Lib

Super deluxe edition include the three disc (two CDs + DVD) edition plus vinyl picture disc LP pressing, the white tape replica pre-contract demo cassette containing remastered versions of four original demo tracks, an extra bonus CD containing further previously unreleased studio, live and BBC session and remastered tracks…

Legendary Blues singer Jimmy ‘Spoon’ Witherspoon, one of the premiere Blues musicians of the post-WWII era, is immortalized in this exclusive DVD entitled Jimmy Witherspoon: Goin’ Down Blues. Witherspoon became the vocalist for Jay McShann’s band, which also featured T-Bone Walker and Big Joe Turner, during which time they recorded numerous hits, such as Ain’t Nobody’s Business, Times Gettin’ Tougher Than Tough, and Big Fine Girl, which exemplified his unique style as a “Blues Shouter.”

Cherry Red Records is both delighted and proud to announce the newly remastered and expanded release of Howard Jones’ debut album Human's Lib.
Super deluxe edition include the three disc (two CDs + DVD) edition plus vinyl picture disc LP pressing, the white tape replica pre-contract demo cassette containing remastered versions of four original demo tracks, an extra bonus CD containing further previously unreleased studio, live and BBC session and remastered tracks.
Human's Lib is an unintentionally revealing title for Howard Jones' debut album. What first seems like a play on words reveals itself as something of an empowering manifesto, a shift that mirrors his music. Upon first glance, Human's Lib appears to be state-of-the-art synth pop circa 1984: a record where every element outside of the human voices appears to be electronic…

Human's Lib is fueled by the nonstop synth-pop hooks and brightly textured melodies that went on to be a trademark of Howard Jones. His brand of spirited keyboard-and-lyric exuberance lent itself to a large part of the mid-'80s, especially in Britain. The tracks on Human's Lib are energetic and colorful, coming to life the best on "New Song," a number 27 hit for Jones in the U.S., and on the finely structured "What Is Love?," which gave him the number 33 spot on the singles chart four months later. While both of these songs rested at the bottom end of Billboard's Top 40, they went to number three and number two, respectively, in the U.K., with the album going all the way to number one, proving that his techno-pop stylings were better-appreciated on his side of the Atlantic. Outside of the singles, the album still holds well, with efforts like "Hide and Seek," "Conditioning," and "Pearl in the Shell" following through with a buoyant but orderly techno-pop keenness mustered through his clean use of the synthesizer. Although 1985's Dream Into Action is tighter both musically and lyrically, Human's Lib acts as a well-grounded starting point for Jones' future success.

This is a really great early '70s psychedelic album. It doesn't really do much that's ground breaking or anything but it's cool nonetheless…