Action Packed: The Best of Jonathan Richman\nJonathan Richman\nRounder Records\nJonathan Richman is a little strange. Well, OK, the official industry buzz word is "quirky," but whatever you call Richman's music, the fact is that it's sometimes just plain weird. Or odd. Or nutty.\nAnd that's generally a good thing. Because in the mid- to late-1970s, Richman and his band, the Modern Lovers, helped spearhead the "new wave" movement that would bring punk into the '80s with a glib combination of humor and sincerity.\nAt first Richman recorded for the Beserkley label (which is probably best known for Greg Kihn's "Jeopardy"), but by the late 1980s he had moved to Rounder Records, where he continued to make off-beat yet catchy music. The best of Richman's seven Rounder albums have been condensed into Action Packed, a 22-track disc that largely features Richman alone with his guitar.\nThe anthology reflects Richman's innate ability to channel the spirits of early rock and roll legends. On "New Kind of Neighborhood," Richman gives off a distinctly Buddy Holly-ish vibe. "Closer" features vocals that echo Del Shannon and a twangy guitar sound that conjures up Duane Eddy.\n"You're Crazy for Taking the Bus" sounds an awful lot like the stuff Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash did for Sun Records nearly 50 years ago, while Richman openly acknowledges being influenced by the Kingsmen, the McCoys and the Righteous Brothers on "Parties in the U.S.A."\nNone of the tracks on Action Packed deliver the punch of Richman's best Beserkley stuff (such as the ageless "Roadrunner"). However, most of the cuts wonderfully reveal a songwriting talent who wears his heart on his sleeve and keeps his tongue in his cheek. Action Packed is a good lesson for twenty-somethings who know Richman only as the singing guy in "There's Something About Mary."\n
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