Howard Jones (musician)
Encyclopedia
Howard Jones is a musician, singer and songwriter. According to the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums, "Jones is an accomplished singer-songwriter who was a regular chart
visitor in the mid 1980s with his brand of synthpop
. Jones, who was equally popular in the U.S., appeared at Live Aid
". Allmusic journalist, Stephen Thomas Erlewine
adds, "Jones was one of the defining figures of mid 1980s synthpop. His music merged the technology intensive sound of new wave
with the cheery optimism of hippie
s and late 1960s pop. Jones racked up a string of hits in the mid and late 1980s, before he retreated into being a cult figure in the 1990s".
, Cardiff, South Wales where he attended Whitchurch
Grammar School; and later in Stokenchurch
, near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, where he attended the Royal Grammar School
. Jones took piano lessons from the age of seven, and when he was a teen, his family had relocated to Canada, which is where he joined his first band, a progressive rock
group called Warrior. Eventually, Jones moved back to the United Kingdom, where he played in a number of different groups. He then spent a year at the Royal Northern College of Music
in Manchester.
Jed Hoile, who used to do improvised choreography, whilst doused in white paint, as Jones played behind him. In 1983 Jones hired the Marquee Club
in London and invited record labels to come and see him perform. After a well-received BBC Radio 1
session he obtained support slots with China Crisis
and OMD
before signing to WEA
in the UK and Elektra
in the U.S. in the summer of 1983.
called "New Song
" was released in September 1983 and reached the UK Top 5 and U.S. Top 30. He made his debut performance on BBC Television
's Top of the Pops
in October 1983, and he watched his tape-delayed performance on a borrowed television resting on an ironing board before a concert
at the University of Kent
. He subsequently had four more hits
over the next twelve months and a UK Number 1 album, Human's Lib
, which eventually went double platinum. Thanks to repeated exposure on MTV
, the album became a moderate hit in the U.S. Later in 1984, "New Song" and "What Is Love" became American Top 40 hits, while "Pearl in the Shell
" became his third UK Top 10 single. Human's Lib went gold
and platinum
in a number of countries. Jones had developed a loyal teen following, and his mother and father, Thelma and John Jones, ran his fan club.
In the summer of 1984, he released "Like to Get to Know You Well
", which he said was 'dedicated to the original spirit of the Olympic Games
'. Although it was not an official Olympic anthem for the Games in Los Angeles
that summer, it was a worldwide hit. It reached Number 4 in the UK Singles Chart
. The sleeve featured the song title in ten different languages; while Jones sang the title line in French and German on the extended 12" version. The song also appeared in the film Better Off Dead (1985) and the computer game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
(2006).
Jones' second long player was a remix
album. It contained six songs, all but one of which had been previously released, but which appeared in elongated formats, including the multilingual version of "Like to Get to Know You Well". The record sleeve for The 12 Inch Album, featured a miniature Jones standing next to a 12-inch ruler.
In 1985, Jones phased Hoile out of his live show, and released his second studio album, Dream into Action
. He introduced his own backing band, including the female backing vocalist
trio, Afrodiziak
. Afrodiziak featured Caron Wheeler
(who went on to greater success with Soul II Soul
) and Claudia Fontaine
(who became a renowned backing singer). Playing bass guitar was Jones' own brother
, Martin. He had to have an extra string added to his instrument
to play some of the bass lines which had originally been played on a keyboard. One of the singles released from this album, "No One Is to Blame
", was later re-recorded and featured Phil Collins
as drummer and producer. Dream into Action was a worldwide hit and Jones' most successful album, reaching number 2 in the UK and number 10 (and going platinum) in the U.S. The album spawned the hit singles "Things Can Only Get Better
", "Life In One Day
", and "Look Mama
". In July 1985, Jones performed at Wembley Stadium as part of the Live Aid
concert, singing his 1984 hit "Hide and Seek
" while playing a piano belonging to Freddie Mercury
. He also embarked on a world tour reaching Japan, Australia and the U.S.
