When one pictures Sparks, chances are it’s the 1974 glam rock incarnation: Russell on Top Of The Pops with long, tousled hair singing theatrically in knitwear to a bevy of teenyboppers; Ron astride an electric organ staring into the camera with an arched eyebrow, looking like, well… like Ron, but with that moustache. There may be fewer screaming teens now, but there’s a case to be made for Sparks being more successful now than they’ve ever been, in relative terms.
Look at the figures. They’ve all but matched pound-for-pound two Top 10 UK albums in succession: Kimono My House and Propaganda went to No 4 and No 9, respectively, in 1974; Hippopotamus and A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip both peaked at No 7 in 2017 and 2020. Secondly, their profile has risen even higher since, thanks to two films: Edgar Wright’s 2021 documentary The Sparks Brothers and French director Leos Carax’s Annette from the same year; the latter MUBI-backed musical, starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard, was conceived and co-written by Sparks – who performed and oversaw every note. In just a few years, Sparks have gone from nowhere to seemingly everywhere, with Wright’s film recently picking up an NME award and Annette taking home an impressive five Césars in Paris in February 2022.
This story is from the September 2022 edition of Record Collector.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September 2022 edition of Record Collector.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
"THINGS CAN GO VERY BADLY WRONG"
But not too often. The Iron Maiden singer, aviator, business mogul and awardwinning everyman, Bruce Dickinson, returns with a new solo album, The Mandrake Project – Top 10 across the planet at the time of writing – and a ton of anecdotes about his extraordinarily successful career. Just don’t try and put him in a box. “I’m not a number, I’m a free man!” he warns Joel McIver.
Out Of The Darkness
Long-anticipated solo debut from Portishead singer is worth the wait
Clearing The Way
The end of an era for Bolan's glam-rock trailblazers.
SOCK IT TO ME DISC-ITS! WHEN TWO TRIBES VINYL AND CD (AND CASSETTE) WENT TO WAR
Dream, if you can, a courtyard. An ocean of violets in bloom. Alternatively, a 1984 record shop and all its pristine treasures. Close your eyes, let’s go there together. What do you see? From chest-level down – vinyl.
Steve Harley 1951-2024
As frontman for Cockney Rebel, the singer-songwriter crafted one of the glam rock era's greatest singles in Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me).
The Collector
Swiss-based Icelander Sunna Margrét is a rising force in experimental pop. Having begun her career as a teenager touring with electro-pop ensemble Bloodgroup, she is about to release her debut full-length solo LP, Finger on Tongue.
She'd only Just gun
With their rapturous harmonies, the Carpenters dominated the 70s’ airwaves, selling over 100 million records with hits like Close To You and Yesterday Once More. But by 1979, lead singer Karen was seeking a new direction… Biographer Lucy O’Brien recounts her attempts to move out of the restrictive environment of the family band that had made her a star
PNEUMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE
Forming in West Berlin in 1980 and achieving their greatest notoriety circa 1984, industrial noise-punks Einstürzende Neubauten have far e xceeded t he i r p ro jec ted l i fe expectancy. Founding frontman Blixa Bargeld traces the evolution of the metalbashing pioneers. Jeremy Allen is all (suitably protected) ears
FRUITS OF THEIR LABOUTES
Bananarama had their first Top 3 hit in 1984, Robert De Niro's Waiting. Rob Hughes meets lifelong friends and bandmates Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward as they look back on their career, album by album
Being Soaring.
In April 1984, the original, faster Bobby Oproduced version of West End Girls was released.