Sparks (brothers) seeing success again - five decades in music (interview) (USA/Global) 29/5/2023

'Unsung heroes' or the 'biggest band you have never heard of', are seeing success again. You may not know them but you probably have heard their music sometime in your life.
Overflowing with delicious melodies and lyrics to match, the Mael brothers' 26th album is all hits, no misses. Interview with them this day.
Ron was born in 1945, his brother Russell was born in 1948.
There is a "People" playlist on the channel if you are interested.
#sparks
#music
#maelbrothers
Wikipedia:
Sparks is an American pop and rock duo formed by brothers Ron (keyboards) and Russell Mael (vocals) in Los Angeles. The duo is noted for their quirky approach to songwriting;[1] their music is often accompanied by sophisticated and acerbic lyrics-often about women, and sometimes containing literary or cinematic references-and an idiosyncratic, theatrical stage presence, typified by the contrast between Russell's animated, hyperactive frontman antics and Ron's deadpan scowling. Russell Mael has a distinctive wide-ranging voice, while Ron Mael plays keyboards in an intricate and rhythmic style. Their frequently changing styles and visual presentations have kept the band at the forefront of modern, artful pop music.

[@SamLowryDZ-015]

Probably the most underrated band in history

[@McLarenMercedes]

Normally I'd have a second opinion reading such a comment but this time I most definitely agree. And why? A band which has been around for over half a century, has released 25 albums over that time, keeps re-inventing itself rather than doing the same thing over and over again like (insert any rock band which sounds the same 30-40 years later) and which is often mentioned as an important influence to both well-known and cult artists world wide - but to whom the general public is almost completely oblivious... most definitely is underrated like no other band. Sure, there are a dozen other bands who really should have more recognition and who either are misunderstood or fall "under the radar", but none of them have been as prolific and hard-working as Sparks.

[@squishmallowfan025]

It's strange...I remember them being on Top of the Pops constantly and always appreciated.....their own thing and set trends, erudite outside their act.....perhaps difficult to pigeonhole which marketing loves but I can totally see younger people discovering them and going back in the catalogue. Slowly discovering Ron Mael has written some of the best melody lines of all time.

[@stevemalek2970]

There are a lot of bands that are great and are not widely known, I'm glad Sparks got their recognition.

[@rman52]

I don't think they are underrated. I think they are phenomenal. But for a more sophisticated ear which eliminates some of the main stream rock fans. For example there was not a band more talented than the Mothers of Invention. But they're audience for the most part was small but very knowledgeable musically as well. I am sure no real Sparks or Zappa fans think the banda aren't great. And both would be right.

[@autumnmatthews3179]

How can you not love these guys? I love them, and we're truly blessed to have them in our lives

[@squishmallowfan025]

It’s crazy - I remember things like Beat the Clock relatively young with no clue of their history. The things you learn in the subsequent decades. There’s a combination of likability and satire here that’s rare especially with US bands - they absolutely deserve their success.

[@richardgriffiths6823]

You're so right... I remember them first appearing on Top of the Pops - I think in 1972 or 73. True originals, then as they still are now. Life enhancing.

[@flabbybum9562]

The World's first postmodernist pop/rock band. Prolifically innovative, and have influenced just about anyone worth noting in pop and rock. So, yeah, kind of important.

[@MrDastardly]

Two amazing talents. 👏👏👏👏

[@bouhbouh3413]

Supporting Blur? It should have been Blur supporting them!!! 😌

[@therealsoulproduct]

It should have been, but then again it was the mid-90's when Blur ruled the pop world in the UK.

[@hamish8283]

Blur were the biggest band in the world in the 90s

[@adrianscarlett]

​@@hamish8283globally, and across genres, blur don't even make the top 100. Blurs biggest selling album, parklife was the 137th biggest selling album in 1994, and number 3713th of all time

[@randolfo1265]

Been waiting fifty years to see them live and finally did on monday. No disappointments!

[@englishteacher.8635]

Lucky you. I'm so happy they are still going strong. I wish I'd got tickets.

[@BeaRobertsArtist]

How can you have never heard of Sparks?!?!?!?

[@musiclanguage9680]

Go Sparks! Be brilliant for ever! The world needs you and your music! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@PhillRobinson]

We love you Sparks.

[@richardcochrane1966]

Today (June 2) saw the release of the new UK Album Charts -- In the Physical Sales Chart (ACTUAL CD & vinyl sales), Sparks entered at NUMBER ONE!