In the spring of 1986 in the U.S., he released Action Replay
, an EP
of remixes that featured a new version of "No One Is to Blame". It became Jones' biggest U.S. hit, peaking at number 4. However, by this time, Jones' fortunes were changing in his native UK and "No One Is To Blame" peaked at a relatively lowly 16. His next single, "All I Want", peaked at number 35, and would be his last UK Top 40 hit. Jones released his third studio album, One To One
, in October 1986, which peaked at number 10 in the UK and would be his last hit album.
In June 1988, Jones performed at Amnesty International
's Festival of Youth at the Milton Keynes Bowl
.
Jones' subsequent albums Cross That Line
(1989) and In the Running
(1992) both performed poorly, the latter even failing to chart. He had further minor hits on the Billboard
charts in the U.S. during this period, including "Everlasting Love
" (1989, his second #1 hit on the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
chart after "No One Is to Blame"), "The Prisoner
" (1989), and "Lift Me Up
" (1992). With his ten year tenure on the Warner music label at an end, a greatest hits compilation The Best of Howard Jones
was released in 1993. The album peaked at number 36 in the UK, but by 2005 (12 years after its release) it was certified Silver by the BPI
for 60,000 copies sold.
Jones also had success as a songwriter for other artists in the early 90s. He co-wrote the dance music hits "Heaven Give Me Words" and "Your Wildlife" with the members of Propaganda
, a German pop/rock group. The tracks appeared on the 1990 album 1234; "Heaven Give Me Words" reached the #22 spot on the Adult Contemporary chart and "Your Wildlife" reached the #22 spot on the Dance Music/Club Play Singles chart.
expired, he concentrated on production, songwriting and running a successful vegetarian restaurant called 'Nowhere'.
He started his own record label, Dtox, and produced an album, Working in the Backroom
, in his own recording studio ('The Shed'). The album was made available only at concert
s and through his official website
.
For the next two years, Jones continually toured America and Europe. In 1996, he released Live Acoustic America
and People
followed two years later. In 2001, Jones played keyboards for Ringo Starr
on his All Starr Band
tour.
On 20 September 2003, Jones played a sold out twentieth anniversary concert at the Shepherds Bush Empire, London, commemorating the release of his first single. He was joined by Midge Ure
and Nena
, as well as his mime artist, Jed Hoile. A recording of this concert was later released on DVD. Jones continued to tour and write new music, collaborating with Robbie Bronnimann to co-produce music for Sugababes
and Jones' own 2005 album Revolution of the Heart
. He toured playing gigs in the United States, Italy, Germany and Sweden and played a number of times at the Edinburgh Festival
in 2006. The same year Jones provided a vocal for the song "Into the Dark" by Ferry Corsten
for the latter's album, L.E.F.
Jones also re-recorded "Things Can Only Get Better
" in Simlish
, the fictional language spoken by characters in Electronic Arts
', The Sims 2
. Jones was also featured on Katrina Carlson's cover
of "No One Is to Blame", which entered the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
chart in 2007.
track, as one of several established artists looking to use podcast
s as a new means of promoting their music and tours. The song debuted at #1 on the PMC Top10
on 29 October 2006 and spent four weeks at the top of the chart. Howard's track "Revolution of the Heart" spent five weeks at #1 on the PMC Top10 during 2007 and finished the year as the #2 song in their annual countdown.
Jones embarked on an acoustic tour of Australia in 2007, beginning in Brisbane and concluding on 5 April in Perth. The Revolution Remixed & Surrounded
album was followed in November by Live in Birkenhead. Jones performed another acoustic set, with other 1980s acts at the Retrofest, on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle
in Ayrshire, Scotland. Jones also went into the studios with The Young Punx
to record vocals for their summer 2008 release, "And The Feel Goes On".
