Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth

"Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth"
Single by Sparks
from the album Propaganda
B-side"Alabamy Right"
Released1974
Recorded1974
Genre
Length
  • 2:28
  • 2:35 (re-recording)
LabelIsland
Songwriter(s)Ron Mael
Producer(s)
Sparks singles chronology
"Amateur Hour"
(1974) 		"Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth"
(1974) 		"Something for the Girl with Everything"
(1975)
Licensed audio
"Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" on YouTube

"Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" is a song by the American rock group Sparks. The song was recorded by the group's mid-1970s glam line-up. It was released in late 1974 as the first single from the group's fourth album, Propaganda.

Plagiarism re-recording

In 1997, Sparks recorded a new version of the song with the producer Tony Visconti. This introduced strings and a choir. The song concludes their Plagiarism album where it segues from out of the previous track, "The Number One Song in Heaven".

Cover versions

Depeche Mode recorded a cover version on a single-sided flexi-disc which was sent to members of their official fan club for Christmas 1987. Martin Gore also recorded a cover version for his first solo EP, Counterfeit, in 1989.[1]

Nicola Sirkis covered the song as the B-side to his 1992 single "Alice dans la Lune", from the album Dans La Lune.[2]

Johan Johansson created a Swedish version titled "Kärlek & Respekt Till Moder Jord" for his 1994 EP 10.[3]

Karen J. Walsha recorded a version for the Dutch tribute album Amateur Hour (A Global Tribute to Sparks) released in 1999.[4]

Haloed Ghost recorded a version for their 2004 EP, Saw Versions.[5]

Billy Mackenzie recorded a version which appeared on his 2005 album Transmission Impossible.[6]

Paul Roland recorded a version which appeared on his 2005 album Strychnine... And Other Potent Poisons.[7]

Geezerbird have recorded a version for their 2006 album One in the Hand.[8]

Mary Hopkin recorded a version which appeared on her 2007 album Valentine.[9]

Neko Case has a version on her 2009 album Middle Cyclone.[10]

Louis Guidone made a version in 2011 on the self released album Meet Your Maker.[11]

Satie's Faction recorded an instrumental version in 2012 for his album Déjà Vu.

Track listing

  1. "Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth" – 2:28
  2. "Alabamy Right" – 2:11

Personnel

Chart positions

Chart Peak
position
UK Singles chart 13
German Singles chart 40

References

  1. ^ Gore, Martin. "Martin L.Gore Counterfeit". Martin L. Gore Counterfeit. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  2. ^ Nicola Sirkis. "Dans la lune: Nicolas Sirkis: Amazon.fr: Musique". Amazon.fr. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  3. ^ "johan johansson - kärlek och respekt till moder jord". YouTube. 2010-07-03. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  4. ^ "Karen J. Walsha - Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth". YouTube. 2011-01-27. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  5. ^ "Haloed Ghost | Listen and Stream Free Music, Albums, New Releases, Photos, Videos". Myspace.com. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  6. ^ Billy Mackenzie. "Transmission Impossible by Billy Mackenzie: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  7. ^ "Paul Roland Website". Paulroland.it. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  8. ^ "Geezerbird". Geezerbird.com\accessdate=2016-10-09.
  9. ^ Mary Hopkin. "Valentine". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  10. ^ "Middle Cyclone: Neko Case: MP3 Downloads". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  11. ^ "Meet Your Maker | Louis Guidone". Louisguidone.bandcamp.com. Retrieved 2016-10-09.


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