Episode 21: Howard Jones - Dream Into Action (1985) Part 1

After an abbreviated episode last week, this episode finds our hosts returning to the traditional format of discussing an entire album. And discuss it they do--in fact, so much so that even the first side has to be broken up into two episodes! What selection prompted so much conversation between Brian and Sarah? It's "Dream Into Action," the second studio album by British musician Howard Jones, released in 1985.

Part 1: Background

Both hosts share information about Howard Jones, his musical upbringing, and his early struggles to get a record deal. They mention his debut album, "Human's Lib," and the success it found on the British charts. Then the discussion turns to the making of "Dream Into Action" and the performance of the album and the singles in both the UK and the US. Some time is spent discussing the different track listings and track selections for the UK and US releases. Brian and Sarah are more familiar with the US cassette version, so they've chosen that track listing to analyze.

Part 2: Personal History

Once again, Sarah did not own an actual copy of "Dream Into Action" back in the day, and in fact, it was quite some time until she even had any copy of it. She was, however, familiar with the singles, and she shares a story from her high school years that's quite typical of many teenage girls at the time. Brian, on the other hand, was introduced to the album pretty early on, but it came to him in a somewhat unusual manner compared to his typical record acquisitions.

Part 3: Track by Track

Brian and Sarah find themselves with a lot to say about the first two tracks on Side One-- which is no surprise, considering both songs were major international hits. They also spend quite a bit of time discussing the two videos. So, to save the listeners' ears, this episode concludes after the discussion of "Life In One Day."  (Part 2 of the discussion covers the rest of the tracks on Side One of the US cassette.)

 

Things Can Only Get Better

Life in One Day

 

See the videos we discuss here:

Things Can Only Get Better

Life In One Day

 

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