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Christian Huey: Oops!
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Christian Huey: All right.
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chris: Hi.
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Christian Huey: There. We are great. Okay?
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Christian Huey: So just a minute, because it looks like I'm appearing as 2 different entities here.
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chris: You want? Yeah.
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Christian Huey: Let's see, remove Christian Huey, keep Christian Huey
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Christian Huey: and looks like we're good. Okay?
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Christian Huey: So that says that we are recording. And I believe that is good.
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Christian Huey: Let's see here record pause, recording great, we're okay. Good. All right. Naturally, this will to all the deleted.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. Okay, Hi, there, Chris, how are you today.
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chris: I'm extremely hot. It's a cool day here for you, I would imagine, Christian, but it's about 32, 34 degrees here, so we're all sweltering away.
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Christian Huey: I'll pretend I did. I didn't already respond to that. You know. Yeah, I mean to be to be completely frank with you that is too hot for me.
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Christian Huey: It's just that I'm saddled with that here
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Christian Huey: about 8 months out of the year.
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Christian Huey: and you are. You're Chris. I'm sorry you're you're in Birmingham right now.
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chris: No, I was born in Birmingham, spent most of my life there, which is very handy. If you're into music because it's a big Music City, Birmingham, home of Black Sabbath. We must mention that this week, of course.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah.
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chris: And yeah, yeah, absolutely. And so anyway, we moved to Malvern in Worcestershire, which is
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chris: much smaller rural place, the perfect place to write a book about sparks. In fact.
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Christian Huey: Nice. I love that. Yeah, yeah, it's interesting. Because, see, you know, we there are all these
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Christian Huey: rural spots all throughout the the British Isles that you know nobody over here is has ever heard of, you know. If you if you tell someone Birmingham, someone might know.
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Christian Huey: they may at 1st think you're talking about Alabama or something
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Christian Huey: but when you mentioned the the smaller little towns, and in villages we have, we have no clue.
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chris: Yeah, so.
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Christian Huey: So? How far is that from from Birmingham?
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chris: It's about an hour by train. I know that I do that 3, 4 days a week, which is usually when I do.
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chris: Most of the writing is that I try and do about 500 or a thousand words a day
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chris: on average. That's the biggest.
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Christian Huey: Digits.
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chris: It sort of is, but you kind of break it down. So it's some bits of what I would call creative where you're trying to be
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chris: erudite and well written, and there's other bits which are a bit more meat and potatoes, because you're just churning out information that you simply have got to include.
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chris: Yeah, so if I'm not feeling especially on top form, that that's usually what I'll do is and to the nuts and bolts stuff, all of which you, for example, would know inside, and could probably recite off the top of your head. But, A lot of people can't, and that's the thing with these books. Christian is because, you're appealing to
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chris: broadly, to audiences. There's people like yourself who are looking for the deep stuff. That's what you want, I guess.
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chris: And then you're looking for the other people who have no idea about
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chris: even half of the albums. Probably more than that, they could probably just name a few songs and then pick the book up, or have got it, because they quite like those few songs they heard.
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chris: and and to them things like introducing sparks will be a completely unknown quantity, you know.
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Christian Huey: For most people.
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chris: Oh, yeah, I was just going to say that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely. So.
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Christian Huey: Can I? So let me, just, you know, start off from our listeners. Chris Sutton has written this book here, which you will see if I do release a video version of this which is part of his on Track series sparks 1969 to 1979, every album and every song.
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Christian Huey: 1st of all, great read I found it to be at first, st you know, when I thought well, gee! About 140 44 pages, I mean, you know how how much information could there be in there? I found it very dense, and I mean dense in the best way and that there's there's a lot of as a lot of information in there for the hardcore fans such as myself and and such as you.
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Christian Huey: And you know I I hope it also appeals to those more sort of fair weather fans. But I I wanted to ask you, Chris, a couple of questions about
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Christian Huey: well, 1st of all, what began your career in rock and roll music, writing journalism.
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chris: I've always wanted to do it, and never thought that I was good enough, or was the sort of person who should I run a museum heritage center.
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chris: I'm a museum manager. I've written plays, and I've acted in plays in the amateur dramatic stakes. I've never done a music one.
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chris: and I'd always been very forensic, probably, like yourself.
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chris: I love all the details and and the details are my thing. I love details, I like to know when things happen, why they happen, what order! They can be more details than than most people would probably.
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chris: And really the lucky break for me was locked down in 2 ways because somebody gave me a sonic bond book
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chris: and I read it, and on the back it said, Do you fancy writing a book for us.
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chris: And I thought, Okay, so I pitched a book.
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chris: and Stephen Lam kindly got back to me the next day and said, Okay.
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chris: and and that was probably my number one passion, you know. Everybody's got a band. You've got a lot of favorite bands.
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Christian Huey: Most of us have are into music the way that we are, but probably, if you strip them away one by one by one, you probably would have one band left.
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chris: Maybe, and for me
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chris: it actually wouldn't be sparks. It would be the Alice Cooper group. And there's a lot of reasons for that. And a lot of that is about the right time. Right place, right moment
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chris: could have been sparks. But but Alice Cooper was in a similar way with that top of the Pops appearance they had in 1972 for me, with sparks 2 years later. It's that top of the Pops appearance which
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chris: he's 1 of still one of the most talked about appearances from anybody who saw it on top of the Pops, without a doubt, even if he didn't like it.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, I I do definitely want to talk about that. The top of the Pops appearance there.
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Christian Huey: So the the folks at Sonic Board publishing you, said they. They reached out to you.
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chris: No, I reached out to them because it's in the back of a book which was about Queen, and said, Do you want to write. Have you got something you want to do? And quite clearly what they were doing was doing any and every band. And I mean that in the nicest sense. Why wouldn't you?
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chris: And and I could see which bands they hadn't done?
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chris: It was something I had done. I was thinking, Oh, God, I wish
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chris: most of the ones I wanted to do were not on the list.
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chris: So I got in touch and and I've started working through. I did want to do, Roxy, but somebody else had done Roxy. Somebody else had done hawkward. That wants to do.
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chris: But of the big ones left. I got most of the ones that I wanted and nobody done sparks which surprised me.
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chris: But it's a lot of people yourself, Monty, and other the big fans
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chris: who could have done an excellent superb job as well. I I was very lucky because
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chris: a lot of people were happy to talk.
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chris: and I don't want to do. I don't like to do a book that that's my views.
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chris: one of the issues that you get. And and again, I don't mean this unkindly. There is a word, Count, because you can see the way the book is bound. You can see how many words are. That word count defines quite a lot. That book could have been
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chris: probably at least another 30,000 words. It's 65,000 worth. It's at least 30,000 work
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chris: a lot more. Martin Gordon. Example, who's in there was cut because he just had to be.
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Christian Huey: Talks.
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chris: And the money, so you can't.
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chris: You can't kind of ramble in a in a kind of a vanish way, that you might want to do
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chris: at times, and that's where it gets a little bit tricky.
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chris: So you have to find a way around that.
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Christian Huey: So was it as as simple as
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Christian Huey: You saw what they had in their catalog and said, Oh, you're you're you're missing a bit here. Sparks is a big one. I happen to know quite a bit about them, and I'm you know, and I have access or feel confident I will have access to enough people to make this.
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Christian Huey: you know.
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chris: And
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Christian Huey: Make it happen.
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chris: I I got off to a fly. The 1st one I did was Alice Cooper in the seventies, and on day one that I agreed to do it. The drummer, Neil Smith.
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chris: emailed me back because I sent him one of those precocious emails
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chris: and said, Please help me with this book. I can ask you 5 questions. Nobody else has ever asked you.
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Christian Huey: He came back and said, Give me a call.
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chris: And I did the 5 questions, and nobody else had asked him those questions.
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chris: And then he gave me the bass player, Dennis Dunaway's number, and I've got Dennis who gave me Mike Bruce's number.
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chris: And so suddenly I felt I had something that was credible. I got lots of other people to talk
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chris: some of them, I think, because they had nothing better to do in the nicest possible sense, and and they weren't necessarily getting the acclaim. And this is an interesting thing with sparks, because.
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chris: you see, you say sparks, and in Britain, if you say that, you think Oh, that's a band.
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chris: it must be a band, because it's not somebody's personal name. It's not Russell Mayo. It's sparks. It's obviously a band, and of course, eventually find out that it's not actually a band in the sense that we know a band to be.
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chris: and it'd only ever been a band in that sense for the 1st 2 albums.
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chris: which is, is kind of another story. But I did. I make a list. I made a list of every engineer, every producer, every musician, every string arranger backing all of them. I make a list of 1st thing I do.
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chris: And then I go through Facebook, Linkedin online forums.
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chris: Anything anybody who can get me to that person.
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chris: and some of them come back quickly. Some of them. You will send 9, 10 emails and then they'll finally see your email, even though you've emailed same email several times.
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chris: some of them come back and are hurt. Should we say there's at least one in the book who made it quite clear that he did not want to even
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chris: think about his time for sparks.
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chris: and I did that down so it didn't seem too bad, because you don't want to upset anyone's feelings.
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chris: Yeah. And my personal favorite in that book you're going to come. See? Is Dean Detrick, Jr. That that was my happiest moment.
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chris: What's the tracking down.
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Christian Huey: So I that.
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chris: In, the.
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Christian Huey: Name. It wasn't familiar to me
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Christian Huey: when when I was reading through the book, and I thought, What's wrong with me? It was Dean, and I'm sorry, Dietrich.
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chris: Detrick, Junior Detrick, Jr.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, and and there was one that that pat there it is right there, and he was
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Christian Huey: He was involved in the in the Woofer Album. Correct.
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chris: Well when it was when they did the re-release over in the Uk called 2 originals of sparks.
