Howard Jones writes thoughtful lyrics, fits them well to music, sings in a supple, likable voice and cooks up attractive, bubbling textures on his synthesizers. His debut album, Human's Lib, proved that a synthesizer is as capable of soulful expression as a Hammond B-3 and that Jones is a songwriter to be reckoned with. Everyone from Paul McCartney to Stevie Wonder has been touting his talent, and he's had a deserved run of successful singles, like "New Song" and "What Is Love?"

Strange, then, that his new album, Dream into Action, should have more songs and less substance than its predecessor. It all starts encouragingly enough with "Things Can Only Get Better," a double-barreled blast of popsoul energy and positive thinking powered by the TKO Horns. Jones remains in top form on "Life in One Day" and "Like to Get to Know You Well" – sinewy technopop with a chirpily upbeat message. Beyond that, however, Jones slips into routine maneuverings: snaky bass lines, syncopated drum programs and squiggly synthesizer percolations that place form before content. There is also a noticeable drop in the energy level.

"Look Mama" is rather typical: there's distressingly little melody in the vocal, the drum program sounds like it was executed on a garbage-can lid, the synthesizers frizzle along, and the whole thing sounds like Genesis at its most pallid. The second side never really wakes up, except for a fairly godawful hip-hop workout called "Bounce Right Back," on which Jones sounds like the synthesized Gilbert O'Sullivan a British critic accused him of being in the first place. Things aren't that bad, but on much of Dream into Action Jones seems stuck in a rut, not a groove. (RS 449)

PARKE PUTERBAUGH