Johnny Hates Jazz Call For Unity On New Single

They need no introduction, having been one of the bands to dominate the eighties with massive hits like Shattered Dreams and Turn Back the Clock. Even now, with nearly 500,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, and over 25 Million plays on the remastered version of Shattered Dreams alone, it’s clear that Johnny Hates Jazz fans aren’t going anywhere.

After 20 years without speaking to one another, having gone their separate ways in the late 1980s, Clark Datchler and Mike Nocito reunited in 2009 to write and record new material. The result was come-back album Magnetized, released in 2013 to great acclaim.

During the promotion of the new album, Clark was diagnosed with a rare form of stomach cancer and all activities were put on hold. Following an operation and subsequent recovery, Datchler said coming “face to face with the door from life to death” had given him a renewed sense of purpose as a musician.

As Clark continued on the road to recovery, the band picked up where they had left off, and have spent the last few years touring extensively throughout the world. Clark also spent some time with Mike Rutherford, with whom he co-wrote the majority of the 2017 Mike & The Mechanics album Let Me Fly. The 30th Anniversary Edition of Turn Back The Clock (album) was released a year later.

A new album will be released in August - leading the charge is the first single Spirit Of Love. Though written before the global pandemic that we currently find ourselves living through, the lyrics couldn’t be more relevant. A deliberate move away from their recognisable brand of 80’s pop, the groove is utterly intrinsic to the song and harkens back to a classic 1970’s feel, which bridges R&B with rock.

Spirit Of Love is out on the 29th May, along with a specially filmed music video that includes clips from the band’s time in Japan, and features fans from all over the world coming together with a message of unity. Uptempo, with driving guitars and Datchler’s unmistakable vocals, you can’t help but start to feel a sense of hope for the future.

A song for our times from a timeless band.