Dream into Action

Dream into Action is the second studio album by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released in March 1985 and reached No. 2 in the UK Album Charts. The album also reached the top ten in the U.S. The album achieved a gold certification in the UK and platinum status in the US and Canada.

Dream into Action
Studio album by Howard Jones
Released	11 March 1985
Recorded	1984–1985
Studio	Farmyard Studios, Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, England
Genre	New wave synthpop pop rock
Length	55:45
Label	WEA/Elektra
Producer	Rupert Hine
Howard Jones chronology
The 12" Album (1984) Dream into Action (1985) Action Replay (1986)
Singles from Dream Into Action
"Things Can Only Get Better" Released: 1 February 1985 "Look Mama" Released: 12 April 1985 "Life in One Day" Released: 17 June 1985 "No One Is to Blame" Released: 3 March 1986

The album contains the hit singles "Things Can Only Get Better" (UK No. 6, US No. 5), "Look Mama" (UK No. 10) and "Life in One Day" (UK No. 14, US No. 19). Additionally, the track "No One Is to Blame" was re-recorded in a new arrangement for single release, reaching No. 16 in the UK and No. 4 in the US in 1986 and was included on a later second European pressing of the album. The 1984 single "Like to Get to Know You Well" (UK No. 4) was included on the album's CD reissue (and is also on the US version of the vinyl album). A world tour accompanied the album's original release with Jones playing Wembley Arena and the O2 Academy Birmingham in the UK, and arena-size venues in the US, Europe and Japan. In 2010, a remastered edition of the album was issued alongside Jones' debut album Human's Lib.

Reception

"Assault and Battery" was used in a 1986 episode of "Miami Vice".

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Smash Hits	7/10[2]
The Village Voice	D[3]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Howard Jones.

UK version

Side one

1. "Things Can Only Get Better" – 4:02
2. "Life in One Day" – 3:39
3. "Dream into Action" – 3:45
4. "No One Is to Blame" – 3:28 (initial issue), 4:13 (later reissues, single version)
5. "Look Mama" – 3:53
6. "Assault and Battery" – 4:51

Side two

7. "Automaton" – 4:04
8. "Is There a Difference?" – 3:33
9. "Elegy" – 4:20
10. "Specialty" – 3:58
11. "Why Look for the Key" – 3:23
12. "Hunger for the Flesh" – 3:59

CD bonus tracks

13. "Bounce Right Back" (B-side of "Like to Get to Know You Well") – 4:33
14. "Like to Get to Know You Well" – 3:58

US version

Side one

1. "Things Can Only Get Better" – 4:02
2. "Life in One Day" – 3:39
3. "No One Is to Blame" – 3:28
4. "Dream Into Action" – 3:45
5. "Like to Get to Know You Well" – 4:01
6. "Assault and Battery" – 4:51

Side two

7. "Look Mama" – 3:53
8. "Bounce Right Back" – 4:34
9. "Elegy" – 4:20
10. "Is There a Difference?" – 3:33
11. "Automaton" – 4:04
12. "Hunger for the Flesh" – 3:59

In May 2024, Cherry Red Records released new Special Edition versions of both "Dream Into Action" and the debut album, "Human's Lib" as CD + Blu-ray packages. The releases feature new mixes of the albums by Stephen W Tayler. The Blu-ray contains both 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio and 96/24 LPCM stereo versions by Tayler, plus Dolby Atmos versions of "Things Can Only Get Better" and "Like to Get to Know You Well" mixed by Bob Clearmountain.

Personnel

• Howard Jones – Lead vocals, electric pianos, synthesizers, electric bass, synth bass, drums, percussion, drum programming
• Martin Jones (Howard's brother) – bass guitar
• Afrodiziak (Claudia Fontaine, Caron Wheeler, Naomi Thompson) – backing vocals
• The Effervescents (Tania Matos, Kirstie Fulthorpe, Laura Bishop, Elizabeth Holden) – backing vocals
• The TKO Horns (Dave Pleurs, Alan Whetton, Jim Patterson, Brian Maurice) – horns
• Helen Liebman – cello on "Elegy"

Production

• Produced by Rupert Hine for Gestalt
• Recorded and mixed at Farmyard Studios, England by Stephen W. Tayler
• Recording assistant – Andrew Scarth

Other credits

• Album sleeve photography – Simon Fowler
• Graphic design – Rob O'Connor for Stylorouge

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1985) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[4] 17 Canadian Albums (RPM)[5] 10 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[6] 26 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[7] 20 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[8] 35 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[9] 4 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[10] 1 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] 19 UK Albums (OCC)[12] 2 US Billboard 200[13] 10

Year-end charts Chart (1985) Rank Canadian Albums (RPM)[14] 33 UK Albums (Gallup)[15] 39 US Billboard 200[16] 39

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[17]	Platinum	100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[18]	Gold	100,000^
United States (RIAA)[19]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Erlewine, Iotis. "Dream into Action – Howard Jones". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
2. Heath, Chris (14 March 1985). "Album Reviews". Smash Hits. 7 (6). EMAP Metro: 21.
3. Christgau, Robert (27 August 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
4. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, New South Wales, Australia: Australian Chart Books. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
5. "RPM 100 Albums". RPM. Vol. 42, no. 20. 27 July 1985. p. 11. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
6. "Dutchcharts.nl – Howard Jones – Dream into Action" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
7. "Offiziellecharts.de – Howard Jones – Dream into Action" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts.
8. "Charts.nz – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Hung Medien.
9. "Norwegiancharts.com – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Hung Medien.
10. "Swedishcharts.com – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Hung Medien.
11. "Swisscharts.com – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Hung Medien.
12. "Howard Jones | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
13. "Howard Jones Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
14. "RPM's 100 Albums of 1985". RPM. Vol. 43, no. 16. 28 December 1985. p. 14. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
15. "Top 100 Albums". Music Week. 18 January 1986. p. 11.
16. "Top Pop Albums". Billboard ("1985: The Year in Music and Video" supplement). 28 December 1985. p. T-19.
17. "Canadian album certifications – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Music Canada.
18. "British album certifications – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". British Phonographic Industry.
19. "American album certifications – Howard Jones – Dream into Action". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links

• "Dream Into Action" at discogs