Tom Jones and the Panty Problem
Tom Jones in the 1970s.
One fan dressed in a cheerleader’s costume shook her pom-poms and cheered. Tom Jones loved his audience right back with a nonstop set that included the classics, “She’s a Lady,” “Sex Bomb,” and “What’s New Pussycat?,” and songs from his latest album, “24 Hours.”
What’s surprising isn’t that this senior singer is still a sex icon at 69, or that he still has that virile Vegas voice, or that his fans adore him as much now as ever. The real point to ponder is what may now be a growing panty problem.
While the 11-piece band and its full horn section charged on, Mr. Jones, with a well-balanced flick of his foot, swept aside a bright pair of undies that landed in his center-stage dance space. One fan, a grandmother from Peru, admired his “pound and a half” but worried he might trip and fall. Mr. Jones may still be the sexy, chest-baring crooner selling out venues here and abroad, but slipping at this age could mean breaking one of the world’s most famous hips.
The danger seems to be growing, as ladies are trading in their fairy-light thongs and bikinis for underwear with more yardage and heft — big knickers are much better for throwing long distances. Those who didn’t catch on saw their tiny panties fall short of the stage and onto unsuspecting heads. Mr. Jones has likely inspired countless starry-eyed women to toss off their undergarments spontaneously, but these days it looks like those same girls are packing the larger, more tossable sizes of their best lingerie in their handbags.
Nobody needs to worry that Tom Jones is driving middle-aged women to go “commando.” And all the panties, large and small, had been cleared away by the time the house lights came up.
Front page photo of the Warfield Theater concert by QueenDork.