Jones is a member of Sōka Gakkai International
, and is musical director of one of its choirs, the Glorious Life Chorus. The chorus performs some of his songs in its repertoire, including "Building Our Own Future" and "Respected". He returned to Australia again in 2009, this time accompanied by vocalist Laura Clapp and music technologist Robbie Bronnimann. On 26 February 2009 Jones was at the UK premiere of Roland
's new V-Piano in Bristol
and performed "Hide and Seek". He continues to tour, and played the 'Big Hair Affair 2009' on 1 August 2009 at the Ryedale Arena, Pickering
, North Yorkshire
.
His latest album, Ordinary Heroes
was released in November 2009, and he toured London, Cardiff and Manchester with a string section and the Morriston Orpheus Choir
(in St David's Hall
in Cardiff
). A single, "Soon You'll Go", preceded the album's launch.
According to the local BBC
website, Jones currently lives in Creech St Michael
, near Taunton
, Somerset
.
Jones is a member of the board of directors for the Featured Artists Coalition.
On 6 November 2010, Jones released re-masters of Human's Lib, and Dream Into Action (the re-masters were also available in a box set, which has since sold out) on his dtox webstore. The day of the release, Jones performed the albums in their entireties at the IndigO2 arena in London. In the fall of 2011, Jones undertook a short North American tour in which he performed the two albums.
The re-masters of The 12" Album, and Action Replay were released on 1 April 2011, and are lso available as a limited edition box set.
On 29th November 2011 a UK tour was announced."Human's Lib" and "Dream Into Action" will be performed in April 2012 across eight venues. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 am on Friday 2nd December. A weekly radio series will coincide with tour called "Electronic 80's with Howard Jones" on Absolute Radio 80's.
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
visitor in the mid 1980s with his brand of synthpop
Synthpop
Synthpop is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the 1980s, in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic art rock, disco and particularly the "Kraut rock" of...
. Jones, who was equally popular in the U.S., appeared at Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
". Allmusic journalist, Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
adds, "Jones was one of the defining figures of mid 1980s synthpop. His music merged the technology intensive sound of new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
with the cheery optimism of hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
s and late 1960s pop. Jones racked up a string of hits in the mid and late 1980s, before he retreated into being a cult figure in the 1990s".
Early life
Howard Jones is the eldest of four boys (brothers Roy, Martin, and Paul, all of whom were musicians in their own right and had their own band). Born in Southampton to Welsh parents, he spent his early years growing up in RhiwbinaRhiwbina
Rhiwbina is a prosperous northern suburb of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It used to be a separate village: its core is still locally called "the village" and is given a Welsh village appearance by Beulah United Reformed Church at the village crossroads.Capel Beulah/Beulah URC was a daughter chapel...
, Cardiff, South Wales where he attended Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Cardiff
Whitchurch is a suburb in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is approximately 3 miles north of the centre of the city on the A470 road and A4054 road. Its estimated population as of 2004 was 15,649. It falls within the Whitchurch & Tongwynlais ward.-History:Whitchurch draws its name from...
Grammar School; and later in Stokenchurch
Stokenchurch
Stokenchurch is a village and civil parish within Wycombe district in Buckinghamshire England. It is in the Chiltern Hills, about south of Chinnor in Oxfordshire and west of High Wycombe. The village is a popular place to live, due to its rural location and ease of access to London and Birmingham...
, near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, where he attended the Royal Grammar School
Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe
See Royal Grammar School for the other schools with the name RGS.The Royal Grammar School High Wycombe is a selective grammar school situated in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. As a state school it does not charge fees for students to attend, but they must pass an entrance exam...
. Jones took piano lessons from the age of seven, and when he was a teen, his family had relocated to Canada, which is where he joined his first band, a progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
group called Warrior. Eventually, Jones moved back to the United Kingdom, where he played in a number of different groups. He then spent a year at the Royal Northern College of Music
Royal Northern College of Music
The Royal Northern College of Music is a music school in Manchester, England. It is located on Oxford Road in Chorlton on Medlock, at the western edge of the campus of the University of Manchester and is one of four conservatories associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music...
in Manchester.
