Track Listing

1. Propaganda
2. At Home At Work At Play
3. Reinforcements
4. B.C.
5. Thanks But No Thanks
6. Dont Leave Me Alone With
7. Never Turn Your Back On M
8. Something For The Girl Wi
9. Achoo
10. Who Dont Like Kids
11. Bon Voyage
12. Alabamy Right
13. Marry Me

---

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #70962 in Music
• Released on: 2008-03-17
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Ah, the eternal problem of how to follow up the overnight success. It's often the case that groups change their sound and image to keep up the commercial winning streak once they hit the big time, often at the expense of their original appeal. Sparks, however, are a law unto themselves. Whatever acclaim was brought by Kimono My House appears to have been ignored by the Mael brothers, who instead solidified the style of demented, sinister pop songs that the band pioneered.

In this case, Ron Mael's eye for lyrical detail, welded to an off-kilter tune, makes for a unique offering. Who else could write the utterly sincere "Bon Voyage", sung from the viewpoint of the animals that didn't get onto Noah's Ark? Also apparent is an early indication of Sparks' reluctance to be pigeonholed as a guitar band; the opening title track is an acapella offering, while the jazzy flourishes that colour the following album Indiscreet make their appearances on nearly every track. Sure, they still rock out, especially on "At Home, At Work, At Play" and "Something for the Girl with Everything", but the detail beneath the surface shows Sparks' unique gift for the darkly humourous. Highly recommended. --Thom Allott

---

Customer Reviews

The perfect pop/rock album
I,m not going to go into details on all the tracks........they are ALL brilliant. I think this is a far better album than Kimono My House, which although excellent, has peaks and troughs.
This truly is a criminally underated album, not just of the 70s, but of all time. Most importantly, it does not sound dated, just like other works of arts which are timeless in thier beauty (possibly because Sparks sounded like no one else at the time, or since.). It also has posibbly the best intro going into the second song ever !

Sparks Twin Peaks...Part 2
Along with 'Kimono', this album represents the point where the Mael Bros' curiously anglo-centric pop reached its zenith. In many ways it's more consistent than Kimono, with some truly superb songs. "ABC" has machine-gun delivery from Russell Mael disguising some truly witty lyrics and a tremendous melody. "At Home..." is similarly quick-fire and almost obscenely tuneful. "Don't Leave Me Alone with Her" tells the knowing tale of a bloke being cornered by a girl who's head-over-heels for him, but he doesn't feel the same. "Thanks But No Thanks" features Sparks' possibly most graceful band arrangement, with feathery acoustic guitar underpinning the marvellous one-note guitar solo on the outro. "Never Turn Your Back..." is an acknowledged classic that sounds as if it has always existed; the first time I heard the album I checked to see that it wasn't a cover version!

Good production (Muff Winwood, as 'Kimono'), punchy melodic songs and barbed, witty lyrics. Could they do no wrong...? Just give them a couple of years (!).

If you only buy one CD....
If you only buy one CD this year - get Indiscreet! It's awsome! But after that - get this one - 99% as good! Unfortuneately I'm old enough to remember Sparks the first time around - I loved them then - I adore them now! There are few words good enough to describe how wonderful this CD is - it's a work of art! The opening track, which blends seemlessly into the second, sends shivers down your spine. then you are launched into an hour's journey of what pop is all about - variety, imagination (like few others) and tunes to die for! You will NEVER get tired of listening to this - the only thing worth interupting it for is another brilliant Sparks CD. Puts 'modern' artists to shame! Enjoy!