Sparks is a glam-rock band with whom I’d no familiarity. I don’t even remember reading their name in reference to other glam bands or artists. Glam-rock is not my thing and this album did nothing to change that. I just didn’t like it much at all. Maybe my biggest complaint is that I found the vocals extremely annoying overall and downright grating at times. Nails-on-a-chalkboard stuff. This album by Americans was evidently quite a hit in the UK, but not much of one in the US.
“The already annoying chirping yodels of singer Russell Mael become a disappointing stab at intelligible vocals, sadly disguising the fact that Ron Mael is a composer with both a unique (if slightly warped) perspective and a volatile sense of humor.”1
“'Kimono My House', y'see, is an Instant Classic. ‘Kimono My House’ signposts a sea change in the genre: rock-as-she-will-be - or at least could be.”2
My Rating:
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Chris Shade wrote:
“Three decades on, Kimono…remains a key album, its influence acknowledged by lifelong fan Morrissey.”3
Charts
• Peak on Billboard album chart: #1014
• Singles on Billboard charts: n/a5
• RIAA certification: n/a
Released on May 1, 1974. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: TSOP (The Sound Of Philadelphia) by MFSB Featuring The Three Degrees6
• Number one album: Chicago VII by Chicago7
• Number one movie: The Sting by George Roy Hill8
• Most watched TV program: All In the Family9
• NYT bestseller, fiction: Burr by Gore Vidal10
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: You Can Profit From A Monetary Crisis by Harry Browne11
Other albums released that month
• Quo by Status Quo
• The Kids & Me by Billy Preston
• Preservation Act 2 by The Kinks
• Sweet Exorcist by Curtis Mayfield
• Too Much Too Soon by New York Dolls
• Live at Caesars Palace by Diana Ross
• Monkey Grip by Bill Wyman
• Phenomenon by UFO
• Diamond Dogs by David Bowie
• Bad Company by Bad Company
• If You Love Me, Let Me Know by Olivia Newton-John
• Sheet Music by 10cc
• The Night the Light Went On in Long Beach by Electric Light Orchestra
• Mr. Natural by Bee Gees
• Back to Oakland by Tower of Power
• Body Heat by Quincy Jones
• Boogity Boogity by Ray Stevens
• Dark Lady by Cher
• Hot Sox by Sha Na Na
• Lotus by Santana
• Rags to Rufus by Rufus
• Shock Treatment by Edgar Winter
• Spooky Lady's Sideshow by Kris Kristofferson
• Tough Guys by Isaac Hayes
• Winter in America by Gil Scott-Heron12
Sport
• May 4 100th Kentucky Derby: Puerto Rican jockey Ángel Cordero Jr. wins aboard Cannonade for first of 3 Derby victories.
• May 10 7th ABA championship: NY Nets beats Utah Stars, 4 games to 1.
• May 12 28th NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat Milwaukee, 4 games to 3.
• May 17 18th European Cup: Bayern Munich beats Atletico Madrid 4-0 at Brussels.
• May 18 99th Preakness: Miguel Rivera aboard Current Little wins in 1:54.6.
• May 19 Stanley Cup Final, Goaltender Bernie Parent and the Flyers shut out the Boston Bruins, 1-0, to win series 4-2, become 1st "expansion" team to win Stanley Cup.
• May 26 Indianapolis 500: Johnny Rutherford claims first of his three Indy victories; first Sunday start of the event.13
Notable Births
• May 8 Korey Stringer, American NFL football tackle, 1995-2000 (Minnesota Vikings), born in Warren, Ohio (d. 2001).
• May 16 Adam Richman, American TV personality (Man v Food), born in Brooklyn, New York.
• May 17 Andrea Corr, Irish Celtic folk rock singer, pianist, ukulele player (The Corrs - "What Can I Do"), and actress, born in Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland.
• May 21 Fairuza Balk, American actress (The Craft, Gas Food Lodging), born in Point Reyes, California.
• May 22 Sean Gunn, American actor (Gilmore Girls - "Kirk"; Marvel superhero films), born in St. Louis, Missouri.
• May 23 Jewel KilcherAmerican singer-songwriter ("Pieces Of You"; "You Were Meant For Me"; "Standing Still"), born in Payson, Utah.
• May 23 Ken Jennings, American game show host and contestant (Jeopardy!), born in Edmonds, Washington.
• May 27 Danny Wuerffel, American College Football Hall of Fame quarterback (Heisman Trophy 1996, U of Florida; NFL: New Orleans Saints), born in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
• May 27 Majorie Taylor Greene, American politician (Rep-R-Georgia 2021-), born in Milledgeville, Georgia.14
Historical Events
• May 2 Former US Vice President Spiro Agnew is disbarred.
• May 6 West German Chancellor Willy Brandt resigns amidst controversy over his aide Günter Guillaume's ties with the Stasi.
• May 8 Canadian government of Pierre Trudeau falls.
• May 9 US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee begins formal hearings on Nixon impeachment.
• May 17 Symbionese Liberation Army shoot-out with Los Angeles police kills six SLA members in the gunfire and resulting fire. One of the largest police shootouts in US history, with more than 9,000 rounds fired.
• May 18 India becomes the sixth nation to explode an atomic bomb.
• May 24 27th Cannes Film Festival: "The Conversation" directed by Francis Ford Coppola wins the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film.
• May 28 26th Emmy Awards: M*A*S*H, Alan Alda & Mary Tyler Moore win, 1st Daytime Award presentation and "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman" wins 5 awards, including Cicely Tyson for Dramatic Performance.
• May 31 Israel and Syria sign an agreement concerning Golan Heights.15
Notable Deaths
• May 24 Edward "Duke" Ellington, American bandleader, composer and pianist ("Take the A Train"; "It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"), dies of cancer at 75.
• May 25 Donald Crisp, British actor and director (How Green Was My Valley, Pollyana), dies at 9116
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
Prime: 116. Kimono My House by Sparks
Full video playlist: You're Welcome 116; Kimono My House by Sparks
Shade, Chris; 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, ed by Robert Dimmery; p. 324.
Ibid.
Ibid.