Early career
He appeared as a solo artist in local venues in High Wycombe, before inviting the mime artistMime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
Jed Hoile, who used to do improvised choreography, whilst doused in white paint, as Jones played behind him. In 1983 Jones hired the Marquee Club
Marquee Club
The Marquee was a music club first located at 165 Oxford Street, London, England when it opened in 1958 with a range of jazz and skiffle acts.It was also the location of the first ever live performance by The Rolling Stones on 12 July 1962....
in London and invited record labels to come and see him perform. After a well-received BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
session he obtained support slots with China Crisis
China Crisis
China Crisis is an English pop/rock band. They were formed in 1979 in Kirkby, near Liverpool, Merseyside with a core of vocalist/keyboardist Gary Daly and guitarist Eddie Lundon...
and OMD
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are a synthpop group whose founding members are originally from the Wirral Peninsula, England...
before signing to WEA
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
in the UK and Elektra
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
in the U.S. in the summer of 1983.
Major record label career
His first singleSingle (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
called "New Song
New Song (Howard Jones song)
"New Song" is the debut single by musician Howard Jones, released in September 1983. The song, from the album Human's Lib, reached number three on the UK Singles Chart. The single spent 20 weeks on the Top 75. In the US, "New Song" peaked at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, although it was not...
" was released in September 1983 and reached the UK Top 5 and U.S. Top 30. He made his debut performance on BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
's Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
in October 1983, and he watched his tape-delayed performance on a borrowed television resting on an ironing board before a concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
at the University of Kent
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
. He subsequently had four more hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
over the next twelve months and a UK Number 1 album, Human's Lib
Human's Lib
Human's Lib is the debut album by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released in March 1984 and entered the UK Album Charts at the no. 1 spot, spending a total of 57 weeks in the charts. The album sold 100,000 copies in its first week of release and has been certified 2× Platinum by the BPI...
, which eventually went double platinum. Thanks to repeated exposure on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, the album became a moderate hit in the U.S. Later in 1984, "New Song" and "What Is Love" became American Top 40 hits, while "Pearl in the Shell
Pearl in the Shell
"Pearl in the Shell" is the fourth and final single released by musician Howard Jones from the album Human's Lib. Released in May 1984, the song reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart...
" became his third UK Top 10 single. Human's Lib went gold
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
and platinum
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
in a number of countries. Jones had developed a loyal teen following, and his mother and father, Thelma and John Jones, ran his fan club.
In the summer of 1984, he released "Like to Get to Know You Well
Like to Get to Know You Well
"Like to Get to Know You Well" is a single by musician Howard Jones released in the second half of 1984, which was subsequently included on his twelve inch remix album The 12" Album. The single climbed to number four on the UK Singles Chart....
", which he said was 'dedicated to the original spirit of the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
'. Although it was not an official Olympic anthem for the Games in Los Angeles
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
that summer, it was a worldwide hit. It reached Number 4 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. The sleeve featured the song title in ten different languages; while Jones sang the title line in French and German on the extended 12" version. The song also appeared in the film Better Off Dead (1985) and the computer game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is a 2006 sandbox-style action video game developed by Rockstar Leeds in association with Rockstar North. It was published by Rockstar Games for the PlayStation Portable in late 2006 and later for the PlayStation 2 in March 2007. The game is the eighth...
(2006).
Jones' second long player was a remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
album. It contained six songs, all but one of which had been previously released, but which appeared in elongated formats, including the multilingual version of "Like to Get to Know You Well". The record sleeve for The 12 Inch Album, featured a miniature Jones standing next to a 12-inch ruler.
In 1985, Jones phased Hoile out of his live show, and released his second studio album, Dream into Action
Dream into Action
Dream into Action is the second album by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released in March 1985 and reached No.2 in the UK Album Charts...
. He introduced his own backing band, including the female backing vocalist
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
trio, Afrodiziak
Afrodiziak
Afrodiziak was the collective name used by the British singers Caron Wheeler and Claudia Fontaine in the mid-to-late 1980s. As a duo, they were best known for performing backup vocals on Elvis Costello's 1983 album Punch the Clock, especially its single, the international hit "Everyday I Write the...
