ALBUM REVIEW: The Professionals – SNAFU (JTP Records)
The Professionals, lest we forget, were the group formed in 1979 by Paul Cook and Steve Jones in the wake of the Sex Pistols’ demise.
They lasted just three years in their original incarnation, leaving behind a handful of fine singles and an album.
After reuniting in 2015 to celebrate the release of a 3CD ‘best of’, with Tom Spencer (The Yo-Yos) taking Jones’ place, they’ve never looked back.
A long-overdue second album, 2017’s What In The World, was followed by a series of three EPs during 2020’s lockdown.
Now the boys – Cook on drums, Spencer on guitar and vocals, and former tech guy Toshi JC Ogawa on bass – are back, with an excellent new album.
They’re joined by a couple of guest guitarists, Billy Duffy (The Cult) and Phil Collen (Def Leppard), along with Jonny Weathers and Neil Ivison.
Even though he doesn’t play on it, the spirit of Jones is present throughout the record, which is foot-to-the-floor punk rock ‘n’ roll from the get-go.
Easily Lead is a swaggering opener, and it gets better from there as they really let loose, really capturing the band’s trademark chugging sound.
Cook always was a powerful and hugely under-rated drummer, and even at 65, still drives the band on, with Ogawa’s help.
Spencer – who’s also in The Men They Couldn’t Hang – is a natural vocalist, and they’ve penned an album full of hooks and catchy choruses.
It’s hard to pick a standout track from the 11 here, as there’s not a bad one, but the single Spike Me Baby – about Cook accidentally getting high on herbally enhanced chocolates – is a contender.
But so too are the muscular Punk Rock And A Hard Place, the anthemic Never Say Never and the self-confessional Only Human.
This is a band right at the top of their game, and I can’t wait to see them play these songs live on their forthcoming UK tour. 9/10.
