HOWARD JONES JUST LOOK AT YOU NOW SINGLE PLAYGROUND RELEASE: APRIL 27, 2005 REVIEW: MAY 13, 2005

Howard Jones was my first idol. I was about nine or ten years old when he released his debut album “Human’s Lib”, and I first heard it on cassette at my friend Joel’s house (I wonder what happened to Joel, by the way - I haven’t seen him since ninth grade…). Anyway, that tape brought me a new sound that I’d never heard before, and I loved it. Long time readers might have read about my even earlier exposure to Jean Michel Jarre, but Howard Jones took synthesizers and made pop music with them. Joel and I used to play “concert” to Howard’s "The 12” Album" in my family’s living room, with pillows as keyboards. Silly but fun.
I stayed with Howard up until “Cross That Line”, an uneven album with a couple of great songs, but his drift towards traditional instrumentation (and honestly, the songs weren't as good) didn’t sit well with me. He moved to peripheral territory, and I sort of always kept an eye on him, but didn’t buy all his stuff as I used to. Then I stumbled onto his web site a while ago, and it seemed that he was working his way back to electronic music again, and my interest sparkled yet again.
And now I have the first electronic product of his for a looooong while in my stereo, and boy does it sound good! The single “Just Look at You Now” is a smooth piece with a throbbing bass and brilliant chorus, which stays in your mind a long while after you stop playing. The DBA trance remix brings Mr Jones to the dance floor in a big way, while the Young Punx mix is a bit more uneven.
So, over 20 years after I discovered Howard Jones for the first time, here he is again, with a very promising first single from the new album “Revolution of the Heart”, which comes out this fall.

JOHAN CARLSSON