“Even At 84, Tom Jones Commands The Stage Like No Other.” From The Moment He Stepped Into The Spotlight At Chepstow, The Crowd Of Nearly 40,000 Was Captivated—Singing Every Iconic Hit, Laughing, Crying, And Swaying To The Rhythm Of A Legend Who Refuses To Fade. His Voice, Still Powerful And Full Of Soul, Carried Across The Stadium, Filling Hearts With Nostalgia And Awe. The Women In The Audience Were Mesmerized, The Men Cheered Loudly, And Every Fan Felt The Magic Of Seeing A True Icon Live. By The Final Encore, The Crowd Was On Their Feet, Applauding, Cheering, And Witnessing A Moment That Felt Almost Timeless—A Celebration Of Music, Passion, And A Life Dedicated To The Stage.

Summer Sessions, founded in 2013 by DF Concerts, debuted in Wales last year and remains at Chepstow Racecourse for 2024. Saturday, the second of three sessions, saw Tom Jones headlining with support from Billy Ocean, Gabrielle and Midlands-based soul band Stone Foundation opening the show. They sounded good but, though the gates were unlocked at 4pm, it took until 5.30 to get inside, so many people didn’t get to see them.

All acts came on stage promptly with minimal waiting time. Gabrielle (and her backing singers) put on an energetic performance designed to liven everyone up, and Billy Ocean looked fabulous in a burgundy suit and dreadlocks. He got people singing with old hits such as When The Going Gets Tough…, Love Really Hurts Without You and Caribbean Queen, his voice just as rich as it always was.

But it was when Tom Jones took to the stage that the whole audience stood and cheered, and the bar – set high from the start – went up a few notches. Sir Tom began with the poignant Bobby Cole song I’m Growing Old, before taking us back to 1965 with It’s Not Unusual and What’s New Pussycat? Delilah went down a storm, as did the reference to the politician who tried to ban it, and a highlight of the evening was the Radiohead-esq Talking Reality Television Blues from Jones’ 41st studio album Surrounded By Time.

Tom Jones live at Chepstow Summer Sessions

Of course, he threw in a few of his personal favourites, also from the album. During Bob Dylan’s One More Cup Of Coffee the crowd began intermittently cheering, though not for the song or its rendition: a pair of oversized pink bloomers were being thrown forward across the arena, alas never to reach the stage.

Between songs, the headliner – backed by an outstanding group of musicians – chatted to the 30K-strong crowd, reinforcing that he’s just a Valleys boy, still in awe after meeting Elvis. The sound quality at the venue was second to none, though the same couldn’t be said about the sanitation – within an hour the toilets had stopped flushing and there was no water for handwashing – but at least the rain held off.

During the two-hour set, Tom’s powerful and distinctive voice didn’t falter, and if it hadn’t been for his own references to his 84 years (and the huge screens projecting his image), you could imagine a much younger man on stage. The evening ended on a high, with Chuck Berry’s Johnny B Goode as an encore and the audience still on their feet and dancing.