Hello Young Lovers (Sparks album)

{{Infobox album

| name = Hello Young Lovers

| type = studio

| artist = Sparks

| cover = Hello Young Lovers - Sparks.jpg

| alt =

| released = February 6, 2006

| recorded =

| studio = Sparks Studios, Los Angeles, California

| genre = {{hlist|Art pop|art rock|chamber pop}}

| length = 50:39

| label = In the Red (US), Gut (UK)

| producer = Ron Mael, Russell Mael

| prev_title = Lil' Beethoven

| prev_year = 2002

| next_title = Exotic Creatures of the Deep

| next_year = 2008

| misc = {{Singles

| name = Hello Young Lovers

| type = studio

| single1 = Perfume" b/w "(Baby, Baby) Can I Invade Your Country (Alternative Verse)

| single1date = February 13, 2006

| single2 = Dick Around" / "Waterproof

| single2date = September 18, 2006

}}

{{Album ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web | last=Raggett | first=Ned | title= Hello Young Lovers – Sparks | url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/hello-young-lovers-mw0000704204#review | publisher=AllMusic | access-date=March 23, 2010}}

| rev2= BBC

| rev2Score=(positive){{cite web | last=Jones | first=Chris | title= Review of Sparks – Hello Young Lovers | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/w4dp/ | publisher=BBC | access-date=March 23, 2010}}

| rev3=Dusted Reviews

| rev3Score=(negative){{cite web | last=Mosurock | first=Doug | title= Dusted Reviews: Sparks – Hello Young Lovers | url=http://www.dustedmagazine.com/reviews/2694 | website=Dusted Magazine | date=February 18, 2006 | access-date=March 23, 2010}}

|rev4=Pitchfork Media

|rev4Score= 6.9/10{{cite web | last=Abebe | first=Nitsuh | title= Sparks: Hello Young Lovers: Pitchfork Record Review | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/22376/Sparks_Hello_Young_Lovers | website=Pitchfork Media | date=March 14, 2006 | access-date=March 23, 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080104074828/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/22376/Sparks_Hello_Young_Lovers | archive-date=January 4, 2008}}

|rev5= Play Louder

|rev5Score={{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite web | last=Moffat | first=Iain | title=Review – Hello Young Lovers | url=http://playlouder.com/review/+hello-young-love/ | website=Playlouder | date=February 13, 2006 | url-status=usurped | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060220184952/http://playlouder.com/review/+hello-young-love/ | archive-date=February 20, 2006 | access-date=March 20, 2025}}

|rev6= Slant Magazine

|rev6Score= {{Rating|3.5|5}}{{cite web | last=Keefe | first=Jonathan | title=Review: Sparks, Hello Young Lovers | url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/sparks-hello-young-lovers/754 | website=Slant Magazine | date=March 13, 2006 | access-date=March 23, 2010}}

|rev7= Stylus Magazine

|rev7Score= B+{{cite web | last=O'Reilly | first=Fergal | title=Sparks – Hello Young Lovers – Review | url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/sparks/hello-young-lovers.htm | website=Stylus Magazine | date=February 14, 2006 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070323144018/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/sparks/hello-young-lovers.htm | archive-date=March 23, 2007 | access-date=March 23, 2010}}

|noprose=yes}}

Hello Young Lovers is the 20th studio album by American pop and rock duo Sparks, released in 2006. A continuation of the repetitious, orchestral sound of their previous album Lil' Beethoven, though with a much greater emphasis on guitar and drums, it is a concept album which addresses aspects of modern love.

Release

Hello Young Lovers was commercially more popular than any Sparks album since the 1970s, and it reached No. 66 on the UK Albums Chart. It did not chart in the US. The album was released on CD and both white and pink vinyl. The CD was initially released on Gut Records, and then later released on In the Red Records.

Two singles and an EP were released to promote the album. The first, "Perfume", was backed with an alternative version of "(Baby, Baby) Can I Invade Your Country" and a remix by Clor. It peaked at No. 80 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 10 on the UK Independent Singles Chart.

"Dick Around" was released as an EP in the US and as a double A-side single with "Waterproof" in the UK. Both versions featured an edited version of "Dick Around" and the US version included live tracks recorded earlier that year in Los Angeles. The UK release of the song fell foul of a ban by the BBC, who took issue with the title citing it as obscene. Sparks issued a statement: "The BBC has officially killed off our new single Dick Around, ostensibly through rather childish objections to the title, an innocent reference to the idle life. That a piece of music can be condemned purely by its title without the 'decision makers' even having the decency to open the CD case is a travesty and an insult to both us as the creators of the music and to the listeners of the BBC."{{cite web|title=Sparks single banned on BBC: yes/no on www.side-line.com|url=http://www.side-line.com/news_comments.php?id=17684_0_2_0_C|accessdate=2009-09-25}} Eventually, in a statement BBC London said that the track is back in rotation. The single charted at No. 139 in the UK.{{cite web |title=Chart Log UK: DJ S - The System Of Life |url=http://zobbel.de/cluk/CLUK_S.HTM |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150322040621/http://zobbel.de/cluk/CLUK_S.HTM |archivedate=2015-03-22 |accessdate=2010-02-17 |publisher=Dipl.-Bibl.(FH) Tobias Zywietz, 1994–2009}}

Re-release

In April 2022, a remastered Hello Young Lovers was issued on LP, CD and digital as part of the five album "21st Century Sparks" collection. The CD and digital releases contain two bonus tracks: An alternative version of "(Baby, Baby) Can I Invade Your Country" previously released as a B-side, and a cover of "We Are the Clash" recorded for an Uncut magazine tribute to The Clash in 2003.{{Citation |last=Sparks |title=Hello Young Lovers official tracklist |date=April 29, 2022 |url=https://store.allsparks.com//release/291361-sparks-hello-young-lovers |access-date=2022-05-29}}

It entered the UK Independent Albums Chart at No. 14.