“Insides Out”
by Jordan Zevon, $16.98

It’s tough to live up to the songwriting standards set by the late Warren Zevon, even if you’re his own son.

Jordan Zevon’s first full-length album, “Insides Out,” is a decade of modern-sounding pop-rock songs that I’d classify as “not bad,” save for a few that are more like “kinda bad.” He apparently didn’t take much inspiration from his father when churning out this track list. Even his rendition of Warren Zevon’s “Studebaker” only sounds vaguely like it was actually written by the patriarch.

The record starts off promising. There’s a hint of the Ben Folds sound in Zevon’s voice and style in “The Joke’s On Me” and “This Girl.” The third track, “Home,” made me think that the album would keep getting better. It tops off with the bouncy, piano chord-driven track, “Just Do That,” which brings to mind his dad’s hit, “Werewolves of London.” The thing I would complain about most in all these songs — and all the rest — is that Zevon is not a very good lyricist. He has potential as a songwriter, but his poetry could use a helping hand.

And now it’s time to thank the music industry for allowing individual song downloads instead of obligating us to an entire album purchase, because things become drastically mediocre henceforth. “Camila Rhodes” sparked my attention at one point, but it was only because of a line that made reference to Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl.”

I suppose I’d be interested in seeing what Zevon has to offer in the future, but for now, I’ll just stick to the first four tracks from “Insides Out.” That’s the best he’s given me so far.

What Jefferson has to say about it

Mais oui, Ben Folds! Ram him together with Fountains of Wayne and you’re a long way toward describing this record, which implies that if there’s one thing Jordan did inherit from his (famously cynical, famously troubled) father, it’s his sense of humor. Definitely not his singing voice.

I’m not convinced the quality diminishes as the record rolls on — indeed, I found the first four songs to be slower going than the last six — because the lyrics keep improving. “Camila Rhodes” is an ode to that girl everyone made fun of in grade school/middle school, and it crystallizes that period of life — when you yearn to be both part of the herd and distinct from it. “American Standard” wins its early points for taking its title from a brand of toilet, and goes on to outline the persona of a modern male college student: inebriated, piggish, and responding in a callow way to the suspicion that he’s already been cheated out of the American Dream. It’s the single most Fountains of Wayne-ish track on the record, even setting aside the Elvis Costello/Nick Lowe organ blast that opens it.

If “Studebaker” recalls Warren Zevon most clearly, it’s because it’s a Warren track, originally recorded by Jordan on the tribute album “Enjoy Every Sandwich: The Songs of Warren Zevon” (2004). “Home” opens with a percussive piano attack that’s reminiscent of “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner.” “Payday” examines the pursuit of happiness in a time of scarcity, and it earns my heart with a play on words that manages to check both classical mythological and my favorite song by Cream: “Armed with our wax-winged Achilles heels, tales of bravely useless ideals, as long as we keep pride at bay, anyday will soon be payday.”

So maybe the best approach to Jordan Zevon’s debut CD is to start in the middle and work your way in either direction. (Hey, that sounds like a Warren lyric!)