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Live in Nashville | Ryman Auditorium
September 8, 2025 Review by Traci Turner
Howard Jones must be protected at all costs.
The master of all things electronic just kicked off the North American portion of his global tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of “Dream Into Action,” and he made me laugh, dance, sing, and cry in one performance.
Jones was already a new wave icon thanks to “New Song” and “What Is Love,” but it was 1985’s “Dream Into Action” that gave us “Things Can Only Get Better,” “No One Is to Blame,” and “Like to Get to Know You Well” which endeared him to the masses in the US.
Ryman Auditorium | Nashville
September 2nd, 2025
For this US trek, Jones has alt pop favorites Haircut 100 and SiriusXM 1st Wave DJ Richard Blade opening the shows.
Richard Blade welcomed the receptive crowd and made a comment about everyone looking “way too young” to be at an ‘80s music show. After noticing several KROQ shirts, Blade asked if there were many California transplants and a very loud cheer sounded through the hallowed venue. Blade stated it was an honor to be on the Ryman stage for the first time, and discussed how the bands of the ‘80s introduced us to interesting names like Duran Duran, Tears for Fears, Haircut 100. He spoke of how much talent the artists had (and still have), while today is full of Auto-Tune, but the ‘80s artists were live. He did compliment some of today’s artists’ talent though – Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift, and Harry Styles.
Blade then led us through a “competition” using a decibel meter and song medleys to “help” SiriusXM know which artists to keep playing on 1st Wave. In a match between Culture Club and Thompson Twins, the Twins were victorious; when U2 was against The Police, Sting and company were the winners.
For his final onstage portion, Blade stated he would play samples from the top five artists 1st Wave would never stop playing. He announced The Smiths as number five, then joked it was going to be the top six list but Morrissey canceled. New Order, Duran Duran, and The Cure led up to the top artist – Depeche Mode. This elicited an epically loud cheer from the audience, and I was a bit proud I happened to be wearing a DM shirt.
The lights dimmed and Haircut 100’s band walked out to cheers, but when the original three members strode out to the “Chariots of Fire” theme, the excitement in the room grew louder. The guys gave fist bumps to the band members, the horns kicked off, and man… the energy was incredible right away! The band is PHENOMENAL! The percussion section truly blew me away and were a joy to watch on their own.
Haircut 100 frontman/guitarist Nick Heyward said, “Good evening! We are Haircut 100. Are you ready to dance? One, two, three, go” and jumped into the next song.
Heyward, Les Nemes (bass), and Graham Jones (guitar) were energetic and happy, and their band also appeared to be having a blast. Unfortunately, Nemes did complain that his new shoes were killing his feet, but I felt they were fashionable enough to be worth it. Sorry, Les.
When they started “Nobody’s Fool,” the crowd was extra animated, clapping along. Heyward expressed his appreciation for the fans and being able to perform live as a group again. After decades apart, it was pretty amazing to have the three gents back onstage as one, and they sounded just as incredible as they did 40 years ago.
After “Love’s Got Me in Triangles,” Heyward thanked Howard Jones for taking them on road and said they were huge fans of him as well.
They debuted their new song, “Dynamite,” which received an incredibly positive reception. I did speak with the band after the show and we will share the interview soon. A new album is headed our way!
Before sending the showgoers into a dance party, Heyward said, “This is for the lovers who got together due to ‘Pelican West,’” and began “Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)” followed by “Love Plus One.” It was truly an electrifying performance and I am looking forward to seeing them again.
It was time for the headliner and he did not disappoint. Walking onto the stage as “Fanfare for the Common Man” blasted, Howard Jones appeared, looking like a shiny, majestic spacelord.
With his neon striped keytar attached, he began a guitar intro that rivaled Black Sabbath. The crowd was obviously enjoying it right away, cheering and clapping along as he started off with “Pearl in the Shell.”
At the first song’s end, and much to the audience’s pleasure as evidenced by many screams and whistles, Jones took off his long jacket, said a polite, “How you doing, then?” and began “New Song.” The crowd sang along so loudly to the chorus of “Throw off your mental chains” that it felt like a powerful anthem energizing the room.
The Ryman stage has no front barrier – the front row is RIGHT THERE – and Jones interacted with fans that were lucky enough to be up close. “You seem like a friendly, post-Labor Day crowd,” he chuckled. He gave praise to Haircut 100 and Richard Blade, then said he’d like us to get to know the band, introducing them to all. It was time for him to get to know us he said and asked everyone to sing along to “Like to Get to Know You Well.” The audience was clapping with hands over head and Jones pointed to us for call and response participation on the chorus.
The fans stayed animated the whole set and Jones often spoke in his gentle, shy sounding voice. He directed our view to the banner hanging behind him stating it was the original “Dream Into Action” tour banner. “It was lost for many decades,” he explained, “and some very kind soul found it in a skip (trash bin) somewhere in America and got in touch with us, and said, ‘Would you like it back for your tour?’ As you can see, it might have been used for transporting garden waste around – it’s a bit worse for wear, a few holes. But it’s great to have it back.” The audience roared with appreciation and Jones seemed genuinely giddy.
Throughout the set, Jones would strap on his keytar for some songs, or sit at his keyboard that was functioning as a piano – which sounded so beautiful. While fans ate up the deeper cuts, like “The Prisoner,” “The One to Love You,” and “Eagle Will Fly Again,” they went crazy for the hits.
“Everlasting Love” was a gorgeous, stripped down version of Jones in piano mode. He joked about “needing someone with an interior smile, or someone with streaming services.” Jones remained at the piano, but the band joined in for “Life in One Day,” “No One Is to Blame,” and “Hide and Seek.” Again, the piano intros were magnificently beautiful.
Things picked up and Jones showed off some dance moves for “Bounce Right Back,” “You Know I Love You, Don’t You?,” and “What Is Love?,” which had the roomful of people dancing and singing.
After a brief rest, Jones returned for his encore – wearing a sparkly, blue fringe jacket, and had the historic venue shaking as fans partied along to “Things Can Only Get Better.”
It started as the classic version, but became the remixed, more pumped-up dance version of the song – such a wonderful way to end the evening. Jones is truly an amazing artist and such a lovely man – so as I stated earlier, protect him at all costs!
I felt like skipping out of the venue because I was in such an elated mood, but settled for a goodbye hug from Richard Blade. It’s almost the same thing.
Celebrate the 40th anniversary of “Dream Into Action” by picking up the newly released “The Farmyard Sessions” edition, then catch Jones when the tour hits your city. The jaunt will stop in SoCal September 18th at House of Blues in Anaheim and September 20th in Del Mar at The Sound.
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