Single Stories: Howard Jones, “No One Is To Blame”

Today marks the Billboard Hot 100 debut of the most successful US single of Howard Jones’s career.

Written by Jones and co-produced by Phil Collins and Hugh Padgham, “No One Is To Blame” was originally released on Jones’s second studio album, DREAM INTO ACTION, but it took the aforementioned pair of gentleman to turn it into a hit single. The original track to the song was re-recorded to make it more radio-friendly, with Collins adding backing vocals as well as drum work, and if you haven’t heard the original version in awhile, you might want to check it out, because the differences are definitely notable.

“No One Is To Blame”: Listen here

The end result was exactly what all parties concerned had hoped it would be: Jones scored a big hit single in a number of countries, with the song rising to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and to the top of the Adult Contemporary chart), #4 in Australia, #16 on the UK Singles chart, and #21 on the Italian Singles chart. It also got some serious airplay on MTV, and if you can’t quite recall what the video looked like, well, we can help you on that front, too.

Alas, it would be the last time Jones saw the US top 10, but he didn’t disappear altogether: he made his way back into the top 20 later in ’86 with “You Know I Love You… Don’t You?” and found his way there again in 1989 with “Everlasting Love.”