SPARKS

[highersynth]

Like a book club but with Sparks albums;
PROMPTS - (previous thread suggests we don't need these, but just in case):
- Overall opinion / enjoyment
- Contextual comments - for album or listener
- Lyrical content
- Musical content

Week 1 - The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman -
Week 2 - Annette
Week 3 - Two Hands One Mouth starts p2
Week 4 - HalfNelson demo - starts p3
Week 5 - w/c 28th Jan - Is there More to Life than Dancing (Noel)
Week 6 - other material (more welcome) - starts p3
- Mai The Psychic Girl excerpts
- Bad Manners (see below for links kindly provided by SteveBoyce)

[highersynth]

Welcome to Week 1 of Album Club II - The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman (2009)

You can find a link to the album on Spotify here:

https://open.spotify.com/album/2W6ijD4rjIV1ypvYKQLfhR?si=BzOkPMzrQb2_Y1DQLU2QoA

Prompts for discussion, if needed, at the top of the thread.
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Tomorrow I'll find out all I should know...

[Andy M]

“And the seduction failed/As anyone can see/They mispronounced his name ...”

For those unfamiliar with Seduction, I’d strongly recommend the excellent Wikipedia article on the project. I learnt much from it I hadn’t picked up before, including the fact that the album impacted on some UK charts.

Sparks fans are everywhere, and this is amply demonstrated by the genesis of Seduction, when a new fan employed in Swedish Radio saw the potential of Sparks contributing to a proposed series of radio musicals.

As with Annette, this isn’t a series of stand-alone songs – the music and lyrics serve the story. That said, there are a few which are very fine in their own right – Mr Bergman, How Are You?, Why Do You Take..., We’ve Got to Turn Him ‘Round, Garbo Sings. And it’s chock-full of Sparks’ usual wit, such as the Hollywood limo-driver’s comment to Bergman: “I love your films, they have a foreign flair.” Whatever, Seduction is a fine production indeed, with an innovative concept and an uplifting storyline. It works very well indeed in the medium of radio.

The premise of Bergman being magically transported to Hollywood might be fantastical, but the theme of the musical is very real to Sparks – the artistic sensibility versus money and compromise. And Seduction was perhaps a crucial step on the road to Annette being produced.

Best physical version? The 2009 4-LP boxset is a beautiful product – great cover, marvellous booklet. If you’re a non-Swede and wish to be really niche, opt for the original Swedish language version from Sveriges Radio (and you can learn how to pronounce Bergman!)

[Alex Robertson]

Love this album, so Sparks yet un-Sparks...I've always been a fan of "stranger in a strange land" stories from as far as I can remember. This concept of going into a cinema to see a film you would normally rather go to the dentist than see and coming out in the place that makes these types of films is a neat twist. Then the nightmare is compounded by the initial fawning adulation along with the confusing language and cultural sensibilities changing into seething resentment...then that "action movie" chase sequence. The unlikely saviour of the hero is really clever. Once home he's back in the bosom of his true fans, his fellow countrymen.
I listen to this album and I visualise it like the "The Wizard Of Oz" film...Sweden all grey and colourless yet loving and free, while Hollywood is all bright and colourful yet threateningly sinister and controlling underneath. That's why He's Home is joyous...in a stage or film production this could be an unforgettable anthem played on Classic FM regularly.
As an aside a friend of mine, who is very musically gifted and very knowledgeable on things of a musical nature, isn't at all keen on He's Home...something to do with production values. I still think it's a stomping finale.
I couldn't pick a favourite track as they are all part of the story...I enjoy listening to the album in Swedish because it makes me feel like the stranger in town.
This album is a must for Sparks fans...AND let's hope it does become film (whatever format, animation or live action, I don't care) sooner rather than later. I would've loved to see it on stage too.

[Eric Murray]

Seduction is an Absolute Masterpiece - at one time my local pub had it on the Juke Box ( was removed when they found out it was > ~ 60 minutes - Everyone was asking What Is This ) - I can listen to this every week and the Swedish Version is so intriguing - yet another Sparks item that did not get the Media attention it was worthy of.

[Spyke]

The band have shifted in styles a few times, and this album is certainly very different to its predecessor! The story it tells is imaginative, but still makes some grounded points about celebrity status. The characters are engaging, and the music is slickly produced.

The tracks which stand out the most for me are '1956 Cannes Film Festival', 'Mr Bergman, How Are You?' and 'Hollywood Welcoming Committee' (all of which are 10/10s), but I realise the album should be listened to as a whole. Which I haven't done as often as their other albums, unfortunately, as it's not one to just dip into. As it hasn't grabbed me as much as their other work, I'll rate it 7.5 / 10.

Hopefully some sort of film version will still be made.
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"but we can hear what others can't hear..."

