| Steve Jones | |
|---|---|
Jones in 2008. |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Stephen Philip Jones |
| Born | 3 September 1955 [1][2] |
| Origin | Shepherds Bush, London, England |
| Genres | Punk rock, heavy metal |
| Instruments | Guitar, bass, vocals |
| Labels | Virgin, MCA, Warner Bros. |
| Associated acts | Sex Pistols (1975-1978, 1996, 2002-2003, 2007-present) The Professionals (1980-1982) Chequered Past (1982-1985) Solo career (1987-1990) Fantasy 7 (1992-1994) P (1995) Neurotic Outsiders (1995-1996, 1999, 2006) Iggy Pop (1988) |
| Notable instruments | |
| Gibson Les Paul Gibson SG Gibson Flying V Gibson Firebird |
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Stephen Philip "Steve" Jones (born 3 September 1955) is an English rock guitarist, singer and actor, best known as guitarist and founding member of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols.
Contents |
Jones was born in Shepherds Bush.[1] His early influences were Iggy & The Stooges, and glam rock icons like Roxy Music and David Bowie. He was an only child and his father, Don Jarvis, an amateur boxer, left when he was two years old.
Up to the age of twelve, he grew up in Hammersmith with his young mother, who worked as a hairdresser, and his grandparents. He then moved to Benbow Road in Shepherd's Bush, with his fourteen criminal convictions and was the subject of a council care-order. He spent a year in a remand centre, which he says was more enjoyable than being at home, and has said that the Sex Pistols saved him from a life of crime.
Jones co-founded The Strand (named after a Roxy Music song) with Paul Cook and Wally Nightingale in the early 1970s. The Strand were a precursor to the Sex Pistols, where Jones first learned to play guitar. After dropping Wally Nightingale in the mid 1970s, the band was known as The Swankers.
In 1975, Jones went on to co-found the Sex Pistols with Paul Cook, Glen Matlock, and later, John Lydon. Jones is a self-taught guitar player, primarily playing Gibson Les Paul electric guitars in his early years. His usual guitar was a cream coloured Gibson Les Paul Custom which, according to Filth and the Fury, he had stolen from Mick Ronson at a David Bowie concert, when he and his fellow Sex Pistols members posed as road crew members, stealing amplifers and other equipment. Bill Price, the engineer on Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols called Jones one of the tightest guitar players he has ever worked with, implying that his chord and note timing were precise and impeccable.[3] As well as lead guitar, he played many of the bass guitar parts on the Never Mind The Bollocks album, due to the inability of Sid Vicious to play to a satisfactory standard in the studio. Glen Matlock's playing appeared on the tracks recorded when he was still in the band. Jones also uses Hamer Sunburst double-cut guitars, and prefers the White Les Paul Custom as his primary guitar, as stated in the Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock Sex Pistols video.
Jones became well known among fans for his "hanky on the head", and his perm. He also shared Johnny Rotten's extreme dislike of Sid Vicious' girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. In an interview for The Filth and the Fury, he referred to her as "that fucking horrible bird". When the Sex Pistols were interviewed by Bill Grundy on the Today show on 1 December 1976, Jones openly swore at Grundy after being goaded to do so, causing much controversy and elevating the band's profile.
After the Sex Pistols broke up in 1978, Jones and drummer Paul Cook co-founded The Professionals. They released one album, but disbanded after a serious car crash while on tour in the US in 1981. The Professionals' debut album was I Didn't See It Coming. Jones was also a member of Chequered Past (led by Michael Des Barres) from 1982 to 1985. They released a self-titled album in 1984.
Jones performed alongside Sex Pistols bandmate Paul Cook on Johnny Thunders's solo album So Alone.
Siouxsie and the Banshees thought for a while to engage Jones after the departure of two of their original members. Rehearsals took place in early 1980, and Jones recorded the guitars parts on three songs of the album Kaleidoscope. The experience did not go further than a simple recording session.
Jones also played with Thin Lizzy, Joan Jett, Kraut, Adam Ant, Bob Dylan, Iggy Pop, Andy Taylor, Megadeth, Neurotic Outsiders and had a solo career in the 1980s and early 1990s. His song "Mercy", from the album of the same name, was used in a Miami Vice episode called "Stone's War" and was featured on the Miami Vice II soundtrack album. "Pleasure and Pain" also from the album Mercy Mercy, was included in the 1986 film Sid and Nancy. In 1989, he released his second solo album, titled Fire and Gasoline, which featured Jones on guitar and vocals, Terry Nails on bass, and drummer Mickey Curry.
Jones was a guest star in an episode of the television sitcom Roseanne. He had previously played a private detective in The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, and had a role in the 1981 film, Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains.
