New Song (Howard Jones song)

"New Song"

cover of the UK 7" vinyl single
Single by Howard Jones
from the album Human's Lib
Released 17 September 1983 (1983-09-17)
Format 7" vinyl, 12" vinyl
Recorded 1983
Length 4:16
Label WEA
Writer(s) Howard Jones
Producer(s) Colin Thurston
Howard Jones singles chronology
"New Song"
(1983)		 "What Is Love"
(1983)

"New Song" is the debut single by musician Howard Jones, released in September 1983. The song, from the album Human's Lib, reached number three on the UK Singles Chart.[1] The single spent 20 weeks on the Top 75. In the US, "New Song" peaked at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart,[2] although it was not released there until early 1984.

The B-side was titled "Change the Man". The 12" single featured an extended version of "New Song" together with "Change the Man" and the original version of "Conditioning", which would be re-recorded for Human's Lib.

"New Song" itself was later re-recorded for The 12" Album, in a version titled "New Song (New Version)". This featured a lot of multi-layered piano, in contrast to the austere synthesizer sound of the original 7" and 12" versions.

On the UK 7" single, the song's lyric is printed in a spiral on the A-side label, with all the credits printed on the B-side.

Music video

The video opens at a food processing plant, where Jones works as a caretaker. As the owner arrives on the site, Jones strips off his uniform overalls and begins to sing to the other workers. One of them, a man wearing black/white face paint, removes his overalls and begins to dance through the plant. As the owner begins to mop the floor, Jones, the dancer, and several employees pile into his luxury car and drive off. Jones and the dancer next visit an Underground station to perform for the patrons, then visit a window cleaner and get him to take a break from his work. Finally, the two arrive at a public school and interrupt a class of unruly students, who follow them outside to play on the lawn, followed by their teacher.

Track listing

7" vinyl (UK)
  1. "New Song" (Jones) - 4:16
  2. "Change The Man" (Jones) - 4:30
7" vinyl (US)
  1. "New Song" (Jones) - 4:16
  2. "Conditioning" (Jones/Bryant) - 4:02
12" vinyl
  1. "New Song (Extended Mix)" (Jones) - 5:21
  2. "Change The Man" (Jones) - 4:30
  3. "Conditioning" (Jones/Bryant) - 4:02

Chart performance

Chart (1983) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[1] 3
Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] 60
Irish Singles Chart[4] 3
Chart (1984) Peak
position
Swedish Singles Chart[5] 10
Swiss Singles Chart[6] 15
US Billboard Hot 100[2] 27

References

  1. 1 2 "Chart Stats – Howard Jones – New Song". Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  2. 1 2 "Howard Jones > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". allmusic. Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  3. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St. Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 161. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. the Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.
  4. ↑ "irishcharts.ie search results". Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  5. ↑ "swedishcharts.com – Howard Jones – New Song". Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  6. ↑ "Howard Jones – New Song – hitparade.ch" (in German). Retrieved 8 August 2009.
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