Howard was born September 15, 1956 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In the late 1970s, he began touring with Grover Washington, Jr., who was one of his idols. In the early 1980s, Howard released his first and second studio albums, Asphalt Gardens and Steppin' Out. Both albums were well received and ranked high on the Billboard magazine jazz album charts at number 25 and 9, respectively.
