In the mid-1980s, British singer/songwriter/keyboardist Howard Jones combined his synthesizer skills and his knack for pure pop hooks and became one of the biggest-selling synth-pop merchants in both the US and UK. With his upbeat, positive image and lyrics, he was a poster boy for the bouncy, bright, colorful “New Pop” sound of '80s England. By decade's end, Jones's sales dropped off considerably, but he never stopped working, at times shifting over to an acoustic piano-based approach.