Tom Jones hits back at decision to ban ‘Delilah’ from Welsh rugby games

nme.com:

Tom Jones has spoken out against the decision to ban ‘Delilah’ from being sung during Welsh rugby matches.The 1968 hit, written by Barry Mason, was a classic track often sung by a choir at rugby matches in Wales.

However, in February it was announced by the Welsh Rugby Union that it would no longer be performed by choirs at the Principality Stadium due to its connotations to domestic violence.The decision was linked to the lyrics of the track, which describe a man murdering his girlfriend after she is caught with another man.During a concert at Cardiff Castle this Saturday (July 22), Jones spoke out against the censorship of the song and performed a cover of it for his audience.According to outlets BBC News and The Telegraph, the 83-year-old Welsh singer told the crowd: “You can’t stop us singing ‘Delilah’.

Can you imagine? Who was the man who didn’t want us to sing ‘Delilah’?”“They may stop the choir from singing it, but they haven’t stopped the crowd,” he continued, adding, “Keep on singing it – and I’ll keep on singing it too.”This isn’t the first time that Jones has spoken out regarding the controversy around the song.

Back in 2014, he defended the track when there were calls to have it banned, and claimed that seeing it sung live made him “very proud to be Welsh”.“I love to hear it sung at rugby games.