In 1992 a project called Fantasy 7 (known as F7) was recorded, and remains officially un-released. They toured locally in Los Angeles and a few shows in South America featuring the late singer Mark McCoy.
In 1995, Jones played guitar on the self-titled and only album released by P. The band featured Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers and actor Johnny Depp.[4]
In 1996, Jones formed Neurotic Outsiders, that featured himself on guitar and vocals, former Guns N' Roses members Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum on rhythm guitar and drums, and John Taylor from Duran Duran, on bass. They released a self-titled album in 1996. Also in 1996, he took time out to record guitar tracks for The Great Milenko, an album by Insane Clown Posse.
Jones produced the self-titled debut albums of the Los Angeles based Buckcherry and American Pearl, released in 1999 and 2000.
He participated in the Sex Pistols reunion concerts and currently resides in Los Angeles. He has since done some studio work, playing guitar on Lisa Marie Presley's 2005 album, Now What. Jones played lead guitar on two tracks. "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" which was originally recorded for The Ramones tribute album We're a Happy Family but only appeared as a hidden track on Now What.
The Sex Pistols, including Jones, played a gig for the 30th anniversary of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols at the Brixton Academy on 8 November 2007. Due to popular demand, two further gigs were announced on 9 November and 10 November. This demand led to two further gigs being announced, making five in total. A further gig in Brixton on 12 November was followed by one at the MEN Arena in Manchester on 17 November. The Glasgow S.E.C.C on 18 November completed the tour.
Jones has recently played with Hollywood United F.C., made up mainly of celebrities and former professional footballers.
In 2008, The Sex Pistols appeared at the Isle of Wight Festival as the headlining act on the Saturday night, the Peace & Love Festival in Sweden, and the Live at Loch Lomond Festival in Scotland.
For The Sex Pistols in the seventies he used a Gibson Les Paul Double Cutaway at first to get a "Johnny Thunders" feel and sound. Then Malcolm McLaren gave Steve Sylvain Sylvain's 1974 White Gibson Les Paul Custom with the 2 pin up girl stickers on it, which Sylvain used during the final years of The New York Dolls. He also used a 1954 Black Gibson Les Paul Custom stocked with a P90 pickup in the bridge and an Alnico pickup in the neck, and Sunburst Gibson Firebird. In the late 90's, Steve was offered free Burny Les Paul Customs, straps, picks and cables if he played their guitar. They made 2 models for him which he used on the 2002-2003 North American Piss Off Tour. At around 2005 he went back to using Gibsons, but has still been seen playing his Burny. Gibson finally put out a "Steve Jones Inspired Les Paul Model" to the exact specs of his original White Les Paul Custom.
Jones' amp during The Sex Pistols in the 70's was a Fender Twin Reverb with Gauss Speakers, and while Glen Matlock was in the band Steve used an MXR Script Phase 90 pedal. The amp used on Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols was a silver face Fender Twin with stock speakers. He also used Music Man Amps during the mid 1977 Scandinavian tour. He used Fender cables. For the Sex Pistols' reunion in 1996, Steve switched to Marshall amps, which he still uses today.
In February 2004, Jones began hosting a daily radio program in Los Angeles, called 'Jonesy's Jukebox', on Indie 103.1 FM. The premise of the show was that the self-described "Sire of Wilshire" could do whatever he wanted (within FCC rules), with no direction from station management. You can hear a snippet from the show in the opening scenes of the 2006 film, The Dog Problem.
Jones mixed an eclectic playlist, from his own collection of CDs, with rambling and often humorous interviews of guests from the entertainment industry. Jones kept an acoustic guitar in the studio and frequently performed stream of consciousness songs about the current topic of discussion. Notable guests included Johnny Ramone, Brian Wilson, Pete Townshend, Iggy Pop, Robert Plant, Gary Oldman and Sex Pistol's vocalist Johnny Rotten. Musical guests who visited would often perform songs with Jonesy on guitar.
Jonesys' producer (Indie 103.1 Music Director Mark Sovel) was dubbed "Mr. Shovel" and became a comic foil for Jones for the first three years of the show. Subsequently Jones also frequently interacted on-air with "Big Ed", his nickname for the second program producer Kevin Begley.
Indie 103.1 last broadcast Jonesy's Jukebox 14 January 2009; Indie 103.1 ceased to exist as a broadcast radio station on 15 January 2009. Jones was picked up by LA radio Station KROQ in October 2010 to continue his Jonesy's Jukebox segment.
In November 2009 he guested on BBC Radio's 6Music with five Sunday shows titled 'A Month of Sundays with Steve Jones', playing a mix of tunes from his childhood through to the current day. In December 2009, the show was revived ran via internet radio on IAmRogue.com, a website run by producer Ryan Kavanaugh.[5] This incarnation of the show ended in late March 2010.
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