[highersynth]

I've enjoyed listening to Ingmar, though it's not my favourite of the Maels' work.

I felt it got off to a very strong start. I really enjoyed the concept of Bergman slipping into the alternate reality of Hollywood - whether in a dream or some other mystical transportation. Like so much of their work, this works on several levels - Hollywood as an alternate to Bergman's actual lived reality in Sweden - simply another place; philosophically as a radically different approach to film-making; and also allegorically - Hollywood as the manufacturer of alternate realities.

The presentation of LA and Hollywood, with Ron making a rare singing appearance, and the tapestry of background sounds, was really enjoyable, as was the lead actor's spoken voice, and I found myself transported to the setting - where I remained quite engrossed until around about the escape tracks (19 onward). I kind of lost it there and felt as though the composition and performance sort of tailed off, as though it had run out of steam a bit. Some of those elements seemed to go on too long, and the final track "He's Home" lacked the energy I'd have liked to hear associated with it. Russell's vocals were not on-point for that track, which is odd, because it's well within his range, however he appeared to be soft-pedalling, and I'm puzzled as to why that might be required at that point in the narrative.

I think with this and Annette (which I've not listened to right through yet) we see clearly Ron setting out his "manifesto" as a Composer, in the classical sense, as opposed to a writer of pop songs. (Obviously he's on record arguing that the two can be the same thing). I have huge admiration for Ron's compositional capacity, and continually wonder how he gets on if he still doesn't write the orchestration. But I'm not a musician, aside from being a singer who can just about follow a line of music.

What is most interesting to me is that when this extraordinarily talented story-teller lyricist writes an entire story, his usual deft handling of lyrics seems to falter. I do feel Ron's real gift is his capacity to convey a whole narrative in glorious technicolour in one succinct 3-5 minute song, and that seems to have been diluted here, with an entire hour to play with, so that none of the individual pieces enjoyed that concentrated lyrical flair he usually exhibits.

I too would like to see this as a film, but in creating that would be urging the brothers to revisit the final segment.

If forced to score the album, I'd give it 6/10 - it's something I'm fairly unlikely to listen to again, but wouldn't resist if asked to.
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Tomorrow I'll find out all I should know...

[Alex Robertson]

Sorry, didn't score the album....7.5/10

[Toughest Girl In Town]

Oh dear, I've got so many things to say about this one :)
Listening to this album is one of the best ways to start the year, I'm glad we're reviewing it here.

It's a very important piece of work to me, because it proves a lot of things about the boys and their incredible talent:

They can work to order,
They can blend many different styles within one single album and still sound relevant in each one of them (ok we knew that already),
They can collaborate with many different types of artists, including actors,
They know how to create just the perfect atmosphere so naturally you barely realize all the work it probably required

We all know Sparks love Sweden, this project must have been such an exciting challenge for them. The result is just amazing and -as always- so creative!
Also, don't you love how the tension slowly builds up throughout the whole story? It's a great piece of work where each song/theme completes the previous one. At first it just sounds a bit weird and quiet, but with the help of the main character (played by Jonas Malmsjö), you can feel his anxiety increasing song after song. The one about the autographs is a good example of that, you almost feel dizzy imagining the whole scene.

There are so many good ideas I couldn't list them all here, but I love how each character has its own theme and unique style, both musically and lyrically. The only exception being Weiss "stealing" a couple of theme songs (from Greta Garbo and the Hotel receptionist). Ron can be so cheeky sometimes in his songwriting :)

My favourite song is the first part of the "Escape", it sounds so epic and theatrical I get goosebumps each time I play it.
I also love "Mr Bergman, how are you?", I think it sounds a lot like the Who and I love it.
On the other hand, I don't really enjoy listening to "Hollywood Welcoming Committee" (not a fan of Tammy's voice) even though the idea is just brilliant, and the title itself is very funny.

This is so weird to hear Russell play the bad guy for once, but it definitely works! And he makes up for it in the end, so it's fine :)
I'd love to hear more "concept" albums from Sparks like this one... maybe very soon, who knows?

8.5/10

[Oscar]

The Seduction has grown on me over the years, mostly due to my wife's enthusiasm for it. If you go in looking for a normal Sparks album, you're going to be disappointed, and I think even as a musical, the execution could have been stronger, but what it's got going for it are a lot of super catchy, ear-wormy songs and a great overall story. "Mr. Bergman How Are You?" and "He's Home" in particular are always getting stuck in my head. We're often cheering "Bergman! Bergman!" in my house, as well any name that sounds like "Bergman" when we encounter one ("Erdman! Erdman!" etc). We also get a lot of mileage out of "[NAME], you're a genius! That's why we love him!"

