The Professionals – What in the World
After 36 years, The Professionals are back with their second album. The first, I Didn’t See it Coming, was written and recorded by Steve Jones and Paul Cook of The Sex Pistols very shortly after the band’s demise. The latest incarnation of The Professionals features Paul Cook and Tom Spencer with Steve Jones making numerous appearances.
Much of the instrumental work was done by other late 70’s luminaries like Mick Jones of The Clash and Marco Pirrone of Adam & The Ants. With that said, Steve Jones does play on several tracks including “Going, Going, Gone”, “Take Me Now” and “Good Man Down”. Tom Spencer handles vocals.
Speaking of which, the anthemic “Good Man Down” starts the proceedings off well with Jones’ soaring guitars and a shout-along chorus that’s contagious. Def Leopard’s Phil Collen plays a mean guitar on “Let Go”. “Going Going Gone”, a tribute to Lemmy Kilmister (Motorhead) and David Bowie is another highlight.
However, the two best tracks are “Rewind” and “Hats Off”. “Rewind” is a punchy power pop song, pure and simple. “Hats Off” shares the anthemic quality of some of the earlier tracks with it’s chant-like chorus. It’s something I could have imagined The Sex Pistols or Clash doing back in the day.
