John Howard -

John Howard is an English pianist, singer, and songwriter who released the 1975 album Kid in a Big World on CBS, which vaulted his two subsequent albums, Technicolour Biography and Can You Hear Me OK? He cut five single between 1978 and 1984, but didn’t return as an album artist until the 2005 discs The Dangerous Hours and As I Was Saying, which coincided with the excavation of his missing mid-Seventies recordings.

Background

John was born Howard Michael Jones on April 9, 1953, in Bury, Greater Manchester, England. He grew up in Heywood and Bury with a father who played piano in northern jazz bands. Howard began playing at age four and entered classical training three years later.

He started composing songs during childhood and used a domestic tape recorder to build overdubbed demos during his teens. A March 1970 college charity concert gave Howard his first public platform for original material. He subsequently played universities and folk clubs, while Bolton’s Octagon Theatre booked him for concert appearances. In September 1970, he shared an Octagon bill with Spirogyra.

Howard moved to London in August 1973. His flatmate Brian Keith introduced him to Chappell Music executive Stuart Reid, who signed Howard to a management and publishing agreement. Howard then recorded Chappell Studio demos alone and with a group led by former Fenmen guitarist Eddy Pumer.

CBS executives Dan Loggins and Paul Phillips saw Howard perform at Small’s in Knightsbridge. The label also commissioned him to write a theme for the Peter Fonda and William Holden film Open Season. Howard composed “Casting Shadows” after viewing the film in Madrid and recorded the song in Rome during January 1974. CBS signed him for an album that same month.

Kid in a Big World

John Howard released his debut album, Kid in a Big World, in February 1975 on CBS.

The album contains ten Howard compositions selected from approximately twenty demos. Bassist Dave Wintour and Argent drummer Bob Henrit and formed the principal Abbey Road rhythm section. Keyboardist Rod Argent appears on “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” while Harry Gold directed the orchestra on “Maybe Someday in Miami.” Howard added Mellotron to “Gone Away.”

“Goodbye Suzie” surges from intimate lines into broad group replies as an answering saxophone curls around each ascent. “Family Man” saunters on a lightly syncopated lilt while Howard delivers domestic comedy with theatrical exaggeration. “Maybe Someday in Miami” lounges through languorous phrases and urbane stage manner. “Gone Away” sinks into lower, inward lines as Mellotron swirls enlarge each return.

“Missing Key” gathers through long narrative sections until a firm piano figure triggers dramatic release. “Spellbound” struts through bright brass punctuations and flamboyant turns. “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” prowls beneath eerie synthesizer effects before Howard opens into a sweeping theatrical ascent. “Kid in a Big World” swells through slow strings while Howard enlarges each rise and fall with mournful projection.

A1. “Goodbye Suzie” (4:23)
A2. “Family Man” (2:58)
A3. “The Flame” (4:03)
A4. “Maybe Someday in Miami” (2:04)
A5. “Gone Away” (3:44)

B1. “Missing Key” (3:29)
B2. “Spellbound” (2:44)
B3. “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” (3:31)
B4. “Deadly Nightshade” (2:31)
B5. “Kid in a Big World” (3:47)

Howard recorded most of Kid in a Big World from April through July 1974 at Abbey Road Studio Two with producer Tony Meehan and engineer Peter Bown. Producer Paul Phillips oversaw “Family Man” and “Kid in a Big World” at Apple Studios with bassist–reedist Pete Zorn, drummer Barry De Souza, and acoustic guitarists Ken Nicol and Peter Marsh, the duo behind Easy Street.

Rosław Szaybo designed the sleeve around portrait photography by Mike Nicholson. The Polish-born CBS art director also designed period covers for Judas Priest, Roy Harper, and Janis Ian.

CBS issued “Goodbye Suzie” on October 25, 1974 (b/w “Third Man”). The single reached No. 23 on the Radio Luxembourg Power Play Top 30. “Family Man” followed on February 28, 1975 (b/w “Missing Key”). Howard launched the album that month with a Purcell Room concert at London’s Southbank Centre.