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chris: which was the Woofer album and the Sparks album. They, the Ron and Russell, did some sleeve notes, comments on each song.
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chris: and Ron mentions Dean Detrick, Jr.
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chris: I thought, well, you can't go far on looking for a Dean Detrick, Jr. In America.
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chris: and he turned up in Los Angeles as an artist designer. I thought, that has got to be him.
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chris: And he had his email. So you emailed the guy. And you got to imagine this guy's probably spent what 50 odd years and nobody's contacted him and asked him about what he's mentioning.
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chris: and but he was quite helpful.
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chris: You get other people who are with a
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chris: upset about its army sparks. Other people more philosophical.
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chris: Some people I some of the best times I've had writing books, Martin Gordon.
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chris: if you can get even though I've no doubt you could get Martin Gordon.
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Christian Huey: We? We've talked. Yeah, he, we've talked quite, quite a bit, and he's yeah, he well, he's a fantastic interview. He's a great
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Christian Huey: oh, my God, artist! And he has no shortage of things to say
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Christian Huey: of of all kinds, with, with motivated by all, all kinds of emotions. About that time.
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chris: Yeah, that that's absolutely true. There was. There was some sections had to be cut down when it came back for the from the final edit, which is the one after the final edits. After the final edit. There was a section of an interview within Hampton that had to be removed
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chris: when talks about their appearances on top of the box. These encounter with Jimmy Savile.
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chris: It was, yeah.
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chris: Yeah. And that happened to go.
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chris: it's very, very interesting, I think. And james Lowe, who I only recently found out, had gone. I've missed that news, and he was such a terrific, warm, engaging man.
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chris: I'll tell you this. He was absolutely thrilled to bits that that anybody
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chris: we'll get in touch, and would say that was their famous part example, which is mine.
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chris: And he was just so pleased.
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chris: But and we had this session. We were like, 2 people in therapy, having the same
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chris: issues where I think, I said, that I spend all of the laughter, Leon, 1st album, waiting for James Mankey to play an extra long little league. He does at the end of the choruses.
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chris: you know, plays a little bassly, and then once he extends it a bit longer. I spend the whole song to this day waiting for him to do that.
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Christian Huey: You're okay.
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chris: I told James Mankey this, and he and he's 1 of the most unassuming
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chris: people I've ever spoken to me in my life. You can praise that guy all day long, and he'll go well.
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Christian Huey: Of his accomplishments. You know.
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chris: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So if it's quite a journey.
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chris: you go. I did ask Ron and Russell Mayo while their manager. That was the 1st thing
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chris: kind of think to yourself. If they had taken part in the book, it means technically, they have to authorize it because they're talking to you.
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Christian Huey: Oh, I see, I see! So that's the hurdle.
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chris: There's no, and that's true. There's no way around that
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chris: they talk to you. Then it's it's it's an authorized interview. What they say is, is represents them.
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chris: So I'm a.
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Christian Huey: Assuming you had to not to, you know, to call anyone out, and
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Christian Huey: particularly, but I assume you had to go through their their manager who is Sue Harris.
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chris: I did. And I approached. And basically, I just got no, yeah.
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chris: no. And I thought, Well, okay, I know where we are. I have asked, and and that's okay. But just before the book went to print we got a message saying that they wanted a copy to look through
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chris: before it actually got published.
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Christian Huey: I suppose.
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chris: The general view is that when when people in in
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chris: available ask this sort of question, it can mean trouble.
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Christian Huey: Okay, yeah, that makes sense.
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chris: It's not the same as it used to be, where you could write or say anything.
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chris: It's known as facial biography or program.
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chris: and that would be okay. Now, people at certain status and position, and
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chris: and take some steps to shut down publications and TV programs just by making it very difficult
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chris: in. In honesty there was only there were only 2
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chris: problems that we had to get around for the book.
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chris: Which is why it was delayed. The 1st one
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chris: was the the aristo Demos, as they're known.
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chris: And originally discussed.
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chris: Yeah.
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Christian Huey: We've discussed all of them.
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chris: But I agreed to withdraw any that have not been officially released.
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chris: Comments on them. I could mention them, but not review them.
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chris: That's interesting.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. So I'm sorry. So you you could mention them as you did
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Christian Huey: in the book, but you couldn't opine on them.
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chris: No.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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chris: That was good, doing.
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Christian Huey: Can I ask you something?
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Christian Huey: Because, you know, I want my. My notes are in chronological order. So that's where my mind tends to go.
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Christian Huey: Any hardcore sparks fan is deeply curious about that urban renewal project
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Christian Huey: thing that they recorded, and of course never released except for that one track. Many, many years later.
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chris: Years ago.
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Christian Huey: And you're right, computer girl.
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Christian Huey: Did you attempt to ask any questions about that? And if so, what kinds of responses did you get?
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Christian Huey: That's right.
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chris: Well, we know that they exist. The songs certainly still exist. That is a fact. I've got enough evidence that they do.
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chris: But I couldn't speak to anybody who had a copy.
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chris: and and we'll come to that later, as we ask me that again, because we'll come to that around the big big time who has actually got material and who has not
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chris: big sticking point was the demo album, although it sparked. It's supposed to be sparked in the seventies.
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chris: But Stephen Lamb, my publisher, who's a very understanding chap, I said. Look.
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chris: I've really got to include this demo album for me. The story starts with that. He's 69.
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chris: Can we stretch and put that in? And I thought that would be okay, because it's all over Youtube for anyone who doesn't know.
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chris: There's websites that review and discuss it.
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chris: The 1st response that we got was, no, you can't include it, that's all.
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Christian Huey: Was from management.
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chris: No, from the Publishing Company.
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Christian Huey: Public publisher. You're a publisher.
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chris: Holy Shit, their Publishing Company.
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Christian Huey: Oh, their publishing company.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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Christian Huey: Oh, interesting.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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chris: Basic argument is, these are unreleased songs that they have chosen not to put out.
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chris: Therefore you're commenting on stuff that's not authorized.
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chris: It's not released. The argument I had was was that in the Blue Rail, DVD. Of Sparks Brothers, you clearly see Russell and Ron Mail give a copy To Todd Rund to look at and tell him that they produced about 100 copies. So I said, well, that alludes to the fact that to some degree he was released.
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Christian Huey: It was published in some way. Yeah, okay, nice.
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Christian Huey: So you got them on on the technicality. Did did they have any any sour feelings about that?
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chris: It's just going out in the recording, isn't it?
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chris: What happened was the the Publishing Company.
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chris: I think fundamentally he hasn't realized that you're probably like this that I was just never, ever gonna let it go
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chris: ever.
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chris: I would literally just think I can email you this week and next week, and the week after I can ring you and I will keep pushing.
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chris: And eventually I spoke to the guy at the Publishing Company. I can't name him, but he told me that he was retiring following week, and he said, Have you taken out those Arista things? And I said, Yeah.
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chris: you know, happy Demo out, man.
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chris: So that was, yeah.
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Christian Huey: The trade trade off right there. Which
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Christian Huey: well done, and I think that was a good trade, because I think that. And you know. I'm sure you do, and many others. You know that
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Christian Huey: that really is, I think, where the where the sparks recorded history begins. I mean, you could say urban renewal project, but but I respect the fact that they were very that they were amorphous and didn't really know what they were doing at that point. But I think that that 1969 demo recording is when they were serious and they had a vision. And also, as you said, it's everywhere.
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chris: It is everywhere.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: Anyone out there hasn't got it. It! It's on Youtube. So there you go.
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chris: and it's worth listening to. I think it would be heralded as a lost sixties psych classic, if it was by an unknown band.
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Christian Huey: I noticed that you mentioned in in some of your descriptions of the stuff in the 1969 demo recordings there was a passing comparison to Sid Barrett Pink Floyd, which I thought was right on, and that was one of my 1st thoughts when I heard it.
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Christian Huey: I'm wondering. I'm wondering if that was something you passed on to him to anybody.
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chris: No, I think I think definitely so. I I do really love that demo album. It. It's
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chris: it's a Testament to Old Mankey's production genius to record that in in in his flat I think it was yeah.
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chris: I was looking to speak to John Mendelsohn and Ralph Oswald and John Mendelsohn is hilarious.
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chris: Very, very sarcastic. And and
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chris: what's really again, a lot of this stuff just had to go because you you think hang on.
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chris: He's very, very funny, that's all I'll say very, very.
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Christian Huey: Great. Now I I didn't get a chance to to talk to those guys in particular, nor nor Earl.
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Christian Huey: Well, so what was, how did you get a hold of earl, and how how forthcoming was Earl about talking about that time?
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chris: And I got James. I didn't get Earl, and what happened was I I've seen the Sparks brothers that had come out, and all had been in it, and I thought, great. He's talking
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chris: and
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chris: I got hold of James Mankey's email by circuitous route, and he didn't respond for a while. And then suddenly he did with his phone number.
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chris: See the face that you're doing now? That's me. I'm thinking I love this man's work on these 2 albums all these years, and I'm going to speak to him, and I can't even formulate a sentence.
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chris: And he was.
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chris: It's just such a lovely song.
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Christian Huey: And he, he! Just you. You cannot tell him how great he is, because he just.
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chris: I'm bashful about everything. But he passed on those email to me and said, I haven't spoken to only.
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Christian Huey: Really.
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chris: Correct
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chris: and email. Lots of times I tried everything you can think of. I I tried the fanboy aspect like that. I need your voice in this.
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chris: so I guess he's just done with talking about sparks.
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Christian Huey: Earl Menke
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Christian Huey: and actually, boy, I would love to talk about Jim as well. I would love to talk about Jim, because he, in his own right became something of a rock star. If a bit behind the scenes, I mean with concrete blonde, I don't know. Were you familiar with concrete blonde's work.
