Howard Jones

Born in Southampton, England, Jones spent a lot of his youth living in various places, including Cardiff, Wales and Canada. He became interested in music from an early age, learning to play keyboards and went on to attend the Royal Northern College of Music. His studies were short lived, with Jones dropping out and moving to Southampton, where he played in several jazz and funk bands. Soon he started performing his own music as a solo artist, incorporating synthesizers and drum machines into his eclectic sound. Jones managed to attract the attention of John Peel, who invited him to play a BBC session. This exposure helped Jones gain support slots for a number of new wave acts across the UK, which eventually led to being offered a record deal with WEA in Europe and Elektra Records in the US in 1983.

His first single, “New Song,” was released the same year, becoming a popular hit and reaching number three in the charts. This was followed by “What is Love,” which bettered his last, peaking at number two. His debut album arrived the following year in 1984, titled “Humans Lib,” which quickly was a commercial hit and reached the top spot in the UK charts. Exposure on MTV aided his success in America, achieving several top 40 hits.

In 1985, Jones released his second album, “Dream Into Action,” and also formed a live touring band. The album was a huge success, becoming certified Platinum in the US and reaching number ten in the charts. It featured hit singles such as “Things Can Only Get Better,” “Like to Get to Know You Well” and “Life in One Day.” Whilst performing well in the US charts, his success in the UK began to decline, although he was still breaking into the top 20, but was unable to achieve the same success as earlier releases.

Jones had another strong album with “Cross That Line” in 1989, although it only managed to peak at 65 in the US charts. After releasing a greatest hits album, Jones was dropped from Elektra. Jones responded by embarking on extensive tours, as well as doing acoustic sets, displaying his versatility. Jones continued to tour well in to the 2000s, releasing several live albums. In 2005, he recorded a new album, “Revolution of the Heart,” which kept his music alive. In 2009, he released “Ordinary Heroes,” which featured orchestral influences and piano.