. Afrodiziak featured Caron Wheeler
Caron Wheeler
Caron Wheeler is a two-time Grammy Award winning British R&B/soul singer, who gained fame by writing and singing the lead vocals on the two biggest hits for Soul II Soul Caron Wheeler (19 January 1963) is a two-time Grammy Award winning British R&B/soul singer, who gained fame by writing and...
(who went on to greater success with Soul II Soul
Soul II Soul
Soul II Soul are a British group that was created in London in 1988. They are best known for their 1989 UK chart-topper and U.S. Top 5 hit, "Back to Life ".-Career:...
) and Claudia Fontaine
Claudia Fontaine
Claudia Fontaine is a backing vocalist from Bethnal Green, London, England. She has sung with Betty Boo, Dusty Springfield, Claudia Brücken, Julia Fordham and the bands Pink Floyd and The Beatmasters...
(who became a renowned backing singer). Playing bass guitar was Jones' own brother
Sibling
Siblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
, Martin. He had to have an extra string added to his instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
to play some of the bass lines which had originally been played on a keyboard. One of the singles released from this album, "No One Is to Blame
No One Is to Blame
"No One Is to Blame" is a song by British new wave musician Howard Jones. The song, in its original version, can be found on Jones's second studio album, Dream Into Action, which was released in 1985. Following the success of the previous singles taken from the album, the original track for "No One...
", was later re-recorded and featured Phil Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
as drummer and producer. Dream into Action was a worldwide hit and Jones' most successful album, reaching number 2 in the UK and number 10 (and going platinum) in the U.S. The album spawned the hit singles "Things Can Only Get Better
Things Can Only Get Better (Howard Jones song)
"Things Can Only Get Better" was released as the first single from Howard Jones' 1985 album Dream Into Action, reaching #6 in the UK Singles Chart and #5 in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart....
", "Life In One Day
Life In One Day
The third single from Howard Jones' 1985 album Dream Into Action, "Life in One Day" was another uptempo number, which lyrically warned against wishing one's life away...
", and "Look Mama
Look Mama
Released as the second single from Howard Jones' 1985 album Dream Into Action, "Look Mama" reached #10 in the UK Singles Chart. It was not released as a single in the US, but a different mix to those issued in the UK was included on the US-only remix album Action Replay.The introduction to the...
". In July 1985, Jones performed at Wembley Stadium as part of the Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
concert, singing his 1984 hit "Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek (Howard Jones song)
"Hide and Seek" was the third single by musician Howard Jones. It was released in February 1984, and reached number 12 in the UK Singles Chart. It appears on Jones' album Human's Lib.The B-sides, "Tao Te Ching" and "China Dance", are both instrumentals...
" while playing a piano belonging to Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...
. He also embarked on a world tour reaching Japan, Australia and the U.S.
In the spring of 1986 in the U.S., he released Action Replay
Action Replay (Howard Jones album)
Action Replay is a special six-song EP by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released only in the United States to support the single version of Jones' hit "No One Is To Blame"...
, an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
of remixes that featured a new version of "No One Is to Blame". It became Jones' biggest U.S. hit, peaking at number 4. However, by this time, Jones' fortunes were changing in his native UK and "No One Is To Blame" peaked at a relatively lowly 16. His next single, "All I Want", peaked at number 35, and would be his last UK Top 40 hit. Jones released his third studio album, One To One
One to One (Howard Jones album)
One to One is the third album by British pop musician Howard Jones, released in October 1986. The CD release also contains the single version of "No One Is to Blame" with Phil Collins on backing vocals and drums...
, in October 1986, which peaked at number 10 in the UK and would be his last hit album.
In June 1988, Jones performed at Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
's Festival of Youth at the Milton Keynes Bowl
National Bowl
The National Bowl is an entertainment venue in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The site was a former clay-pit , filled in and raised to form an amphitheatre using sub-soil excavated by the many new developments in the area and it has a current maximum capacity of 65,000...
.
