The Action are one of those obscure British invasion bands that, if you love the genre as much as I do, you can't get enough of. Invasion, however, is too strong a word, because the Action never scored a hit in their native country, and they never even released a record in the United States. That's too bad, because the group possessed a sound as sharp and soulful as almost any of their countrymen. True, the Action were no match for the Beatles or Rolling Stones (who is?), but they could have mopped the floor with Freddie and the Dreamers....

The Action formed in 1963, and in 1965 they were signed by Beatle producer George Martin to his AIR Productions. Martin subsequently helmed their recording sessions and leased the tracks to Parlophone. The Action were sharp-dressed Mods - like the Who and the Small Faces - and were gripped by the requisite Mod fixation on Motown and American soul music. Though perhaps less pop savvy than the Fab Four, and certainly not as steeped in the blues as the Stones, the Action were arguably more soulful than either of those more celebrated groups - thanks in no small way to blue-eyed soul singer nonpareil Reg King. Songs like "I'll Keep On Holding On" and "Baby You've Got It" successfully translated the urgency of Motown and the urban funk of Stax/Volt into the baroque idiom of English pop - a feat many bands attempted and failed.

Sadly, as noted above, the Action achieved only a modicum of success in the UK, garnering but a little airplay (most notably with "I'll Keep Holding On") while charting nary a single. Across the pond, the Action, well, got no action, and they passed into semi-obscurity along with similar bands like The Creation, The Birds, and The Attack - reduced to objects of fixation for Anglophiles (and dorks like me).

Originally compiled in 1980 with assistance from the Jam's Paul Weller, The Ultimate Action (Edsel) is an excellent (though poorly annotated) overview of the Action's small Parlophone catalog (just five singles and no albums), plus some previously unheard music. The album and its some accompanying singles helped spark a mini-revival of interest in the group - at least among the Jam's neo-Mod fans.

In 2000, Edsel replaced The Ultimate Action with Action Packed - for all intents and purposes a remastered and repackaged version of the 1980 set. Action Packed includes the exact same 17 tracks as The Ultimate Action, but it benefits from more up-to-date mastering technology, sounding brighter and richer than its predecessor. The main improvement, however, lies in the packaging - which includes a detailed history of the band as well as track annotation, groovy pictures, and even Weller's original essay. Either way - Action Packed or Ultimate Action - the band is required listening for aforementioned Anglophiles (and dorks).

Before the Action broke up in 1967, they cut tracks for a proposed album, Brain, which ultimately sat unreleased until 2002 when it came out as Rolled Gold (with liner notes by Matthew Sweet). Rolled Gold is a terrific record indicating the progressive direction the Action might have headed had they stuck together. If Action Packed is required listening, then Rolled Gold is suggested listening - great stuff, but less essential than the earlier material.

Subsequently, none of the Action went on to particularly great things. Reg King cut an eponymous solo album for United Artists in 1971, while the rest of the band formed a new group, Mighty Baby, which was dubbed - unlikely as it seems - the English Grateful Dead. The Action's closest brush with fame came much later, when guitarist Alan "Bam" King played with Paul Carrack in the pioneering pub rock band Ace, who scored a major hit in 1975 with "How Long."

Thanks in part to the late-70's Mod revival, the Action eventually reformed and still play the occasional gig. A 2007 rarities collection called Uptight And Outasight includes live tracks from a 1998 London gig alongside TV and radio appearances from the 1960's.

Consumer Notes. It's worth noting that at least one other band has used the name "Action." The British band we're discussing only issued a few records, so buyer beware.... [top of page]