In the whirlwind year of 1965, as the world of music was being reshaped by electrifying new sounds, a powerhouse voice from Wales named Tom Jones exploded onto the scene with his debut album, Along Came Jones. While the world was dancing to his phenomenal hit, “It’s Not Unusual,” a darker, more profound secret was hidden deep within the album’s grooves: the track titled “Strange Things.” This was not just a song; it was a raw, theatrical confession, a haunting exploration of life’s unnerving mysteries that was tragically eclipsed by its more famous counterparts.
For those who only know Jones for his chart-topping successes, “Strange Things” offers a shocking glimpse into the artist at his most vulnerable and expressive. The song opens with a blaring, soulful cry from a horn section, a signature of Jones’s early work, immediately setting a tone of urgency and high drama. It’s a sound that grabs you by the collar and refuses to let go. “We were all stunned in the studio,” remembers retired session guitarist, Arthur Finch, who played on several tracks for the album. “Tom wasn’t just singing the words; he was living them. There was a darkness, a mystery in his voice on that track that you didn’t hear on the radio. He sang about these ‘strange things’ as if a ghost was whispering in his ear. It was chilling, truly chilling.”
The instrumentation is a masterclass in building tension. A relentless, heart-pounding beat from the bass and drums drives the song forward, creating a sense of a fateful march towards the unknown. This solid foundation allows Jones’s legendary baritone to soar and dive, exploring every emotional crevice of the lyrics. He sings of the odd, the surprising, the surreal moments that blindside us in life, and his delivery makes you feel the disquiet and the thrill of it all. His voice, a rare and robust instrument in the pop world of the time, moves from a controlled, rumbling intensity to moments of explosive, heightened emotion, perfectly capturing the song’s perplexing theme.
This dramatic, almost theatrical quality would become a hallmark of Tom Jones’s incredible career, but it was here, in this forgotten gem, that it was arguably at its purest and most unrestrained. The song doesn’t just tell a story; it enacts it. It’s an emotive performance that transforms the listener into a fellow traveler on a journey through the bewildering and often unsettling adventure of life. It’s a powerful reminder that even in the earliest days of his fame, Tom Jones was more than just a singer; he was a master storyteller, capable of conveying the deepest of human feelings. The song remains a potent piece of his legacy, a testament to the passion and raw power that defined him from the very beginning.