[@chriscoughlan5221]

No drugs, healthy lifestyle !! Creates longetivity

[@andypandywalters]

Such modest and likeable guys

[@AIAudiobooks411]

indeed. the nicest, never a bad word from them and about them. absolute class acts.

[@fyvoin6964]

Criminally neglected by the established music press and industry maybe because they never really needed them or played the game. SPARKS have it all and always on their own terms .Bravo again and again boys

[@wishingonthemoon1]

I’m an under-thirty millennial and I’ve just “discovered” them-and I’m loving their music, lyrics, and whole vibe and genius!

[@Bigaitch]

Seen them twice in the last 14 months and both gigs blew me away. Well worth seeing.

[@steveoprey7969]

Legends

[@VickersDoorter]

Amazing vibrancy for their age and a great ability to connect across three generations of audiences. Bravo Sparks!

[@michaelfirth1075]

Just superb.

[@tonyska]

I love those fellas....pure talent. 👏

[@tony.hiscox]

This doesn’t scratch the surface of their brilliance - every album has layer after layer of shrewd observation excellent and different music and a magnificence that’s incomparable with what’s expected or found in many other artists

[@firstlast5350]

I think your saying that they're good and I agree!

[@ricospeedo]

genius guys.... love them to pieces

[@w.urlitzer1869]

have been a fan for 49 years.

[@canadianstudmuffin]

Same! First saw them on the American TV show The Midnight Special in 1974.

[@rayvinloony2322]

Icons 🎼👏

[@taxidude]

I have to hand it to them. They've managed to keep it alive when thousands of others have come, gone and will never be heard of again. Well done lads.

[@5309backbeat]

Bought their album in the 70's loved them ever since

[@brianporter9508]

In 1979 I crashed their cafe table not immediately recognising them. After 5 mins conversation and laughter I twigged, generating more laughter. Two lovely people.

[@firstlast5350]

They're special

[@derekwarren6171]

Sparks have always been great.

[@woodlanddrive8998]

(Sigh.) What I can only assume are morning show hosts. Apparently as oblivious in the U.K. as they are in the U.S. Sparks are gods, and the fact that these talking heads clearly don't know them just makes their segment embarrassing. I'm going to see Sparks in concert tomorrow night (July 5) in Chicago, and it will be glorious. And, yeah, I've been a fan of theirs since 1974!

[@georgiaclapham9204]

Just had the privilege of seeing them at the iconic Lincoln Theatre in DC and also introducing two of my sons to the glorious Sparks!!! There were incredible!! Love them!!

[@tinapan1617]

talented and adorable

[@bluesdude1194]

I remember hearing this town when it first came out, I loved it back then and still do.

[@user-jb7uz4hs2i]

Extraordinary to see them rise again after such a long time! I was just a young teenager in the 1970's when "This town ain't big enough for the both of us " in 1973! Pretty mindblowing !

[@jerryeberts]

I bought all the early LPs as they were released. I’m a fan from the ‘70s, woot woot!

[@bertspivey3214]

So odd yet so good.

[@ianwilliam3811]

Such a great story.

[@GreenManalishiUSA]

When I first saw Sparks on TV in the 1970s, I didn't get them at all. I thought that they were just too weird. I was (and still am) a huge fan of artists such as Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa, so I appreciate innovation and eccentricity, but Sparks were just...weird. Many years later, I decided to give their music a chance. The first album that listened to seriously was Angst In My Pants, and yes, it sounded weird, but also brilliant. The songs were catchy as anything, and the lyrics were clever and witty. I wonder how many of the people who are buying Sparks albums and concert tickets now are people like myself, who were aware of Sparks for a long time, but who took a long time to appreciate Sparks and their music. Talk about a band that is always ahead of it's time.

[@squishmallowfan025]

They absolutely deserve their current success. It's strange - I remember watching Sparks as a very young child not quite sure if they were real people - and certainly no inkling they were brothers. (Yes they still are). Maybe they always made it look easy and fully-formed - and lack of compromise is difficult to market - but they're just wonderful. I'm thrilled my 15 year old likes them and randomly mentioned Kimono My House with no real sense it came out in 1974. A flash of genius with these guys........

[@shabbychic5368]

My 15yr old loves them too! We saw them on Thursday in Wolverhampton (UK) - it was my son’s first proper gig and what a gig it was! The sound was incredible and Russell’s voice is still so strong. Amazing.