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chris: Yeah. And then Paul Thompson Roxy. Music was in there for a while, wasn't he? As well, yeah, as you know.
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chris: Yeah. I mean. He's a great musician. They say he's a better guitar player than a bass player, and that's probably true, because he's definitely a guitar player.
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chris: It's not a bass player. When he plays the bass he plays like a guitar player, which is fine.
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Christian Huey: A lot of.
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chris: Yeah, I mean, there's a there's a great record store day, double sided release there to be had from the Bearsville. Yes, I think about having no more Mr. Nice guys on one side, with things and apologies on the other.
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chris: and you'd have a very unique for me like Sparks. I love that.
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Christian Huey: It's such a you made it clear
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Christian Huey: in the book that your favorite sparks records are those 1st 2 lps, and there's so much
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Christian Huey: to enjoy. There, there's just there's
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Christian Huey: there are just so many layers, there's so much going on, there's so much
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Christian Huey: different personalities and different instrumentations and pathos, and all this stuff.
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Christian Huey: One thing that I this is why I've always wanted to to speak with Earl Manke. By the way, because his presence
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Christian Huey: it's so clear, almost on par with the males
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Christian Huey: in those 1st 2 records, and I'm wondering to me. And so I'm wondering if if you got a similar impression. And if
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Christian Huey: yeah, I'll just let you take it from there.
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chris: Yeah, I I spoke to Harley Feinstein and and James, and the clear impression is, the sessions were being run largely by Ron Mail
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chris: and or Mankey
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chris: and I think Harley says it's in the book that if if anyone was going to pick him up on his drumming or somebody on something it would 9 times out of 10 be oh, not wrong. It would be. No, we need to do this. We need to do that.
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chris: I mean. What had happened was
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chris: Mona. My house was like this, rumored, crazy, furious, odd things that were called songs.
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chris: And then, somewhere off there is like this dark, dusty room. No one's been in. It was even more mad. And bonkers
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chris: that which was wolf. I remember hearing that, and thinking what the hell.
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chris: You know, I thought, this is this is.
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chris: I can see where this links to that Bando, but I come away. I mean
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chris: thoughts and feelings and dreams. Even some like, you know, like the move and baptism, what the hell is going on.
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Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, but but yeah, bonkers, I mean, it's
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Christian Huey: you know, as as Ron went on, you could sort of follow his logic. But it's not. It's harder to do with these 1st couple of records like, why, you know what would make you
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Christian Huey: go there. This arts and crafts
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chris: Okay.
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Christian Huey: Festivity thing, the the lady in her quilt and the battery is not included, and you know and whatnot I mean. It was just absolutely everywhere all the time.
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chris: Absolutely extraordinary. So the the 1st 2 records, the 1st one is
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chris: probably more naive. It's less less full sound. Todd doesn't get the fullest sound on. And you get this interesting thing which I picked up. I was quite proud of this with big fans.
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chris: Why did nobody think of putting a big band in on the second half, you know.
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chris: It's the obvious thing to.
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chris: and but they obviously couldn't afford a big band or nobody thought, and I've always spotted. That was an early team. When I was a kid I knew I thought it was something odd.
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chris: I couldn't. I could hear that something had happened, and it was only when I spoke to Harley Feinstein for the book and said, That that's what it you know. That's an edit, isn't it. That's where you stopped and started
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chris: when it goes into the yeah, the full on section at the end.
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chris: just joyful record. The 1st one, I think, has a very sweet naivety, with some odd chills about it. Saccharine and the war. You know what the hell going on there, and no more. Mr. Nice guys with that? Well, that incredible guitar solo from James Manke, I mean. My God.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. As you were saying, you know, yeah, Jim Jim Menke was actually an incredible lead guitarist, even though he was kind of relegated to to bass
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Christian Huey: for these companies.
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Christian Huey: Records I can't, could not agree more.
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chris: I think, teasing it out from James. I got the feeling. He plays more guitar than he's let on.
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Christian Huey: Oh, on the on those records.
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chris: Yeah, he does. There's a couple of places. So, for example, he admitted to playing guitar on moon over Kentucky as well to some degree
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chris: I remember, and that's not mentioned
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chris: with with Ron Mail. So you can see that that. Yes.
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chris: I I love the swagger of the second album during tweets is when they come in. We go from Germany. Think what's happened to this band from the 1st album.
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chris: and it's just such
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chris: A curious, wonderful record, and it remains my favorite for many reasons I love the cover. I love that kind of even the cover I find unsettling.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. Now, which one? Which one do? Do we mean? Because I I
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Christian Huey: because, yeah, I guess you had the front and the back, and they swapped them at some point.
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Christian Huey: There's 1 where.
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chris: Like that. James is looking to the side. He's not even engaging with the camera.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And and rob mail looks fairly unique even then.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: Yeah. He's got the.
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Christian Huey: Long afro, and the longer.
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chris: Yes, sir.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And then there, there were things like, you know. Is is it okay to admit to liking? Do ray me. That was a big thing for me, you know.
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chris: You know this is from the sound of music, but you think you know, Mike.
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chris: do you know, I hear? And I hear that. And I I never think they're gonna make it to the end. Harley and Jen.
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chris: how are they doing that?
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chris: Which is this colossal rhythm they break into from that halfway. Which is.
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chris: it's just incredibly intense. And you think, how are they gonna get to the end of this song?
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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Christian Huey: you wrote about that. There's there's this really intense interplay right then, between Harley and Jim Manke. And somehow they're keeping up with each other
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Christian Huey: through this incredible run.
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Christian Huey: Did you get any sort of insight from Harley or Jim, or anybody? As to why that
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Christian Huey: Rodgers and Hammerstein's song even came into the repertoire.
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chris: They? They used to do 2 or 3 cover versions around the Woofer era live one of them, which apparently was the most popular was Baby come back the old equal son.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, right? Yeah, you're right about that. And I that was something that missed me the the 1st time around. I didn't know they did that maybe come back.
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chris: There's no, there's no known recording of it now. Of course you ask, don't you, you know? Hardly. Have you got one tucked away somewhere, you know, like. No, no, no, I think, he said. Larry Dupont, who's a guy you'll now work with sparks, design work, and been a road manager. He hardly reckons he has got
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chris: some demos or rehearsals, or whatever tucked away in that legendary garage that you guys have in America
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chris: seems to be top full of stuff you haven't touched in ages. I'm always hearing about outreach.
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Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
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chris: So yeah, that the thing that we had for us in in Britain was these albums did not exist.
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chris: not exist at all, and the fact that even toured Britain in 72 had passed me by because I was a little bit young. So for me, spark started in May, 1974 with Pop of the pops.
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chris: and it was only it was the the joy of backtracking to find these records
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chris: which it has to be said
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chris: you had to go and buy.
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chris: There was nobody who had them.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And you had to go and order them from a record shop, and you had no idea what they were in the sound right.
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Christian Huey: Right.
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chris: Probably like kimono. You would imagine
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chris: what you thought, and to some degree it does, and to some degree it doesn't. But you couldn't borrow them up anybody because nobody had them.
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Christian Huey: That's it's such a great point. And I think that's a
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Christian Huey: almost to state the obvious. But I think that's that's a difficult thing for people, especially young people, to really
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Christian Huey: appreciate that. You know, before, really, before the Internet it was. If you didn't know what a band's full discography really was, I mean, maybe you you could
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Christian Huey: join the Fan Club or something. But you didn't really typically know what was out there. And you didn't know you depended on either what your local record store has, or you would pick a phone and and call around, or maybe ask for a catalog. But you know, so so you didn't know right away, you know. Certainly from when you 1st saw the their top of the Pops performance in 74.
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Christian Huey: What else was out there.
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Christian Huey: When did you find out that there was more out there? And how did you track it down.
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chris: Well, the 1st thing was that top of the Pops appearance, and I don't know if you're aware of top of the Pops over, anyway. Fundamentally it was a show which had chart hits, ones that were moving up from the bottom end of the charts, and some people would appear in the studio, and some might be on film.
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chris: and you had to sit through all of it.
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chris: That is what you had to do. And and some of it would be truly terrible. You would hate it. Some of it would be okay.
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chris: and and your parents would be in there. They would watch it. They would love the stuff that you hated. They've had the stuff that you love, which was even better.
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chris: And but it it was just such a hugely watched program by millions of people.
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Christian Huey: And there was only one of a program one at the time in the Uk. Covering music, which was the old grey whistle test, which is stuck away in a graveyard time at night.
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chris: Top of the Pops was is, if you got on top of the pops you were going to sell a shed load of records.
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chris: even probably, if your record was dreadful, it's still going to sell a load of records to somebody.
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chris: And what Sparks did was to to use the medium of television, Ron and Russell, and it was just
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chris: the all dropping it that this time ain't big enough, which was like a
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chris: seem like a full film soundtrack in about 4 min
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chris: at this time in and and
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chris: and just rampaged around your living room.
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chris: and most people were still watching in black and white. Let's put it like that as well.
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chris: and all you could remember was that that death stare from Ron? What you know, what.
352
00:36:26.990 --> 00:36:27.840
Christian Huey: And let's say that.
353
00:36:27.840 --> 00:36:33.389
chris: And and and Cutesy Russell with that falsetto, high voice.
354
00:36:33.830 --> 00:36:38.359
chris: And it's it's no downplay to the rest of the band. They did their jobs, of course, but.
355
00:36:38.360 --> 00:36:38.830
Christian Huey: To moving.
356
00:36:38.830 --> 00:36:42.149
chris: Next day in the playground show my age
357
00:36:42.260 --> 00:36:53.780
chris: and talked about, and it was the same with Roxy music, with Virginia playing schools and other bands. That thought, This is this is my moment, and, by God, we we're gonna use it.
