Search - Sparks :: Terminal Jive

Number #2 in Heaven...?

Jason | Raleigh, NC USA | 05/30/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Fans who are looking for a sequil to the SPARKS's ground-breaking 1979 album "NUMBER #1 in HEAVEN" will probably be disappointed by their 1980 follow-up ablum "TERMINAL JIVE." Both albums were produced by synthesizer-wizard Giorgio Moroder, but the results are as different as night and day.



Whereas "NUMBER #1 in HEAVEN" was spacey and surreal and truely inspired ( by "I Feel Love"), "TERMINAL JIVE" is a collection of radio-friendly pop songs, written and produced with record sales firmly in mind. The only thing they have in common is their smooth, polished, state-of-the-art sound. And it is a good-sounding, well-produced album. It reminds me of Donna Summer's "The WANDERER" album, which was also produced by Giorgio Moroder the same year.



Unfortunately, the songs themselves are not particularly interesting.

With the exception of the 2 versions of "When I'm With You" and "The Greatest Show on Earth,"

most of the songs would sound jarringly out of place on the "NUMBER #1 in HEAVEN" album, and visa-versa.

(Their later albums had better songs, but unfortunately without the smooth, polished production values.)



One can't completely fault them for making a bid for commercial success, considering that "NUMBER #1 in HEAVEN", for all it's originality and experimental edge, was not a commercially successful album. "TERMINAL JIVE" is not really a BAD album, and it does have a few bright moments, but it's not the SPARKS best work, and it's not exactly "NUMBER #2 in HEAVEN.""