There are few men so well-dressed in pop music as Martin Fry of ABC, and he dazzled with sartorial and melodious might in a recent co-headlining bill with Howard Jones, who celebrated his birthday during our DC show at the Warner Theatre.
Now Martin Fry — renowned for ABC hits including “Poison Arrow,” “Be Near Me,” and “The Look of Love” — had not performed in the city of Washington DC since a show at 9:30 Club in 2005! And so he drew an onslaught of admirers eager for his soulful new wave sophistication.
Martin and ABC actually visited the DMV in 2008 to perform as part of the Regeneration Tour in a very memorable show at Wolf Trap, but ABC bypassed the District of Columbia until this concert at the Warner Theatre on Feb. 23. The ABC band, composed of very skilled players, glided through 14 top tunes, all of which were fantastic.
One of the best songs of the show, in my opinion, was the enduring “Poison Arrow,” which capped the first third of the set. Taken from one of the most astonishing debut albums of all time, The Lexicon of Love (1982), “Poison Arrow” a wondrously dramatic yet very fun song about a broken heart. (We video nerds also can be amused today that the video starred Lisa Vanderpump of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Vanderpump Rules.)
Watch the official music video for “Poison Arrow” by ABC on YouTube:
Martin Fry has a tremendous and powerful voice that can soothe even the most savage beast or cut with a sarcastic jibe. And he sounded terrific at the Warner Theatre as he and his band paced through additional hits like “Vanity Kills,” which Martin explained was inspired by the Minneapolis sound produced by Prince and his contemporaries. This revelation got a bit reaction from the audience who absolutely loved it.
ABC closed the main set with “Be Near Me,” and then returned for a big two-song encore: “Tears Are Not Enough” and “The Look of Love” — both from that marvelous debut record. With looks that recalled the golden years of Hollywood, the ABC band played great music that epitomized the brightest years of the ’80s.
As we mentioned earlier, the great Howard Jones celebrated a birthday during this DC show, ringing in 70 years on stage! After there was no initial mention of the occasion, the audience broke out in a coordinated sing-along of “Happy Birthday” to Howard after he completed “No One Is to Blame” on stage. The song rang from the Orchestra Right, and it caught Howard and his band by surprise. At the end of the show, the band presented Howard with flowers and bassist Nick Beggs led the official “Happy Birthday” proclamation.
Nick Beggs? Why yes! The session bassist, famed for his tenure as a member of Kajagoogoo, once again accompanied Howard, as he did when Howard last performed at 9:30 Club. And, of course, in a salute to Nick, Howard covered “Too Shy,” the Kajagoogoo song everyone in the Warner Theatre knew and loved well, early in the set.
A frequent and welcome visitor to DC, Howard otherwise came with a slightly different band, who were very much ready to rock and own the large space of the Warner Theatre stage. In addition to mainstay Mr. Beggs, Howard recruited Phil Jones on keyboard, Doug Yowell on drums, and Rory Harvey on guitar. Howard capitalized on the abilities of these gents to rearrange some songs and really blow the roof off the Warner. For example, Howard and the band played the single version of “No One Is to Blame,” produced by Phil Collins, who also played drums on that iteration of the song.
Drummer Doug Yowell could capture it in its “full glory,” however, and so Howard performed the unforgettable tune as the expansive single adaptation.
Watch the official music video for “No One Is to Blame” by Howard Jones on YouTube:
On guitar, Rory Harvey was on fire, burning through songs like “New Song” early in the set and “You Know I Love You, Don’t You?” later in the show. Howard, who totally dresses the part of seasoned rockstar nowadays, always puts a lot of energy into his performance. But even he couldn’t help but smile at Rory’s showmanship and drive as he paraded through rhymes and rhythms. Equipped with his keytar, Howard gravitated to stage left to jam with Rory on several songs.
Howard Jones stands apart as a remarkably optimistic intellect who isn’t afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve. That’s why he made a good recruit for the soundtrack to the movie Eddie the Eagle (2016), the story of the indefatigable English ski jumper who fought a quixotic battle in the 1988 Olympics. It was a pleasant surprise to hear Howard’s soundtrack contribution, “Eagle Will Fly Again,” early in the show.
Underscoring his optimism — even if optimism with a wounded heart — Howard closed with two of his most affecting songs in his encore: “What Is Love?” and “Things Can Only Get Better.” The Warner Theatre audience couldn’t stop dancing until the end.
To open the show, Martin Fry and Howard Jones enlisted the aid of their old friend, DJ Richard Blade — currently a mainstay for SiriusXM and long famed for his career at Los Angeles’ KROQ radio station. As was no surprise to me, Richard was quite the raconteur, regaling the audience with a timeline of the early days of new wave music, reaching all the way back to Kraftwerk in Germany, the Sex Pistols in England, and Blondie and the Talking Heads in New York City. I say this was no surprise to me because I listened to his autobiography, World in My Eyes, on audiobook, and he truly made every tale an exciting entry in his journal.
At the Warner Theatre, Richard pulled clips of key ’70s and ’80s tunes from his console to punctuate tales about how various bands created their sound in the new wave era. And the best thing about it was that Richard lived it. He was an active DJ from the early days, and he became friend and associate to many of the most storied bands of the ’80s, who have told him the things that he didn’t know firsthand throughout their long camaraderie. It was something a little different for a music concert, and the audience sat transfixed to soak up Richard’s insights. Richard also hosted a free meet-and-greet prior to the show, and people lined up across the venue to share stories and grab selfies.
This wonderful tour is a can’t-miss opportunity for old-school MTV aficionados like myself, and a great reminder of the musical power of the Second British Invasion. (Heck, even Richard is British!)
Catch ABC and Howard Jones on tour with Richard Blade!
Here are some photos of ABC performing at the Warner Theatre in DC on Feb. 23, 2025. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.
Here are some photos of Howard Jones performing at the Warner Theatre in DC on Feb. 23, 2025. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.
Here are some photos of Richard Blade speaking at the Warner Theatre in DC on Feb. 23, 2025. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.