358
00:36:54.370 --> 00:36:57.400
chris: And and it was just incredible.
359
00:36:57.980 --> 00:37:07.679
chris: So then, in the weeks after he started going up the charts, etc, and and Baysville records. Did that thing which awkward companies do? I thought.
360
00:37:07.860 --> 00:37:10.260
chris: yeah, haven't we got some nice stuff.
361
00:37:11.390 --> 00:37:20.079
chris: and we got them, and and suddenly adverts started to appear, and we used to read all the music papers. We read Melody to make a new musical express and sounds.
362
00:37:20.640 --> 00:37:26.110
chris: Somebody had copies of those disk as well. We would read those. We'd read them all every week.
363
00:37:26.310 --> 00:37:33.279
chris: devouring anything and everything. And suddenly, Bearsville, I think they released girl from Germany, got that out really fast.
364
00:37:34.130 --> 00:37:38.104
chris: and then you went into your local record shop and said, can I order this?
365
00:37:38.570 --> 00:37:39.370
chris: It's called
366
00:37:41.652 --> 00:37:46.619
chris: What the hell did that mean? We had no idea what that meant.
367
00:37:47.560 --> 00:37:48.206
chris: All right.
368
00:37:48.880 --> 00:37:51.020
chris: I think it was years later I found those
369
00:37:52.140 --> 00:37:57.809
chris: that it was, you know, bass and treble, woofer and tweet, and that's the 1st we've heard of it, and
370
00:37:58.710 --> 00:38:04.329
chris: and then baseball manages to get that 2 originals of spark set as well. So they got more bias
371
00:38:05.080 --> 00:38:08.229
chris: on that front. So, and then sparks were really
372
00:38:08.570 --> 00:38:14.179
chris: pretty big in 74 in Britain. They were on top of the Pops a lot, and they had a good run in singles.
373
00:38:14.320 --> 00:38:18.130
chris: and the kimono album did extremely well.
374
00:38:18.640 --> 00:38:23.650
chris: and and propaganda is like a sister album. In effect, I suppose to
375
00:38:23.770 --> 00:38:26.150
chris: you know, you can certainly see the links.
376
00:38:26.630 --> 00:38:31.759
chris: A big credit to Ron. He doesn't use any of those demos that are mentioned in the book for kimona
377
00:38:32.140 --> 00:38:40.989
chris: when the guys up against it touring Britain and Europe, and he's got to make a second album that year. There's an awful lot of unused tracks he could have easily picked up.
378
00:38:41.490 --> 00:38:44.380
Christian Huey: Use for propaganda. And he doesn't use any of those.
379
00:38:44.870 --> 00:38:45.490
Christian Huey: Yeah.
380
00:38:45.850 --> 00:38:52.270
Christian Huey: Yeah. So that's another interesting point. Because
381
00:38:52.970 --> 00:38:55.200
Christian Huey: going back to that 1st demo.
382
00:38:56.470 --> 00:39:13.980
Christian Huey: They're all these songs written by Ron and some by Russell. A couple of Russell ones got got got picked up for the the 1st proper record, and none of the Ron Run ones did, and and I know there were likewise
383
00:39:15.540 --> 00:39:19.880
Christian Huey: demo recordings, songs that were not picked up for
384
00:39:21.130 --> 00:39:23.549
Christian Huey: for kimono that did not make
385
00:39:23.690 --> 00:39:47.560
Christian Huey: make it over to propaganda as well. And this is this is a theme that kind of continued throughout the seventies. And you did write about that a little bit in here they've got. There's this just such a just an effluence. There was such a flood of all of these songs, and it seemed that rarely did they feel the need
386
00:39:47.710 --> 00:39:48.580
Christian Huey: to
387
00:39:49.570 --> 00:39:58.279
Christian Huey: to to pick up any of these leftovers. I suppose you could say and carry them over to the next project like they just sort of wanted to start
388
00:39:58.480 --> 00:39:59.530
Christian Huey: anew.
389
00:40:00.740 --> 00:40:04.590
chris: There. There are occasions where I I'd hear a song.
390
00:40:04.840 --> 00:40:17.059
chris: because you go back and listen to the albums again and again, again, and you think? Hang on a minute, and I did one that I did clearly with Sal made the late Sal made a sadly was I bought the Mississippi River.
391
00:40:17.540 --> 00:40:23.790
chris: and as I was listening to the big beat album, I thought you know this. This lyrically could have fitted on
392
00:40:24.130 --> 00:40:30.709
chris: mono propaganda almost back to woof. It somehow had that kind of feel to me
393
00:40:31.340 --> 00:40:37.620
chris: of one of those some. And he did confirm that. Yeah. He thought, too, that it was one that had been around
394
00:40:37.970 --> 00:40:41.789
chris: for a while, but of course they were up against it. Big time for big days.
395
00:40:43.630 --> 00:40:49.681
Christian Huey: So you've discovered your sparks. Origin story was 74 with the the top of the pops, and
396
00:40:50.000 --> 00:40:50.520
chris: Yes.
397
00:40:50.520 --> 00:41:01.510
Christian Huey: And and this town ain't big enough and and huge fan of those island records, of course. So when they left the scene
398
00:41:01.660 --> 00:41:04.979
Christian Huey: physically, and went back to the States.
399
00:41:05.520 --> 00:41:11.550
Christian Huey: Did you know that they were still an ongoing concern? When did you find out that they were still recording.
400
00:41:12.470 --> 00:41:18.550
chris: Well, we had little, because the only way you got information was in the British music person. I wasn't in the Sparks fan club
401
00:41:19.152 --> 00:41:21.480
chris: simply because he was based in America
402
00:41:21.750 --> 00:41:29.599
chris: and getting anything from America was tortuous if it arrived at all. So I just hadn't bothered and no other sparks. Fans, I knew.
403
00:41:29.790 --> 00:41:34.689
chris: had bothered either. It was literally as though they closed the door
404
00:41:35.180 --> 00:41:43.849
chris: and and gone off. And and that's entirely their prerogative. But occasionally one of the music places would would mention that an album
405
00:41:44.090 --> 00:41:54.179
chris: had occurred which some of them didn't even come out in in Britain at all, and nobody I knew nobody bought any of those albums after terminal jive.
406
00:41:55.870 --> 00:41:59.580
Christian Huey: I'm sorry. No, nobody knew about anything after Terminal Jive.
407
00:41:59.850 --> 00:42:04.970
chris: Well, they might have known about it, but I don't know anybody who bought an album oxygen
408
00:42:04.970 --> 00:42:09.939
chris: at all. I didn't for my scenes, either I I,
409
00:42:10.370 --> 00:42:17.220
chris: for whatever reason things had moved on or changed, and I still like those albums. But it was, though they they gone.
410
00:42:18.220 --> 00:42:18.780
chris: Yeah, yeah.
411
00:42:19.970 --> 00:42:27.390
Christian Huey: So what point did you did you catch on that? That they when did you, I suppose, pick up.
412
00:42:27.590 --> 00:42:36.270
Christian Huey: pick back up your your fandom of sparks to take take up where you know 75 had left off.
413
00:42:37.150 --> 00:42:42.753
chris: Well, there was. There was a compilation came out, and I can't remember the dates, and you'll know which was the
414
00:42:43.520 --> 00:42:49.710
chris: It's a double disk compilation of sparks. I'm trying to remember the name of it, and it's 2 Cds on rhino. I think it was.
415
00:42:49.850 --> 00:42:50.270
Christian Huey: Yeah.
416
00:42:50.270 --> 00:42:54.519
chris: And he covered the early years in the eighties, and Ron and Russell had done a commentary in it.
417
00:42:55.009 --> 00:43:02.559
chris: And and I thought that was really really good. I got it for Christmas, and I thought, Oh, I've missed out on some really great stuff here.
418
00:43:03.070 --> 00:43:12.390
chris: and then they kind of did that reinvention thing which was something they do on occasion and come back with national crime awareness week.
419
00:43:12.390 --> 00:43:13.360
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
420
00:43:13.840 --> 00:43:25.790
chris: And and that was like, Oh, you know, this is. And you thought, this is, this is good. I like, this is good. So we had that, and then we had the gratuitous Sax which they told Europe doing that. And then that was kind of
421
00:43:26.440 --> 00:43:34.269
chris: a real reawaking, awakening a rebirth. Sparks in Europe, without a doubt. They just pulled back
422
00:43:34.740 --> 00:43:39.533
chris: a load of old fans and got a load of new ones on the strength of that material.
423
00:43:40.930 --> 00:43:42.210
chris: massively sad.
424
00:43:42.430 --> 00:43:52.839
Christian Huey: It. It's it's it's interesting to me, because it seems that you know certainly before I don't know whatever the turn of the millennium, or whatever
425
00:43:53.130 --> 00:43:56.759
Christian Huey: those times when Sparks had any traction
426
00:43:56.960 --> 00:44:05.469
Christian Huey: within the United States, they had no presence outside of the United States, and and the reverse of that was also true.
427
00:44:06.720 --> 00:44:07.380
Christian Huey: It.
428
00:44:07.380 --> 00:44:17.273
chris: Yes, it fundamentally what what we see is a complete flip, that they that Europe and British success, and nothing in America swaps over and becomes
429
00:44:17.930 --> 00:44:23.759
chris: you know, a really good decade for you guys in the eighties, largely speaking, that you did well there
430
00:44:23.920 --> 00:44:29.629
chris: with some good albums, I must admit, but we we got nothing, I mean nothing at all.
431
00:44:29.660 --> 00:44:33.998
Christian Huey: You had no womp that sucker, and you, you had no
432
00:44:34.360 --> 00:44:35.050
chris: No.
