Price: £20.00
In July 1998, Howard Jones
unveiled his new sound at the first concert of the tour to promote his album
People - comprising a four-piece band
with ex-Kajagoogoo's Nick Beggs on bass, Robin Boult on guitar
and the late Kevin Wilkinson on drums. That album had largely been
recorded at least a year earlier (most of the tracks forming the Asia-only
release Angels & Lovers ). One of the specially-recorded tracks for
People - the single Tomorrow Is Now - was more representative of the
direction his live band format would take.
If any misguided souls still cling to the outdated preconception of
Howard as some kind of fluffy, inconsequential New Ager with a synth,
these reworkings of classic material alongside selections from People
and even the odd brand new track will surely lay that narrow-minded view
to rest once and for all.
This project comes in two different versions. A single,
commercially-released CD with 14 tracks, called Perform.00 , and this
20-track double-CD only available through the Howard Jones website. They
are not live albums. Neither are they a "greatest hits" played live in
the studio. Largely inspired by the endless requests from fans to record
the electrifying live set, Howard and his three band-members eventually
decided to do exactly that.
Perform.00 and Pefawm reflect Howard's latest approach to his
entire catalogue of work, and his desire to keep the older songs fresh by
putting a new spin on them. The range of influences and genres that old
favourites such as Hide & Seek, Life In One Day and You Know I Love
You.. Don't You? are instilled with, cover the whole musical spectrum,
from folk and blues all the way to calypso and heavy rock.
Pefawm is - in simple terms - a double-CD version of Perform.00 ,
with 6 extra songs. It also has its own unique track listing, rather than
sequencing the songs in the same order as on the single-CD release.
Besides an extra 30 minutes of music, Pefawm therefore offers a
different experience when taken as a whole. Indeed, there is good reason
to conclude that, overall, Pefawm is the more complete project, the one
which best captures both the essence of Howard's new band format and his
blossoming forays into a multitude of musical genres. In fact, many of
the 14 songs already familiar from Perform.00 benefit from their new
positioning on these two CDs.
HoJo purists may baulk at some of this, even if they enjoyed what they
heard on the tour. While the power-quartet approach works to stunning
effect on an extended workout of You Know I Love You.. Don't You? and a
feisty, rocking Pearl In The Shell (always a standout in the live set)
whick kicks off Pefawm , the original What Is Love? 's magic is
sacrificed for a brassy, intense remodelling which suits the chorus but not
perhaps the verses quite so well.
Like To Get to Know You Well is equally well-suited to the full band
sound, and slots in nicely between the standout new track Someone You
Need (a wonderful, acoustic ballad with touches of Seal and reminiscent
of Waltz Away Dreaming by George Michael and Toby Bourke) and a funky
rendition of You're The Buddha . The latter track is one of the
half-dozen additions on Pefawm , the version here emphasising the dense
rhythm arrangement and bringing a scratchy guitar motif to the fore.
New Song 99 , a track which in its previous form could arguably be said
to carry its charm via those distinctive keyboard doodlings and
minimalist 80s production, doesn't suffer nearly as much, with * that*
synth sound faithfully reproduced in among the guitar work and Hammond
organ. New Song '99 also sounds more at home here as the next track
after Buddha than it did as the penultimate song on Perform.00 . One of
the highlights of the People tour set, Wedding Song , is another
recording exclusive to Pefawm , perfectly recreating the extended, almost
Steely Dan-esque workout featured in Howard's live repetoire.
As the People world tour progressed, many of the interpretations evolved
yet again from the time they were first premiered within the four-piece
live setting. Hide & Seek , in particular, had an almost completely new
rhythm and guitar motif added, not to mention a different atmosphere
provided by the mournful, rumbling bass and muted harmonica. The version
featured here lasts for over 10 minutes.
The first disc is concluded with the triumvurate of Let The People Have
Their Say, Tomorrow Is Now and Things Can Only Get Better . It's the
natural (and an effective) way to end CD1.
