Main content

Sir Tom Jones

Singer Sir Tom Jones joins Kirsty Young to choose eight records he would take with him to a desert island.

Kirsty Young's castaway is the singer Sir Tom Jones.

In a career spanning fifty years he's sold 150 million albums and his hits have included It's Not Unusual, What's New Pussycat? and Delilah. As a child it was assumed he'd follow in his father's footsteps and become a miner. But he developed TB when he was twelve and doctors warned his parents against sending their only son to the pit; they said his lungs were too weak. Now aged seventy, he has no plans to retire. "Singing's like breathing to me", he says, "my voice drives me, it tells me that I have to do it".

Producer: Leanne Buckle

Record: A Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On
Book: The Rise and Fall of the British Empire -Lawrence James
Luxury: A Bucket and Spade.

Available now

45 minutes

Last on

Fri 1 Oct 2010 09:00
大象传媒 Radio 4

More episodes

Previous

Kathy Burke

Next

Johnny Vegas

See all episodes from Desert Island Discs

Music Played

  • Castaway's Favourite

    • Jerry Lee Lewis

      Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On

      • Jerry Lee Lewis: the EP Collection.
      • See for Miles.

  • Vaughn Monroe

    Riders in the Sky

    • The History of Country Music: The Forties: Vol.1.
    • Kenwest.

  • Mahalia Jackson

    The Old Rugged Cross

    • Mahalia Jackson sings the Best-loved Hymns of Dr Martin Luther King Jr..
    • CBS.

  • Bill Haley and His Comets

    Rock Around The Clock

    • 24 Jukebox Hits Of The 50s.
    • Black Tulip.

  • Spike Jones and His City Slickers

    Der Fuehrer's Face

    • The Best of Spike Jones and his City Slickers..
    • RCA.

  • Aretha Franklin

    I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)

    • Aretha Franklin: 30 Greatest Hits.
    • Atlantic.

  • Big Bill Broonzy

    Black, Brown and White

    • Black Brown and White.
    • Mercury.

  • Humphrey Lyttelton

    Bad Penny Blues

    • Time to Remember 1956.
    • EMI.

  • Book Choice

    • The Rise and Fall of the British Empire - Lawrence James

  • Luxury Choice

    • Bucket and Spade

Credits

Presenter Kirsty Young
Interviewed Guest Tom Jones

Broadcasts

  • Sun 26 Sep 2010 11:15
    大象传媒 Radio 4
  • Fri 1 Oct 2010 09:00
    大象传媒 Radio 4

Featured in...

The Desert Island Discs podcast

The Desert Island Discs podcast

Subscribe or download individual episodes.

Listen to over 2,000 programmes

Click above to browse castaways, from 1942 to today.

Articles

Read the surprising things we've learned about some stand-out castaways.

Podcast