Tom Jones experienced the "blues feeling" before he knew the music.

The legendary singer can relate to the sentiment of the music genre, which originated primarily within African-American communities in the Deep South of the US, because he experienced it in his childhood.

The star is set to headline at the Bluesfest 2012 in the UK and believes that American blues is similar to the music he grew up with in a Welsh mining community.

"The songs were different but they had the same feeling, it was where those people came from, work songs, field songs, songs about the things that affected their lives, singing because it was the only way they could get it out," he told British newspaper The Telegraph. "My old man was a coalminer, so he'd come home sometimes and he might be a bit grumpy and my mother would say, 'Don't take any notice of your father, he's got the blues.' So I knew the feeling before I knew the music."

Ronnie Wood, who will also be performing at Bluesfest with his former Rolling Stone band mates Mike Taylor and Bill Wyman, credited blues as their "musical heritage".

The guitarist explained that the genre remains relevant because people can still find release and comfort in it.

"This is our musical heritage. The blues echoes right through into soul, R'n'B and hip-hop. It's part of the make-up of modern music. You can't turn your back on the blues," he said. "It came out of slavery, the cotton fields, but everybody gets p**sed off with their day-to-day stuff, anyway. It's a bit like a chain gang, even if you're only chained to a desk. For me, it's a music of spiritual release. It's a way to battle life getting you down."