View source for Mick Jones (Foreigner guitarist)

{{Short description|English rock guitarist (born 1944)}}
{{distinguish|Mick Jones (The Clash guitarist)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2025}}
{{BLP sources|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Mick Jones
| image             = 2016 Lieder am See - Foreigner - Mick Jones - by 2eight - DSC4815.jpg
| caption           = Jones performing with [[Foreigner (band)|Foreigner]] in 2016
| background        = solo_singer
| birth_name        = Michael Leslie Jones
| birth_date        = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1944|12|27}}
| birth_place       = [[Portsmouth]], Hampshire, England
| origin            = [[Andover, Hampshire]], England
| alias             = 
| instrument        = {{hlist|Guitar|keyboards|vocals}}
| genre             = {{hlist|[[Rock music|Rock]]|[[hard rock]]}}
| occupation        = {{hlist|Musician|songwriter|singer|producer}}
| label             = {{hlist|[[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]]|[[Warner Music Group|Warner]]}}
| years_active      = 1961–present
| website           = 
}}

'''Michael Leslie Jones''' (born 27 December 1944) is an English musician, songwriter and record producer, best known as the founder, leader and only continuous original member of the British-American rock band [[Foreigner (band)|Foreigner]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Christopher |date=22 February 2024 |title=Foreigner's Mick Jones suffers from Parkinson's disease |url=https://www.wecb.fm/foreigners-mick-jones-suffers-from-parkinsons-disease/ |access-date=5 April 2024 |website=Wecb.fm|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Lou Gramm Thanks RRHoF for Nominating Foreigner |url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/lou_gramm_thanks_rrhof_for_nominating_foreigner.html |access-date=5 April 2024 |website=Ultimate-guitar.com |language=en}}</ref> Prior to Foreigner, he was in the band [[Spooky Tooth]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barry |first=John W. |title=Foreigner, always urgent, gears up for Mid-Hudson Civic Center |url=https://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/entertainment/2017/04/20/foreigner-mid-hudson-civic-center/100166796/ |access-date=5 April 2024 |website=Poughkeepsie Journal |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Early life ==
Michael Leslie Jones was born on 27 December 1944 in [[Portsmouth]], England.{{citation needed|reason=Most of the reliable sources say London.|date=December 2014}} Jones started playing guitar at an early age, and decided to pursue a career in music.

== Career ==
He began his professional music career in the early 1960s as a member of the band [[Nero and the Gladiators]], who scored two minor British [[hit single]]s in 1961. After the demise of Nero and the Gladiators, Jones worked as a songwriter and [[session musician]] in France for such artists as [[Françoise Hardy]], [[Sylvie Vartan]], and [[Johnny Hallyday]], for whom he wrote many songs, including "Je suis né dans la rue" and "[[À tout casser (song)|À tout casser]]" (which features [[Jimmy Page]] on guitar). When [[The Beatles]] toured France in 1964, they befriended Jones when Hallyday's girlfriend and future wife, [[Sylvie Vartan]], played on the same bill as they did. Between 1965 and 1971, Jones recorded in France with [[Nero and the Gladiators|Tommy Brown]] (Thomas R. Browne) as State of Mickey & Tommy, as well as under other session names, including the Blackburds, Nimrod, and the J&B.

After leaving France to return to his home country, Jones joined [[Gary Wright]], formerly of the band [[Spooky Tooth]], to form Wonderwheel in 1971. In 1972, Jones and Wright reformed Spooky Tooth and, after that, Jones was a member of the [[Leslie West|Leslie West Band]]. He also played guitar on the albums ''[[Wind of Change (album)|Wind of Change]]'' (1972) for [[Peter Frampton]], and ''[[Dark Horse (George Harrison album)|Dark Horse]]'' (1974) for [[George Harrison]].

In 1976, Jones formed [[Foreigner (band)|Foreigner]] with [[Ian McDonald (musician)|Ian McDonald]], and recruited lead singer [[Lou Gramm]]. Jones co-produced all of the band's albums and co-wrote most of their songs with Gramm. Jones is credited with writing the band's most successful single, "[[I Want to Know What Love Is]]", by himself.<ref>[http://www.allmusic.com/song/i-want-to-know-what-love-is-t930531 I Want to Know What Love Is] ''[[Allmusic]]'' Retrieved 13 February 2011</ref><ref>[{{BillboardURLbyName|artist=foreigner|chart=all}} I Want to Know What Love Is – Foreigner] ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' Retrieved 13 February 2011</ref> Tensions developed within the band during the late 1980s, attributed to a difference in musical taste between Gramm, who favoured a more hard-edged rock, as opposed to Jones' interest in synthesisers. Gramm left the band in 1990 but returned in 1992. In 1989 Jones released his only solo album, titled ''[[Mick Jones (album)|Mick Jones]]'', on the [[Atlantic Records]] label. Jones is the only member to play on every Foreigner album.

