Born on September 3: Steve Jones (Sex Pistols), terrible punk child

The iconic guitarist and co-founder of the Sex Pistols was born in 1955 in London's Hammersmith district.

An only child raised by his mother, he experienced a rather chaotic childhood in the working-class neighbourhood of Shepherd's Bush (where they soon moved), marked by petty theft, a few minor burglaries, and therefore a certain amount of delinquency. A great fan of glam rock, particularly David Bowie and Roxy Music, Steve Jones met Paul Cook, with whom he founded his first band, The Strand, the precursor to the future Sex Pistols. Truly self taught, he learned to play the guitar by clumsily strumming a worn-out instrument. A punk before his time, Steve quickly developed an incisive and abrasive style of playing that he hasn't abandoned since. He couldn't care less about sophisticated arpeggios!

In 1975, under the somewhat malevolent eye of their manager Malcolm McLaren, he founded the Sex Pistols with Johnny Rotten, Glen Matlock, and his friend Cook on drums. By multiplying provocations and scandals, sometimes orchestrated ex-nihilo by McLaren, the quartet quickly became the standard-bearer of the nascent punk movement. With tracks such as "Anarchy In The UK," "No Future," and of course, "God Save The Queen," which directly attacks the sacrosanct British monarchy, they crystallised the nihilistic aspirations of a rebellious and penniless youth.

Even to direct chaos, an architect is necessary, and Steve Jones unflinchingly assumes the role of key member of the band. On "Never Mind The Bollocks," the Sex Pistols' first and only album, he not only plays guitar but also, from time to time, bass.

Following the band's breakup in 1978, he founded The Professionals with his inseparable friend Paul Cook and subsequently collaborated extensively, notably with Iggy Pop (for a surprising cover of Sly & The Family Stone's "A Family Affair," for example), and American indie bands like Chequered Past. But also, more surprisingly, with David Byrne (Talking Heads) and Brian Eno for the album "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today" (2008).

Settling in Los Angeles in the 1980s, his career path remains marked by his anti-conformist commitment and, unfortunately, by a series of recurring addictions from which he struggled to completely free himself. He discusses them candidly in his autobiography, "Lonely Boy."

(MH with Stéphane Soupart - Phto : © E.T.)

Photo: Steve Jones with The Sex Pistols on stage at the Lokerse Feesten festival (Belgium) on August 4, 2025