Comments, input and alterations are very welcome!
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Sparks Will Fly
(Mick Jagger / Keith Richards)

Windmill Lane Recording Studios, Dublin, Ireland, November 3 - December 11, 1993
and Don Was’ Private Studio & A&M Recording Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles,
California, US, January 15 - April 23, 1994

Mick Jagger - lead vocals, backing vocals
Keith Richards - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, backing vocals
Charlie Watts - drums
Ron Wood - b-bender guitar
Darryl Jones - bass
Bernard Fowler - backing vocals

You'd better grease up, I'm coming back
You're gonna catch fire, pyromaniac
You'd better shape up, you'd better get set
Gonna burn up in the smoke of a jet, yeah

Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
Oh, you're going to find out, going to scream and shout
We're going to pierce through this drought
Sparks will fly, yeah, sparks will fly

I’m gonna stand back, the flames are high
Better get help, can't stop the fire
Bell's going to ring, hear the alarms
Better tell the fire chief to quit playing cards

Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
Oh, going to step on the gas, oh, I wanna get there real fast
I wanna @#$%& your sweet ass
Sparks will fly, sharks will cry, sparks will fly

I had a good sniff around along old hunting grounds
But I have never found a woman so hot

Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
Sparks will fly when I finally get myself back on you, baby
My fingers are crossed, the time that we lost
Hey, I'm in total chaos
Sparks will fly, sparks will fly, hey, yeah, sparks will fly…

Produced by Don Was & The Glimmer Twins

First released on:
The Rolling Stones - “Voodoo Lounge” 2LP
(Virgin Records V 2750) UK, July 11, 1994

Part of the great 5 song opening run that gave much promise that this would be the Stones' best album since Tattoo You. Unfortunately the rest of the album collapsed after those songs with the exception of the brilliant, menacing Thru & Thru.

Don't think they've ever played Sparks Will Fly much live after 95 which is a shame as I think it's a really modern sounding rocker. It kind of reminds me of Rocks Off in a way because of the great momentum it creates.

And oh, those lyrics, enough to make a sailor blush.

Here's a version they did in Rio







Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 10:01 by Silver Dagger.

They Will?

2 1 2 0

I am afraid that to me "Sparks Will Fly" sounds somewhat anonymous, but, all the same, more OK than, for instance, the a little tiring "Brand New Car" or, what at first hearing promised more, but very soon ended up as sheer and rather empty surface, "I Go Wild".

For me there are other songs to prefer on VOODOO LOUNGE in the implicated needed search by the band to refind their identity at the time, something which is achieved in my impression of it by this rather medium good Stones album.

Last edit: Addition of a word that had fallen out.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 12:41 by Witness.

Love this song, it always gets me in a very good mood.

Underappreciated song, imo. A good rock'n'roll tune, but nothing more.

Great drumming from Charlie, and some lovely riffing from Keith. The ending is lovely.

Those lyrics are a bit awkward, though.

What about the 14 minute Sparks madness on Voodoo Brew ....
Keef & Ronnie sound more like Derek and Clive on thee turps ....



ROCKMAN

The guitar work is excellent, the ingredients of a good song are all there, but the final result tastes a lot like Don't Stop. Not one of my favs.

C

Quote
Rockman
What about the 14 minute Sparks madness on Voodoo Brew ....
Keef & Ronnie sound more like Derek and Clive on thee turps ....

That's not the one where Jo Wood was angry because she'd been cooking dinner and Keith and Ronnie refused to leave the studio?

Hmm.. one not so memorable VOODOO LOUNGE track... But I guess every Stones track is a worth of a novel, so here we go...

There is some peculiar problem I have with most of 'modern' Stones tunes; usually from the first listening they sound so 'good', very easy to recognize that is my favourite band out there, all those tasty familiar features, guitars, drums, vocals, and the tunes themselves are 'nothing but the Stones', so familiar, cozy, compared to anything else in the market. But still, after a few listenings, I find myself oddily bored, and don't feel at all giving them another go. Like there is nothing so capturing that make me hooked, like it is with their (past) great works. Everything is revealed by a few listenings, and there is nothing to discover any longer, or something so magical which forces one to listen again and again. I think "Sparks Will Fly" is a typical case in that sense. Basically 'all' is there, and right, but still it doesn't leave me a bigger impact. VOODOO LOUNGE altogether is the first album I made this observation, very soon after it was released.

