By Ljubinko Zivkovic, Rock At Night Amsterdam
Review: Steve Jones & Neurotic Outsiders-self-titled LP-Release date June 3, 2022 via Supermegabot Records
It certainly was hard task to do something in music after you’ve been part of making rock history with a quick, sharp and very mercurial thing that was The Sex Pistols. John Lydon was quick out of the block with PiL and his more experimental inclinations, Sid Vicious was quickly no more, Paul Cook was rarely seen, and Vicious predecessor Glen Matlock and Steve Jones, the man that actually was one of the two persons to initiate the band (with Paul Cook) needed a bit of time to make their own impact.
It somehow turned out that possibly a chance a pickup band Jones formed for a benefit concert for a cancer-stricken friend in LA sometime in mid-nineties would turn out to be one of his better musical statements in the post-Pistols era.
Neurotic Outsiders, as they named themselves, along with jones on guitar and vocals included Duran Duran’s John Taylor on bass and vocals, Guns N’ Roses Duff McKagan also on guitar and vocals and Matt Sorum on drums.
From there on, what was to be a one-off friend-support encounter turned into a $1 million deal with Madonna’s Maverick Records. Of and a record, originally released in 1996 that stands as one of the better statements of the post-punk era, now re-released as an expanded edition (the original remastered album adding four b-sides from a rare Japan-only EP).
The reason why the whole thing worked might lie in one of Jones’ comments on the band: “We all were in these high-profile, high maintenance bands with very little actual playing. With Neurotic Outsiders, things felt completely loose.”
This Expanded Edition of Neurotic Outsiders includes the original remastered album adding four b-sides from a rare Japan-only EP. It will be released on June 3, 2022.
The band started out with covers and hosted a number of surprise guests like Simon LeBon, Billy idol, Izzy Stradlin, Chrissie Hynde, Ian Astbury, Sporty Spice Mel C, Iggy Pop, Brian Setzer, and Slash.
Yet from there on, the core band started working on their own songs, pulling in Talking Heads’ Jerry Harrison to produce the album full of songs that reek of essence of punk in its prime form. Clear, concise, and straight to the point with no bluffing, but a lot of rock excess, as rock excess should sound like.
Neurotic Outsiders never lived too long after this album, but the album itself still stands as one of post-punk milestones.
VIDEO
NEUROTIC OUTSIDERS Steve Jones (guitar/vocals)
John Taylor (bass/vocals)
Duff McKagan (guitar/vocals)
Matt Sorum (drums)
EPITAPH:Since 1996, the band reformed in 1999 for three shows at the (now defunct) Viper Room, but they’ve all stayed busy.The album’s lyrics foreshadowed many of the themes addressed in Steve Jones’ acclaimed 2018 autobiography, Lonely Boy, now adapted by director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire) as the 2022 Hulu miniseries “Pistol.”Matt Sorum’s long-delayed autobiography, Double Talkin’ Jive has been released by Rare Bird Books this week, covering his career from playing in Tori Amos’ Y Kant Tori Read project, through the Cult, GnR, Velvet Revolver and beyond.Duff McKagan made numerous albums, both solo and in other bands, and has written two books, before reuniting with the reformed Guns N Roses who’ve been touring since 2016.John Taylor recorded six solo albums, wrote his autobiography, and has been touring and recording with Duran Duran since the original band reunited in 2000.All four members of Neurotic Outsiders are in the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame, as is the album’s producer Jerry Harrison. John Taylor’s induction with Duran Duran will take place this November.
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