Tom Jones Marks 60 Years of ‘It’s Not Unusual’ — “What a Ride”🎶

Sir Tom Jones is celebrating a song that’s particularly special to his heart and career.

On Friday, Jan. 31, the beloved singer, 84, shared a few words commemorating the 60th anniversary of his hit single, “It’s Not Unusual.” Across social media, Jones shared a clip of a performance of the song from his 1960s TV show, This Is Tom Jones.

“60 years ago I released It’s Not Unusual, and what a ride it’s been! Back then I would never have believed this one tune would have led on to such a wonderful life and career, full of music, fantastic people and touring all over the world,” he wrote.

“None of this would have been possible without the enduring support from my fans from day one, so thank you, you are sincerely loved and appreciated,” he continued.

Of the clip, he wrote, “It’s great fun to see the style and energy of those times. So here’s to music, the stage and YOU!”

“It’s Not Unusual” was Jones’ second hit overseas and the first to break through in the United States. It served as the theme song for his late 1960s variety show, This Is Tom Jones.

The song also had a resurgence when it became part of a running gag on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Airin the mid 1990s. After one scene with Carlton dancing awkwardly to the song eventually became the character’s signature dance, the hit appeared multiple times, with Jones himself making a number of cameos on the show.

Writing for Variety about the Carlton dance in 2015, Alfonso Ribeiro recalled his days on Fresh Prince and explains how the moment came about.

“The Carlton Dance was created when it said in the script: ‘Carlton dances.’ It was never even intended to be funny; it was just that he was dancing,” Ribeiro said. “The dance is ultimately Courteney Cox in the Bruce Springsteen video ‘Dancing in the Dark.’ That’s the basis. Or in Eddie Murphy’s ‘Delirious’ video, ‘The White Man Dance,’ as he called it.”