I think great Stones works fall into two categories: those who get one hooked immediately by the very first listening and the thrill never escapes (thinking of "Satisfaction", "Honky Tonk Women", "Gimme Shelter", "Start Me Up", etc. etc.). Then there are those which take some time to 'grow on', but one 'gets there', one is hooked for good. EXILE is, of course, a famous case of the latter, but I think most of their not so supposedly great seventies and early 80's stuff seems to fall into that category as well (especially so called deep cuts, which make albums like GOATS HEAD SOUP, BLACK AND BLUE or EMOTIONAL RESCUE still so fascinating listenings.) For some reason, I don't find that feature in the modern albums, and, I have now 'given' twenty years for an album like VOODOO LOUNGE to 'grow on me', but it has not happened. I don't think any other 20 years would change the matter.

But, to not leave too negative tone, I always find it refreshing to hear a song like "Sparks Will Fly" when I haven't heard it for a while. It's the Stones, nothing but themselves, with their original sound. "By numbers", as the saying goes, but always pleases a Stones lover's, like mine's, ear. There is nothing wrong there that I could analysize into pieces there, but nothing very exciting, in the long run, either. But in the end, it is the latter, the very exciting things, which makes this band above of any other band in my book.

- Doxa

Quote
Doxa
Hmm.. one not so memorable VOODOO LOUNGE track... But I guess every Stones track is a worth of a novel, so here we go...

There is some peculiar problem I have with most of 'modern' Stones tunes; usually from the first listening they sound so 'good', very easy to recognize that is my favourite band out there, all those tasty familiar features, guitars, drums, vocals, and the tunes themselves are 'nothing but the Stones', so familiar, cozy, compared to anything else in the market. But still, after a few listenings, I find myself oddily bored, and don't feel at all giving them another go. Like there is nothing so capturing that make me hooked, like it is with their (past) great works. Everything is revealed by a few listenings, and there is nothing to discover any longer, or something so magical which forces one to listen again and again. I think "Sparks Will Fly" is a typical case in that sense. Basically 'all' is there, and right, but still it doesn't leave me a bigger impact. VOODOO LOUNGE altogether is the first album I made this observation, very soon after it was released.

I think great Stones works fall into two categories: those who get one hooked immediately by the very first listening and the thrill never escapes (thinking of "Satisfaction", "Honky Tonk Women", "Gimme Shelter", "Start Me Up", etc. etc.). Then there are those which take some time to 'grow on', but one 'gets there', one is hooked for good. EXILE is, of course, a famous case of the latter, but I think most of their not so supposedly great seventies and early 80's stuff seems to fall into that category as well (especially so called deep cuts, which make albums like GOATS HEAD SOUP, BLACK AND BLUE or EMOTIONAL RESCUE still so fascinating listenings.) For some reason, I don't find that feature in the modern albums, and, I have now 'given' twenty years for an album like VOODOO LOUNGE to 'grow on me', but it has not happened. I don't think any other 20 years would change the matter.

But, to not leave too negative tone, I always find it refreshing to hear a song like "Sparks Will Fly" when I haven't heard it for a while. It's the Stones, nothing but themselves, with their original sound. "By numbers", as the saying goes, but always pleases a Stones lover's, like mine's, ear. There is nothing wrong there that I could analysize into pieces there, but nothing very exciting, in the long run, either. But in the end, it is the latter, the very exciting things, which makes this band above of any other band in my book.

- Doxa

But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Luckily, we have a lot to choose from in their catalogue. I listened to Sparks Will Fly again for the first time in years the other week, because I got the vinyl version of VL recently. It sounded great, although I couldn't stand the thought of picking it up a month earlier.

Obviously, for me things change - and that includes Sparks Will Fly



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 14:59 by DandelionPowderman.

Quote
Doxa
Hmm.. one not so memorable VOODOO LOUNGE track... But I guess every Stones track is a worth of a novel, so here we go...

