Sir Tom Jones has recalled the words of advice his wife Linda gave him shortly before her death.
Lady Melinda Rose Woodward, who was married to the Welsh singer for 59 years, died of cancer in April 2016 at the age of 75.
"Think of all the years we've had together and that should lift you up."@RealSirTomJones opens up about making his first album since the passing of his wife, Linda. ❤️
Catch up on @BBCiPlayer 👉 https://t.co/Sw6q7hsN49#TheOneShow pic.twitter.com/zkOHuWXLZB
— BBC The One Show (@BBCTheOneShow) April 22, 2021
The veteran singer said he chose to feature the track I Won’t Crumble With You If You Fall on his new album, Surrounded By Time, in tribute to their marriage.
Appearing on The One Show, Sir Tom said over video call: “Every song on there is telling a different part of my life. Like the first one, I Won’t Crumble With You If You Fall, my late wife Linda, God bless her, she had lung cancer and she was passing away.
“I was there in the hospital room with her for the last 10 days and I said, ‘My God Linda, I don’t know what I am going to do with myself because I won’t be able to sing, I won’t be able to get the words out’.
“She said, ‘You must, don’t fall with me, I have got to go but you don’t have to and you have got to go and do what we planned to do’, which was to move back London.
“She said, ‘But I have just run out of time but you have got to go and do it now. But when you get on the stage, think of me laughing, don’t think of me as I am now, think of all the years we have had together – that should lift you up’, which it does.”
Host Alex Jones was quick to praise him for his candour.
Sir Tom and Lady Melinda, known as Linda, had been married since 1957 and have one son, Mark.