Music

Average customer rating:

THE NEW SEX PISTOLS...
More of a new wave album than the first disc.
Rock Solid Raunch
Street Smart Catchy Punk Rock
EX-PISTOLS GET IN THE RING LAND KNOCK-OUT IN ONE GREAT CD

I Didn't See It Coming
The Professionals
Manufacturer: EMI Int'l
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

New Wave | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Professionals
Best of the Rich Kids
We Have Come for Your Children
Hollywood Brats (Recorded 1973)
999/Separates

ASIN: B00005J9M5
Release Date: 2001-06-18

Tracks:

Magnificent
Payola
Northern Slide
Friday Night Square
Kick Down the Door
Little Boys in Blue
All the Way
Crescendo
Madhouse
Too Far to Fall
Just Another Dream [First Single][*]
Kamikaze [Song From Proposed First Album][*]
1-2-3 [Second Single][*]
Mods. Skins, Punks [Song From Proposed First Album][*]
Join the Professionals [Third Single][*]
Has Anybody Got an Alibi [B Side of Third Single][*]
White Light/White Heat [Second Single B Side][*]
Baby I Don't Care [Second Single B Side][*]

Album Description

UK reissue of 1981 album for guitarist Steve Jones and drummer Paul Cook's post Sex Pistols act. The only prior CD release was a very limited Japanese pressing. 18 tracks including seven bonus tracks, 'Just Another Dream', 'Kamikaze', 'Mods, Skins, Punks', 'Join The Professionals', 'Has Anybody Got An Alibi', 'White Light/White Heat' & 'Baby I Don't Care'.

Album Details

The post Sex Pistols band featuring drummer Paul Cook and guitarist Steve Jones. Includes eight bonus tracks!

Customer Reviews:

THE NEW SEX PISTOLS..........2006-09-28

I am a HUGE Sex Pistols fan from way, way back. I first heard them in 1985, and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I quickly bought everything I could get my hands on, and it seemed that the Pistols never did a bad song. I even loved all of the "non-Rotten" stuff; Silly thing, Lonely Boy, and the Sid Vicious stuff.. Then as the 80's wore on more obscure stuff started surfacing, like the Jones/Cook classic "Here We Go Again" that appeared out of nowhere on "Pirates of Destiny". I was always particularly fond of that song.. pure PISTOLS even though Rotten was long gone.
A few years later, a friend of mine told me about "The Professionals", which was basically Steve Jones and Paul Cook continuing on without Sid or Johnny. I asked him what it sounded like. He said "Do you like the song HERE WE GO AGAIN"? - And I said "Oh wow, Yeah!", and I'll never forget he looked me right in the eyes and said "Well, the entire album sounds EXACTLY LIKE THAT...". He made me a copy of his LP, and I couldn't believe it. This was REALLY the Sex Pistols!!! I'm going to make a bold comment, but it's one I stand by: This album is the EQUAL TO "NEVER MIND THE BOLLOCKS". It's that good. Any Sex Pistols fan who heard all the stuff and wished there was more will be flipping thier wig - This album is a classic that sounds exactly like late-Pistols material. There are so many classics on this album, such as NORTHERN SLIDE and KICK DOWN THE DOORS. And then there are the songs THE MAGNIFICENT, ALL THE WAY WITH YOU, and TOO FAR TOO FALL, all of which are mind-bending tributes to thier fallen bandmate SID VICIOUS. This entire album seems like a bizzare tribute to Sid Vicious. I remember a good friend of mine once commented to me that this album sounded like "The Sex Pistols singing from hell". This is a very good description. The music is pure 1000% Sex Pistols, and Steve Jones's vocals are deep, echo-ey, and downright OTHERWORLDLY. This album is mind-bending. It is much better than the other available "self titled" CD, though you should buy that one too. The eight bonus tracks are nice to have, too, but the TRUE majesty of this album lies in the first 10 tracks, which is what this review is all about. Get this CD. It's the stuff Pistol's fan's DREAMS are made of.

More of a new wave album than the first disc........2005-05-29

I Didn't See it Coming (1981) was a re-recording of the first album that was shelved due to legal issues. Steve Jones and Paul Cook found some new bandmates and relaunched the Professionals. Instead of sounding like The Sex Pistols they looked and acted more like Duran Duran.
Some of the tracks were from the first (and better) album. But this disc has some great songs (The Magnificent and Payola) the re-recorded tracks are okay. What makes this disc a keeper is the extra tracks, You get the singles and some outakes from the first album!

