Eighties pop legend Howard Jones would still like to get to know us well, he tells Jade Wright

EIGHTIES chart- toppers get a hard time of it these days. Partly it’s down to the hair and fashion choices they made back in the day, but there’s also the gleeful gossip pieces on the ravages time has wrought.

It’s hard for the world to accept that their icons are all grown up.

But Howard Jones has fared well. He’s now a youthful 56, and has carved a niche for himself as a cult figure, perennial performer and sometime member of Ringo Starr’s All Starr Band.

Now the chart-topper is returning to his roots to play his first two albums live at the 02 Academy.

“I’m so looking forward to coming back to Liverpool,” says Howard. “I’m doing all the songs from Human’s Lib and Dream into Action. I was fortunate in that we had so many hits from those albums. A lot of that was because they were big on the radio.

“I’m a bit of a radio geek,” he admits. “I did some radio shows before Christmas for Absolute 80s radio, and it was such good fun. I played a bit of everything, and it got me hooked. It’s definitely something I’d like to do more of in the future.

“When I was nine my dad bought me my first portable radio, and it was like opening up a new world. I used to sir up late at night listening to it in my bedroom. Even now, I always make a point of listening, whether I’m at home or in the car.”

Howard could easily forge a career as a radio presenter, so what keeps him out on tour?

“The main reason for doing it was the fans,” he explains. “They asked me to do the first two albums in their entirety and who was I to refuse?” he laughs.