'Sir Jones the Voice'

Like the funeral director in the Welsh Valleys is commonly known as "Dai the Death", Tom is affectionately known by his compatriots as "Jones the Voice", until recently this was probably the best accolade for his services to music.

Today probably one of his biggest, but most discreet fans, Queen Elizabeth, conferred a much deserved knighthood on 65 year old Tom Jones. It has been a pity for his followers in his homeland that over the years Tom was compelled to carve out his career abroad, mainly in Las Vegas. During his formative years consecutive myopic governments saught to tax the shirt off his back which his fans eagerly craved to remove with their teeth.

Tom Jones was not the only tax exile of his generation, Rod Stewart and Eric Clapton are but two others that have set up camp in the United States. The tax exile I'm sure turned into a genuine preference to be in sunnier climes which are also much more conducive to generating multi-million dollar careers. The Beatles moved out when they were paying nineteen shillings and sixpence out of every pound in taxes (that's 97cents on the dollar). So all in all the UK tax man has done many musicians, actors, artists and entrepreneurs a favor. Wouldn't it have been better to have had 20% of something rather than 97% of eff all! Aren't politicians great?

Subsequent governments, particularly Maggie's, started to relax things in the artists favor, but sadly as I said before, the US is a much better place for them to make the Big Bucks. The Talent and Brain Drain is still very much alive and well, inhabiting the old colony.