Tom Jones new album labelled sick joke by the boss

The vice-president of Tom Jones' record label, Island Records, reportedly sent an email to a colleague calling the singer's album a sick joke.

David Sharpe was apparently enraged after hearing the gospel inspired songs on Jone's new album Praise and Blame.

The company reportedly paid £1.5 million to lure the Welsh singer from EMI and in his email Sharpe allegedly says: 'We did not invest a fortune in an established artist for him to deliver 12 tracks from the common book of prayer. Having lured him from EMI, the deal was that he would deliver a record of upbeat tracks along the lines of Sex Bomb and Mama Told Me'

There has been a cynical response to the email though as it seems odd that the email, which was written in May, has been released the same week as the album.

Critics have reacted positively to Jones's new music.