Sparks – No. 1 In Heaven

Sounds great. Recorded in Munich, so I suppose the first version of the master tape was used for this German pressing.. I don´t think you will need to look any further if you get this version. Makes my smile every time I listen to it. Great album, great pressing. Mine has white labels Ariola-Oasis labels, but has the same Matrix Runout and is definitely this German pressing.

Their collaboration with Moroder was brilliant! This is absolutely one of their best albums.

This albums is still solidly 70s glam progressive rock. However, because of Moroder - it's got a solid disco beat and it's very very very synth pop - before synth pop was a thing. It's definitely of the era where everything was - spacey and when disco was taking over - everything.

The songs are all really good. It's definitely disco album, but - it's a disco album made by glam punks.

Yep, this one has the extended version of Beat the Clock. I've also got the 40th anniversary remaster, so I guess I'll be putting that on when I want to hear the regular version.

Found original French pressing from 1979 and the disc is in immaculate condition. Absolutely no pops or scratches. Full detailed sound, not too compressed.

As already mentioned, this is a great sounding disc with wide dynamics.
The also good sounding original UK vinyl I had, has audible tape dropouts in certain places where this CD doesn't.

Sparks had lost some of their, ahem, spark, after hitting the motherlode with 1974's "Kimono My House", which artfully combined the duo's trademark theatrical backdrops, operatic falsettos and zaniness with elements of glam rock and proto-punk. Struggling to approximate the melting pot of musical movements of the mid-to-late 1970s, several impressive, though admittedly spotty, records followed, tenuously Americanizing their art-rock experimentalism that was once sensational but now appeared conventional and outmoded. In 1978, record producer Giorgio Moroder, whom they had openly praised for his vast contribution to Donna Summer's ground-breaking club hit "I Feel Love", offered the duo a lifeline with his pioneering synthesizer work. As much as this resourceful collaboration between the "Father of Disco" yielded expectedly useful results, there had to be sacrifices along the way to achieve even further progression. Namely, the switch of instrumentation, from the traditional rock band configuration to the utilization of synthesizers and layered sequencers, both of which did not require a backing band. "No. 1 in Heaven" marked a bold change in direction for Ron and Russell Mael, providing them with the necessary diversification and restorative substance that is mandatory if a band is to adapt and survive in an ever-changing and irresolute musical landscape.

Somewhat moodier and more psychedelic in tonality than any of their previous efforts, "No. 1 in Heaven" compensated for its sonic departures by at least preserving some of their essence, such as their anti-maschismo witticisms, camp histrionics, visceral lyricism and most crucially, live percussion. Incidentally, it was session drummer Keith Forsey's punk grit, Krautrock roots and his own association with Mororder that shifted the relentless dancefloor readiness of "No. 1 in Heaven" into bankable pop territory, lending the abundance of intricate European dance rhythms a warm, unprocessed quality compatible with the duo's original musical palette. From the hilarious and infectious "Tryouts for the Human Race," sublimely trippy "Academy Award Performance," dreamy and ambiguous "My Other Voice," strangely sensual "La Dolce Vita," jaunty, driving "Beat the Clock," to the spasmodic "The Number One Song In Heaven", this mesmerising composite of Moroder's off-centre production, Russell's overlaid operatic vocals, Ron's glissando synths and Forsey's thunderous drumming most definitely triumphs. Despite resulting from an unlikely marriage, the album was a commercial success, spawning four hit singles and returning the duo to the charts, earning the duo greater recognition and a new audience in the process.

Even if it had the desired effect of returning Sparks to prominence and relevance, "No. 1 in Heaven" became so influential that it ensured the duo would be obliged to approach future material with the same faster tempos and frantic loops to maintain consistency and pertinence. Inevitably, staying in the lead proved difficult to sustain, though Sparks would continue to release music well into the next decade and beyond, always retaining fragments of their offbeat tendencies whilst constantly permutating their sound. "No. 1 in Heaven" is an infectious whirlwind of sleek, dynamic grooves and propulsive disco beats. Whilst devoid of the frivolity of Moroder's Italo contemporaries, "No. 1 in Heaven" was relatively effervescent and peppy enough to dance to; the inherent whimsy of Sparks was now surmounted by an inflexible momentum that seemed almost plethoric. Even the ambiguous lyrical content of songs such as "My Other Voice" and "La Dolce Vita" displayed a marginal evolution in terms of songwriting that was very refreshing indeed.

Indubitably, Sparks and Moroder anticipated components of post-punk and electronic dance with "No. 1 in Heaven", which sported a pulsating set of high-BPM barnstormers with alternating moods and intersecting themes concerning the human condition, albeit with a subversiveness indicative of the Sparks model. Employing then-radical studio techniques to compose a rich, distinctive tapestry of synth washes, loops, metronomic rhythms and breath-taking sonance before such sounds became commonplace, Sparks and Moroder broke new ground with their seamless fusion of two opposing aesthetics. Contrary to popular opinion of their newfound electronic template, there is nothing foreboding or frigid with regard to "No. 1 in Heaven". It is not robotic or impassive. In fact, it is quite powerful and joyous, with a welcome injection of dark humour to temper the fervid nature of the music.

Yes, Moroder's input was the irrefutable source of the undeviating quality, cohesivity and innovation present throughout, but Sparks had their part to play too, and this concerted coordination of styles and abilities resulted in a synthpop masterpiece that has stood the test of time to hold up as an extremely vivid, magical and heavenly listen.

Rating: 5/5

When I first got mine on Amazon, it would not fit on my turntable! So I had to sand down the edges of the records to make it spin! The record company have obviously not press the width of it right! The first vinyl has such good sound but the second just sounds tacky on both sides!

Guys, I completely do not understand those who scold this reprint. My version is absolutely good. The sound is very elastic, legible, dynamic. Recommend! There is one drawback in the design - this is the absence of the original b/w inner. Repertoire Records is always very peculiar approach to the design. Why can not make authentic? I do not know!

Screw all the recent 'remastered' vinyl reissues, THIS is the one to own. Both the black and yellow vinyl Virgin pressings sound so much better in their original mastering form. I should think that any 1979 pressing does. Do yourself a favour and stop hoping for a decent remaster; it's probably never going to happen. And why remaster something that sounded fab anyway? Oh yeah - cashing in on the new fads for vinyl and remasters.

I really don't understand why it is so hard to get this album sounding 'right' on vinyl. Whilst this pressing is better than the recent Repertoire releases, it is still lacking: it's noisy, the percussion lacks emphasis and it is muddled. The first disc is listenable but the second disc is simply poor.

If only decent quality original pressings were a reasonable price.