433
00:44:35.530 --> 00:44:40.910
Christian Huey: That. Why can't I think of it now? It's 1 of my favorite. It's my favorite album, practically.
434
00:44:40.910 --> 00:44:42.170
chris: In my pants.
435
00:44:42.170 --> 00:44:43.650
Christian Huey: Yes, angst. Angst, thank you.
436
00:44:43.860 --> 00:44:46.599
Christian Huey: My second favorite sparks. Album. Yeah.
437
00:44:46.600 --> 00:44:47.749
chris: No, they just.
438
00:44:47.750 --> 00:44:48.520
Christian Huey: Not known.
439
00:44:49.820 --> 00:44:53.609
chris: Nothing. It it was. It was as though they just had gone.
440
00:44:54.270 --> 00:44:56.950
Christian Huey: You know, but that's you're in the front room
441
00:44:57.430 --> 00:45:00.900
Christian Huey: unless you were in the Fan Club. Of course you know which and they want
442
00:45:00.900 --> 00:45:03.439
Christian Huey: time was was was curated by
443
00:45:04.556 --> 00:45:12.257
Christian Huey: their their mom, who went by Mary, I forget now. But
444
00:45:12.760 --> 00:45:17.879
Christian Huey: but yeah, it was their their mother who was who was at least a vocal voice in their Fan club for quite a while.
445
00:45:18.240 --> 00:45:24.584
chris: Yeah, so it it it was just how he was. There's an awful lot of banners that the same thing happened to.
446
00:45:26.100 --> 00:45:37.990
chris: you mentioned. I know you're Fan of Roxy music, and they vanished for 4 years, and that seemed like the longest 4 years ever. Yeah, they were seen for you thought 4 years, and they're coming back when it's nothing nowadays. Of course.
447
00:45:37.990 --> 00:45:42.399
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, came back with manifesto when there was there were, there were like a whole new group.
448
00:45:42.970 --> 00:45:43.760
chris: Yeah.
449
00:45:44.160 --> 00:45:48.119
chris: So it was good to have sparks back, and there was a sense of regret. But it
450
00:45:48.360 --> 00:45:54.930
chris: there would have been nothing I could have done, so to speak, I would have picked up some albums and heard them by buying them. I import, which I didn't do
451
00:45:55.396 --> 00:46:02.660
chris: so it was a lot of catching up, in effect, to do. And and there was this compilation which I'm trying to find out. The name of. It was a double CD,
452
00:46:03.070 --> 00:46:04.810
chris: so which include.
453
00:46:05.050 --> 00:46:05.810
Christian Huey: Or is it later one.
454
00:46:05.810 --> 00:46:06.410
chris: Cool.
455
00:46:06.650 --> 00:46:10.330
chris: I think it might have been the pro. Apparently it's 2 Cds.
456
00:46:11.670 --> 00:46:15.389
Christian Huey: Know there was a there was sort of a weird hell and heaven collection.
457
00:46:16.050 --> 00:46:16.710
Christian Huey: Yeah, I don't see.
458
00:46:16.710 --> 00:46:17.320
Christian Huey: G.
459
00:46:17.870 --> 00:46:18.910
chris: That was good.
460
00:46:19.600 --> 00:46:24.280
chris: Yeah. This one had somebody on a bicycle, I think, on the road, on the cover.
461
00:46:24.680 --> 00:46:25.890
Christian Huey: Oh, let's see
462
00:46:26.196 --> 00:46:34.460
Christian Huey: and yes, something for amnesiacs or no. No, no, I think that I know what you're talking about. There was like a sort of a cartoon image.
463
00:46:34.650 --> 00:46:37.220
chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
464
00:46:37.220 --> 00:46:41.909
chris: it escapes me because I reached that age. But that was really that did an amazing job.
465
00:46:42.561 --> 00:46:47.910
chris: And he had the 1st release of. I like girls on it as well. With the original band
466
00:46:48.140 --> 00:46:55.199
chris: was was on there, and some some nice live stuff. So so that was a nice crash course in what I've missed
467
00:46:55.480 --> 00:47:09.409
chris: through the eighties. And I thought it was good stuff, but they cherry picked the best of those albums and from the seventies. So it was good. And now, with the way the world is and things have changed, you can just keep up with anything. So problem solved.
468
00:47:09.410 --> 00:47:12.230
Christian Huey: Absolutely if were you?
469
00:47:13.390 --> 00:47:20.659
Christian Huey: Well, one of my favorite albums, aside from from Angst and Number one in heaven, which is my all time favorite.
470
00:47:20.920 --> 00:47:28.850
Christian Huey: Just to put that out. There is. Was indiscreet.
471
00:47:29.370 --> 00:47:34.289
Christian Huey: I absolutely adore indiscreet. I I thought that
472
00:47:34.490 --> 00:47:41.280
Christian Huey: that you know they the the production job was incredible. On there, by by Tony Bisconti.
473
00:47:42.360 --> 00:47:49.970
Christian Huey: How much were you able to get out of it and and forgive me! I like I
474
00:47:50.120 --> 00:47:56.570
Christian Huey: read through the whole darn thing. But I mean, did, were you? You weren't able to get a hold of Tony himself, were you, or were you.
475
00:47:56.570 --> 00:47:59.639
chris: No, we got close. It got very, very close.
476
00:47:59.640 --> 00:48:00.020
Christian Huey: Yeah.
477
00:48:00.020 --> 00:48:05.900
chris: He. He'd agreed, and we were setting a time and chat to Tony, and I'm thinking, oh, great
478
00:48:06.498 --> 00:48:09.840
chris: and then he backed out, and you never! You never know why
479
00:48:10.190 --> 00:48:16.959
chris: it it could be that he'd phone somebody. And they said, No, we're not doing it, so we won't do it. That that's quite common
480
00:48:17.470 --> 00:48:23.479
chris: you'll get asked are are such and such gonna do it. And and if they're not doing it, you know I won't do it, either.
481
00:48:24.910 --> 00:48:26.861
chris: so it would have been a shame.
482
00:48:27.720 --> 00:48:31.520
chris: on the hell collection. He's credited with playing bass for sparks.
483
00:48:32.060 --> 00:48:34.479
chris: Just one thing I've considered about. Yeah.
484
00:48:34.710 --> 00:48:35.450
Christian Huey: No kidding.
485
00:48:35.450 --> 00:48:37.819
chris: Tony Visconti's a good bass player.
486
00:48:39.060 --> 00:48:43.040
Christian Huey: That makes sense sure. He played on some of the Bowie records at that.
487
00:48:43.040 --> 00:48:52.519
chris: Yeah. And I stay in Hampton. I said, can I ask you any delicate question? Based on indiscrete? We should have to do that one?
488
00:48:52.670 --> 00:48:55.119
chris: And he said, No, I play all the bass on that album.
489
00:48:55.650 --> 00:48:58.239
Christian Huey: Ian Hampton said he did everything.
490
00:48:58.240 --> 00:48:59.480
chris: Now update everything.
491
00:49:01.920 --> 00:49:02.750
chris: Did you.
492
00:49:04.670 --> 00:49:08.760
Christian Huey: Did you talk to anyone? You know, speaking of
493
00:49:09.820 --> 00:49:14.390
Christian Huey: delicate questions and people who are involved?
494
00:49:14.690 --> 00:49:22.230
Christian Huey: Anyone anyone close to Dinky or anyone in close close to Adrian Fisher.
495
00:49:22.800 --> 00:49:24.509
chris: Yeah. Well, trepid white
496
00:49:25.300 --> 00:49:36.350
chris: who plays an indiscrete and propaganda. I I spoke to him, for I spoke a couple of times for some time, and he was very frank.
497
00:49:36.970 --> 00:49:38.609
chris: very frank indeed.
498
00:49:41.310 --> 00:49:47.250
chris: as regards Dinky, I mean. Obviously you know what happened to him, and and that it was it was suicide.
499
00:49:47.580 --> 00:49:48.140
Christian Huey: Yeah.
500
00:49:49.810 --> 00:49:55.970
chris: Trevor wine's view, which I I think I sort of phrase very carefully, was that he'd never been
501
00:49:56.180 --> 00:49:59.989
chris: quite the same since things broke down with sparks.
502
00:50:01.430 --> 00:50:07.829
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, that's that's that's difficult. Because you know, we we you've got a.
503
00:50:08.760 --> 00:50:25.379
Christian Huey: you've got an act with such a long history and so many different players, and so many different personalities and so many different stories. There's going to be some tragedies in there, and I'm sure obviously you you encountered some of those like you did with Adrian and and Dinky and whatnot.
504
00:50:26.000 --> 00:50:30.301
chris: You do? I mean. One thing Trevor White said was was
505
00:50:32.080 --> 00:50:40.869
chris: He? He feels that his problem with indiscreet, which you won't be too surprised about is is any songs on which the band don't play.
506
00:50:41.330 --> 00:50:47.519
chris: and there's there's a quite a few songs where the band are not on at all, or not on very much.
507
00:50:47.800 --> 00:50:49.150
Christian Huey: Get in the swing. Maybe.
508
00:50:49.990 --> 00:50:57.799
chris: Well, there's looks, looks, in fact, nobody whatsoever plays on that from the band, or even Ron.
509
00:50:58.310 --> 00:51:01.379
chris: He's not even Ron.
510
00:51:01.630 --> 00:51:02.189
Christian Huey: Wow! I didn't.
511
00:51:02.940 --> 00:51:04.089
chris: No, he's on it.
512
00:51:05.154 --> 00:51:09.930
chris: It's the Ted Heath orchestra play everything on looks, looks. Looks
513
00:51:12.040 --> 00:51:17.910
chris: So so there you go. Yeah. Trevor White was was run.