There is some peculiar problem I have with most of 'modern' Stones tunes; usually from the first listening they sound so 'good', very easy to recognize that is my favourite band out there, all those tasty familiar features, guitars, drums, vocals, and the tunes themselves are 'nothing but the Stones', so familiar, cozy, compared to anything else in the market.

- Doxa

Doxa, could that be because the soul of the band is missing. Perhaps its the way they now work by layering the instruments in the studio over several months or the fact that Bill is now gone and it sounds like it's been put together by sessionmen? I don't know - I don't have the answer to that one but a lot of the music they have been making in the last 30 odd years lacks the soul and warmth of old. Maybe it's even a sympathetic camaraderie that's missing in the band.

Hey this is a great song! There's a little bit of pyromania with the Fire Cheif! Sharks will Cry!!

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 15:08 by Doxa.

It's a whimsical song, which mirrors Lou Reed"s Wagon Wheel in certain aspects.

Sometimes, fun is more.

Quote
Chris Fountain
Hey this is a great song! There's a little bit of pyromania with the Fire Cheif! Sharks will Cry!!

Tie your hands, tie your feet..throw you to the sharks!

Quote
Doxa

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa

I agree about the difference. Then again, by re-creating the past you will always be bound to lose. I think that's the main problem, not that Sparks Will Fly is marginally poorer than some other rocker.

That's why I like other tracks on VL, like The Worst, Moon Is Up, Thru And Thru and the blues pastiche Brand New Car better. They don't have that many similar Stones songs to "compete" with.

Quote
Silver Dagger

Quote
Chris Fountain
Hey this is a great song! There's a little bit of pyromania with the Fire Cheif! Sharks will Cry!!

Tie your hands, tie your feet..throw you to the sharks!

Voodoo Lounge Tour was the bomb!!

Quote
DandelionPowderman

Quote
Doxa

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa

I agree about the difference. Then again, by re-creating the past you will always be bound to lose. I think that's the main problem, not that Sparks Will Fly is marginally poorer than some other rocker.

That's why I like other tracks on VL, like The Worst, Moon Is Up, Thru And Thru and the blues pastiche Brand New Car better. They don't have that many similar Stones songs to "compete" with.

Thru & Thru is one of the most un-Stones sounding tracks the band have ever recorded. Right up there with Heaven and Continetal Shift. And that Voodoo Brew version is really out there where the buses don't go. Gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it. Stones film noire.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 15:51 by Silver Dagger.

Quote
Silver Dagger

Quote
DandelionPowderman

Quote
Doxa

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa

I agree about the difference. Then again, by re-creating the past you will always be bound to lose. I think that's the main problem, not that Sparks Will Fly is marginally poorer than some other rocker.

That's why I like other tracks on VL, like The Worst, Moon Is Up, Thru And Thru and the blues pastiche Brand New Car better. They don't have that many similar Stones songs to "compete" with.

Thru & Thru is the most un-Stones sounding tracks the band have ever recorded. Right up there with Heaven and Continetal Shift. And that Voodoo Brew version is really out there where the buses don't go. Gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it. Stones film noire.

Great Post - One of my favs other than Moon is Up points "Sweethearts Together

Warm weather is always favorable for a drink and a babe!

<Stones film noir>

That's a great description, Mike! It took me a long time to get under the skin of TAT, but it really is something else indeed.

Although different-sounding, I would add Moon Is Up to the list of very untypical Stones numbers as well. Yeah, they're trying hard to sound different, but they succeed, imo.

Quote
Chris Fountain

Quote
Silver Dagger

Quote
Chris Fountain
Hey this is a great song! There's a little bit of pyromania with the Fire Cheif! Sharks will Cry!!

Tie your hands, tie your feet..throw you to the sharks!

Voodoo Lounge Tour was the bomb!!

Yep - it was a good one. Saw them at Brixton on the UK leg. They played the mighty Monkey Man on that tour.

Quote
DandelionPowderman
<Stones film noir>

That's a great description, Mike! It took me a long time to get under the skin of TAT, but it really is something else indeed.