[@squishmallowfan025]

@@shabbychic5368 Excellent! I'm from the UK originally and certainly remember them on TOTP quite often - no idea how he still hits every note but they were great in Boston last year.....

[@shabbychic5368]

@@squishmallowfan025 That’s brilliant! BBC4 show old TOTPs on a Friday night here (they cut out any of the dodgy djs) - it brings back wonderful memories of 70’s and 80’s 😀

[@squishmallowfan025]

@@shabbychic5368 we had MUCH better video quality in the 70s than the US. The KZbin clips are nice to see but they’re not a scratch on the original broadcasts - they looked fantastic. Like today but with warmth. Sparks started to get some overdue notice with Little Beethoven - Split Enz and XTC are very similar if not stylistically in terms of attitude and those who know….know. It’s nice to see younger people catch up.

[@gaskellr44]

I knew XTC from when I was akid in the late 70s/early 80s, but only the last few years have been exposed to Skylarking and Nonsuch, and for me, they are masterpieces, but the latter album took me a lot longer to get into.@@squishmallowfan025

[@Glenn54321]

First memories of Sparks as a small kid back in the 1970s. Travelling in the back seat of the family car for the annual seaside holiday, with Dad's battery powered portable radio on the rear parcel shelf playing "This Town & Big Enough". Amazing band then & still to this day!.

[@harrypalmer7169]

Kimono My House was just amazing. They have been doing their music their way and finally some people are catching up.

[@jaynepeaty7075]

Love The Ron dance, great that aron Ron shows his great sense of humour at last whch he's kept hidden for nigh on 50 years

[@neilmartin4895]

I felt so proud for them,watching that 😊

[@TheGreatConstantini]

They are the greatest. It seems so odd people are catching up

[@moonbeanification]

"There isn't anything else we can do. We're pretty hopeless in any other situation, so we kept plowing on." (Ron Mael) These brothers are GLORIOUS!! ♥♥

[@highdownmartin]

Did their back catalogue; an album in it’s entirety each night for twenty three nights a few years back. Astounding to do that and I bet they were note perfect! Great band

[@avigil7583]

I don't understand why the host was proud to admit he had never heard of them. How did this contribute to the conversation? It felt disrespectful.

[@paulbanner9612]

Dinky Diamond R.I.P

[@dekstrom242]

In the early 80s in SoCal, I would ride my bike from Sunset Beach to Newport Beach every Saturday. I would always have at least one Sparks tape for my Walkman with me. Great times!!

[@archstanton3636]

Saw them multiple times as a teenager in the eighties. They are awesome.

[@kelb6073]

They totally deserve it

[@TheGreatConstantini]

I does anger me that the media stills treat them as some oddity. Like they have re-emerged for some laughs. They never went away and their talent has never dulled. They are as vibrant today as day one. Perhaps the media needs to think about who they are. Certainly not as vibrant and current as this amazing duo

[@crazykev72]

Incredible @ Glastonbury- Keep On Keeping On Sparks ⚡️ 😎🙏

[@forceofnature1662]

My first Sparks concert was in 1974!

[@frankofudrucker2201]

Same here!

[@Neil-Aspinall]

I stumbled over their song recent 'Existential?' song and I must say it is a great catchy song in the classic top 40 sense.

[@johncooper9550]

Give them honoury knighthood from an appreciated british fanbase

[@evilkittyofdoom195]

Nice ...

[@davidweinberg7833]

One of my faves!

[@jarlathquinn5722]

wonderful

[@DIDCOTTWIST]

Glad the BBC did this report as it was on the main BBC news Monday evening too as my mum recorded it as I was at the first night at the Albert hall

[@johnellery9665]

❤❤❤

[@Jones-xx2gc]

Such a different band back then and now. So glad they have kept going and have a new audience.

[@harryhack6870]

They are brilliant because they are still brilliant.

[@kevinogracia1615]

Five decades. A little over 18,250 spins around the sun... Peace on earth.

[@EricaScalzo]

July 9th 3rd row VIP TIX in BOULDER!!!! I'll be looking for my sparks- loving mountain man!!!

[@ChrisHutchison]

Music was pretty much in the doldrums in the early 1970s. Sparks, however, were among the rare and brilliant exceptions to an otherwise bland and bleak musical landscape -- I saw them live in 1974, still to this day a memorable concert. So it's fantastic to see them once more getting the recognition they deserve.