514
00:51:18.690 --> 00:51:21.109
chris: Yeah, I think he sees it for what?
515
00:51:21.780 --> 00:51:27.989
chris: What it probably was really, which is that you've got 2 guys, Ron and Russell, who
516
00:51:28.160 --> 00:51:31.390
chris: believe they are sparks which they are.
517
00:51:31.690 --> 00:51:35.460
chris: and they are working with effectively hired hands.
518
00:51:36.020 --> 00:51:41.619
chris: And and that's really what they have done. And I think it's down to whether you accept that fact.
519
00:51:42.790 --> 00:51:44.240
chris: You can live with that.
520
00:51:44.540 --> 00:51:48.370
chris: or you have a lot of trouble with it. And I think some of these
521
00:51:48.520 --> 00:51:53.299
chris: people, particularly the ones who were upset seem to feel they were joining a band.
522
00:51:53.770 --> 00:52:03.760
Christian Huey: Right, right, and you know, and and it it does seem that some of those players were almost
523
00:52:04.470 --> 00:52:16.270
Christian Huey: promised something other than what they got they were, were at least led to believe that they were, that they were going to be walking into somewhat of a democratic institution, and that was.
524
00:52:16.270 --> 00:52:16.980
chris: Well.
525
00:52:16.980 --> 00:52:17.590
Christian Huey: Gone!
526
00:52:17.590 --> 00:52:21.440
chris: Well, we're talking particularly here about Martin Gordon, aren't we?
527
00:52:21.440 --> 00:52:23.170
Christian Huey: We're talking about Martin Gordon, the great.
528
00:52:23.170 --> 00:52:25.430
chris: And and and
529
00:52:25.800 --> 00:52:33.410
chris: he doesn't need defending at all, because what Martin produced for me, Andy, as I'm talking to you, he did the same. He was holding up diaries
530
00:52:33.520 --> 00:52:36.390
chris: and notebooks from 1974.
531
00:52:36.390 --> 00:52:39.000
Christian Huey: Would you hopefully in your book.
532
00:52:39.000 --> 00:52:45.599
chris: Yeah. Yeah. And he he kept a diary for every day. Now, either the guy was making up stuff every day
533
00:52:46.840 --> 00:52:53.499
chris: through 1974, or has rewritten it since the cover. 74. If you speak to him.
534
00:52:54.070 --> 00:52:58.919
chris: he is extremely credible, and it sounds utterly believable to me.
535
00:53:01.340 --> 00:53:01.910
Christian Huey: Yeah.
536
00:53:01.910 --> 00:53:04.170
chris: I think Ron and Russell may all have.
537
00:53:05.100 --> 00:53:13.280
chris: One of the challenges they probably have is that I'm sensing from people to try and find a way around. It is they probably hate confrontation.
538
00:53:14.480 --> 00:53:15.769
chris: And that's okay
539
00:53:15.890 --> 00:53:24.510
chris: to me. I I don't care pretty much either. And there are ways of dealing with issues. And in bands there's always going to be issues about publishing, and who does what whatever.
540
00:53:24.720 --> 00:53:28.420
chris: And one way around that is to get somebody else to deal with the problem.
541
00:53:28.800 --> 00:53:36.300
chris: You know the Trevor White says they were sacked when they were having breakfast at the hotel when they were touring in America, and told, well, that's it now, boys.
542
00:53:36.560 --> 00:53:40.340
chris: and he was saying, Well, where's Ryan and Ross? And they'd already gone.
543
00:53:42.380 --> 00:53:43.260
chris: And
544
00:53:44.530 --> 00:53:51.229
chris: then Muff Wynwood I interviewed, and he said, look, I'll tell you this, Chris, he said, if you're going to get on in the music business. If you can't be tough.
545
00:53:51.350 --> 00:53:53.169
chris: you can't sack people
546
00:53:53.580 --> 00:53:58.160
chris: or relinquish them when they're no good to you anymore, or you want to move on. You're never going to make it.
547
00:53:59.970 --> 00:54:04.360
Christian Huey: What was it like talking to, to win, to.
548
00:54:04.360 --> 00:54:05.159
chris: Oh, we're both.
549
00:54:05.160 --> 00:54:21.259
Christian Huey: Excuse me. Yes, Winwood could, because he's I mean he's such a celebrated name and music, particularly at that time. With with sparks, with with the the cars with. I I think, Queen, if I remember correctly at some point, or maybe I'm misremembering.
550
00:54:21.750 --> 00:54:29.410
chris: Yeah, he was. I was very lucky, because he's from Birmingham and he's wine was from Smith, where I run the museum.
551
00:54:29.560 --> 00:54:30.529
chris: so I've got.
552
00:54:31.110 --> 00:54:32.620
chris: I got another angle.
553
00:54:33.128 --> 00:54:37.740
chris: I messaged him and said, in fact, I wrote him because I got his address.
554
00:54:38.330 --> 00:54:44.319
chris: and I said, Look, can we talk about smetic. No one's gonna ask him about that. Ever probably.
555
00:54:44.530 --> 00:54:45.000
Christian Huey: About? What.
556
00:54:45.000 --> 00:54:54.269
chris: And yeah, a place where he lived when he was younger, when he was in the Spencer Davis group. So you it kind of makes you look different.
557
00:54:54.940 --> 00:55:07.879
chris: You're coming from that viewpoint, and and also about his Tommy Sparks. Mark Wynwood was like. He was very friendly, very nice, and if he was giving evidence in court he'd have no trouble, because when he tells you something
558
00:55:08.060 --> 00:55:09.729
chris: you think that's how it is.
559
00:55:10.410 --> 00:55:16.620
chris: So I said to him who was offered to you when they came to Ireland.
560
00:55:17.000 --> 00:55:21.809
chris: What! What was your opinion of what? What you were getting? You? Said Ron and Russell, man?
561
00:55:23.110 --> 00:55:29.810
chris: I said to him, he said, with the original band the other 3 offered as well, and he said, Not when I was around. Now.
562
00:55:30.090 --> 00:55:32.330
chris: the manager
563
00:55:32.863 --> 00:55:38.890
chris: was was just basically gonna recruit 3 new British musicians, and as long as they were good. That was fine by me.
564
00:55:39.420 --> 00:55:42.170
Christian Huey: And and you can see, that's that's probably true.
565
00:55:42.650 --> 00:55:43.210
Christian Huey: Yeah.
566
00:55:43.700 --> 00:55:46.399
chris: It's probably true. Isn't it very sad?
567
00:55:47.020 --> 00:55:50.674
Christian Huey: Yeah. Good units at Ireland. Indiscrete as you said.
568
00:55:51.820 --> 00:56:01.619
chris: They were struggling over here in Britain and Europe. By the time indiscrete came out they knew they needed a bit of a change after propaganda, almost certainly.
569
00:56:02.250 --> 00:56:07.347
chris: and I think that always wanted to do something along the lines of what they did with this county, of having
570
00:56:07.980 --> 00:56:10.090
chris: spring quartets and
571
00:56:10.250 --> 00:56:18.920
chris: biddles and all sorts of things on it, and being a very diverse record, and and I think in some respects now, Monty, we spoke a while ago
572
00:56:19.800 --> 00:56:25.629
chris: he saw certain parallels which I thought was really good between indiscrete and wood, for in a way that there was that
573
00:56:25.880 --> 00:56:35.169
chris: trying to try different things that he could see that it started with. Here comes Bob, and Batch is not included, and he's quite right, and I thought that was interesting. But
574
00:56:35.410 --> 00:56:38.010
chris: I think indiscreet was not what
575
00:56:39.310 --> 00:56:41.750
chris: lot of people wanted over in Britain.
576
00:56:41.970 --> 00:56:48.020
chris: They probably would have wanted the diminishing returns of the amount of propaganda part 3.
577
00:56:49.290 --> 00:56:50.040
chris: So if this.
578
00:56:50.040 --> 00:56:52.480
Christian Huey: That's interesting, you know.
579
00:56:53.390 --> 00:57:12.569
Christian Huey: because when when that when that record came out in discrete 1975 and it, it in my mind occupies a similar space to queens and night at the opera, and that they were just throwing, you know, whatever they they could at the wall, and most of it stuck because they had gotten so good
580
00:57:12.770 --> 00:57:23.890
Christian Huey: at at doing all these, you know, sorts of different ideas and and and different genres and and whatnot. So it's it was somewhat strange to me to to hear
581
00:57:24.040 --> 00:57:28.349
Christian Huey: I wasn't there at the time that that that did not
582
00:57:29.742 --> 00:57:41.409
Christian Huey: grab hold of the the imagination of the British, you know. Music listening public, as did the Queen record at that time.
583
00:57:42.190 --> 00:57:44.655
chris: No, they had a problem, I think, gets in the swing.
584
00:57:47.750 --> 00:58:01.799
chris: it's not one of my favorites. I can see what they're trying to do on it, and I understand what they're trying to do on it. But something still stops me from going overboard on it. I must admit I do like looks looks very much. I I that always makes me smile.
585
00:58:01.980 --> 00:58:11.628
chris: I love the way that comes in. But the singles were dropping off the charts lower places in the top 30 so, and an industry was dropping down as well. So
586
00:58:12.440 --> 00:58:15.330
chris: Something had to change after that, and
587
00:58:16.590 --> 00:58:30.250
chris: I think even that was when you 1st realized for me that Sparks, the males, were capable of making a very big change to their sound. I could see a lineage up to them through the Islander albums.
588
00:58:30.440 --> 00:58:35.660
chris: and they had one island album to go when big Beat came out with that god. Awful cover! I've got to say.
589
00:58:36.310 --> 00:58:39.430
Christian Huey: Oh, you didn't like it! That's a famous cover by now.
