Howard Jones - Human's Lib (1984)

Note: I listened to the 2018 Cherry Red "Remastered & Expanded" reissue with 1 bonus track.

Mea culpa: I didn't buy this album back in 1984 when, even by my own reckoning, I probably should have. Heck, a cassette wouldn't have left my car's Pioneer deck for weeks. This thing was (and is) right up my alley: bouncy, melodic, upbeat Euro synth-pop from a guy my high school classmates had never heard of - complete with requisite videos on MTV. Nevertheless, I didn't buy my first HoJo album until 1985 when I picked up a vinyl copy of Dream Into Action.

With the exception of a couple of sax parts, Jones is a one-man band and isn't afraid to use every sequencer and tape track available to layer his sounds. Hooks abound and even though I'm not much for lyrics, even I can't ignore the overall positive demeanor of this album.

I read complaints about this CD using the 12" extended version of What Is Love? instead of the original album version, but since I never heard an original version it doesn't make any difference to me (but I'll be the first to admit that switch would bother me to no end if I'd owned the '84 release). Track-by-track breakdown in the liner notes is most appreciated and the remastering is superb.

Press of the time:

• Rolling Stone (★★): "poor pastiches of already overworked synth exercises"
• Smash Hits (6½ out of 10): "A must for all Supertramp fans."
• Stereo Review: "may have just rescued new music"
• Robert Christgau: (C-) 
• Billboard: "quirky, accessible pop/rock"

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #59
• Billboard Rock: #21
• CashBox: #88

Tracks: I like all cuts - don't skip any - but since we're already here, let's rank 'em:

1. What Is Love? (#33 pop)
2. New Song (#27 pop) - once named "The Happiest Song of the '80s" and it's hard to argue against that pick
3. Pearl In The Shell
4. Hide And Seek - that glorious chorus!
5. Natural
6. Don't Always Look At The Rain
7. Equality - I dig the ethereal synth break
8. Conditioning - the opening slot was the perfect placement for this one.
9. Hunt The Self
10. Human's Lib - this dark, minor-keyed tune just seems out of place here.

Bonus track: China Dance is the instrumental b-side from the Hide & Seek single and was a b-side for a reason.

Exclusive CD longbox photo courtesy of
Dirk Digglinator of the Hambonian Archives.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: So why didn't I purchase this album when it was released? It was a matter of timing.

I first saw the video for New Song on MTV in December 1983, was hooked and immediately wanted to buy the album but, of course, it wasn't to be released in the US for six more months. By the time June 1984 rolled around, I had moved on to other interests and forgotten about wanting that album. Elektra's poor planning, my loss.

Previously revisited for the blog:
In The Running (1992)
Dream Into Action (1985)

Howard Jones - In The Running (1992)

I was unaware that HoJo was releasing albums in the nineties until this arrived at my house in a used lot of CDs. I wasn't the biggest fan back in the '80s but I always enjoyed his stuff on the radio. Looks like this album contains Jones's final Top 40 hit, Lift Me Up (#32 pop, #10 AC). I haven't played it yet - let's give it a spin.

I disagree, Christian, but I'm not much of a lyrics guy anyway. Jones has mellowed his sound, toned down the synths, added guitar, embraced his adult contemporary leanings. Material is good - no different than his earlier stuff, just orchestrated differently. I'm liking it and moving this disc to my truck for further (easy) listening. And I would have enjoyed this in 1992 - reminds me of Simply Red or Nick Heyward. Pleasant surprise.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: My picks on this inaugural listen are Lift Me Up (yes, I recognized it), Fallin' Away, The Voices Are Back, Gun Turned On The World, and One Last Try.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. I'm sure the printed lyrics in the booklet would have been easy to read in '92, but the print seems to have shrunk over the last quarter-century.

Exclusive CD Longbox photo courtesy of
Dirk Digglinator of the Hambonian Archives.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Dream Into Action (1985)

Howard Jones - Dream Into Action (1985)

Note: this release was originally purchased as an LP, later replaced by a CD. For you audiophiles, my copy is a Target CD.

I often listened to this album when it came out. At age 19, my life was great in 1985, so when you hear Things Can Only Get Better, you think "Wow! How can that be?!? I can't wait!" Plus, I'm a big fan of the Euro synth-pop, so this release is right in my wheelhouse. I'm not a fan that the CD release doesn't replicate the track sequence of my old LP. Am I being too picky?

Press of the time:

• Rolling Stone: "Jones seems stuck in a rut, not a groove."
• Smash Hits (7 out of 10): "Howard seems in such a hurry here to cover all his options that he never really shines."
• Stereo Review: "sports a half-dozen hummable tunes"
• Robert Christgau (D): "Smarter than Cat Stevens. Sexier than Norman Vincent Peale. But not vice versa. And less soulful than either."

Album chart Peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #10
• Billboard Pop CD: #13
• Billboard R&B: #65
• CashBox: #11
• CashBox CD: #20
• Rolling Stone: #10

Tracks: Of the hits, my fav is No One is to Blame. Other tracks that I like are Look Mama, Assault and Battery (admittedly not the cheeriest HoJo song) and Like to Get to Know You Well. Not a fan of Automaton or the horrid Bounce Right Back. Is There a Difference? is just cheesy '80s pop filler, but I'll sing right along with it.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: This takes me back to my dorm room in Berry Hall. My sophomore year in college, I somehow got my parents to agree to paying the extra money to get me a private room. I also remember the song Assault and Battery on one of my favorite TV shows of that time: Miami Vice.