RPM reissued Kid in a Big World on CD during 2003 with seven bonus recordings, including “Third Man,” “Small Town, Big Adventures,” and “Pearl Parade (For Fred and Ginger).” You Are the Cosmos returned the album to vinyl in 2018 with Szaybo’s original artwork and a lyric inner sleeve. The 2023 Kool Kat Musik edition paired the album with Howard’s original CBS demos across two discs. Think Like a Key issued a new digital remaster during 2025.

Technicolour Biography

RPM issued Howard’s second album, Technicolour Biography, in August 2004.

The album preserves the twelve-song sequence planned as the CBS follow-up to Kid in a Big World. Howard wrote every title and recorded the material principally as piano-and-voice demonstrations, with limited overdubs added to selected songs. CBS cancelled the project before Paul Phillips could complete the proposed full-band arrangements.

“Take Up Your Partners (Prologue)” glides through graceful ballroom steps and neat chord turns. “Technicolour Biography” unfurls across grand piano chords as Howard projects a widescreen narrative through long, rising phrases. “The Deal (Good, Good Lovin’)” settles into worn upright resonance while Howard delivers each line with close, unvarnished control. “Hall of Mirrors” widens through slow, panoramic swells as measured phrasing circles a tense monologue.

“Coconut Bible (Wear My Doubts Like Ivy)” lilts along a nursery-rhyme contour while surreal phrases tumble across spare accompaniment. “Lonely Woman” lingers on a nocturnal motif as Howard draws each line inward. “Just Waiting Here for You” pauses in faint melancholy, with spare chords and poised delivery. “Take Up Your Partners (Finale)” gallops across forceful chord changes and restores ballroom momentum.

1. “Take Up Your Partners (Prologue)” (1:51)
2. “Technicolour Biography” (6:02)
3. “Oh Dad (Look What You’ve Done)” (2:28)
4. “Blink in the Darkness” (4:05)
5. “The Deal (Good, Good Lovin’)” (4:31)
6. “Don’t It Just Hurt” (2:45)
7. “Hall of Mirrors” (4:22)
8. “Coconut Bible (Wear My Doubts Like Ivy)” (3:48)
9. “Lonely Woman” (3:33)
10. “The Other Side of Town” (2:45)
11. “Just Waiting Here for You” (3:02)
12. “Take Up Your Partners (Finale)” (5:17)

Bonus tracks:

13. “Kid in a Big World” (3:28)
14. “Family Man” (2:58)
15. “Goodbye Suzie” (3:43)
16. “Casting Shadows” (2:44)

Howard recorded the projected album from autumn 1974 through spring 1975 at CBS Studios on Whitfield Street in London. Phillips prepared the material for production, but CBS stopped the project before the final sessions.

Mark Stratford served as reissue producer for the RPM edition, while Phillips edited and remixed the surviving material. Lora Findlay designed the package. Howard supplied the liner notes and individual song annotations.

RPM appended four earlier recordings. The alternate “Kid in a Big World” retains Harry Gold’s orchestral arrangement, while “Family Man” and “Goodbye Suzie” appear in variant form. The closing “Casting Shadows” originated with the 1974 Open Season commission.

Can You Hear Me OK?

RPM issued Howard’s third album, Can You Hear Me OK?, in June 2005.

The album presents ten Howard compositions from the second CBS follow-up project. Howard wrote the set after the label suspended Technicolour Biography. CBS paired him with producer Biddu for a fully arranged studio production but withdrew the completed album following its sole contemporary single.

“19th September” glides from a cinematic orchestral opening into ornate, flowing phrases. “Frightened Now” coils from uneasy synthesizer figures into long declarations beneath sweeping strings. “Two People in the Morning” skips through breezy domestic scenes as a bright horn line punctuates each turn. “You Keep Me Steady” soars through sustained declarations and broad surges. “Finally Adored” rolls over cascading piano while Howard sharpens tender phrasing with dry asides.

