Sir Tom Jones is a Welsh-born singer with a career spanning almost half a century. He’s best known for his hits like “What’s New, Pussycat?” “It’s Not Unusual,” and “Green, Green Grass of Home” from the 1960s. He married his high-school sweetheart, Melinda “Linda” Trenchard, in 1957, and had their only child together that same year. [1] They moved to the U.S. in the late 60s and bought Dean Martin’s mansion. However, after 59 years of marriage, Linda passed away, and Jones moved out, unable to continue living there without her.
“Don’t die with me”
Tom Jones, now 83 years old, is still going strong. The music legend is coaching on The Voice UK and just released his new album, Surrounded by Time. This release marked the end of his five-year break from recording music, the longest hiatus in his career. But it was for a very tragic reason: His wife of 59 years, Linda, died in 2016 from lung cancer.
“When we found out she was sick, I canceled the tour I was on and went to visit her in the hospital in Los Angeles. I told her I wasn’t sure if I would be able to sing anymore,” Jones said. “But she told me, ‘You’ve got to. There’s no way out for me, I know where I’m going. But don’t die with me.'” [2]
However, five years later, the grief remains fresh. The couple had met at age 12, started dating at 15, and got married when they were 16, after they realized Linda was pregnant with their son, Mark. They have done everything together ever since. “I was asked the other day, ‘Would you ever get married again?'” said Jones. “I couldn’t, because there’s no history with anybody else.”
When they were teenage lovebirds, they would meet at a phone box at the end of Tom’s street “because it would be raining — in Wales it rains quite a lot,” he said. “And we were so wrapped up in one another it’s unbelievable.” Eventually, Jones moved that very phone box into their home in Los Angeles.
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Tom Jones’s Former Mansion in Los Angeles
This Beverly Hills Mansion was listed for $8,000,000 and it included 8,146 square feet, five bedrooms, and seven bathrooms. Tom Jones had bought the property in 19998 for $2.65 million. The couple had felt homesick for the UK so they, namely Linda, decorated the place to look like their old home overseas. The massive foyer holds a huge skylight, a curved staircase, and travertine floors. The main living and entertaining spaces have polished hardwood floors with animal print accents on lampshades, rugs, furniture, and pillows. Meanwhile, the library and office is lined with bookcases from the ceiling to the floor. The dining room — which has French doors and leopard print chairs — adjoins the family and media room, which has a wet bar, fireplace, and a drop-down screen with an advanced projector.
On the second floor, three guest bedrooms have private bathrooms and walk-in closets. Meanwhile, the master suite includes a large bedroom, a sitting area complete with a fireplace, two bathrooms, two dressing rooms, and several balconies with stunning views of the surrounding city, mountains, and canyons. An elevator visits every floor, including the basement with staff bedrooms and laundry appliances.
Outside the living room is a covered porch overlooking the courtyard with a fountain, sculptures, and palm trees. In the back of the mansion, French doors open to the spa, swimming pool, and large lawn of green grass. [3]
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“I think love conquers all”
After Linda’s death, Tom moved back to the UK and sold the house because he “didn’t feel comfortable there any more.” Sadly, he returned to Britain alone, as Tom admitted, “She wanted to come back to Britain, she was always homesick. Then she got sick and we couldn’t do it. She told me to go back the last week she was alive. She told me to get a flat in London. She would have loved to have come back but we left it too late.”
When Tom Jones sold this house, he sold it with all of the decor, explaining that most of it wouldn’t have fit into his new apartment anyway. [4] The couple had tried to have more children, but Linda suffered from a miscarriage that left her infertile. Later in life, she began to isolate in their home where she struggled with emphysema and depression. Nevertheless, Tom Jones said that she was always the most important person in his life.
“We love one another,” he said. “I think love conquers all and it’s the truth. And a sense of humor… because we grew up together, we’re both Welsh. You know, growing up in south Wales, there’s a certain sense of humor there.” [5]
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