590
00:58:39.550 --> 00:58:42.830
Christian Huey: By Richard Evidon, right? I don't want to say.
591
00:58:42.830 --> 00:58:45.650
chris: No problems. I've no problems with all of that.
592
00:58:46.410 --> 00:58:50.759
chris: When you, when when I spoke to Rupert Holmes about what he thought he was making
593
00:58:50.940 --> 00:58:52.820
chris: and what the idea was.
594
00:58:53.170 --> 00:59:03.699
chris: If you think about that concept, as was, he explained to him, screams out a kind of a shutdown side alley, or some sort of gritty kind of in your faceness.
595
00:59:04.960 --> 00:59:10.340
chris: Who is which it it it doesn't have at all.
596
00:59:10.800 --> 00:59:12.480
Christian Huey: Better stats.
597
00:59:13.320 --> 00:59:13.650
chris: I can see.
598
00:59:13.650 --> 00:59:16.309
Christian Huey: Sort of hinting toward that. But yeah, but not.
599
00:59:16.310 --> 00:59:19.039
chris: Yeah. yeah. I mean, that was.
600
00:59:20.430 --> 00:59:25.699
chris: I mean, Michael's does really? Well, doesn't he? On that? I mean the drums you listen to you. Think, my God!
601
00:59:27.310 --> 00:59:29.600
chris: And a group of tomes is still.
602
00:59:29.790 --> 00:59:35.889
chris: I think he says he says the only thing he finds is, he finds if anybody says to the males.
603
00:59:36.300 --> 00:59:38.809
chris: what the hell happens with with big bees?
604
00:59:39.430 --> 00:59:45.800
chris: They'll they'll they'll tend to say something along the lines of with production problems.
605
00:59:46.710 --> 00:59:51.339
chris: And if anybody says to them, big B, what a terrific album! Oh, yeah, thank you.
606
00:59:52.826 --> 00:59:57.324
chris: But he says that that's just how it is. And it is
607
00:59:58.800 --> 01:00:01.680
chris: I mean Jeff Salem. What a guitar player.
608
01:00:01.960 --> 01:00:03.129
Christian Huey: Yeah, all that.
609
01:00:03.450 --> 01:00:04.170
Christian Huey: Yeah.
610
01:00:04.470 --> 01:00:06.190
Christian Huey: Did you get a chance to talk to him?
611
01:00:06.780 --> 01:00:07.550
Christian Huey: Is it.
612
01:00:07.550 --> 01:00:10.329
chris: Jess Islands unfortunately passed away some time ago.
613
01:00:10.450 --> 01:00:12.769
Christian Huey: Oh, I'm sorry, that's I forgot that detail.
614
01:00:12.770 --> 01:00:18.600
chris: I know well, I would only have known had I not, through checking stuff.
615
01:00:19.030 --> 01:00:24.529
Christian Huey: Well, you know, but of course, as you know, Sal's left us, you mentioned that, and.
616
01:00:24.530 --> 01:00:25.296
chris: He was
617
01:00:25.680 --> 01:00:26.980
Christian Huey: You can talk to Sal.
618
01:00:27.430 --> 01:00:31.780
chris: That was so funny. And he's played with anybody.
619
01:00:31.890 --> 01:00:34.073
chris: And I was on the
620
01:00:35.380 --> 01:00:44.020
chris: yeah, I he books great. And I was on the phone to him for a video Zip for ages. And we went through his Tommy Roxy, Robert Calvert of Hawkward.
621
01:00:44.200 --> 01:00:49.750
chris: the runaways. He plays all of the bass by one track on, waiting for the night, elm by the runaways.
622
01:00:50.650 --> 01:00:55.780
chris: and he was so funny and amusing, and a great bass player.
623
01:00:55.930 --> 01:00:59.980
chris: and he's very, very proud he was of his work on big beat and
624
01:01:00.850 --> 01:01:05.689
chris: and it's a very cohesive record, isn't it? It's do you like big beats?
625
01:01:06.570 --> 01:01:20.030
Christian Huey: I I like big beat. Yeah, I I don't think I'll ever love big beat. But there's there's a lot to I I do aesthetically. It's cohesive like you said, and there are some there are some bangers on there.
626
01:01:20.600 --> 01:01:48.499
Christian Huey: My, my! I guess my general opinion is that they were if they were either trying to run rust, trying too hard not to try too hard, or they weren't trying hard enough to to try. I I don't know if that makes sense, but I mean they were definitely going for a a stripped down sound, something that, like, you know, these days is called protopunk
627
01:01:49.985 --> 01:01:52.070
Christian Huey: and I guess
628
01:01:52.940 --> 01:02:04.908
Christian Huey: it just it just doesn't quite. It doesn't hit me the way those island records do. And I think that's probably the way for for a lot of fans, but you know, put it on, and like I'll jam out to
629
01:02:05.470 --> 01:02:07.435
Christian Huey: you know, to
630
01:02:08.610 --> 01:02:17.240
Christian Huey: throw away and get her a new one, or I want to be like everybody else, or nothing to do. I mean, they're they, they do have. They do have a punch.
631
01:02:17.580 --> 01:02:20.560
Christian Huey: It's just not one that I come back to that often.
632
01:02:21.620 --> 01:02:26.680
chris: Yeah, I see what you mean. Of course, this the runness quotient, isn't it? I mean, run so dialed down.
633
01:02:26.820 --> 01:02:32.270
chris: Yeah, that's what they wanted, and they didn't want run
634
01:02:32.590 --> 01:02:37.130
chris: prominent in the mix, and he's he's scarcely noticeable a lot of the time.
635
01:02:37.723 --> 01:02:47.990
chris: Which makes the live recordings from the bottom line and so on. It's a couple of live shows interesting because you can hear on quite clearly on the big beat songs on that.
636
01:02:48.360 --> 01:02:50.305
chris: But yeah, I mean, that was
637
01:02:50.970 --> 01:02:53.979
Christian Huey: That's nothing compared to the next curveball, though, is it?
638
01:02:54.190 --> 01:03:03.229
Christian Huey: Oh, boy, okay, but yes, so we'll we'll get to that. But I just want to take a moment to say that that that hilly Michaels
639
01:03:03.690 --> 01:03:24.490
Christian Huey: really carry, I don't want to say carries, but he carries a lot of weight and a lot of water on on big beat. And I really notice what what Hilly brings to this, and I was wondering if you had any thoughts about Hilly, or if you had listened to hilly stuff beyond that.
640
01:03:24.490 --> 01:03:25.220
chris: Yeah.
641
01:03:25.640 --> 01:03:32.369
chris: Yeah. Well, Rupert and I talked about Hilly because you you can't not talk about hilly Michaels on the album.
642
01:03:32.480 --> 01:03:39.609
chris: And and his view was, and I got it straight towards that. He said that I listened to him, and I thought, Oh, it's a Keith moon drummer!
643
01:03:40.550 --> 01:03:41.490
chris: That's gonna be a leak.
644
01:03:41.490 --> 01:03:44.320
chris: I thought, Yeah, can't argue with that.
645
01:03:44.550 --> 01:03:46.730
Christian Huey: Yeah. And then Jeff Salem.
646
01:03:47.090 --> 01:03:54.520
chris: Plays the more guitar solos, I think, on one record, and been on all the other records put together. Quite probably.
647
01:03:56.480 --> 01:04:02.749
chris: And he I mean the the one solo that he gets on Big boy. I think he's something like 4 solos at the same time
648
01:04:02.890 --> 01:04:08.110
chris: that ruby times recorded. I think when you get that, that's that noise.
649
01:04:08.550 --> 01:04:15.189
chris: It's a solo is about 4 solos just played at the same time. Different takes
650
01:04:16.200 --> 01:04:19.160
chris: is that song you're talking about.
651
01:04:19.580 --> 01:04:21.509
chris: It's on a big boy.
652
01:04:21.790 --> 01:04:23.640
Christian Huey: Oh, and big boy, okay. Okay.
653
01:04:23.640 --> 01:04:28.379
chris: Halfway through. There's this little break, and there's this short burst of frantic guitar.
654
01:04:28.380 --> 01:04:29.710
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
655
01:04:29.710 --> 01:04:36.180
chris: Okay, and and Rupert Home said, I'll play it again, play it again, buy it again.
656
01:04:36.350 --> 01:04:41.219
chris: and he couldn't play it the same way each time. So we just overlaid him. So that's what you get. You slide
657
01:04:41.430 --> 01:04:43.489
chris: Jeff Solon 4 times the maximum.
658
01:04:45.140 --> 01:04:45.890
Christian Huey: Leads.
659
01:04:46.490 --> 01:04:47.190
Christian Huey: Fantastic.
660
01:04:47.190 --> 01:04:53.278
chris: Thanks, Ed, but of course, originally supposed to be Mick Ronson, playing guitar, and
661
01:04:54.510 --> 01:04:59.629
chris: and that that intrigues me because we have this story about them trying to get Brian May in the band.
662
01:05:00.240 --> 01:05:00.630
chris: Yeah.
663
01:05:00.630 --> 01:05:02.955
Christian Huey: Yeah, that's an interesting footnote,
664
01:05:04.010 --> 01:05:16.580
chris: So the lead guitar playing songwriting. Brian May, yeah. And then they were going to work with the songwriting, lead guitarist, Mick Ronson, and that doesn't square with anything that we know about their modus operandi.
665
01:05:16.780 --> 01:05:17.220
Christian Huey: No.
666
01:05:17.220 --> 01:05:18.060
chris: That's all.
667
01:05:19.190 --> 01:05:35.940
Christian Huey: Yeah, very, yeah. That's yeah. That is a peculiar footnote, and the sparks story that they approached Brian May. Who? I'm a an immense fan of, and actually once dated a girl who was
668
01:05:36.120 --> 01:05:39.769
Christian Huey: friends with his daughter. But that's a story. For another time.