Jones' subsequent albums Cross That Line
Cross That Line
Cross That Line is the fourth album by British pop musician Howard Jones, released in April 1989. It featured two hit singles "The Prisoner" and "Everlasting Love" , though neither of these singles or the album itself were successful in Jones's native UK.The album was produced by Jones with Ian...
(1989) and In the Running
In the Running
In the Running is the fifth album by British pop musician Howard Jones, released in 1992. It was his last original studio album recorded on the Warner/Elektra label...
(1992) both performed poorly, the latter even failing to chart. He had further minor hits on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
charts in the U.S. during this period, including "Everlasting Love
Everlasting Love (Howard Jones song)
"Everlasting Love" is the title of a popular song originally written and recorded by the British singer-songwriter Howard Jones.Released as the first single from Jones' 1989 album Cross That Line, "Everlasting Love" reached #12 in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the late spring...
" (1989, his second #1 hit on the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
chart after "No One Is to Blame"), "The Prisoner
The Prisoner (Howard Jones song)
"The Prisoner" is a Top 40 song written and performed by British singer-songwriter Howard Jones. It was included on his 1989 album Cross That Line and released as a single in 1989, reaching number 30 on the Billboard Billboard Hot 100...
" (1989), and "Lift Me Up
Lift Me Up (Howard Jones song)
"Lift Me Up" is a Top 40 song by British singer-songwriter Howard Jones. It was written and produced by Ross Cullum and Jones, and appeared on Jones' 1992 album In the Running. It was released as a single in 1992 and reached number 32 on the Billboard Billboard Hot 100...
" (1992). With his ten year tenure on the Warner music label at an end, a greatest hits compilation The Best of Howard Jones
The Best of Howard Jones
The Best of Howard Jones is a compilation album by the British pop musician Howard Jones. It compiles key hits and album tracks from 1983-1992 during Jones's tenure on the Warner music label, plus one new track, a cover of Donald Fagen's "I.G.Y...
was released in 1993. The album peaked at number 36 in the UK, but by 2005 (12 years after its release) it was certified Silver by the BPI
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
for 60,000 copies sold.
Jones also had success as a songwriter for other artists in the early 90s. He co-wrote the dance music hits "Heaven Give Me Words" and "Your Wildlife" with the members of Propaganda
Propaganda (band)
Propaganda is a German synthpop group, formed in 1982. They were one of the initial roster of acts signed to Trevor Horn's ZTT label, between 1984 and 1986, during which they released the critically acclaimed album A Secret Wish....
, a German pop/rock group. The tracks appeared on the 1990 album 1234; "Heaven Give Me Words" reached the #22 spot on the Adult Contemporary chart and "Your Wildlife" reached the #22 spot on the Dance Music/Club Play Singles chart.
Independent recording and producing
After Jones' contract with Warner Music UKWarner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
expired, he concentrated on production, songwriting and running a successful vegetarian restaurant called 'Nowhere'.
He started his own record label, Dtox, and produced an album, Working in the Backroom
Working in the Backroom
Working In The Backroom is the sixth album by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released in 1994, and was the first album to be released on Dtox records, Jones's own label.-Track listing:#"Cathedral Of Chutai Excerpt" - 1:19...
, in his own recording studio ('The Shed'). The album was made available only at concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
s and through his official website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
.
For the next two years, Jones continually toured America and Europe. In 1996, he released Live Acoustic America
Live Acoustic America
Live Acoustic America is an acoustic live recording of classic Howard Jones songs, released in 1996.-Track listing:#"Intro/Pearl in the Shell" - 3:44#"Don't Always Look At The Rain" - 2:56#"Fallin' Away" - 4:25#"Exodus/Come Together" - 5:29...
and People
People (Howard Jones album)
People is officially Howard Jones's seventh album, released in 1998. After the US release on Ark 21 Records, People was a global release via Jones' own record label dtox. The album is a reworked version of the 1997 Japanese-only release Angels & Lovers...
followed two years later. In 2001, Jones played keyboards for Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
on his All Starr Band
Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band
To date, Ringo Starr has toured with eleven versions of his All-Starr Band where "everybody on stage is a star in their own right." Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band is a concept that was created by producer David Fishof...
tour.
