Tom Jones - 'Praise And Blame' (Island) Released: 26/07/10

With all the furore surrounding ‘Praise & Blame’, you could have been forgiven for thinking Tom Jones had shaved his beard and gone dubstep. Instead the Welsh crooner has simply followed the respectably laid path of Johnny Cash by recording an album heavy on ruminations surrounding the twin curiosities of religion and mortality.

This is no “sick joke” as David Sharpe, vice-president of Island Records, falsely described the “12 tracks from the common book of prayer [sic]” he heard on a brief walkabout the Island Records office. What would have been faintly ridiculous on this 39th studio album from the world famous tenor, is if he’d reneged on the opportunity afforded by a new contract at a new record label to shift away from the wedding disco friendly fare he’s been peddling for the best part decade.

Not withstanding its bizarre publicity drive though, this stripped back LP of bluesy six-stringed rumblings, scarce percussion and that booming voice doesn’t really amount to the revelatory statement its title promises. Put simply this is a supremely competent record that if anything shies away from pushing a conceptual shift in gears the whole nine yards.

Often when Jones pulls on his new found fire and brimstone moniker, he focuses it through either the third person or tired images of religiosity. That’s not to say the stomp rock of ‘Lord Help’ isn’t carried off with some aplomb but when the Pontypridd born warbler prays for the “motherless children in this land” his call is too vague to pack an emotional punch. The chirpier honky-tonk piano of ‘Strange Things’ provides a neater fit for Tom the preacher who seemingly revels in the prime positioning afforded to his steely pipes throughout the record.

These bellowing vocals are put to particularly spectacular use on ‘Praise & Blame’s’ twin pillars ‘What Good Am I?’ and ‘Ain’t No Grave’. The former’s churning self-psychoanalysis manages to go toe-to-toe with Bob Dylan’s original slim line arrangement and emerge as arguably the Minnesotan troubadour’s superior. The same can’t be said when contrasting the late Johnny Cash’s cover of ‘Ain’t No Grave’, but Jones does as best as could be expected from a man who isn’t staring directly into death’s bleak pupils.

Undoubtedly the most exciting feature of what should be Jones’ best received album since 1999’s ‘Reload’ is the room it leaves for improvement. If Tom does choose to follow the example of “The Man in Black” and serialise this album’s concept, then a more personal effort will prove manna from heaven.