In between his Foreigner commitments, Jones also started a side career as a producer for such albums as [[Van Halen]]'s ''[[5150 (album)|5150]]'' (1986), [[Bad Company]]'s ''[[Fame and Fortune]]'' (1986) and [[Billy Joel]]'s ''[[Storm Front (album)|Storm Front]]'' (1989).

He co-wrote with [[Eric Clapton]] the song "[[Bad Love (Eric Clapton song)|Bad Love]]" on Clapton's ''[[Journeyman (album)|Journeyman]]'' album,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.eric-clapton.co.uk/ecla/lyrics/bad-love.html|title=Bad Love|website=Eric-clapton.co.uk}}</ref> and in 2002 co-wrote the song "On Her Mind" with [[Duncan Sheik]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/duncansheik/articles/story/5933980/duncan_sheik_sees_the_light|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515022554/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/duncansheik/articles/story/5933980/duncan_sheik_sees_the_light|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 May 2008|title=Rolling Stone, "Duncan Sheik Sees the Light" (15 July 2002)|website=Rollingstone.com}}</ref> In the late 1990s and early 2000s, he played with [[Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings]]. In 2024, Jones was selected for induction into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]], as a member of Foreigner.<ref name="rrhof24">{{cite web |date=22 April 2024 |title=2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees |url=https://rockhall.com/2024-inductees/ |access-date=22 April 2024 |website=Rock & Roll Hall of Fame}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
[[File:Mick Jones Foreigner November 1979.jpg|thumb|Mick Jones performing with Foreigner on 25 November 1979]]
Jones is married to socialite/writer/Jewellery designer Ann Dexter-Jones, mother of [[Mark Ronson|Mark]], [[Samantha Ronson|Samantha]] and [[Charlotte Ronson]]. He and Dexter-Jones have two children, [[Annabelle Dexter-Jones]] and Alexander Dexter-Jones. Married for nearly 25 years (1983–2007), they divorced in 2007. In March 2017, the couple remarried.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cottagesgardens.com/it-feels-like-the-first-time-ann-dexter-jones-greenwich-village-apartment-is-available-to-buy/ | title=It 'Feels Like the First Time' Ann-Dexter Jones' Greenwich Village Apartment is Available to Buy|website=Cottagesgardens.com| date=6 October 2017 }}</ref> Jones also has two sons, Roman Jones and Christopher Jones, from previous relationships.

In February 2024, Jones revealed that he had been diagnosed with [[Parkinson's disease]] years back, citing this as his reason for not touring with Foreigner since 2023.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://eu.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2024/02/21/mick-jones-foreigner-parkinsons-disease/72684360007/ | title=Foreigner founder Mick Jones reveals Parkinson's diagnosis amid farewell tour absences|website=Eu.usatoday.com}}</ref>

== Album producer credits ==
In addition to the Foreigner albums, Jones has produced the following:
* ''[[5150 (album)|5150]]'' – [[Van Halen]] (1986)
* ''[[Fame and Fortune]]'' – [[Bad Company]] (1986)
* ''Dead, White and Blue'' – Flesh & Blood (1989)
* ''[[Save the Last Dance for Me (album)|Save the Last Dance for Me]]'' – [[Ben E. King]] (1989)
* ''[[Storm Front (album)|Storm Front]]'' – [[Billy Joel]] (1989)
* ''[[In Deep (Tina Arena album)|In Deep]]'' – [[Tina Arena]] (1997)

==Discography==
===Albums===
* ''[[Mick Jones (album)|Mick Jones]]'' (1989 (Studio))
* ''The Concert for London'' (2002 (Live))

===Charting singles===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:15em;"| Title
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:0.5em;"| Release
! colspan="1" scope="col" | Peak chart positions
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:15em;"| <br/>Album<br/><br/>
|-
! scope="col" style="width:2.9em;font-size:90%;"| [[Mainstream Rock (chart)|US<br/>Main]]
|-
!scope="row"| "Just Wanna Hold"
| 1989
| 16
| ''[[Mick Jones (album)|Mick Jones]]''
|}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links==
* {{discogs artist|Mick Jones}}
* {{imdb name|0428853}}

{{Commons category|Mick Jones (Foreigner guitarist)|Mick Jones}}

{{Foreigner}}
{{Spooky Tooth}}
{{2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Mick}}
[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:English lead guitarists]]
[[Category:English male guitarists]]
[[Category:English male songwriters]]
[[Category:English record producers]]
[[Category:English rock guitarists]]
[[Category:Foreigner (band) members]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Musicians from London]]
[[Category:Musicians from Portsmouth]]
[[Category:Spooky Tooth members]]