History Trivia / Sparks

* ImageSource: The cover to their album ''Propaganda'' provides the image for [[BoundAndGagged/{{Music}} Bound and Gagged's "Music" subpage]].

* ImageSource:
** [[BoundAndGagged/{{Music}} Bound and Gagged.Music]] (''Propaganda'' album cover)

** [[BoundAndGagged/{{Music}} Bound and Gagged.Music]] (''Propaganda'' cover art)

* NewbieBoom: ''Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins'' won the duo a lot of fans in Europe, particularly in Germany, so they recorded ''Plagiarism'' (made up of reworked versions of older songs) to capitalize on their new-found audience. This trope has steadily began to grow in stature worldwide from ''Lil' Beethoven'' onward, eventually leading to ''Hippopotamus'' cracking the UK Top 10 (#6) its first week in September 2017, their first placement there since ''Propaganda'' in 1974.

* BigNameFan: Music/{{Morrissey}}, Music/TheyMightBeGiants, Music/DepecheMode, [[Music/SexPistols Steve Jones]], Music/FranzFerdinand, Music/WeirdAlYankovic... among many many others. Sparks in turn are {{Big Name Fan}}s of Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand, the latter of which they formed a new band with: FFS.

* RetroactiveRecognition:
** Original bassist Jim Mankey went on to play guitar for Concrete Blonde.
** ''Big Beat'' producer Rupert Holmes later became famous for the song "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)".
** Drummer David Kendrick, a member of the band from 1981 to 1986, would join Music/{{Devo}} from 1988-1990, replacing Alan Meyers.

* ThrowItIn: ''A Wolf In Tweeter's Clothing'' was supposed to be a basic FaceOnTheCover shot of the then-current lineup of the band posing together against a wall. Ron Mael was seated behind drummer Harley Feinstein for the shoot - As a prank, Harley tipped Ron's chair back as soon as the camera went off, resulting in a photo where Harley and Ron were blurry, Ron had his arms up in fear of falling over, and everyone else was still posed as normal. Ron must have found the end result ActuallyPrettyFunny, because that shot was used as the cover, with an otherwise identical "straight" take with the same poses on the back.

* BigNameFan: Music/{{Morrissey}}, Music/TheyMightBeGiants, Music/DepecheMode, [[Music/SexPistols Steve Jones]], Music/FranzFerdinand... among many many others. Sparks in turn are {{Big Name Fan}}s of Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand, the latter of which they formed a new band with: FFS.

* BigNameFan: Music/{{Morrissey}}, Music/TheyMightBeGiants, Music/DepecheMode, [[Music/TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], Music/FranzFerdinand... among many many others. Sparks in turn are {{Big Name Fan}}s of Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand, the latter of which they formed a new band with: FFS.

* OneOfUs: The long layoff between ''Interior Design'' and ''Gratuituous Sax and Senseless Violins'' was because the band spent their time trying to unsuccessfully get a film adaptation of ''Manga/MaiThePsychicGirl'' off the ground. ''The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman'' was later inspired by their experience with DevelopmentHell.

* ChannelHop: In their long career, they've been with so many different record companies that it's easier to list the labels they ''haven't'' been on. Come TheTurnOfTheMillenium and they've taken to releasing records on their own label.

* ChannelHop: In their long career, they've been with so many different record companies that it's easier to list the labels they ''haven't'' been on.

** The band tried unsuccessfully to get a film adaptation of ''Manga/MaiThePsychicGirl'' with Creator/TimBurton off the ground in the late 80s-early 90s.

* BigNameFan: Music/{{Morrissey}}, Music/TheyMightBeGiants, Music/DepecheMode, [[Music/TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], Music/FranzFerdinand... among many many others. Sparks in turn are BigNameFans of Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand, the latter of which they formed a new band with: FFS.

* RetroactiveRecognition: Jim Mankey went on to play guitar for Concrete Blonde.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: ''Big Beat'' was originally going to reunite the Maels with former guitarist and producer Earle Mankey, and it would have returned the band to the oddball, experimental style of their first two albums. Only the B-side "England" was recorded before production switched to Rupert Holmes and a stripped down American Rock style was pursued.

* BigNameFan: Music/{{Morrissey}}, Music/TheyMightBeGiants, Music/DepecheMode, [[Music/TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], Music/FranzFerdinand... among many many others.
** Franz Ferdinand are such big fans that they're collaborating with Sparks as a supergroup.

* SimilarlyNamedWorks: In 1969, an unsigned early lineup of the band (then still going by Halfnelson) recorded a demo called ''A Woofer In Tweeter's Clothing''; They reused the title, but absolutely none of the content, for a 1973 album.

* OneOfUs: The long layoff between ''Interior Design'' and ''Gratuituous Sax and Senseless Violins'' was because the band spent their time trying to unsuccessfully get a film adaptation of ''Mai The Psychic Girl'' off the ground. ''The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman'' was later inspired by their experience with DevelopmentHell.

* OneOfUs: The long layoff between ''Interior Design'' and ''Gratuituous Sax and Senseless Violins'' was because the band spent their time trying to unsuccessfully get a film adaptation of ''MaiThePsychicGirl'' off the ground. ''The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman'' was later inspired by their experience with DevelopmentHell.

* BigNameFan: [[TheSmiths Morrissey]], TheyMightBeGiants, DepecheMode, [[TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], FranzFerdinand... among many many others.

* ExecutiveMeddling: The band were very unhappy with how ToddRundgren produced their first album.

* BigNameFan: [[TheSmiths Morrissey]], TheyMightBeGiants, DepecheMode, [[TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], FranzFerdinand

* BigNameFan: [[TheSmiths Morrissey]], TheyMightBeGiants, DepecheMode, [[TheSexPistols Steve Jones]], FranzFerdinand