[@BobbyGeneric145]

Your favorite band's favorite band.

[@matthewsatre6550]

In Paul Mcartney’s video “Coming Up” in 1980, Paul parodied Ron Mael. 🎹

[@Vivienne261]

😲Ron doesnt age

[@Southeastasiantraveler]

First saw them 48 years ago in 1975. It was weird music then and weird music now - I guess that means timeless 😂

[@jamesrobinson4703]

No one deserves it more... 2023 IT'S CRAZY COOL !!!

[@mrhitler201]

I am Ron.

[@silviosaecios5187]

I only heard about these guys because Martin Gore said in an interview that he was a fan of theirs. And now knowing what they are like, I understand.

[@alexanderzeab1797]

I ALWAYS forget they're not actually British

[@squishmallowfan025]

Well they're anglophiles! But yes the most unlikely band to come out of Pacific Pallisades......

[@raymondbonington9355]

3 of there band in 1974 -75 3 of there band were brits , sadly 2 have passed away .

[@krisscanlon4051]

They created so many sounds.They are part but separate from the genres they veered towards. Also, Sparks are part French new wave film part Charlie Chaplin Mack Sennet filmography...so essentially the Stooges but less brutish.

[@milesvesh]

wait i was there for that show with blur! they really peaked 1994 tho in my opinion but to each their own ofc

[@numbereightyseven]

New fans whose parents weren't even BORN when they started.

[@damsideau]

I'd have asked these two: "Have you ever actually got to sing the very Sinatra song "My way" you sing about?" :D

[@TheRealPontificator]

I've got angst in my pants!

[@paulegan3429]

Sparks are brilliant. The little Hitler mustash and the stare . 😊

[@mikeomolt4485]

Apparently, Queen and Freddie Mercury were influenced by Sparks.

[@DLZ2000]

How are their ages a mystery? Are their Wikipedia pages wrong?

[@davidbenhamou]

one of them loock like tom cruise

[@keithdeley7236]

Group and concert in English.

[@purplemascara99]

Oh yeah well I saw them in 1984

[@LewK-wd6im]

PINEAPPLE

[@squishmallowfan025]

fulfills everthing!

[@steverynne1970]

​@@squishmallowfan025 ...puts you back on the winning trail!

[@multipipi1234]

At your age you should have known

[@donaldbutcher1260]

Franz Ferdinand?

[@Teeb2023]

What about them?

[@rsmith7912]

Sparks collaberated with Franz Ferdinand about 8 years ago calling themselves FFS. The album was moderately successful in the UK.

[@lionheartroar3104]

The best story is how the Hudson Brothers smacked these arrogant twerps around.

[@Teeb2023]

I'm sure you can regale us all of this wonderful tale.

[@flabbybum9562]

The Mael brothers have a reputation for being pretty down-to-earth and easygoing.

[@gerrydepp8164]

envious

[@RogueBoyScout]

Who?

[@englishteacher.8635]

@@RogueBoyScout An arrogant comment.

[@hardlines5472]

Was waiting for a Rudy Giuliani moment with the dyed hair. Seriously! Old men trying to look young. Stop it.

[@rsmith7912]

Dont be so ageist hardlines5472! Do you really think Dolly Parton is still naturally blonde being the same age as these guys nowadays. It's ok for older women to dye their hair but not men? You'll be older one day too & I hope you will embrace the grey hairs when they arrive & never dye your hair, if you have any that is. People can do whatever they want to do with their image no matter what age they are. Dont be so judgmental cos your reaction is kinda childish.

[@lucyllewellyn2850]

Crap

[@Teeb2023]

No need to announce it, just go do one.

[@gerrydepp8164]

are you?

[@merlin5476]

I'd stick to love island & tina turner & dementia if i were you loosey .

[@15loucanova]

Too clever, sophisticated and talented for you to appreciate them clearly

[@philipknight3270]

​@@merlin5476Leave Tina out of it, she was pure class. But yeah Lucy, get a grip, not to your taste however despite the media not being able to pigeon-hole them, they would not still be around without talent after 50 years

[@Lot_2023]

SPARKS KZbin channel!: youtube.com/@SparksOfficialVideo

[@williamHmusic2023]

Second greatest band of all time

[@hippyandchicky]

Queen the other?

[@JesusChristisfake]

@@hippyandchicky queen wouldn’t be in the top 20

[@williamHmusic2023]

@@hippyandchicky Definitely NOT I'm talking about the Beatles