036: Noël (with Sparks) - Is There More to Life Than Dancing (1979) - Au Revoir

We’re nearing the end of our deep dive into Noël’s Is There More to Life Than Dancing?—the 1979 Sparks-produced disco experiment—with the fourth track, “Au Revoir.”

Clocking in at a far more digestible 4 minutes, this one immediately feels different from the album’s sprawling opening tracks. The panel notes that its concise structure, catchy phrasing, and sudden bursts of wordy, Sparks-esque lyricism make it one of the more interesting cuts so far. Still, that relentless disco beat never lets up, and we wonder if this song would have benefited from a different arrangement—perhaps even as a slower, Parisian-style ballad.

Released as the B-side to “The Night They Invented Love,” “Au Revoir” offers a glimpse of what this project could have been if Sparks had trimmed the fat and leaned into their melodic strengths.

Is it a standout? Maybe. At the very least, it doesn’t overstay its welcome.