On 20 September 2003, Jones played a sold out twentieth anniversary concert at the Shepherds Bush Empire, London, commemorating the release of his first single. He was joined by Midge Ure
Midge Ure
James "Midge" Ure, OBE is a Scottish guitarist, singer, keyboard player, and songwriter...
and Nena
Nena
Gabriele Susanne Kerner , better known by her stage name Nena, is a German singer and actress. She rose to international fame in 1983 with the New German Wave song "99 Luftballons". In 1984, she re-recorded this song in English as "99 Red Balloons". Nena was also the name of the band with whom she...
, as well as his mime artist, Jed Hoile. A recording of this concert was later released on DVD. Jones continued to tour and write new music, collaborating with Robbie Bronnimann to co-produce music for Sugababes
Sugababes
The Sugababes are an English pop girl group based in London, consisting of members Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen. The Sugababes were formed in 1998 with founding members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan. Their debut album, One Touch, was released in 2000 under London...
and Jones' own 2005 album Revolution of the Heart
Revolution of the Heart
Revolution Of The Heart is Howard Jones's eighth album, released in 2005.-Track listing:#"Celebrate Our Love" - 4:42#"Respected" - 5:37#"Just Look At You Now" - 4:21#"Revolution Of The Heart" - 3:15#"I've Said Too Much" - 5:06...
. He toured playing gigs in the United States, Italy, Germany and Sweden and played a number of times at the Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
in 2006. The same year Jones provided a vocal for the song "Into the Dark" by Ferry Corsten
Ferry Corsten
Ferry Corsten, also known under the alias System F, is a Dutch producer of trance music, in addition to being a DJ and remixer. He also hosts his own weekly radio show, Corsten's Countdown. He routinely plays at events all over the world with crowds in excess of tens of thousands. In 2009 Ferry...
for the latter's album, L.E.F.
L.E.F.
Bonus tracks * Daylight* I Love You* System F - Insolation * Prison Break Theme...
Jones also re-recorded "Things Can Only Get Better
Things Can Only Get Better (Howard Jones song)
"Things Can Only Get Better" was released as the first single from Howard Jones' 1985 album Dream Into Action, reaching #6 in the UK Singles Chart and #5 in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart....
" in Simlish
Simlish
Simlish is a fictional language featured in EA Games' Sim series of games. It debuted in SimCopter, and has been especially prominent in The Sims, The Sims 2 and The Sims 3. The Sims development team created the unique Simlish language by experimenting with fractured Ukrainian, French, Latin,...
, the fictional language spoken by characters in Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
', The Sims 2
The Sims 2
The Sims 2 is a strategic life simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling computer game, The Sims, which debuted on February 4, 2000. It was first released on September 14, 2004 for Microsoft Windows. A port to Apple Mac OS X...
. Jones was also featured on Katrina Carlson's cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of "No One Is to Blame", which entered the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
chart in 2007.
Recent activities
In October 2006, Jones released "Building Our Own Future" as a podsafePodsafe
Podsafe is a term created in the podcasting community to refer to any work which, through its licensing, specifically allows the use of the work in podcasting, regardless of restrictions the same work might have in other realms...
track, as one of several established artists looking to use podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
s as a new means of promoting their music and tours. The song debuted at #1 on the PMC Top10
PMC Top10
The Pod Music Countdown is a music program that is broadcast over the internet as a podcast. It is hosted by Chris Doelle and is a weekly countdown show featuring the top podsafe tunes being spun by podcasters all over the globe. The PMC Top10 is recognized as the first podcast counting down the...
on 29 October 2006 and spent four weeks at the top of the chart. Howard's track "Revolution of the Heart" spent five weeks at #1 on the PMC Top10 during 2007 and finished the year as the #2 song in their annual countdown.