Too bad the band fell apart due to ego and drug problems (mainly drug abuse). They could have been a force to reckon with in the eighties. Steve Jones would later kick his horse habit and embrace 'heavy metal" bands such as Motley Crue and Guns N' Roses. For shame!

Highly recommended.

Rock Solid Raunch.......2005-05-19

The three stars I've given this album belie it's greatness. Fact is, I gave Jones' later effort "Neurotic Outsiders" three stars as well, for the simple fact that neither of these albums are masterpieces.

What they ARE, however, is blistering, straight-forward power chords at their finest. Overall, "I Didn't See It Coming" is patchy, but the good stuff is excellent indeed, particularly "Payola", "Northern Slide", "Join The Professionals", and my personal favourite, "Mods, Skins, Punks". "Kamikaze" is fine as well, sounding right up there with ex-Pistol material "Silly Thing" and "No One Is Innocent".

The only downside? Like Johnny Thunders' debut LP, the production is spotty at times. "Just Another Dream" is an example of how to bury a perfectly good song in the mix.

Buy it anyway.

Street Smart Catchy Punk Rock .......2004-12-09

Some people don't consider this to be an actual punk album. I beg to differ. This album contains all the grit, power and tunefulness that characterized the stronger crop of the classic British waves of yester-year. In fact, I would even go so far as to suggest that this might be what the Pistols may have sounded if they'd been an Oi! band. Steve Jones' guitar sound evokes the crunch of the 'Bollocks' album, and of course, Paul Cooks' steady backbeat provides enough gusto for those listeners dying for an excuse to pogo. The songs are catchy, have pop-quality, and certainly worth the outstanding list-price (not too bad, considering it's an import). Particular highlights are "the Magnificent" and "payola." If you dig real punk rock--and I mean the REAL stuff, not the shamefull crap they push down your throat on MTV--definitely get this. No complaints here whatsoever. It's just too bad they didn't include "conned again" as a bonus track.

EX-PISTOLS GET IN THE RING LAND KNOCK-OUT IN ONE GREAT CD.......2003-07-12

You're Steve Jones or Paul Cook and The Sex Pistols fizzle..what do you do for act 2?? This is a great lost album of 1981. I lost the vinyl in a fire years ago, GREAT TO FINALLY FIND IT ON CD!
This album quite simply [REALLY GOOD]. The songs are catchy as hell and get lodged in your mind for days at a time (in fact what prompted me to find this on cd was the song "Crescendo" which had been haunting me for about a week and as we know the only way to exorcise a song like that is to actually hear it).
If Rotten and Vicious were respectively the mind and soul of the Sex Pistols, then Paul cook and steve jones were easily the blood, guts, and fists. When you hear these tracks you'll know where that sonic gristle came from., and how indespensible it was at getting the Pistols across. This Album isn't Punk,nor is it metal....it's something I'll call Power-Rock. Two big guitars, pulsing bass, and pounding drums mixed with the tales of a savvy, yet weary Londoner. TOPS!

Average customer rating:

Perfect for teachers.

Swingin' Tappin' and Jammin'
David Leonhardt
Manufacturer: Big Bang Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000254M8Y
Release Date: 2005-11-01

Tracks:

Cute
Tenor Madness
Strike Up the Band
Girl from Ipanema
Swingin' Fast Blues
On the Sunny Side of the Street
Jammin' Slow Blues
Cute (Up Tempo)
Perdido
Jumpin at the Woodside
Tappin' Blues
Dave's Shim Sham

Customer Reviews:

Perfect for teachers........2007-01-10

I love this album. I always bring it with me when I have to sub for a tap class. I just let it play when we do across the floor exercises, and the music seems to hold just the right tempo for our steps and combinations. I definitely would recommend it. But don't buy it on Amazon! You can get the entire album for $9.99 on iTunes!

