Discord & Rhyme: An Album Podcast

Discord and Rhyme is a podcast where we discuss the albums we love, song by song.

097: Sparks - Kimono My House (1974)

“The general process is, Ron writes the music, and then Ron writes the lyrics. And then I go, ‘God, that's really good.’”

Russell Mael

Special guest Dave Weigel joins Discord & Rhyme once again to talk about Sparks, “your favorite band’s favorite band.” It’s been a good couple of decades for Ron and Russell Mael. After decades of toiling in semi-obscurity, the brothers saw a late-career renaissance in 2002 with the symphonic, beatless dance album Lil’ Beethoven, and Edgar Wright’s 2021 documentary The Sparks Brothers cemented their status as elder statesmen of irreverent pop music. For today’s episode, Producer Mike is taking us back to the band’s early years with the 1974 album Kimono My House, which demonstrates that the Maels’ sense of songcraft was in full force from the very beginning. Despite what the interviewees in The Sparks Brothers (including Dave!) might tell you, Sparks aren’t for everybody, and the Maels occasionally revel in being grating in a way that even our hosts can’t abide. But if you listen to “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us” and adore it, good news: this is only the beginning of a gloriously warped musical journey.

Miscellany

  • At the time of this release, The Sparks Brothers is available on Netflix, and Dave briefly appears during the segment on the album Terminal Jive to comment on the song “When I’m With You.”

  • As Dave mentions a few times in this episode, there’s nothing wrong with buying a Sparks best-of compilation. But if you want one, please do not get The Best of Sparks: Music That You Can Dance To, which is really just one of their worst albums repackaged to look like a hits collection. (Mike recommends Past Tense, a 3-disc set curated by the Maels themselves that spans from their earliest demos to 2017’s Hippopotamus.)

  • Mike had so much to say about “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us” that he didn’t even have time to mention that it was covered by Siouxsie and the Banshees. We’ll make up for that in a few episodes. 

Other links 

Discord & Rhyme Roll Call 

  • Mike DeFabio (host)

  • John McFerrin (moderator)

  • Dan Watkins

  • Dave Weigel (special guest) 

Kimono My House tracklist 

  1. This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us

  2. Amateur Hour

  3. Falling in Love with Myself Again

  4. Here in Heaven

  5. Thank God It’s Not Christmas

  6. Hasta Mañana, Monsieur

  7. Talent Is an Asset

  8. Complaints

  9. In My Family

  10. Equator

  11. Barbecutie (Bonus)

  12. Lost and Found (Bonus) 

Other clips used 

Sparks:

  • The Rhythm Thief

  • Eaten by the Monster of Love

  • Wonder Girl

  • Roger

  • Fa La Fa Lee

  • Big Bands

  • Girl from Germany

  • Here Comes Bob

  • Angus Desire

  • Tips for Teens

  • I Married Myself

  • Alabamy Right

  • Here Kitty

  • Biology 2

  • Nothing Is Sacred

  • Achoo

  • Pineapple

  • Let’s Get Funky

  • Your Call’s Very Important to Us. Please Hold.

  • The Final Derriere

  • At Home At Work At Play

  • Edith Piaf (Said it Better Than Me)

  • Tryouts For the Human Race

  • Get in the Swing

  • (Baby, Baby) Can I Invade Your Country (Alternative Lyrics)

  • Sherlock Holmes

  • When Do I Get to Sing “My Way”?

  • Piss Off 

Others:

  • The Rubettes - Sugar Baby Love

  • LadBaby - We Built This City

  • Blue Swede - Hooked On a Feeling

  • Genesis - Silver Rainbow

  • The Move - I Can Hear the Grass Grow

  • Wizzard - I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday

  • LadBaby - I Love Sausage Rolls

  • Rosemary Clooney - Come On-a My House

  • ABBA - Money Money Money

  • Queens of the Stone Age - I Think I Lost My Headache

  • The Move - Hello Susie

  • “Weird Al” Yankovic - This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us

Band/album personnel 

  • Russell Mael - vocals

  • Ron Mael - keyboards

  • Martin Gordon - bass

  • Adrian Fisher - guitar

  • Norman “Dinky” Diamond - drums, percussion

Credits 

“Discord & Rhyme (theme),” composed by the Other Leading Brand, contains elements of: 

  • Duran Duran - Hungry Like the Wolf

  • Amon Düül II - Dehypnotized Toothpaste

  • The Dukes of Stratosphear - What in the World?? ...

  • Faith No More - Midlife Crisis

  • Herbie Hancock - Hornets

  • Kraftwerk - Autobahn

  • Talking Heads - Seen and Not Seen

  • Sparks - This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us (this episode only)

You can buy or stream Kimono My House and other albums by Sparks at allsparks.com, your local record store, or the usual suspects such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and Amazon. Follow Discord & Rhyme on Twitter @DiscordPod for news, updates, and other random stuff. Editing is by Rich Bunnell, and special thanks to our own Mike DeFabio, the Other Leading Brand, for production and original music. See you next album, and keep as cool as you can.

This website and all episodes' discussion/commentary © 2018—2024 Discord & Rhyme. Excerpts from recordings appearing in episodes are included for purposes of review only, and all rights to such material remain property of their copyright holders. Please note that we make a good-faith effort to ensure all information included in these episodes is accurate, but if we get something wrong, let us know at discordpod@gmail.com and we will print a correction in the show notes. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Website design by Amanda Rodgers. Thank you for visiting, and keep as cool as you can.

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