Song · Howard Jones
“New Song” by Howard Jones
From the album Human’s Lib (1984)
“New Song” by Howard Jones appears on 12 radio countdowns from 7 stations between 1984 and 2003. It was first released in 1984 on the album Human’s Lib. Its best result is #28 on the 91X Top 91 Songs of 1984. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #54 alternative song of 1984 and #2,178 alternative song of all time.
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Howard Jones made his entrance with "New Song" in August 1983, a debut single on WEA that later found a home on his first album, Human's Lib (1984). He meant it as a manifesto: written while he was putting in shifts at a factory by day and playing gigs at night, it tells anyone listening that guts and determination can get you to the thing you were born to do.
Colin Thurston produced and engineered it, and it bounces with bright, chirpy synth-pop optimism, all bubbling keyboards and a vocal that sounds like it's smiling. It went to number 3 in the UK, spent 20 weeks in the top 75 and became the 28th best-selling single of the year there, and when America got it in early 1984 it reached 27 on the Hot 100. Even the UK 7-inch had a twist: the lyrics spiral around the A-side label.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 93 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1984 | 106 |
| 1984 | 28 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 1984 | 91 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 306 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1988) | 496 |
| 1988 | 311 | Live 105 | Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988) | 501 |
| 1989 | 422 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1989) | 500 |
| 1991 | 603 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (1991 Edition) | 1002 |
| 1992 | 189 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1992) | 500 |
| 1996 | 220 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1996) | 500 |
| 1998 | 361 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1998) | 488 |
| 1999 | 665 | Q101 | Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 1017 |
| 1999 | 291 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) | 1002 |
| 2003 | 1673 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
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