Average customer rating:

Lou Harrison: For Strings

Manufacturer: Mode
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Lou Harrison: Works 1939-2000
Lou Harrison: Rapunzel and Other Works
Music of Lou Harrison
American Ultramodernists 1920-1950
Stephen Scott: The Deep Spaces

ASIN: B0002MPQLY
Release Date: 2004-09-21

Tracks:

Adagio, molto cantabile 3:54
Allegro moderato 2:01
Allegro moderato, tranquillo 5:12First recording by string orchestra
Estampie 4:02
Chorale 4:07
Double Fugue 5:12
Ductia 2:38
Lament 5:56
Canonic Variations 5:22
Little Fugue 3:12
Round in Honor of Hermes 3:04
Nocturne 3:45
Allegro 4:12
Troika 2:53
Three Sharing 2:50
Wind and Plum 2:58
Neapolitan 1:10
Threnody for Richard Locke 5:20
Estampie 7:18

Album Description

¥ The present recording traces the development of HarrisonÕs creativity over a half century Ñ from 1948 to his last large-scale composition (1997). ¥ The Suite No. 2 for Strings was written while Harrison lived in New York. Having spent his formative years in San Francisco, Harrison had a great deal of trouble adjusting to East Coast big-city life. A nervous breakdown required him to be hospitalized for about nine months. The Suite No. 2 dates from the year after this traumatic event, and signs of HarrisonÕs mental stress are apparent, particularly in the torturous and difficult second movement. But also in evidence is the tranquility he sought from religion during this period and the more transparent textures he would favor later. ¥ This CD presents the first recording of the work by a string orchestra Ñ HarrisonÕs original intent. ¥ The lengthy Suite for Symphonic Strings was a commission from BMI. By this time Harrison had returned to the San Francisco region. The bass and cello sections provide percussion accompaniment, the players hitting the bodies of their instruments with their fingers and using guitar picks on the strings to achieve a percussive pizzicato. This is the first recording of the complete nine-movement work. ¥ Harrison had been interested in Asian music since his early years. The late Concerto for Pipa is a model of HarrisonÕs trans-ethnicism, evoking the many influences that had attracted him over a half century. The work ends with an extended, medieval-inspired estampie, a virtuoso tour-de-force for soloist and orchestra. ¥ The concerto was written for conductor Dennis Russell Davies and pipa virtuoso Wu Man. ¥ Wu Man was cited by the Los Angeles Times as Òthe artist most responsible for bringing the pipa to the Western World.Ó She has championed new pipa literature from composers including Terry Riley, Philip Glass, Lou Harrison, and Tan Dun.

Average customer rating:

A Reviewer With Ears
EXCELLENT, but not the best...
The better album
The Professionals' first album.

Professionals
The Professionals
Manufacturer: Caroline
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Punk | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

New Wave | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

I Didn't See It Coming
Best of the Rich Kids
Never Mind The Bollocks
Ghosts of Princes in Towers
New Too Much Junkie Business

ASIN: B000024RFC
Release Date: 2007-04-10

Tracks:

Little Boys in Blue
Mad House
Just Another Dream
Kamikaze
1-2-3
Crescendo
Mods, Skins, Punks
Join the Professionals
Has Anybody Got an Alibi
All the Way with You
Kick Down the Doors

Album Description

1980 debut album for post Sex Pistols act featuring Steve Jones & Paul Cook. 11 tracks. Virgin Records.

Customer Reviews:

A Reviewer With Ears.......2006-11-02

All right, first off. This album is AS GOOD AS "I Didn't See It Coming", but it's certainly not better or worse. The main difference is the raunchier, murkier mixes of "Kick Down The Doors" and "Little Boys In Blue", but I personally prefer the poppier versions on the larger album.

Besides, along with the re-recorded mixes of these songs, "I Didn't See..." also contains a number of b-sides and covers, though there are a few more rarities missing. "1-2-3", "Join The Professionals", "Kamikaze", and "Mods, Skins, and Punks" all sound identical to the other album.

If you're thinking of which to buy, it's not really worth buying this one if you have the other.

EXCELLENT, but not the best..........2006-09-28

I usually don't write reviews, but I feel the need to set the record straight. The release of "The Professionals" self titled album is quite an event for any Sex Pistols fan. But as great as it is, it's a good thing that it was shelved in favor of "I didn't see it coming". That album simply has stronger songs and better production than this one. It has been said in reviews that "I didn't see it coming" sounded more "New Wave" than punk. This simply is not true. Both of these albums sound musically like the Sex Pistols. I just don't want somebody thinking they can just buy the first self titled CD and skip the second one. That would be a huge, huge mistake, especially since the "I didn't see it coming CD has ALL of the songs (albeit slightly different versions" from "The Professionals CD that aren't already appearing on the main album. YES, you should buy this CD - without question, but maybe you should buy "I didn't see it coming" first. Anyway, in closing I will say that this album does INDEED sound more "raw" than the subsequent release without sounding like Demos (I actually bought an LP of TRUE professionals "Demos" back in the 80's which were most definitely inferior to the versions on "I didn't see it coming". I was afraid at first that this album would be those same demos on that LP, but I am happy to report that this is NOT this case..). Please read my review of "I didn't see it coming" for the truth about The Professionals and thier relation to the Sex Pistols.

