text: By 1977 the brothers found themselves at a crossroads. They had cut ties with Hewlett and had grown tired of recording within a traditional rock band framework. In a conversation with a German journalist, they expressed their admiration for Giorgio Moroder, a pioneer of electronic disco and pop music. Moroder happened to be a friend of the journalist, and she was able to connect the brothers with the Italian producer, who produced their next album, No. 1 in Heaven. More electronic and synthesizer-based than their previous efforts, the album would redefine Sparks' sound and challenge the concept of what is meant by a band, and it also became a major influence on emerging electronic pop artists. It spawned two singles in the top-fifteen UK chart: "The Number One Song in Heaven" and "Beat The Clock". The follow-up album in 1980, Terminal Jive, had a hit single in France,  "When I'm with You" ,which led to the Maels staying in the country for a year promoting the album, during which Russell became conversationally fluent in French. The single also hit the Top 20 in Australia, reaching No.14. In 1981, Belgian synth pop group Telex enlisted Sparks to help write the lyrics for their third album, Sex.
  1979–1990: the Los Angeles years
  Finding the electronic equipment that they had adopted for their new sound too cumbersome for touring, the band returned to the more conventional band format for their next three releases, although they did not eschew synthesizers entirely: Whomp That Sucker, Angst in My Pants, (two tracks from which appear later in the 1983 movie Valley Girl) and In Outer Space. They broke into the US singles chart once more, reaching No. 49 with "Cool Places" from 1983's In Outer Space. The track was a collaboration with the Go-Go's rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Jane Wiedlin (a dedicated fan of the band who at one time ran her own Sparks fan club), and its success was in part thanks to Los Angeles' KROQ-FM radio station, which hailed them as local heroes. In 1984, the Maels wrote and performed several original songs on the soundtrack for the black comedy teen film Bad Manners (aka: Growing Pains), including the film's title song, "Bad Manners". In 1989, they scored a hit single in France and in Europe with "Singing in the Shower", sung in duet with Rita Mitsouko: the single was produced by Tony Visconti.