Jones embarked on an acoustic tour of Australia in 2007, beginning in Brisbane and concluding on 5 April in Perth. The Revolution Remixed & Surrounded
Revolution Remixed & Surrounded
Revolution Remixed & Surrounded is a double album featuring dance reinterpretations of selected tracks from Howard Jones' 2005 release Revolution of the Heart.Disc one is a continuous segue or 'mix' of music...
album was followed in November by Live in Birkenhead. Jones performed another acoustic set, with other 1980s acts at the Retrofest, on 1 September 2007 at Culzean Castle
Culzean Castle
Culzean Castle is a castle near Maybole, Carrick, on the Ayrshire coast of Scotland. It is the former home of the Marquess of Ailsa but is now owned by the National Trust for Scotland...
in Ayrshire, Scotland. Jones also went into the studios with The Young Punx
The Young Punx
The Young Punx are an English based electronic dance music act whose eclectic and energetic style encompasses french house, breakbeat and drum and bass, mashed up with elements as diverse as 1980s pop music, hard rock, disco and glam rock.-Personnel:...
to record vocals for their summer 2008 release, "And The Feel Goes On".
Jones is a member of Sōka Gakkai International
Soka Gakkai International
is a lay religious movement within Nichiren Buddhism, a branch of Mahayana Buddhism derived from the teachings of the thirteenth-century Japanese monk, Nichiren Daishonin....
, and is musical director of one of its choirs, the Glorious Life Chorus. The chorus performs some of his songs in its repertoire, including "Building Our Own Future" and "Respected". He returned to Australia again in 2009, this time accompanied by vocalist Laura Clapp and music technologist Robbie Bronnimann. On 26 February 2009 Jones was at the UK premiere of Roland
Roland Corporation
is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, with ¥33 million in capital. In 2005 Roland's headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. Today it has factories in Japan,...
's new V-Piano in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and performed "Hide and Seek". He continues to tour, and played the 'Big Hair Affair 2009' on 1 August 2009 at the Ryedale Arena, Pickering
Pickering, North Yorkshire
Pickering is an ancient market town and civil parish in the Ryedale district of the county of North Yorkshire, England, on the border of the North York Moors National Park. It sits at the foot of the Moors, overlooking the Vale of Pickering to the south...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
.
His latest album, Ordinary Heroes
Ordinary Heroes (album)
Ordinary Heroes is the ninth studio album by the British Pop musician Howard Jones, released on 9th November 2009. -Track listing:*Standard Version#"Straight Ahead" – 4:13#"Say It Like You Mean It" – 3:35...
was released in November 2009, and he toured London, Cardiff and Manchester with a string section and the Morriston Orpheus Choir
Morriston Orpheus Choir
The Morriston Orpheus Choir, based in Morriston, near Swansea, Wales, is a male voice choir, one of the best-known in the UK.-History:The Choir was formed on April 23, 1935 by Ivor E. Sims and in its early days concentrated primarily on competitions and local concerts...
(in St David's Hall
St David's Hall
St David's Hall is a performing arts and conference venue in the heart of Cardiff city centre, the capital of Wales...
in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
). A single, "Soon You'll Go", preceded the album's launch.
According to the local BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
website, Jones currently lives in Creech St Michael
Creech St Michael
Creech St. Michael is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated three miles east of Taunton in the Taunton Deane district. The village has a population of 2,464...
, near Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
.
Jones is a member of the board of directors for the Featured Artists Coalition.
On 6 November 2010, Jones released re-masters of Human's Lib, and Dream Into Action (the re-masters were also available in a box set, which has since sold out) on his dtox webstore. The day of the release, Jones performed the albums in their entireties at the IndigO2 arena in London. In the fall of 2011, Jones undertook a short North American tour in which he performed the two albums.
The re-masters of The 12" Album, and Action Replay were released on 1 April 2011, and are lso available as a limited edition box set.
On 29th November 2011 a UK tour was announced."Human's Lib" and "Dream Into Action" will be performed in April 2012 across eight venues. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 am on Friday 2nd December. A weekly radio series will coincide with tour called "Electronic 80's with Howard Jones" on Absolute Radio 80's.