The Welsh Singer That Elvis Presley Had To Meet To Ask: “How the Hell Do You Sing Like That?”

For someone with as regal a title as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” Elvis Presley was surprisingly demure when meeting fellow musicians. Those who saw him offstage often commented on how complimentary, sensitive, and receptive Presley was, including Welsh singer Tom Jones, who met Presley in the mid-1960s.

Videos by American Songwriter

By that time, Jones had only three records to his name: “It’s Not Unusual”, “What’s New Pussycat?”, and “With These Hands”. Nevertheless, when Jones arrived at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles one fateful day in 1965, Presley made sure to arrange a meeting. “I was knocked sideways,” Jones recalled during an appearance on TFI Friday. “Growing up in the 50s, I was a teenager in the 50s, Elvis, you know, was the one.”

One can only imagine what was going through Jones’ mind as he prepared to meet his musical idol from childhood, but we’d wager that there were at least a few nervous butterflies fluttering around in his stomach. But if there were any lingering worries when the musicians approached one another, Presley’s actions likely dissipated them.

Elvis Presley Approached Tom Jones, Singing His Song

When you’re deep in the throes of feeling starstruck toward someone else, it’s easy to belittle your own value in any interactions you may have with that person. But Tom Jones had no time to assume that Elvis Presley was doing him a favor. As the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll approached the up-and-coming singer, he was singing Jones’ ballad, “With These Hands”. Jones said he felt “tremendous” hearing Presley singing his song. “It was unbelievable. He knew the words.”

As if that weren’t exciting enough, one of the first things Presley asked Jones when he stopped singing was, “How the hell do you sing like that?” He recalled while on Des O’Connor Tonight. “I said, ‘Well, coming from you, I mean, that is a compliment because, you know, you were one of the reasons that I do. So, we struck up a friendship.”

The musicians’ mutual admiration for one another didn’t stop there. During his TFI Friday appearance, Jones confirmed that Presley often used Jones’ record, “Delilah”, to warm up his vocals. Presley believed that if he could sing along with Jones all the way through, then he was primed and ready to go for the stage.

Presley even went to watch Jones perform in Las Vegas before he would become a Sin City staple himself. “He came to watch me work and told me, ‘Look, I’ve come to see you work because I want to see what you do.’ He felt that we were similar.”

Jones and Presley’s long-time friendship is a beautiful reminder of the cyclical nature of music, which has often turned starstruck-ness into a two-way street, allowing teachers to become students and vice versa.

Photo by Liaison