“Can You Hear Me OK?” steps from a light signature-theme opening into a plaintive restaurant confession. “You’re Mine Tonight” sweeps through assured declarations with direct, unhesitating delivery. “I Got My Lady” lopes on a buried offbeat pattern beneath a stately setting.

1. “19th September” (3:07)
2. “Frightened Now” (4:27)
3. “Two People in the Morning” (2:53)
4. “You Keep Me Steady” (4:15)
5. “Finally Adored” (2:23)
6. “Can You Hear Me OK?” (2:58)
7. “You’re Mine Tonight” (2:59)
8. “Missing You” (3:22)
9. “Play Me a Love Song” (2:58)
10. “I Got My Lady” (3:09)

Bonus tracks:

11. “I Can Breathe Again” (3:35)
12. “You Take My Breath Away” (3:38)
13. “Don’t Shine Your Light” (2:56)
14. “Baby Go Now” (5:42)

Howard recorded the original album from April through August 1975 at Nova Sound Studios in Marble Arch, London, with producer Biddu and engineer Richard Dodd. Pip Williams arranged the ten-song sequence. Gerry Shury handled the arrangements for “Frightened Now” and “I Got My Lady.”

Lora Findlay designed the RPM package. The CD also contained Howard’s promotional performance of “I Got My Lady” as a video track.

CBS issued “I Got My Lady” on January 30, 1976 (b/w “You’re Mine Tonight”). Shury arranged the A-side, while Williams arranged the reverse. CBS withdrew the projected album and released Howard from his contract during February.

The RPM edition appended both sides of Howard’s two Trevor Horn-produced singles from 1978–79. You Are the Cosmos gave the original ten-song album its first vinyl release in 2018. The new sleeve used a portrait taken by Tom Sheehan during January 1976.

Think Like a Key issued the Prof. Stoned remaster in January 2026. The expanded digital edition added further period sessions and Howard’s December 1975 television performance of “I Got My Lady.”

Later Singles, 1976–84

Howard performed at London restaurants and private clubs following his departure from CBS. Engagements included AD8 in Knightsbridge and Morton’s on Berkeley Square. A home accident later in 1976 broke his back and stopped the appearances.

He returned to studio work with Trevor Horn during summer 1977. Ariola issued “I Can Breathe Again” on February 3, 1978 (b/w “You Take My Breath Away”). Horn produced the session with musicians from the circle that soon generated the Buggles and Art of Noise.

Howard and Horn recorded “Don’t Shine Your Light” at Nova Sound during July 1978. SRT released the song in 1979 (b/w “Baby Go Now”). Anne Dudley joined the session after her earlier work with Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes.

In late 1979, CBS signed Howard to a new singles agreement. Nicky Graham produced the March 1980 single “I Tune Into You” (b/w “Gotta New Toy”), followed in September with “Lonely I, Lonely Me,” which used the same b-side.

Howard next worked with producer Steve Levine under the Quiz name. Satril issued Howard’s 1981 single “It’s You I Want” (b/w “Searching for Someone”), followed on Hit City with “And the World” (b/w “Call on You”).

Loose Records released “Nothing More to Say (But Goodbye)” in March 1984 (b/w “You Keep Me Steady”). Producer Pete Bite wrote the A-side. The label also circulated “Two People in the Morning” (b/w “Gonna Last All Night”) as a promotional single during the same year.

Howard subsequently moved into record-company marketing and A&R. His work during the 1980s and 1990s involved campaigns for established singers and catalogue artists. Des O’Connor recorded the Howard composition “Blue Days” for the 1992 album Portrait.

Postlude

Howard resumed regular performance after moving to Pembrokeshire during 2001. Renewed interest in Kid in a Big World led RPM to reissue the album and recover the two shelved CBS projects.

An April 2004 appearance at London’s Jermyn Street Theatre marked his first concert in the capital for twenty-five years. Howard returned to current studio work with the 2005 albums The Dangerous Hours, recorded with poet Robert Cochrane, and As I Was Saying. Subsequent releases appeared under his own name and with John Howard & the Night Mail.

Discography: