Song · Sparks
“Upstairs” by Sparks
From the album Whomp That Sucker (1981)
“Upstairs” by Sparks appears on 3 radio countdowns from 2 stations between 1981 and 2003. It was first released in 1981 on the album Whomp That Sucker. Its best result is #28 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #28 alternative song of 1981 and #4,710 alternative song of all time.
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Ron and Russell Mael wrote "Upstairs" for Whomp That Sucker, the 1981 album on which Sparks, ten studio records in, walked away from disco and plugged back into rock. Mack produced it, not long after producing Queen's The Game.
The two records before it, No. 1 In Heaven and Terminal Jive, were made with Giorgio Moroder and had done reasonably well, but the brothers found the electronic gear too bulky to haul on tour. So they went to Musicland Studios in Munich without Moroder, still working under the Giorgio Moroder Enterprises banner, and hired a backing band called Bates Motel: Bob Haag on guitar, Leslie Bohem on bass and David Kendrick on drums. That lineup stayed with the Maels through 1986's Music That You Can Dance To.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 28 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981 | 106 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 284 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1988) | 496 |
| 2003 | 1486 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
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