b. Stephen Phillip Jones, 3 September 1955, Shepherd's Bush, London, England. Formerly the provider of the guitar behind Johnny Rotten's sneer in the Sex Pistols, Jones' basic but powerful style was then employed as part of the underachieving Professionals (with former Sex Pistol member Paul Cook). Prior to that he had worked with the Avengers in the USA. He later played a substantial role in the creation of two records: Iggy Pop's Blah Blah Blah (1986) and ex-Duran Duran member Andy Taylor's Thunder (1987). His first solo venture, however, was a lacklustre affair, with Jones' rough Cockney voice spread thinly over a set that mingled rock numbers with, to the horror of old punks, ballads. The worst offender in this category was the comical version of "Love Letters". A capable, fluent man with a rhythm guitar, given a microphone Jones came across as forced and inarticulate, a situation not helped by the clumsy moralism of tracks such as "Drugs Suck". Undeterred, Jones proceeded to make the same mistakes a second time with Fire And Gasoline. Co-produced and co-written with Ian Astbury of the Cult, and with a vocal contribution from Guns N'Roses' Axl Rose on the Sex Pistols revival track "Did You No Wrong', it offered further evidence of Jones" decline. Billy Duffy of the Cult even managed to outgun the old stager with his solo on "Get Ready". Collectively, the albums offer a sad footnote to the career of one of rock and pop's most influential guitarists.
Jones has since worked as part of the Neurotic Outsiders, alongside John Taylor (ex-Duran Duran) and Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum of Guns N'Roses, with the band releasing a self-titled album for Madonna's Maverick label in 1996. He has also played with the Sex Pistols on their occasional reunion tours, and worked with Bob Dylan, Insane Clown Posse and Buckcherry.
