentosa (RWS).

Mr Hotman Paris Hutapea, 50, a litigation lawyer and founder of law firm Hotman Paris & Partners in Jakarta, wrote that his firm is preparing to file a civil suit against RWS, its agent in Indonesia and the singer.

He is also seeking compensation for his and his friend's expenses on flight, accommodation and transportation, and punitive damages of US$2 million (S$2.8 million).

He and his friend each bought a $368 concert ticket. He paid $540 for flights for both of them, and stayed two nights at the Mandarin Orchard Singapore.

Jones, 69, had cut short his gig after singing two songs. A specialist later diagnosed him with acute laryngitis, or inflammation of the voice box.

The gig has been rescheduled for 8pm tomorrow at RWS. Those who cannot attend can get a refund at the Singapore Indoor Stadium's Sistic box office.

Mr Hutapea will not be able to make it as he had to fly back to Jakarta on Sunday to prepare for work on Monday.

He told my paper he was filing a civil suit because he wanted to teach the singer and the concert organisers "a lesson".

He was incensed at the way the concert ended abruptly, especially since he had postponed a meeting last Friday to fly specially to Singapore to catch the gig.

He said: "Tom Jones simply said a few words and left.

"It was very impolite and disrespectful. The organisers also didn't even come on stage to comment or apologise.

"I was very frustrated and disappointed with how they managed it.

"The issue isn't the money... I have a moral obligation to tell other people what happened."

He said that he would file the lawsuit in Jakarta next week, regardless of whether the singer or RWS responds to his letter.

RWS is looking into the matter, and has referred the case to its legal department, its spokesman said.

Concert organisers and lawyers said yesterday that such lawsuits are rare.

Mr Ross Knudsen, director of concert promoter LAMC Productions, said that a concert promoter is obliged to refund concert- goers only the cost of the tickets, or reschedule the show.

In this case, RWS and Jones are making a good effort to accommodate the fans, he said.

"I'm sure Tom Jones felt really bad about it and, to his credit, he is staying on in Singapore to redo the show. A lot of artists wouldn't do that, they would just get on the plane and come back next year," he said.

Mr Jispal Singh, a lawyer who has specialised in litigation for more than 10 years, said that he does not think Mr Hutapea has a strong case.

"Usually, the terms and conditions are all stated on the ticket. So, if the conditions for cancellation fall within them, he has no case," he said.

A Singapore litigation lawyer, who declined to be named, said that Mr Hutapea might succeed in claiming his expenses if he could prove that the concert's postponement was a breach of contract, that the terms and conditions did not limit damages to just the value of the tickets, and that the expenses resulted directly from the postponement.

- My Paper

WHOSE fault is it when an artist cancels a gig?

That was the question on the minds of the confused audience at the Tom Jones gig last Friday night.

Though British crooner Engelbert Humperdinck must have been rubbing his hands with glee when his rumoured long-time rival pulled the plug just two songs in, claiming that he wasn't feeling well, the audience was left dumbfounded.

Why, why, why, some concert- goers jokingly began singing in a nod to the guy's 1968 hit Delilah. And unlike his other 1965 smash, the situation was, to put it simply, highly unusual.

Later, the singer's camp revealed that Mr Sex Bomb himself was suffering from acute laryngitis.

Now, this is not the first time an artist has pulled out of a show on little or no notice, and it certainly won't be the last. Back in 1996, American alt-rockers Smashing Pumpkins cut short a gig here because of technical difficulties and frontman Billy Corgan being unwell.

Powerhouse diva Mariah Carey, too, called off a 2003 concert here in the aftermath of the Sars crisis, less than a month before it was scheduled to take place. She promised to reschedule the concert, but has yet to deliver on that promise.

Janet Jackson, on the other hand, finally performed here in 1995, after postponing shows almost a year earlier.

And who could forget Kylie Minogue, who cancelled her first gig in Singapore in 2005, a month in advance? The singer had been diagnosed with breast cancer then, which she beat. She played her first Singapore show in 2008.

And, in January, mega rockers The Killers bailed just days before their Asian and Australian tours, due to "a serious illness of a close family member".

Fans were incensed.

As for Sir Tom, his track record has not exactly been stellar.

Last year, he was forced to scrap a string of United States tour dates when he contracted bronchitis.

But, while there's no denying that last Friday's turn of events left fans disappointed (not to mention inconvenienced, especially for those who'd flown in for the gig), the question of where the blame lies is unclear.

Can the man - at 69 years of age, mind you - really be faulted for falling ill?

Sure, he could have made the decision to postpone his gig a little earlier, when he felt unwell.