Although different-sounding, I would add Moon Is Up to the list of very untypical Stones numbers as well. Yeah, they're trying hard to sound different, but they succeed, imo.

Awesome!!! when Keith told Jimmy Fallon that "Connection" was his fav song- the first thought was "Complicated" Similar songs but equally great!

I like it better than You got me rocking. Also I like I Go Wild.

Quote
Doxa
Hmm.. one not so memorable VOODOO LOUNGE track... But I guess every Stones track is a worth of a novel, so here we go...

There is some peculiar problem I have with most of 'modern' Stones tunes; usually from the first listening they sound so 'good', very easy to recognize that is my favourite band out there, all those tasty familiar features, guitars, drums, vocals, and the tunes themselves are 'nothing but the Stones', so familiar, cozy, compared to anything else in the market. But still, after a few listenings, I find myself oddily bored, and don't feel at all giving them another go. Like there is nothing so capturing that make me hooked, like it is with their (past) great works. Everything is revealed by a few listenings, and there is nothing to discover any longer, or something so magical which forces one to listen again and again. I think "Sparks Will Fly" is a typical case in that sense. Basically 'all' is there, and right, but still it doesn't leave me a bigger impact. VOODOO LOUNGE altogether is the first album I made this observation, very soon after it was released.

I think great Stones works fall into two categories: those who get one hooked immediately by the very first listening and the thrill never escapes (thinking of "Satisfaction", "Honky Tonk Women", "Gimme Shelter", "Start Me Up", etc. etc.). Then there are those which take some time to 'grow on', but one 'gets there', one is hooked for good. EXILE is, of course, a famous case of the latter, but I think most of their not so supposedly great seventies and early 80's stuff seems to fall into that category as well (especially so called deep cuts, which make albums like GOATS HEAD SOUP, BLACK AND BLUE or EMOTIONAL RESCUE still so fascinating listenings.) For some reason, I don't find that feature in the modern albums, and, I have now 'given' twenty years for an album like VOODOO LOUNGE to 'grow on me', but it has not happened. I don't think any other 20 years would change the matter.

But, to not leave too negative tone, I always find it refreshing to hear a song like "Sparks Will Fly" when I haven't heard it for a while. It's the Stones, nothing but themselves, with their original sound. "By numbers", as the saying goes, but always pleases a Stones lover's, like mine's, ear. There is nothing wrong there that I could analysize into pieces there, but nothing very exciting, in the long run, either. But in the end, it is the latter, the very exciting things, which makes this band above of any other band in my book.

- Doxa

Asking you, Doxa, because you are not only a poster, but a writer with a capacity to take views that become a major reference. [Added afterwards in a latest edit: Sometimes in between that makes me worry a little and sometimes even a little more, I have to admit.] :

Seen not from then, but from now, do you consider the release of VOODOO LOUNGE as a sharp divisional line for when studio releases have lost that magic for you? Never before, but always later?
Or has the first experience of that kind, first time something you became aware of with the arrival of VOODOO LOUNGE, spread to some earlier releases than VOOODOO LOUNGE as well, not necessarily in a uniform way , but possibly making an exception for BRIDGES TO BABYLON?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 17:15 by Witness.

Loads of fun. I loved this one from the moment I heard that first flick of the Zippo lighter, and I love it to this day. This one has momentum, baby … some serious sonic torque … it swings like a mother-fvcker, and it’s got a wonderful, randy sense of humor in its lyrics (especially love the line about the fire chief, and the X-rated passage where we learn why Mick is gonna step on the gas…)

Also, like him or not, you gotta give credit to Don Was for the production on this … so crisp and clear … Charlie’s fantastic drumming has never sounded better.

An absolute gem!

Drew

Quote
Silver Dagger

Quote
DandelionPowderman

Quote
Doxa

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa

I agree about the difference. Then again, by re-creating the past you will always be bound to lose. I think that's the main problem, not that Sparks Will Fly is marginally poorer than some other rocker.

That's why I like other tracks on VL, like The Worst, Moon Is Up, Thru And Thru and the blues pastiche Brand New Car better. They don't have that many similar Stones songs to "compete" with.