The better album.......2005-10-17

Just as the last reviewer stated, this was never officially released as the first album, but better late than never. I agree that these recordings are superior to those on "I Didn't See It Coming"... which is a fine album itself. The Professionals' career lasted about the same amount of time as the Sex Pistols, but was far less chronicled or heralded. It's a shame too... because the music stands right up there with that of the Pistols and is a great continuation of that "big" sound. It's undeniable that Jones and Cook had chemistry. Steve Jones' guitars sound huge, yet raw enough (on this album) to retain that magic they had on "Bollocks"... and Paul Cook has perfected his style of meat-and-potatoes drumming on these recordings. The result is a perfect example of big, raw, anthemic mid-tempo Punk rock at it's finest. The "alternate" versions of the songs that appeared on "I Didn't See It Coming" get a more proper treatment here, with more spirited execution and a more appropriate raw production.

If you've never heard the Professionals before then I would recommend starting with this album first.

The Professionals' first album........2005-05-29

The Professionals (1980) was supposed to released but a dispute with the original bass player (Andy Allen) kept this from being released in 1980. So Cook and Jones had to find some new bandmates and re-record most of these tracks for the official release I Didn't See it Coming. The songs were called demos and not professionally produced. I say hogwash. The songs are raw and filled with energy. It's more of a punk album than the official release. Fifteen years later the legal issues were settled and it was finally released by Virgin records on CD.

If you like the Sex Pistols then you should get this album. Don't listen to John Lydon and others who have slagged this disc. It rocks hard and has that distinct Sex Pistols sound and guitar crunch. Better than "I Didn't See it Coming".
Steve Jones (Vocals, Guitar) Paul Cook (Drums, Vocals)
Andy Allen (Bass).

Highly recommended.

Factoid: Andy Allen was an unofficial member of the Sex Pistols, he played on bass on several studio tracks (Black Leather, Here We Go, My Way).

Average customer rating:

I use this music to fall asleep!

Meditations for Solo Harp
Cynthia Lynn Douglass
Manufacturer: Celestial Sounds
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | New Age | Styles | Music

Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000CAG6NI
Release Date: 2005-09-13

Tracks:

Karim
Innishere
Flowers of the Forest
Livy
Innishere 2
Meditation With Nature

Product Description

Quiet electric harp and nature sounds. Soft and gentle melodies form two 30-minute meditations. A favorite among massage therapists, yoga practitioners, and health professionals.

Customer Reviews:

I use this music to fall asleep!.......2007-07-14

Once menopause set in, insomnia became the norm instead of the exception. As the years passed, I learned that playing music would help me not only to fall asleep more easily but also to stay asleep (or to easily return to sleep if I awoke during the night). Therefore, I am always looking for 'sleeping' music...music that relaxes not only the body but also the mind! This CD has been wonderful!

Mary

Average customer rating:

Post Pistols

The Best of the Professionals
The Professionals
Manufacturer: Captain Oi!
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

New Wave | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000B8GU3C
Release Date: 2006-03-14

Tracks:

Just Another Dream
1-2-3
Kamikaze
Mods Skins Punks
All the Way
Join the Professionals
Magnificent
Payola
Little Boys in Blue
Northern Slide
Kick Down the Doors
Crescendo
Madhouse
Too Far to Fall

Album Description

Oh Yes! A definitive overview of the career of The Professionals, the band formed by Steve Jones and Paul Cook after the Sex Pistols split up. Includes all four of their singles plus tracks from both of their albums. 14 of the finest Power Punk Rock tunes ever committed to tape!

Customer Reviews:

Post Pistols.......2006-04-27

I first heard "Join the Professionals" at a friends house in 1984 and loved it. This is by far their best song. 1-2-3 is a good rocker with a definite "anthem" feel to it. "Just another Dream" is probably the only other good song on this compilation though. The rest falls flat. Pick up the soundtrack to "The Great Rock & Roll Swindle" for more good Cook & Jones tunes. I wish they had included "Black Leather" & "Here We Go Again" as bonus tracks. If you're a Sex Pistols fan, this is a good addition to your collection.

