Where do I begin with Sparks? Now over half way into their 6th Recording decade. The few bands that have this longevity tend to tour with Greatest Hits sets, yet the Mael Brothers promote a new album on each tour and are able to incorporate a phenomenal back catalogue amidst the more recent songs. They tour a lot now, when normal practice for a long time was to rarely play Live. I am a fan since buying Propaganda on release and they toured then, but the audience was more screaming girls in a Bay City Rollers type of affair.
They are as popular as ever with an audience spanning generations and it is amazing how someone so quirky can become so popular. The Facebook groups show the age range and there can be an irritation from older fans thinking they were first and so most important. Sparks have always moved on, through Glam Rock, Synth Pop, hardcore dance to the now where they do what they want to across more of a soundscape. As an 11 year old, I knew every word of Propaganda and I still do and I have been a completist ever since.
One thing that many long term fans fail to do is admit that not every album is ace. Personally, I think the 80s after Whomp That Sucker and Angst In My Pants was a bit of a nadir in their career, Pulling Rabbits Out Of A Hat anyone? But even in that period, there was some gold, Music That You Can Dance To is a fantastic album and gets a welcome Deluxe Reissue this year. It is nice to hear the title track here. But, the creativity remains in abundance and as well as Grandparents, Parents and Grandkids are in the audience, there are many who discovered them under their own steam. Fans who only slightly remembered This Town Ain't Big Enough.
The fact that they have worked with the likes of Visconti and Moroder is ace, but they are a band of the now. Live albums can be a reminder of being there and generally are something that you listen to once and file. But Sparks are different. Live, they are a band and the soundscapes are replaced by a slightly more Rock sound that provides different interpretations of the new and the old. It is of course, wonderful to hear the classics such as This Town and When Do I Get To Sing My Way, but now the anthems are also more recent. The opener, So May We Start sets the scene perfectly. The closer, All That, has taken on a magnificent life of its own to become a major piece in their catalogue.
It is amazing to hear the likes of Reinforcements and Goofing Off join the later stuff. No1 In Heaven is perhaps overrepresented with half of the album here. Maybe, Academy Award Performance could have been replaced with something older. The MAD! material seems to translate less well and I did think that that most recent album was a little light in places. But these are minor quibbles. Just enjoy how a band so left field can be celebrated so much in 2026. Since you ask, my favourite album is Indiscreet, an album that has been in my Top 10 Albums forever, fighting XTC's Oranges And Lemons for first place.
You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available everywhere on Vinyl, CD and as a download.
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