ROBERT HILBURN : SPUTNIK BLASTS OFF BUT DOESN’T REACH THE STARS

You’ve got to like Tony James’ style--even if his band’s debut album is a disappointment.

James--a Dr. Frankenstein who has created a would-be rock ‘n’ roll monster with his band, Sigue Sigue Sputnik--makes no secret of his pop greed. Indeed, greed is part of his P. T. Barnum act.

A former sidekick of Billy Idol, James favors a haystack hairdo so high at times that it looks like it was patterned after a ski run, is responsible for T-shirts that read, “Fleece the World.” The first words you hear on Sputnik’s just-released LP are, “I want to be a star . . . I want to be a star.”

So far so good. Rock needs a good laugh every once in a while.

To be a star, James designed Sputnik as the most outrageous, hype-conscious band Britain has seen since Malcolm McLaren devised the Sex Pistols--or at least since Frankie set out for Hollywood.

James’ group--whose name reportedly was taken from that of a Russian street gang--is a virtual computer printout of every concept and gimmick that supposedly appeals to teen-age fans. “Stereo, video, sci-fi, sex, let’s go,” Sputnik vocalist Martin Degville declares at the beginning of one song. Visually, the band adopts a high-heeled rock ‘n ‘roll warrior image that looks like a cross between Rocky Horror and Mad Max combatants.

And everything’s set in a futuristic, 21st-Century theme that is accompanied by much the same kinetic, synthesizer pulse that producer Giorgio Moroder used to advantage in hits like Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love” and Deborah Harry’s “Call Me.”

The surprising thing is that James’ free-form approach worked pretty well in “Love Missile F1-11,” the group’s debut single that zoomed into the Top 10 in England a few months ago. The record’s combination of Moroder tension, classic pop-rock hooks (a la the Sweet) and sheer hokum made it one of the liveliest dance singles of the year.

But the Sputnik missile didn’t take off in the United States, failing to crack the national Top 100.

That’s too bad for James because the single is by far the best thing on new album, titled “Flaunt It.”

The most appealing element about the LP is its humor, starting with a yellow warning sticker on the album cover that declares, “Do not play if accompanied by an adult.” The record itself features actual commercial messages between songs (among the items promoted: a magazine, clothes and hair-grooming products). The teasing song titles reinforce the band’s video/sex/nuclear age consciousness: a love song (of sorts) entitled “Atari Baby,” a dance-floor workout called “Sex Bomb-Boogie” and a sly gender-bender satire “She’s My Man.”

The most inspired moments of this satiric exercise could be straight from the National Lampoon workshop. Unfortunately, too much of the music has a superficial, first-draft gloss as if it were put together on somebody’s lunch hour.

Most of the songs are simply a patchwork of familiar rock sounds (lots of Chuck Berry guitar licks) and crazy, non-sensical rhymes. Sample line: “Embryo, UFO, freako, psycho, horror show.”

Sigue Sigue Sputnik’s joke may be wearing thin in England where its second single, “21st Century Boy,” stiffed. The imagination--and appeal--is clearly in the packaging, not in the music. In other words, James’ interviews on the group’s coming U.S. tour may be more fun than the actual shows.

FOGERTY RETURNS TO ROAD: John Fogerty, whose first album in more than a decade (“Centerfield”) was one of the most dramatic and welcome stories of 1985, begins his first tour in 14 years on Aug. 27 in Memphis. The former leader of Creedence Clearwater Revival will be joined by drummer John Robinson, bassist Neil Stubenhaus and keyboardist Alan Pasqua, all of whom worked with him on the “Eye of the Zombie” album, which is due in the stores early next month. No word on when the tour will reach here.

LIVE ACTION: Genesis has added a third show (Oct. 15) to its Forum engagement. Tickets go on sale Monday. . . . Tickets also go on sale Monday for James Taylor’s Oct. 7 appearance at the Pacific Amphitheatre. . . . Run-D.M.C. will be at the Palladium on Aug. 18. . . . the Everly Brothers are due Oct. 1 and 2 at the Universal Amphitheatre, while Bobby Vee, Gary Lewis and Tommy Roe head a rock reunion package on Sept. 12 at the Shrine. . . . Pete Shelley will be a the Palace on Aug. 15, while David Lindley is due there on Aug. 22. . . . the Meat Puppets will be a the Roxy on Aug. 17, while Dream Syndicate hedlines there Aug. 20. . . . Lone Justice appears Aug. 22 and 23 at the Coach House, while the Rave-Ups headline the Palomino on Aug. 23.