A good album

Review Score: (6/10)
Released in 1992, this is the fifth full-length album from Howard Jones, In the Running. Ten songs are contained. The material is in a pop musical direction. Overall, I find the songwriting to be worthy, the musicianship to be skilled, and the sound quality to be satisfying. The album sports an organic quality. Jones turns out a worthy vocal performance. Also, along with the keyboard work, the compositions contain piano playing--both instruments complement each other. Seven of the cuts provide female backing vocals, while a couple of them--the ballads "The Voices Are Back" and "One Last Try"--exhibit brass instrumentation. The album's guitar work is minimal. My favorite pieces are "Show Me," "The Voices Are Back," "Two Souls," and "City Song." "Show Me" and "The Voices Are Back" supply pleasing choruses. Pretty keyboard lines are furnished on "Two Souls," and the ballad "City Song" has a gratifying refrain. When it comes to the CD booklet, it includes the song lyrics and four black-and-white photos of Jones; in addition, the back of the CD jewel case displays a color photo of him. The disc is just over 51 minutes. In the Running gets the job done.

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