It's funny how our own particular perspectives will shape how we read a poem or hear a song, especially when it turns out the artist was coming from a somewhat different direction. "No One Is to Blame" took on a certain meaning for me when I first heard it, since at the time I found myself struggling with resentments about not getting what I wanted, and so I focused in on the chorus to remind me that finding fault and pointing fingers never solve anything. That remains a lifelong battle for me!
Years later, I heard Jones explaining the origin of the song, and how it actually arose as a sort of homage to fidelity. We may feel certain attractions or urges, for which we shouldn't blame ourselves, which are distinct from acting on those attractions or urges.
Indeed, emotions are tricky things, and while my struggle to practice Stoic values has taught me a bit about how to manage and direct my passions, they will often act as if they have a mind of their own. An impressions may come or it may go, but what matters is what I am going to choose to do with it. It's a bit like that old Cherokee story about having two wolves inside of you, and deciding which one you're going to feed.
After this song was released as a single, Jones was at the height of his popularity in the USA. I have mixed feelings about the re-recording, as I prefer the more sparse and haunting sound of the original album version, and I have always felt that the influence of Phil Collins, though it helped the release in the charts, was a bit of a sellout. But that is just a matter of my preference, and I understand how intensely the studios will pressure an artist to sell a product.
—5/2007
A few words of commentary from Howard Jones:
And the song itself. The first is the album version (straight from vinyl!):
The second is the singe version, with Phil Collins on drums and backing vocals, and produced by Hugh Padgham. There is marked difference here from the sound that Rupert Hine contributed to Jones' music:
Howard Jones, "No One Is to Blame" from Dream into Action (1985)
You can look at the menu, but you just can't eatYou can feel the cushions, but you can't have a seatYou can dip your foot in the pool, but you can't have a swimYou can feel the punishment, but you can't commit the sin
And you want her, and she wants youWe want everyoneAnd you want her, and she wants youNo one, no one, no one ever is to blame
You can build a mansion, but you just can't live in itYou're the fastest runner but you're not allowed to winSome break the rules, and let you count the costThe insecurity is the thing that won't get lost
And you want her, and she wants youWe want everyoneAnd you want her and she wants youNo one, no one, no one ever is to blame
You can see the summit but you can't reach itIt's the last piece of the puzzle but you just can't make it fitDoctor says you're cured but you still feel the painAspirations in the clouds but your hopes go down the drain
And you want her, and she wants youWe want everyoneAnd you want her, and she wants youNo one, no one, no one ever is to blame
No one ever is to blameNo one ever is to blame
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