The New Professionals: Rules for Industrial Slammitude and Groovination

Average customer rating:

Just Fantastic
Something refreshingly different
Still Under The Skin...........
Boiler- Fun to Be Loud

The New Professionals: Rules for Industrial Slammitude and Groovination
Boiler
Manufacturer: Mayhem Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Country | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Country | Indie Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B0000064ZA
Release Date: 1998-04-21

Tracks:

Superseed
Stegosaurus
Defleshed
Frontin'
Vice Grip
Lungbutter Rising
Bingo
Feed
Roswall
Tapeworm
Hollow Point

Customer Reviews:

Just Fantastic.......2002-05-12

I never, ever heard of these guys before I read the existing reviews; man were they right! This is a fantastic CD. I can't quite explain it, but I'll try. Hard rock/hardcore, a sometimes funky sound, with a hard edge on the guitar rhythms. Wonderful bass guitar - the bass is just a joy to listen to. Some songs hit me right away, but there is such variety that it took me about six listens for the whole experience to sink in, but I promise, this is great. It will get under your skin. The guitar just flows, there's no real lead guitar here, but the rhythms are great. This Cd just absolutely rocks, I'm listening to it while I'm typing this review and I'm about to fall out of my chair. Buy it , you will not be disappointed!! I gotta go, these riffs are killing me. You will buy many CDs much worse than this one, much worse, lordy this is a great CD and I'm jumpin to my feet right now cause it ain't a sittin down thing. So let's get busy!!!

Something refreshingly different.......2000-10-26

It's nice to listen to an album that isn't laced with pointless rap vocals about nothing. This album is good, straight-up rock metal. This 3-piece belts out great songs that don't buy into the mainstream crap that floods radio stations today. The live show is killer, and the album well represents it. Anyone who knows anything about music should pick this one up.

Still Under The Skin..................1999-02-19

Close to a year after their initial release Boiler has captured more of the world with the power of "The New Professionals".

The power of the music, yes we can talk about that. Now we can, they deliver the goods. There is no Flash in the Pan identity about this band. They continue to capture the essence of delicious music of years past with an absolute razors edge cutting through dogmatic ideals of the "old school sound". If you want a CD that breathes heavy grooves, this is your home, if you yearn and feel original, music moving, music living and alive...

Boiler is Your Band

Boiler- Fun to Be Loud.......1998-10-31

Ah Boiler- No Candy Coated Goofpop here kids. The music is a mix of good old fashioned kick in the pants NY Hardcore (MOD, Pro Pain) and a spark of grooviness (Korn, Helmet).

The music is anything but easy listening, it is hard hitting and direct. It takes one on a journey through a broad spanse of the audio spectrum, believe you me they have smoked some good PA's too.

They give a classic NY City sound a new life. It is a fresh voice in a world that forgot what being loud with musicality was.

The CD Builds with every track, "Superseed", churns the waters with a sonic earthquake like urgency. That is by far my favorite song on the CD. Second in Line is "Roswall", another churning sonic assault.

They did not give me enough space to rant enough about this CD. It rocks. Get a copy for the car and in rush hour traffic put the volume knob in the gas tank, You will not be denied a spot at any tollbooth!

Average customer rating:

Come Hell or High Drama
New Professionals
Manufacturer: A Matter of Substance Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Indie Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00094ASCC
Release Date: 2005-04-19

Tracks:

I just want it all to stop
Happy girl
Another Saturday
nothin pretty
rock star
i loved you baby
wish you all the best
too hot

Product Description

First and foremost, New Professionals is a rock n roll band with infectious melodies and broad mainstream appeal that maintains itself as a true sum of its parts. All the band's members pull their influences from traditional classic and southern rock as well as hard rock and punk-driven contemporaries. That fusion of sound, fronted by the straight-forward and sometimes controversial lyrics of Karen Curious, encapture, engage, and enlighten audiences of young and old alike. New Professionals' "Come Hell or High Drama" is the culmination of those influences. Fueled by up-tempo rockers like "Rockstar" and heart-wrenching ballads, the album is New York City's answer to reviving radio heaven. Karen Curious never fails to sing straight from the gut. There is no mistaking it, she only comes from a place that is pure. Whether you listen to the country twang of the powerful "Nothin' Pretty" or the sex beat of "Too Hot", you'll begin to internalize... and relate the "high! drama" to yourself.