Thru & Thru is one of the most un-Stones sounding tracks the band have ever recorded. Right up there with Heaven and Continetal Shift. And that Voodoo Brew version is really out there where the buses don't go. Gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it. Stones film noire.

Yeah, I think you guys are a spot on. One cannot be very 'authentic' by repeating the same thing again and again. Even though the new version of the old idea can be, technically or theoretically speaking, as good as the 'original', something is missing. Somehow one can hear that. I think it needs to be something to do with the whole passion, attitude and freshness when one is doing something novel. The Stones I think are true artists in that sense - they need that touch of authenticity - the right feel and passion - to really shine. When they 'fake' that, or doing something 'autopilot', by the power of their pure ability to master some things since they know how to do it - to sound like the Stones - the effect is not so convincing or capturing when they really play from their soul, by the presence of a real muse. I think we have to remember that what now is easily recognizable Stones sound was once true novelty, made simply out of inspiration. EXILE, anyone...

I agree that "Thru and Thru" and "Moon Is Up" are about the most interesting things in VOODOO LOUNGE, since in those songs they are doing something different, outside of their comfort zone. "Thru and Thru" is the song that has most grown on me from the album, it really has that 'wow, there is something really exciting going on that I didn't recognize first' effect, the depthness like the great Stones works possess. Unfortunately I can not say that of "Moon Is Up", but gimme some time...

- Doxa



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014-09-15 17:46 by Doxa.

What have we learned from this little story? That Mick wants to fvck your sweet ass.

Quote
Doxa

Quote
Silver Dagger

Quote
DandelionPowderman

Quote
Doxa

Quote
DandelionPowderman


But don't we all get that feeling with Rip This Joint and All Down The Line as well - and finding ourselves moving over to Hand Of Fate - then back to JJF. And after that RTJ and ADTL sound brand new and fresh again?

Well, there is a deep feeling inside me which always is hungry for "Rip This Joint", "All Down The Line", "Hand of Fate" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash", who knows how capturing those tunes are, and which needs to be satisfied once in a while.. And even knowing how great those tunes are, they somehow manage to amaze me again and again. With "Sparks Will Fly" I don't have that, but the song surprises me positively, if not listened too often. Clearly in a different category in my book...

- Doxa

I agree about the difference. Then again, by re-creating the past you will always be bound to lose. I think that's the main problem, not that Sparks Will Fly is marginally poorer than some other rocker.

That's why I like other tracks on VL, like The Worst, Moon Is Up, Thru And Thru and the blues pastiche Brand New Car better. They don't have that many similar Stones songs to "compete" with.

Thru & Thru is one of the most un-Stones sounding tracks the band have ever recorded. Right up there with Heaven and Continetal Shift. And that Voodoo Brew version is really out there where the buses don't go. Gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it. Stones film noire.

Yeah, I think you guys are a spot on. One cannot be very 'authentic' by repeating the same thing again and again. Even though the new version of the old idea can be, technically or theoretically speaking, as good as the 'original', something is missing. Somehow one can hear that. I think it needs to be something to do with the whole passion, attitude and freshness when one is doing something novel. The Stones I think are true artists in that sense - they need that touch of authenticity - the right feel and passion - to really shine. When they 'fake' that, or doing something 'autopilot', by the power of their pure ability to master some things since they know how to do it - to sound like the Stones - the effect is not so convincing or capturing when they really play from their soul, by the presence of a real muse. I think we have to remember that what now is easily recognizable Stones sound was once true novelty, made simply out of inspiration. EXILE, anyone...

I agree that "Thru and Thru" and "Moon Is Up" are about the most interesting things in VOODOO LOUNGE, since in those songs they are doing something different, outside of their comfort zone. "Thru and Thru" is the song that has most grown on me from the album, it really has that 'wow, there is something really exciting going on that I didn't recognize first' effect, the depthness like the great Stones works possess. Unfortunately I can not say that of "Moon Is Up", but gimme some time...

- Doxa

Hey Doxa, have you heard the really spaced out, paranoia trip outtake from Voodoo Brew? Can't find a copy on You Tube unfortunately.

Is it one of the versions on disc 4, Mike? Can't remember that version. Better check it out tonight ><