On the other hand, I do get a sense that the writing and production might have been kind of rushed. Some of the lyrics just don't feel like they're up to Ron's usual standards, and the instrumental backings sound a bit chintzy. One of the big reasons I'd love to see a movie version of this is that the songs would be (I assume) re-recorded, ideally with some live orchestrations, and maybe Ron & Russell could tweak the lyrics too. I'm bummed the Guy Maddin collaboration didn't work out, because I'm a fan of Maddin's movies (can't really say the same about Leos Carax), but I've got high hopes for the Joseph Wallace stop-motion version. Fingers crossed it actually happens!

7/10

[highersynth]

Welcome to Week 2 of Album Club II - Annette (2021)

You can find a link to the album on Spotify here:

MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK (2 hours)
https://open.spotify.com/album/1qqZSTptKt9zXK4zJkkNPf?si=XzMX925hSAOOrDOoCTfIww

CANNES EDIT (15 songs, 40 mins approx)
https://open.spotify.com/album/53wesmaEPq7E4NwxNB8yET?si=103qvWF_Qxqi-N7EsZVY1g


Prompts for discussion, if needed, at the top of the thread.
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Tomorrow I'll find out all I should know...

[highersynth]

I'm listening to the Cannes Edition as I write.
This is not my cup of tea at all, unfortunately. I felt resistant to listen to it at all, and I'm enjoying it more than I expected, but not very much.
(To clarify, I'm a bit strange about movies at the best of times - can be almost phobic).

Musically, I can recognise all the usual Sparks skill and style, with the additional layers of other voices and a movie orchestra (as with Bergman). There are some very beautiful sounds in here, but aside from May We Start, and possibly Stepping Back, not a single track that I really enjoy in its entirety. (I have just stopped Sympathy for the Abyss because I can't bear the child's singing). Maybe the album would grow on me if I listened repeatedly, but I don't think I could ever cope with that last track.

Lyrically, I hear the usual "Ron" techniques and verbal skills, however, they feel kind of stretched. It's as though those same techniques that work so well on an album of songs don't quite come off the same in a soundtrack?

If I'm brutally honest I think the story is a bit overblown and cumbersome - and the soundtrack reflects that. It lacks Ron's usual succinct story-telling finesse - which I guess is inevitable since by its nature a screenplay isn't succinct.
Or maybe it's just not my cup of tea.
I would reflect that it's unsurprising if the skills Sparks have exercised for half a century are way more refined and honed than those more recent exercises in extended narrative.

All that said, I'd love them to soundtrack a Wes Anderson movie - that could really be worth watching!

Annette - not for me, so I shan't offer a score.
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Tomorrow I'll find out all I should know...

[Andy M]

“Henry, Henry we’ve had enough”

I’m not at all sure where to start with Annette. With Seduction we had the radio musical in its entirety; with Annnette we have the soundtrack album (extended version or otherwise) and we have the film, two related but obviously different things. So excuse me if my views of the soundtrack are mainly my views of the film.

I’m not a film musical kind of guy, but obviously I was looking forward to this. I no longer go to the cinema, so waited for the dvd release before seeing it. Everything looked good: the reviews had been largely very positive (though I tried to avoid reading them too closely); the reception at Cannes brilliant; the clip of So May We Start invigorating. But I confess that when I saw the film I was disappointed. The opening is uplifting, alright, but the rest of Annette is overwhelmingly dark – something I just wasn’t expecting from Sparks.

The lead character – Henry McHenry - doesn’t help, or rather exemplifies the problem for me. As a person he has few, if any, redeeming features (the exception being at the end of the film when he tells the now real Annette not to blame Ann). As a comedian he is utterly unfunny.

On the positive side, the use of the puppet for Annette was imaginative, and her transformation into a girl moving. And there are one or two good tunes in here – So May We Start, obviously (I can’t imagine a future Sparks show kicking off with another song any time soon), We Love Each Other, Six Women, LaLaLaLa, Sympathy for the Abyss and some usage of old songs (including Thanks But No Thanks as LaLaLaLa), which was fun to hear.

But essentially this is the story of a man who has abused women in the past and then goes on to kill his wife and then a colleague, and exploits his daughter. His comeuppance couldn’t come soon enough.

In summary – I’m with highersynth on this one, not my cup of tea either.

[Alex Robertson]

I don't like watching film trailers on the small screen/ social media, so I didn't watch any So May We Start clips and only listened to the track...truthfully wasn't impressed...watching it in the cinema*,it came alive for me and have loved it ever since. All the songs work well in the context of the film and the album is enjoyable but it's a soundtrack and needs the visuals imo. Individual tracks out of context have flashes of genius but we are used to a lot more genius through a Sparks album...I believe this album is a prime example of "a curate's egg".
This album is a watch rather than a listen, if that makes sense?
The film itself is indeed dark, Henry McHenry is not intended to be likeable ( or even funny, I think this is the Mael's debunking of modern humour or what passes for it) and Adam Driver is excellent in the role. Some characters seem underplayed, their motives are thrust on us without being fully shown/ explored. The puppet baby was a shock , my first sight of that was ,"What an ugly child!" before realising it wasn't a real ( or one of those realistic dolls so often used in films) and was indeed a puppet...it did take a couple of seconds. The Pinocchio style ending made a sort of sense...she cut her "strings"and was free of her father's control, free to be the child she should have been. I think this film will be looked on in years to come as a work of genius.
If nobody is scoring this album, I'll refrain too.