Things Can Only Get Better is stretched out to almost 8 minutes,
culminating in a Latino-flavoured coda that is a million miles from
1985's Dream Into Action version. Whether the result is successful may
be reliant upon individual taste. Tomorrow Is Now doesn't differ all
that much from the originals, the song's structure clearly not requiring
any major overhaul or stylistic tweaking. Let The People Have Their Say
is also a faithful recreation, though it's the 1999 re-recording
template rather than the first People version. The emphasis is on a
Carribean-style rhythm and exultant brass over the strident, chiming
electronic synths and percussion that marked the 1998 original.
Perform.00 and Pefawm are the sound of Howard's most recent past, and at
the same time perhaps his statement of intent for the future. Hence the
inclusion on the second disc of the two non-People songs played from the
outset of the tour.
Love Is A Good Thing is a reggae-lite pop song with plenty of brass, a
summery sound and a delighfully melodic chorus. A far cry from Human's
Lib , but in reality there is little point in pining for what has gone.
That was then, and this is now.
I Must Go , meanwhile, is even less recognisably Howard... a
Country-tinged waltz that covers previously unchartered territory for
him, but the song was never one of the highlights during the tour,
invariably overshadowed by the more energetic numbers.
The project's lead single is a new recording of No One Is To Blame ,
featuring the Philarmonic String Section. While it's a moot point that
yet another version of this song is now available - follwing the 1985
album version, the 1986 hit featuring Phil Collins , and various
orchestral reworkings - this is a surprisingly successful venture. The
spirit of the song is intact, with an elastic bassline nicely juxtaposed
with the soaring string flourishes.
The remainder of CD2 holds some real treats. An accomplished skank
through the reggae-tinged Everything , which has ben enriched
considerably since its initial appearance on People , precedes a flawless
five-song sequence.
Let The People Have Their Say (Stadium) is the third version of the song
to be recorded, and was often snuck in to the set of Howard's live shows
as an alternative to either the piano-driven pop incarnation, or the
subsequent Calypso remodel. With its rolling, 4/4 backbeat and rock
aesthetics, the song takes on an almost mantra-like quality.
During the various 1998 and 1999 tours around the world, a spanking new
Carribean-influenced Life In One Day was unveiled, and proved extremely
popular. The version included here is the only track on either Pefawm or
Perform.00 to feature a live audience on the recording. It's a song
perhaps more ideally suited to such a makeover than Let The People Have
Their Say , and exudes a summery glow of feelgood vibes.
Next stop is a vibrant Dreamin' On , always a highlight of the live set
(and the cue for Nick's be-kilted Irish Dancing !). While the album
version from People was fine, it's generally sounded far better played
by the band, and this recording does full justice to the giddy acoustic
heights it can scale in a concert setting.
The album closes with What Is Love? , followed by the radically
overhauled and elongated Hide & Seek , which finds its perfect home
situated at the close of the second disc.
There could be a case for claiming Pefawm should have switched the end
of CD1 and CD2 around, keeping the feel of Howard's live set (and also
that of Perform.00 ). Usually, the likes of Things Can Only Get Better,
Let The People Have Their Say, Everlasting Love or even No One Is To
Blame feature at the close of proceedings. However, by concluding with
What Is Love? and Hide & Seek, Pefawm has its acquired its own identity,
and finished on a completely different note than if any of the
aforementioned tracks had been chosen in their place.
Pefawm , then, is a whole lot more than merely a longer version of
Perform.00 ... and significantly more rewarding as a complete listening
experience. How either album as a whole will fare in today's market is
difficult to gauge. Howard is not unsual in giving his old, familiar
songs a good dusting down - at this very moment Suzanne Vega is in the
middle of a tour which sees her taking the same approach to her own
catalogue.
These albums serve as a souvenir of the People era and tour, as well as
a tribute to drummer Kevin Wilkinson , who so tragically ended his life
last summer. He was an integral part of the band's dynamic, and is still
sorely missed. This was his last recorded work.
The main question is of how much relevance an actual album of studio
recreations will be to those beyond Howard's existing fan base. It would
be heartening to think they could mark the beginning of a fresh chapter
in his career.
Review copyright © Jason Maloney, 2000.
E-mail Jason Maloney
Check out Jason's homepage:
The Slipstream .
Also, to buy this CD, please visit :
Howard Jones.europe .
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