Big Beat

by Sparks

Big Beat cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: October 1976
  • Label: Island
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 54:20
  • Community rating: 3.11/5 from 2 ratings

Artists on this release: Russell Mael, Ron Mael, Hilly Michaels, Rupert Holmes, Sal Maida, Jeff Salen

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Seeking a distinctly heavier and more aggressive sound upon their return to America, the Mael brothers recruited producer Rupert Holmes to construct this power-pop oddity. The album relies on muscular, crunching guitar riffs and stomping rhythms that predate elements of the impending punk movement. True to the duo's nature, the bruising instrumentation is heavily contrasted by biting, hyper-literate satirical lyrics.

Genres

Descriptors: satirical, melodic, rhythmic

Tracklist

  1. Big Boy (3:28)
  2. I Want To Be Like Everybody Else (2:55)
  3. Nothing To Do (3:07)
  4. I Bought The Mississippi River (2:28)
  5. Fill-Er-Up (2:19)
  6. Everybody's Stupid (3:39)
  7. Throw Her Away (And Get A New One) (3:13)
  8. Confusion (3:25)
  9. Screwed Up (4:18)
  10. White Women (3:22)
  11. I Like Girls (2:56)
  12. I Want To Hold Your Hand (2:54)
  13. England (3:16)
  14. Gone With The Wind (3:05)
  15. Intrusion / Confusion (2:43)
  16. Looks Aren't Everything (3:26)
  17. Tearing The Place Apart (3:38)

Credits

More from Sparks: full discography