*There were 4 people in the cinema, including me...and two of them left after forty minutes. It was like a private viewing.

[Spyke]

I agree with what highersynth and Andy M have said, while maybe enjoying the film a bit more. The various turns in the plot and the weird style (such as the puppet) kept me watching, but I'd have much preferred it if the story was less dark and more fun. Having Henry (and the Accompanist) being so unpleasant was clever and well-acted, but doesn't help the viewer warm to the film as a whole.

With the soundtrack, the opening song is such a belter that it would be difficult for anything to maintain the standard. Unfortunately, the rest of the songs and music aren't as memorable, for me, or lack that vital Sparks sound. I liked the nods to older songs, but they also drew attention to better material being elsewhere.
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"but we can hear what others can't hear..."

[waterloosunset]

I wanted to write about The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman last week, but family came first and I never got to it. I'll keep this short. I really enjoy listening to this album in its entirety. The story is clever, although the lyrics are sometimes a little lazy. My favorite song hands down is We've Got To Turn Him 'Round. Really beautiful. I can't give this a number rating because it is so different from an album of songs. I would love to have seen this staged.
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better drop the requirement that everything be great

[Oscar]

Think I'm going to decline to give the Annette soundtrack a score as well. It's too hard to separate it from the actual film for me to judge it on its own merits as an album. I love "So May We Start," which has to be the most well-produced Sparks song in many years, but there aren't really any other tracks I care to revisit. I could be wrong about his level of input, but it feels to me like Leos Carax really bent the score to match his vision. Ron and Russell have said they went back and forth with him on a lot of the songs, rewriting them and even writing new songs at his request. I'd love to hear what the album would've been if it had been just "the next Sparks album," as was originally intended. I have to assume I'd like it a lot more. Even just having Russell sing Adam Driver's parts would have given the songs a much different vibe.

[Toughest Girl In Town]

[waterloosunset]

I have trouble distinguishing the album Annette (the Unlimited Edition) from the movie. And try as I have to like it, the movie does little for me, except for the electrifying beginning. I find Adam Driver grating as an actor, which should help in that he is grating as Henry but all I see and hear is Adam Driver Adam Driver Adam Driver. I would rather hear Russell singing all those parts. The puppet Annette is distracting.

There are tracks that I like because the music is so arresting/seductive/splendid: So May We Start; True Love Always Finds a Way (duh, Russell); We Love Each Other So Much (I think of the performance that Russell and Catherine Trottmann did together at the Paris concert in 2022); the aria The Forest (truly operatic – Ron has such depth); Calm Before the Opera and Lalalala for the obvious reasons; Lullaby for Annette – stunning in its beauty, maybe my favorite on the album; and anything that Russell sings on the demos. I kind of like Upstaged, too. I would like to hear Russell sing Sympathy for the Abyss – I might love it if it screamed Russell, Russell, Russell at me.

Like Seduction, I can’t give this a score. I wish I wanted to listen to it more.
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better drop the requirement that everything be great

[waterloosunset]

I don't like screaming upper case letters but I HAVE A QUESTION THAT HAS BEEN BUGGING ME SINCE THE FIRST TIME I SAW ANNETTE!!!!!!

I need your help if you have any answers. In the middle of one of Henry's rants (don't know which one and I don't think it is on the recording), Henry breaks into something like this: "Oh the Catholics, hate the Protestants, and the Protestants hate the Catholics, and the Hindus hate the Muslims, and everybody hates the Jews." Those are not, as I recall, the lyrics that Henry sings with the exception of the "everybody hates the Jews" part. However, they ARE the original lyrics from the Tom Lehrer song National Brotherhood Week https://youtu.be/aIlJ8ZCs4jY?si=an5w0WkwDNF1-cmA&t=64, which is exactly what Henry is paraphrasing. Does anyone know anything about this? I was brought up on Tom Lehrer (singer-songwriter/pianist/math lecturer at both Harvard and MIT....) and was jolted when Henry broke into a much beloved song from my childhood in the middle of his shtick. I expected there to be more songs from outside of the Sparkssphere in the movie, but there weren't. When I first heard National Crime Awareness Week, its cynical humor made me wonder if R&R had ever heard National Brotherhood Week. Clearly they had.
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better drop the requirement that everything be great