Sparks - (When I Kiss You) I Hear Charlie Parker Playing

What this video is

Released as the second single from Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins (November 1994), this video marks Sparks' most commercially successful era since the late 1970s, riding a wave of European Eurobeat and synth-pop that had reinvigorated the Mael brothers' profile in Germany and the UK after a six-year hiatus from recording. The song's lyric—referencing bebop icon Charlie Parker to evoke transcendent romantic…

Why it matters

A key artefact of the mid-90s Euro synth-pop revival, documenting Sparks' successful reinvention from post-punk art-rockers into Eurobeat-influenced dance-pop auteurs. The track bridged the Pet Shop Boys-adjacent UK synth-pop mainstream with American dance chart success, charting on Billboard's…

The director

Sophie Luise Elisabeth Muller (born 31 January 1962, London) is an English music video director with over 300 videos to her credit. She trained at Central St Martins and the Royal College of Art. A long-term collaborator of Annie Lennox, Eurythmics, No…