That, at least, would have saved his loyal fans the trouble of travelling to the event venue with high hopes of a rockin' concert.

But, hey, we can't say he didn't try, managing to belt out two songs before he stopped the show. By choosing to put off the gig, he avoided straining himself further - and robbing attendees of their money's worth.

What's the point of giving fans a half-hearted concert, right?

Plus, the guy has quickly made good on his promise to reschedule, and will take to the stage on Thursday to, hopefully, make up for the trouble.

And it's unlikely that the concert organiser, RWS, is to blame either. After all, it had received no indication that the singer was unwell and could not have foreseen the postponement.

Perhaps, in the end, it is up to concert-goers to make exceptions - and perhaps be a little more understanding - when it comes to circumstances beyond the control of event organisers and even, in some cases, the artists themselves.

For now, let's just hope for the sake of the concert-goers still willing to go to Jones' gig, that the singer manages to recuperate before Thursday's show.

- My Paper (Victoria Barker)

“I don’t really want to stop the show/but I thought you might like to know...” - Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles

IT WAS to be a night to remember. And it was. But for all the wrong reasons.

 

I was quite happy to be at the Tom Jones gig because the last time I saw him, he did a powerhouse show. I mean, I don’t care much for his sappy stuff like Green Green Grass Of Home or Delilah, but Thunderballand his versions of Kiss, Momma Told Me Not To Come, You Can Leave Your Hat On and Sex Bomb were fairly fun.

So there we were all happy campers when he comes out slinging withSugar Daddy and then moves on to Give A Little Love. Then he says, “I’m sorry to do this, but I have a slight problem with *hack hack*…My voice isn’t good and I can’t continue, I hope we can do this some time soon. Sorry.” Then he turns and walks off stage. Quickly followed by his musicians. A little too quickly. Hmm. Was it all staged?

Meanwhile the audience, thinking it’s a joke start singing Delilah and saying stuff like, “Yeah, right” or “Come on back”. Then the house lights go on, and send-you-home music is played. Then people start looking confused. One lady walks up to a security guard saying, “Is this for real?”

An official hurriedly assures us that he’ll get to the root of the matter. Although he also says, “I don’t even know what’s going on.”

Funnily enough, just a couple of weeks ago, Tom Jones told me, da Abang, that he always took care not to lose his voice. It happened before in Germany and Las Vegas. Then he said, “Oh, but Singapore’s pretty humid, so it shouldn’t be a problem.” If Alanis Morissette was here, she would have burst into song, “Isn’t it ironic?”

Of course, he was in Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur before coming here, and maybe he strained himself too much, you know? So who knows? Any conspiracy theories???

In the history of short gigs in Singapore, this takes the prize. Normally, artistes cancel the concert before they start singing or before they come here, like The Killers. The last time a gig was cancelled after it started was, what, Smashing Pumpkins? They stopped the show 45 minutes in and walked out.

Meanwhile other audience members are asking not only for their money back but also for to be compensated for their hotel stay, etc, because quite a few of them have flown in from overseas to see his gig.

“Will there be a refund?” asks one ang moh expat lady. “Because next week is a holiday week and many of us won’t be here.”

“There will be a refund,” says the rep.

“A full refund?” asks the AMEL.

“Yes.”

“Are we getting anything else on top of the refund?” Hmm, lady, are you sure you’re not Singaporean? Have you been living here too long?

Anyway, shocked and frazzled Resorts World staff are doing their best to make sure the crowd leaves in an orderly and that they don’t suddenly put on red tees and start screaming for the government to step down. But they comply. Nicely, too. Although, yes, they soon lament to whoever will listen.

Someone who missed Tom Jones’ last gig here – and brought her mum along too – was sorely disappointed. “I guess I’ll have to go home and listen to his greatest hits,” she said.

A couple spent $400 for their tickets and were pretty bummed out, although they later admitted they’d already seen him in Las Vegas.

“I thought it was a joke at first. But everyone has sick days. But I was proud of the audience reaction. They were very nice about the fact that the concert was cancelled,” said Alicia Waters, Australian, living in Singapore, didn’t ask for anything other than a ticket refund.

For Alicia’s friends Nadiaand Sue, who had brought panties and flags to be thrown, the night was a disappointment. “I’ve never seen a Tom Jones concert,” she says.

“I still haven’t seen a Tom Jones concert,” quips one of her friends.

“Look at it on the bright side,” said another concertgoer. “At least you got to see two songs for free.”

True true. Oh well, another time perhaps. As long we keep our ticket stubs.

For more information on refunds and other cool things pertaining to the Tom Jones gig that wasn’t, visit the Resorts World website:http://www.rwsentosa.com.

- Poparazzi