Howard Jones combined adept, crafty skills on synthesizers and keyboards and (an area where many of his contemporaries who were lumped in a general category of synth-pop were lacking) strong songwriting to create a memorable catalog of hits.
He brought those hits, 15 in the top 40 including 6 in the top 10 worldwide from the mid 1980’s to early 1990’s, along with his new multimedia work, Engage, to Manhattan’s Gramercy Theater on Wednesday. Jones spoke to me about his current ambitious project and the through lines that connect his entire body of work. If you are of a certain age, you may recall his Like To Get To Know You Well appearing in one of the great 1980’s comedies Better Off Dead which happens to turn 30 years old this week. That film was directed by none other than ‘Savage’ Steve Holland, no relation…