Average customer rating:

New Professionals
The Fireballs of Freedom
Manufacturer: Empty Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Punk | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Garage Punk | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000DMGM
Release Date: 1998-10-27

Tracks:

Street Smart
3 Finger Quarter
Norsk At Night
Drag
Ten Lanes To Chinatown
March Of The FOF
10-22
Glass Jaw
Scream Therapy
Man's Rock
Red Carpet

Average customer rating:

Brilliant way to blow some currency!
Sould have been a contender...
The Side Men Rock
Sex Pistols redux

I Didn't See It Coming
The Professionals
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

New Wave | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000JAOV
Release Date: 1999-05-24

Tracks:

The Magnificent
Payola
Northern Slide
Friday Night Square
Kick Down the Doors
Little Boys
All The Way
Crescendo
Madhouse
Too Far to Fall

Album Description

Japanese reissue, the worldwide CD debut of the sole album by group formed by Steve Jones & Paul Cook after the Sex Pistols broke up. Contains both the original cover art & all 10 of the cuts from when the record was first released in 1981. 1999 release.

Album Details

Japanese Version featuring a Limited Edition LP Style Slipcase for Initial Pressing Only

Customer Reviews:

Brilliant way to blow some currency!.......2004-12-09

Sould have been a contender..........2000-10-18

It was just before midnight on a warm night in 1981. I was getting ready to go on the air on WTJU-FM, the University of Virginia radio station. As I looked at the new records that had come in to the station, I saw this "smash hit" of a cover and took a look. On the back cover I saw Steve Jones and Paul Cook! On the turntable it went. All The Way, Little Boys, Friday Night Square, Crescendo, Too Far To Fall... "My God...this is a ROCK album!" I thought. Unlike the first PIL albums, where the idea and concept were more important than the "music", "I Didn't See It Coming" is a tight, crisp, tuneful record with hard-pop songs. It's more like an Iggy Pop record than one by PIL. I played the whole album on my show that night. Within a day or two I had my own copy. I also got the 7-inch "Join The Professionals". All of this was "IMPORT ONLY", and there was never a US lable willing to take a chance on the "other" ex-pistols. Too bad. When you hear this recording, you can't help but recall the crunching riffs of the Sex Pistols albums and it proves to me that Cook & Jones were the musical power behind the band. This album still stands up as a power-chord classic. Looking backwards, it's hard to believe that these guys never caught on. The album is well produced and all the songs are catchy. I was lucky enough to see The Professionals at the old 9:30 club in Washington, DC and their show was beyond good...it was pure energy and power. Sadly, there were only about a hundred people there that night to see them. Anyway, for those of you who loved the Sex Pistols, or for those of you who are just now discovering the roots of punk, this is a must buy....even at the high price of an asian import.

The Side Men Rock.......2000-05-14

This 1981 album showcases the talent of Steve Jones (guitar, vocals) and Paul Cook (drums), the other half of the Sex Pistols. While Johnny Rotten had provided the voice for the Sex Pistols (and Sid provided the attitude), Steve Jones steps forward on lead vocals with a refreshing collection of songs reminiscent of "Silly Things", "Here We Go" and "Lonely Boy" (three songs recorded with the Sex Pistols). This is not a "punk" album but rather a collection of serious rock'n'roll tunes. The only other material I know of that was recorded by The Professionals is a 45 released in 1980 which included two additional songs "Action Man" (an instrumental) and "Just Another Dream". Steve Jones' later solo material, which was much heavier, is not as good as this album. Paul Cook went on to form another short-lived group in the late 80's, The Chiefs of Relief, with the former guitarist of Bow Wow Wow. They released one album as well. It certainly would have been interesting to see how the Sex Pistols would have evolved if they had stayed together (with Glen Matlock on bass) and recorded more material. Judging from this album, they certainly had the talent.

Sex Pistols redux.......1999-12-14

With Johny Rotten in PIL, Malcome McClaren running Bow Wow Wow & Sid dead, Paul Cook & Steve Jones carried on without them! This, the Professionals' only official album, sounds less like punk than heavy metal/power pop (a la KISS!) but it IS a great album. Highlights: "little boys", "Northern slide" (the best song), "magnificiant" (a PIL parody!), "Cresendo" and "too far to fall" (an obvious attack on Malcome!). Pistols fans might also want to seek out the self-titled CD of singles & early recordings (including a great nastier earlier version of "little boys).

Music:

Music