Propaganda
Studio album by
Sparks
ReleasedNovember 11, 1974 (1974-11-11)
Recorded1974
Genre
Length33:41
LabelIsland
ProducerMuff Winwood
Sparks chronology
Kimono My House
(1974)		 Propaganda
(1974)		 Indiscreet
(1975)
Singles from Propaganda
  1. "Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" b/w "Alabamy Right"
    Released: October 1974
  2. "Propaganda/At Home, at Work, at Play" b/w "Marry Me"
    Released: 1974 (FR)[4]
  3. "Something for the Girl with Everything" b/w "Marry Me"
    Released: January 1975
  4. "Achoo" b/w "Something for the Girl with Everything"
    Released: March 1975 (US)[5]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Christgau's Record GuideC−[2]
Classic Rock[6]
Tom HullA−[7]

Propaganda is the fourth studio album by American rock band Sparks, released on November 11, 1974. Following up their commercial breakthrough, Kimono My House, released earlier the same year, it was a moderate success in the United States and peaked at No. 9 in the U.K. in 1975. The album cover features an image of a tied-up and gagged Mael brothers, titled "Welcome on Board," which was taken by photographer Monty Coles.

Release

The album followed its predecessor Kimono My House by half a year and was a successful album in the UK and US. It peaked at No. 9 on the UK Album Chart[8][9](which would remain their second highest album chart position in the UK for nearly 43 years until pushed down into third place by Hippopotamus in 2017)[9] and No. 63 on the Billboard 200 (and remains their highest peak in that country).[10]

The singles "Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" and "Something for the Girl with Everything", while not as successful as those from Kimono My House both reached the Top 20 in the UK peaking at No. 13 and No. 17 respectively.[8] In France, "At Home, at Work, at Play" together with "Propaganda" was released as a single instead of "Something for the Girl with Everything". In the US, "Achoo" was released as the album's only single.

"Bon Voyage" and „Thanks But No Thanks“ appears briefly in the 2021 musical drama film Annette, which Ron and Russell co-wrote with the director Leos Carax.

Critical reception

Reviewing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Robert Christgau wrote: "Admirers of these self-made twerps certainly don't refer to them as pop because they get on the AM—for once the programmers are doing their job. So is it because they sing in a high register? Or because a good beat makes them even more uncomfortable than other accoutrements of a well-lived life?; 'Never turn your back on mother earth,' they chant or gibber in a style unnatural enough to end your current relationship or kill your cacti, and I must be a natural man after all, because I can't endure the contradiction."[2]

Dave Connolly of AllMusic touched on the criticism: "The torrential outpouring of words and ideas, underscored by guitars and keyboards with oft-shifting rhythms, either repels or attracts listeners." However, he believed "close-minded" American listeners were more critical of the album's "cross between 10cc and the power pop of the late '70s", concluding that "Propaganda remains one of Sparks' brightest achievements, brimming with a loopy charm that continued to captivate the open-minded English listeners".[3]

Re-release

Propaganda was re-issued and remastered by Island in 1994 and 2006. The first issue by the Island Masters subsidiary added the b-sides "Alabamy Right" and "Marry Me". The '21st Century Edition' also included an interview from Saturday Scene recorded in November 1974.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ron Mael; except where indicated

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Propaganda" 0:23
2."At Home, at Work, at Play" 3:06
3."Reinforcements"Ron and Russell Mael3:55
4."B.C." 2:13
5."Thanks But No Thanks"Ron and Russell Mael4:14
6."Don't Leave Me Alone with Her" 3:02
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" 2:28
2."Something for the Girl with Everything" 2:17
3."Achoo" 3:34
4."Who Don't Like Kids" 3:37
5."Bon Voyage"Ron and Russell Mael4:52
  • Sides one and two were combined as tracks 1–11 on CD reissues.
Island Masters bonus tracks (1994)
No.TitleLength
12."Alabamy Right"2:11
13."Marry Me"2:54
21st Century Edition bonus tracks (2006)
No.TitleLength
14."Interview - Saturday Scene 8/11/74"7:16

Charts

Chart (1974/75) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 75
Canada 81
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) 9
United States (Billboard 200) [10] 63

Personnel

Sparks

Production and artwork

  • Produced by Muff Winwood
  • Recording Engineers - Richard Digby-Smith, Robin Black and Bill Price
  • Remix Engineer — Bill Price
  • Concept and Photography — Monty Coles

References

  1. ↑ "The Quietus - Reviews - Sparks". The Quietus. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: S". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 13, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. 1 2 3 Propaganda (Review) at AllMusic. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  4. ↑ "45cat - Sparks - Propaganda, At Home At Work At Play / Marry Me - Island - France - 6138 061". 45cat. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
  5. ↑ "45cat - Sparks - Achoo / Something For The Girl With Everything - Island - USA - IS 023". 45cat. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
  6. ↑ Makowski, Peter (December 2006). "Still able to start a fire: Sparks Reissues". Classic Rock. p. 101. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  7. ↑ Hull, Tom (April 1975). "The Rekord Report: Third Card". Overdose. Retrieved June 26, 2020 – via tomhull.com.
  8. 1 2 "The Official Charts Company - Sparks". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  9. 1 2 "SPARKS - full Official Chart History - Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  10. 1 2 "Sparks in Billboard 200". billboard.com. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  11. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 286. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
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