The final part of an astonishing trilogy - a third album from the two year period of John's main artist career as a CBS hopeful. Although in CBS eyes Technicolor Biography didn't exist so Can You Hear Me OK? was to be Johns official second album, and in the spring of 1975 CBS MD Dick Asher commissioned the producer Biddu to produce.

The album was recorded at Nova Studios through the spring and summer of 1975 with the first single I Got My Lady tipped for release in the summer; "Feel good, feel fine, feel the breeze, feel the sunshine.". An excellent hook and chorus song, very up beat, very summery, very commercial. CBS agreed but duly sat on it. Other singles came and went through CBS not least Biddu's own Summer of 42 and his protégé Tina Charles I Love To Love. John finally got his summer single out in - January 1976. Despite this he got terrific radio support notably from Capital radio but not enough to persuade CBS to release the parent album.

Now is your chance to listen to yet another lost gem from the John Howard treasure chest, and wonder again at what CBS were playing at. Predominantly arranged by Pip Williams, who gave Johns songs a lush treatment, often adding fascinating touches, such as the sitar and piccolo trumpet on Two People In The Morning, the speeded up guitar on You're Mine Tonight, the restrained string quartet and flutes on the title track. Particularly pleasing to John was Williams take on 19th September, allowing the piano to take centre stage against a gorgeous wash of strings, and the fade-out on You Keep Me Steady, with the strings gradually swamping his voice until he disappeared in its all-consuming lusciousness. Williams let the songs speak for themselves, just giving them a wonderfully exotic backcloth against which they could do their thing. Not a disco hi-hat anywhere, and a far cry from his next charges, Status Quo !!

Can You Hear Me Ok delivers another setting for John's character and songs , another way to view the artist, and as such it stands up very strongly on its own merits. So there you have it. The last piece in the "Kid Trilogy". After this album was shelved, John gave up recording for a while and went back to performing in clubs and restaurants round London for a couple of years. Then, in the Spring of 1977, his manager, Stuart Reid, introduced him to a guy who was then living with Tina Charles. A bass player at the Hammersmith Palais, he'd heard some of Johns recordings and was interested in producing some demos with him. John went along to Stuart's office to meet this man. "John", Stuart said, "This is Trevor Horn"

19th September / Frightened Now / Two People In The Morning / You Keep Me Steady / Finally Adored / Can You Hear Me Ok? / You're Mine Tonight / Missing You / Play Me A Love Song / I Got My Lady / Star Through My Window / No More Crying / Old Movies / A Quiet Success

Bonus tracks Produced by Trevor Horn
I Can Breathe Again / You Take My Breath Away / Don't Shine Your Light / Baby Go Now

Enhanced CD track : I Got My Lady (Promotional film)

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The debut album by Howard from 1974, “Kid In A Big World” was reissued by RPM Records last year to a great reception both critically and commercially. Striking a chord with today’s tastemakers. Its tour de force the song ‘Goodbye Suzie’ was selected by Uncut Magazine to grace its cover mount CD, next to Franz Ferdinand.

Keeping the momentum going RPM Records are now releasing Howard’s second album “Technicolour Biography”. The songs for this album were recorded in piano / vocal versions early in 1975, with Paul Phillips for CBS . However a change of company personnel heralded a shift in A&R policy at CBS and the album was shelved, remaining undiscovered until now.

The songs on “Kid In A Big World” were from Howard’s early life and art college existence, but when he moved to London and became feted as “the next big thing”, aged 21, he experienced the low life of a big city and a taste for the high life, of being wined and dined, mixing in successful artist circles , travel . Naturally Howard’s song writing moved on also. Recording KID… at Abbey Road Studio 2 on the grand piano there, he found the depth and width of sound of the piano and the incredible historical ambience of Abbey Road inspirational and new songs poured out.

Stripped to piano / vocal the songs on “Technicolour Biography” have an extra emotional quality, of someone baring their soul, as they are unable to hide behind strings or a band accompaniment. Howard’s impassioned vocals enhance this, and it is an extraordinary performance, with a highlight being the track The Deal (Good Good Lovin’) that really does remind you of the best that Elton John and Bernie Taupin could put together.

Added to this package are three alternate versions of songs from the KID recording sessions, which as they overlapped with the writing of the “Technicolour Biography” material, fit in well.

And finally, after years of being unavailable, yet highly sought after as never released on album before, ‘Casting Shadows’, the song Howard wrote in 1974 for the Peter Collinson movie ‘Open Season‘, starring Peter Fonda and William Holden, included. Written in Madrid and London, recorded in Rome. How life had changed for the young lad from life in a northern town!

Howard performed his come back show in London at the Jermyn St Theatre in April this year, and buoyed by its success returns on August 26th to perform a specially constructed two part show at Cecil Sharp House.

John's website

Take Up Your Partners / Technicolour Biography / Oh Dad / Blink In The Darkness / The Deal / Don’t It Just Hurt / Hall Of Mirrors / Coconut Bible / Lonely Woman / The Other Side Of Town / Just Waiting Here For You / Take Up Your Partners (Full Length)

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Produced in 1974 by Tony Meehan at Abbey Road (engineer Peter Bown - Beatles , Barbara Streisand) and by Paul Phillips at Apple Studios (engineer Phil McDonald - John Lennon ), “Kid In A Big World” comprised ten Howard original compositions. It featured musicians of the calibre of Argent’s keyboardist Rod Argent and their drummer Bob Henrit and was launched by CBS in 1975, with a special concert Howard gave for the media at The Purcell Room plus full-page ads in the music press and magazines, as well as full window displays in major retailers. The resulting word-of-mouth interest and positive press response garnered a respectable 15,000 sales in a couple of weeks, but with only Radio Luxembourg supporting the first single lifted off the album, “Goodbye Suzie”, and hardly any play for the follow-up “Family Man”, and, surprisingly, no live work to support it, CBS stopped promoting the album within a couple of months of its release. “Kid” was lost. Who knows what could have happened if CBS hadn't pulled the plug and had continued to support the album .

The re-release of “Kid In A Big World” by RPM includes not only the original ten tracks but also several extras, made up of demos of songs meant for “Kid” but never used.

About “Kid In A Big World” Howard, says: “It’s primarily a songs album. Stories-in-song I’d been writing while gigging in the North of England 1970-1973 and during my first few months in London where I moved in August ‘73. It’s the sound of a young guy going, ‘Listen to me. I’ve got something to say. These were songs I’d written and performed during my latter teenage years up to my arrival in London as well as a couple I’d composed at Chappell. They reflected the fantasies, dreams and observations of a young guy from the North of England.

Akin to Elton John in his piano vocal style Howard was particularly adept at putting over his stories in song, and the sympathetic production from Tony Meehan, backing all with subtle string arrangements or leaving stripped down to the piano, enhances the impression left by the songs.

John's website

Goodbye Suzie / Family Man / The Flame / Maybe Someday In Miami / Gone Away / Missing Key / Spellbound / Guess Who's Coming To Dinner / Deadly Nightshade / Kid In A Big World Bonus tracks: Third Man (single b-side) / Small Town, Big Adventures (album session) / Pearl Parade (For Fred and Ginger) (album session) / Party Deuxm (demo) / Werewolves (demo) / Cue Dream Sequence (demo) / Goodbye Suzie (alternate mix)

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