# Dream into Action

Dream into Action is the second studio album by British pop musician Howard Jones. It was released in March 1985 and reached No. 2 in the UK Album Charts. The album also reached the top ten in the U.S. The album achieved a gold certification in the UK and platinum status in the US and Canada.
The album contains the hit singles "Things Can Only Get Better" (UK No. 6, US No. 5), "Look Mama" (UK No. 10) and "Life in One Day" (UK No. 14, US No. 19). Additionally, the track "No One Is to Blame" was re-recorded in a new arrangement for single release, reaching No. 16 in the UK and No. 4 in the US in 1986 and was included on a later second European pressing of the album. The 1984 single "Like to Get to Know You Well" (UK No. 4) was included on the album's CD reissue (and is also on the US version of the vinyl album). A world tour accompanied the album's original release with Jones playing Wembley Arena and the O2 Academy Birmingham in the UK, and arena-size venues in the US, Europe and Japan. In 2010, a remastered edition of the album was issued alongside Jones' debut album Human's Lib.

## Reception

"Assault and Battery" was used in a 1986 episode of "Miami Vice".
Professional ratings :
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Smash Hits | 7/10 |
| The Village Voice | D |

## Track listing

All songs written and composed by Howard Jones.

### UK version

Side one
* "Things Can Only Get Better" – 4:02
* "Life in One Day" – 3:39
* "Dream into Action" – 3:45
* "No One Is to Blame" – 3:28 (initial issue), 4:13 (later reissues, single version)
* "Look Mama" – 3:53
* "Assault and Battery" – 4:51
Side two
* "Automaton" – 4:04
* "Is There a Difference?" – 3:33
* "Elegy" – 4:20
* "Specialty" – 3:58
* "Why Look for the Key" – 3:23
* "Hunger for the Flesh" – 3:59
CD bonus tracks
* "Bounce Right Back" (B-side of "Like to Get to Know You Well") – 4:33
* "Like to Get to Know You Well" – 3:58

### US version

Side one
* "Things Can Only Get Better" – 4:02
* "Life in One Day" – 3:39
* "No One Is to Blame" – 3:28
* "Dream Into Action" – 3:45
* "Like to Get to Know You Well" – 4:01
* "Assault and Battery" – 4:51
Side two
* "Look Mama" – 3:53
* "Bounce Right Back" – 4:34
* "Elegy" – 4:20
* "Is There a Difference?" – 3:33
* "Automaton" – 4:04
* "Hunger for the Flesh" – 3:59
In May 2024, Cherry Red Records released new Special Edition versions of both "Dream Into Action" and the debut album, "Human's Lib" as CD + Blu-ray packages. The releases feature new mixes of the albums by Stephen W Tayler. The Blu-ray contains both 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio and 96/24 LPCM stereo versions by Tayler, plus Dolby Atmos versions of "Things Can Only Get Better" and "Like to Get to Know You Well" mixed by Bob Clearmountain.

## Personnel

* Howard Jones – Lead vocals, electric piano, synthesizer, electric bass, synth bass, drums, percussion, drum programming
* Martin Jones (Howard's brother) – bass guitar
* Afrodiziak (Claudia Fontaine, Caron Wheeler, Naomi Thompson) – backing vocals
* The Effervescents (Tania Matos, Kirstie Fulthorpe, Laura Bishop, Elizabeth Holden) – backing vocals
* The TKO Horns (Dave Pleurs, Alan Whetton, Jim Patterson, Brian Maurice) – horns
* Helen Liebman – cello on "Elegy"

### Production

* Produced by Rupert Hine for Gestalt
* Recorded and mixed at Farmyard Studios, England by Stephen W. Tayler
* Recording assistant – Andrew Scarth
Other credits
* Album sleeve photography – Simon Fowler
* Graphic design – Rob O'Connor for Stylorouge

## Certifications

| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
| Canada (Music Canada) | Platinum | 100,000$^^$ |
| United Kingdom (BPI) | Gold | 100,000$^^$ |
| United States (RIAA) | Platinum | 1,000,000$^^$ |
| $^^$ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |||