MY STORY
I have been a diehard Sparks fan since 1974. For almost twenty five
years I have lived this secretive lifestyle. Now the truth finally comes
out. Let's journey back, back, back in time to that golden era of 1974
when I first saw them on a American music show. It was called The
Midnight Special (hosted by "Wolfman Jack") I remember hearing the
name Sparks once before. I asked my knowledgeable older brother
and he thought that they made "orchestral type music", so I wasn't
interested...I was into cool rock bands such as Uriah Heep, Black Oak
Arkansas and Blue Oyster Cult and my favourite group was, of course,
The Beatles. When I first laid eyes on Sparks I could not believe what
I was seeing (or hearing...) Some demented looking skinny guy who
looked like a cross between Adolph Hitler and Charlie Chaplin. He
looked like he was either mad or bored as hell. Rolling his eyes and
mumbling some of the lyrics. It was like he was thinking "Hurry up
with this damn song, I have more important things to be doing!" Then
there was the guy with long, curly black hair singing in a high pitched
voice at a high rate of speed.Soon I was to discover the shocking truth
that these two men were actually BROTHERS! The music itself was
almost normal but those two characters made it all seem very, very
peculiar. Since I was a rock music fanatic and had a bad habit of
buying every album in sight, I raced to the store the next day to
purchase the album. I don't know why I bought "Kimono My House"
because I didn't exactly love the band (yet) The first few times I played
the album I didn't know what to make of it, it was so WEIRD.
Especially the last song, "Equator", in which the singer ended the
album in a very bizarre fashion (no music, just his voice) which to this
day still could be labeled strange...weird...demented...not of this earth.
You know, sort of like Michael Bolton, but in a good way...
Slowly but surely the songs clicked inside my tiny brain and I learned
to love each and every song. My favourite probably being "This Town
Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us", which I didn't know at the time
was a big hit in Britain. It is probably the song I have heard the most
in my life and I never get tired of it. In fact, Sparks music is the only
music I never get bored with. (I even have to take a vacation from The
Beatles once in awhile.)
1974 was a very good year as they released another album,
"Propaganda". It was in a similair vein to "Kimono" and was in some
ways even better. They appeared occasionally on television and I fell in
love with their image. My friend and I would stand in front of a mirror
and pretend to be the Mael brothers. I would be Russell and he would
be Ron. Sometimes I wanted to be Ron because he didn't do the facial
expressions to my liking...
The next few years were great years to be a Sparks fans. "Indiscreet"
was released in 1975 and although Russell didn't always use his falsetto
I loved so dearly, I still loved all the songs. I read in a rock magazine
around this time that Sparks were breaking up and that the brothers
were going to be called The Mael Brothers. One of the band members
had mentioned that he thought the brothers were getting away from
rock and roll music. I spent 1976 searching for a album by "The Mael
Brothers" and it finally arrived. They were still calling themselves
Sparks, but it was only Ron and Russell on the front and back cover.
This was the first and only time I actually had a new Sparks album in
my hands but I didn't buy it right away. Was I losing interest in them
perhaps? I think I was just dreading that they had started doing
country music or something worse. I was pleased to discover once I
did buy it that they were rocking more than ever. The only
disappointment was that Russell was singing in a lower voice, although
he used that wonderful high pitched voice for the end of the last song,
which was kind of cool.
Anyway, I loved all the songs on it (especially "Confusion") which still
ranks as one of my favorites of theirs. Okay, maybe I'm stretching the
truth a little, "Everybody's Stupid" was kind of lame...
Around this time I finally purchased the first two Sparks albums,
"Sparks" from 1971 and "A Woofer In Tweeter's Clothing" from
1973. I thought some of their music was "weird" but these two albums
cut the cake. I prefered the first album over the second, although now
I think "Woofer" is the better album. Not to mention "Whippings and
Apologies" is amazing and one of their best tunes.
1977 brought us "Introducing Sparks". What a bizarre title for a band
who had already released six albums, but I guess since they were on a
new label it was appropriate. This is the album that my friend (who
always hated Sparks and wanted to use their albums for target
practice) bought. It must have been commercial enough even for him
to buy. It was definetly commercial and much more pop oriented, but
it still contained the spirit of those looney Mael brothers. The humor
was still there and the songs were catchy, so I was happy. The only
thing that bugged me about the album was the picture of Ron and
Russell on the front and back cover. Although looking back now, Ron
did look kind of handsome...
1978 came and went without any word on them. In 1979 I had heard
that they were working on a disco album. The blood in my veins
pumped with dread when I heard that. "Disco is simple and Sparks are
not simple, it's going to be a disaster", I thought. How wrong I could
be. I loved the new sound. (This shows you how hip I was, even back
then...) Russell was even using his falsetto again!!! The whole album
was brilliant. "Beat The Clock" was a hit! I was disc jockeying back
then and when I played it at dances, no one even threw vegetables or
fruit at me. They actually danced to it!
1980 was a great year. I met a girl through the Sparks Fanclub and I
visited California and she visited me here in Canada.
That was the good part... The bad part was Sparks released "Terminal
Jive". This was their first album that almost "sucked". It wasn't bad
so much as it was just kind of bland. Recently I have learned that Ron
Mael did not even play on this album, which I guess half explains it.
The two tunes I did love though, "When I'm With You" and "Stereo"
almost made me forgive them for the whole ugly mess.
The next Sparks period began in 1981 with the release of "Whomp
That Sucker". The guitars were back and they had a real band again.
The songs were up to par with their earlier material and it was nice to
hear them rockin' again.
1982 is the year I would like to forget, as my wife still brings it up
occasionally... You see, Sparks fans... I was in another city with my
future wife (roughly ten miles from our apartment) when I found out
that "Angst In My Pants" had been released. Sadly, it wasn't in my
hometown yet, so I decided to hop on the next bus to Toronto to go
and buy it. So, I left my wife (with a brand new vacuum cleaner...) to
lug our new purchase on to a bus to take her home while I went to
Toronto. She got off the bus and had to lug the vacuum cleaner up a
rather steep hill. I have apologised to her for this selfish act, but I have
to give Ron and Russell some of the blame, right? Anyway, the album
was amazing!!! That's the most important thing... This was also the
year that I finally saw them in concert. They played at the El
Mocombo in Toronto. My wife and I were about ten feet away from
them. I think Ron and Russell will always remember that concert.
(You know, having their number one fan in the crowd and all...)
I liked "Sparks In Outer Space" when it was released in 1984,
although looking back now it isn't up to par with the Angst/Whomp
albums. At least I didn't hop on a bus to Toronto and leave my future
wife...oh, forget it.
1985 saw the release of "Music That You Can Dance To". When I
heard it, I thought to myself, "I ain't dancing to THIS!". In another
words, I didn't care for it much at all. I had heard the song "Change"
before the album came out so I was really disappointed. "Change" is
without a doubt, one of their best songs, but the rest of the songs
seemed to forced or something. I actually like it a lot now, although
everytime I hear "Fingertips" I want to vomit really good.
After "Music That You Can Dance To" came "Interior Designs" in
1989. This was not an improvement. This was possibly even worse. I
loved the first song, "So Important", but the rest of the album was
almost, shall I say, bad? "Love-O-Rama" almost made me yearn for a
repeat listening of "Fingertips". As usual though, over time I have
come to respect this album for what it is. It's not great Sparks, but it is
good Sparks. Some of the songs were even great, such as "The
Toughest Girl In Town".
After 1989 I never heard anything about Sparks for years. I had
presumed they had finally packed it in and Ron Mael was now a door
to door salesman for Roland synthesizers or something. Then one
magical day I was looking through the CD bin at my local record store
and I discovered a new album called "Gratitious Sax and Senseless
Violins". (Luckily I didn't have to hop on a bus to Toronto and...oh,
forget it...) On first listen I was disappointed to hear that they were
still in their "dance/electronic" mode, but after a few spins I realized
that they still had it. The songs were outstanding and catchy as hell. I
admit I miss hearing an occasionally guitar, but I don't want to get
selfish again here...
Amazingly I didn't have to wait five or six years for the next album.
"Plagiarism" was released in 1997 and it is one of their best albums. I
know some fans don't like it but I'm not one of them. They even
managed to make a better version of the song "Angst In My Pants".
Loud guitars and drums! My favourite track though, has to be
"Something For The Girl With Everything" with Faith No More.
Sparks fans are now waiting patiently for a new album. I'll have to
let my wife know. Perhaps we can purchase a new vacuum cleaner
at the same time!