669
01:05:42.350 --> 01:05:52.349
Christian Huey: But yeah, yeah, agreed. So I guess we should move on to the the penultimate release of the seventies
670
01:05:52.720 --> 01:05:56.080
Christian Huey: which is introducing, which is.
671
01:05:56.080 --> 01:05:56.450
chris: Yeah.
672
01:05:56.450 --> 01:05:58.010
Christian Huey: A hell of a weird album.
673
01:05:58.750 --> 01:06:00.180
chris: What was that like.
674
01:06:00.320 --> 01:06:03.940
Christian Huey: Finding people, because there's an army of people to talk to.
675
01:06:05.260 --> 01:06:05.960
chris: Yeah.
676
01:06:06.370 --> 01:06:16.910
chris: yeah, that's right. I mean, of of all of the albums. And I said earlier about making a list of people you want to talk to. I looked at introducing. And I thought, Oh, oh.
677
01:06:17.170 --> 01:06:24.220
chris: because they're all session. It's the cream of session musicians. And there is a lot of them. And I emailed or contacted
678
01:06:24.810 --> 01:06:27.539
chris: hard to get so many of them.
679
01:06:28.300 --> 01:06:45.089
chris: And you know, and most of them just don't reply, or don't want to talk, or whatever which is, you know, is is absolutely fine. When you do get somebody who wants to talk, it's great. Now, over here it was interesting. I can only remember one bit of publicity for the entire album
680
01:06:46.009 --> 01:06:51.200
chris: which was they appeared on a kids TV show called Tiz was.
681
01:06:51.720 --> 01:06:56.380
chris: and there was a bit of promotion for the album. I think they played over the summer.
682
01:06:57.690 --> 01:07:01.039
chris: and and I thought, I remember thinking, Well.
683
01:07:01.630 --> 01:07:09.840
chris: what's this, you know? And it didn't really say much to me at all, unfortunately, right?
684
01:07:10.000 --> 01:07:15.000
chris: So I didn't particularly care for that. And then I I know, cover. So I looked at the cover. And I thought, Oh.
685
01:07:16.090 --> 01:07:17.650
chris: yeah, would you?
686
01:07:17.650 --> 01:07:20.060
Christian Huey: Look at that cover either side.
687
01:07:21.294 --> 01:07:24.149
Christian Huey: It's yeah. It's pretty.
688
01:07:24.750 --> 01:07:30.150
Christian Huey: I don't know. Desultory. What is the word? I don't know. It's it's it's something.
689
01:07:30.530 --> 01:07:49.229
chris: It was called Introducing spark, so that confused us over in Britain, introducing years. What's this about? And I realized now is irony or something, or whatever you listen to it. And and again I think I found somebody who bought, and this is how it was. It was like, Oh, such and such has got the new.
690
01:07:49.520 --> 01:07:53.470
chris: I must get around to his house to hear it, because it's the only I'm gonna listen to it.
691
01:07:54.450 --> 01:07:58.630
chris: And and occasionally there there'd be for me. There'd be little
692
01:07:59.150 --> 01:08:06.859
chris: moments or times. I thought, Oh, yeah, I can hear. This is spark. It sounded like they were struggling to get through this La Session
693
01:08:07.300 --> 01:08:16.189
chris: sort of soup, not really making it. And there was run again. I couldn't really detect Ron's videosyncratic keyboards.
694
01:08:16.975 --> 01:08:25.490
chris: So over the years I've managed to have a affection verging on love at some songs
695
01:08:25.840 --> 01:08:27.999
chris: and others I can listen to.
696
01:08:28.760 --> 01:08:31.260
chris: I think there's anything I can't listen to.
697
01:08:32.121 --> 01:08:38.348
chris: And one of my favorite spark songs is on there. It has to be said when they did the
698
01:08:39.380 --> 01:08:44.670
chris: 21 night shows, and they finished off with the final show.
699
01:08:45.180 --> 01:08:55.129
chris: They did goofing off. And then one of my happiest memories has been at the front. When they did goofing off and having a a wonderful time just leaping around crazily.
700
01:08:55.700 --> 01:08:56.889
chris: and on those.
701
01:08:56.890 --> 01:08:57.640
Christian Huey: We have to.
702
01:08:57.760 --> 01:09:21.559
Christian Huey: Yeah, I agree with, you know. If I were to have a Jewish wedding which is not at the cards for me for several reasons, but that's a song I would definitely want to play there. I mean, there's sort of that class, not the word. But there is like a traditional sort of Jewish dance sort of rhythm to goofing off, and it's just so wild and woolly
703
01:09:21.680 --> 01:09:25.288
Christian Huey: in a way that they hadn't really done
704
01:09:26.670 --> 01:09:32.890
Christian Huey: maybe at all quite in that way, since, like I I this is an album
705
01:09:33.140 --> 01:09:35.619
Christian Huey: that grows in stature with me
706
01:09:36.100 --> 01:09:40.379
Christian Huey: as as I listen to it, more and more, because it is so adventurous.
707
01:09:41.830 --> 01:09:48.389
chris: Do you mean there is? There is enough there that you can find more? I mean, I I always smile at occupation.
708
01:09:48.600 --> 01:09:52.469
chris: and really I shouldn't, because he should just be stupid and silly, but I do still.
709
01:09:52.630 --> 01:09:54.742
Christian Huey: I think it's perfect.
710
01:09:57.060 --> 01:10:01.649
chris: I mean goofing up is the big one for me, and these mysteries I adore.
711
01:10:04.210 --> 01:10:06.570
chris: I really do like forever, young.
712
01:10:07.350 --> 01:10:07.970
Christian Huey: Yeah.
713
01:10:07.970 --> 01:10:12.109
chris: Really like that. And and the guy I got to speak to it. Someone.
714
01:10:12.360 --> 01:10:18.659
chris: It was Tom Lotella, and who, I think I mentioned about a hundred times. In talking about the album.
715
01:10:19.470 --> 01:10:24.799
chris: My! That guitar. So I'm goofing up. It's worth the price of admitting for that on its own
716
01:10:25.260 --> 01:10:27.050
chris: Tom returns guitar. So.
717
01:10:27.570 --> 01:10:28.790
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, he's great.
718
01:10:31.540 --> 01:10:32.230
chris: Hey?
719
01:10:32.570 --> 01:10:41.259
chris: You do kind of wonder what would introducing sparks have been like if I hadn't had the cream of these La Session musicians. It had been more.
720
01:10:41.780 --> 01:10:44.909
chris: The sparksness quotients have been a lot higher.
721
01:10:45.050 --> 01:10:49.569
chris: and I think it could have been a an even more interesting record.
722
01:10:50.080 --> 01:10:56.289
chris: It it is what it is, and as you've said, it's it is an album. I think, that has grown over the years
723
01:10:56.410 --> 01:11:00.219
chris: for many fans. I never used to hear a lot of love. Well, any love.
724
01:11:00.440 --> 01:11:03.190
chris: or from anyone I know that has changed.
725
01:11:04.750 --> 01:11:12.750
Christian Huey: I mean the the if you just look at the songwriting. If you look at the individual songs themselves, I think there's there's good stuff there.
726
01:11:13.300 --> 01:11:15.459
Christian Huey: A big surprise is a
727
01:11:15.740 --> 01:11:30.669
Christian Huey: I, you know. It's a pretty raw song. Occupation, though it's not necessarily high-minded, is still like it. It works ladies, I mean, in some ways these are sort of like boiled down
728
01:11:30.800 --> 01:11:32.960
Christian Huey: lyrically
729
01:11:33.518 --> 01:11:41.630
Christian Huey: boiled down, you know, sorts of sparks or ron style songs. It's just ones that don't require quite as much thought
730
01:11:41.790 --> 01:11:44.180
Christian Huey: as maybe, you know, previous ones would.
731
01:11:44.960 --> 01:11:51.569
chris: It always strikes me as a very cheerful record. When I listen to it. I always feel it's got a happy warmth.
732
01:11:51.580 --> 01:11:54.979
Christian Huey: It's their California record. It's their I call it. Their beach boys record.
733
01:11:56.090 --> 01:11:58.739
chris: Yeah, I can go with that. Yeah, I can go with that.
734
01:12:00.240 --> 01:12:03.749
chris: It's not something. I mean, I've really encountered that often
735
01:12:04.020 --> 01:12:10.390
chris: with, yeah. And I, I think, probably was my age at the time. I wasn't necessarily ready for happy warmth.
736
01:12:10.980 --> 01:12:13.509
chris: Wanted something a bit more introspective and
737
01:12:13.630 --> 01:12:17.279
chris: a bit more difficult. So I mean that that was that was tricky for us.
738
01:12:18.500 --> 01:12:21.580
chris: Yeah, didn't really do a light here at all.
739
01:12:24.040 --> 01:12:29.210
chris: And then we're starting to see this pattern that time. Of
740
01:12:29.560 --> 01:12:40.510
chris: what are we gonna do now? And I think what they what they realized, which was very, very cute and clever was that if you take what they have, Ron and Russell, and what they can do.
741
01:12:41.030 --> 01:12:48.190
chris: you could bulk that onto other genres, other forms of music. And then you have got a very interesting combination.
742
01:12:48.400 --> 01:12:54.900
chris: And I think that I'm not sure how far back they start to realize this? Certainly.
743
01:12:55.810 --> 01:13:00.700
chris: probably by big beats. I I suppose you could argue they do, because it sounds so different.
744
01:13:01.464 --> 01:13:06.470
chris: But the the next change that they come to was brilliant.
745
01:13:06.830 --> 01:13:07.480
chris: I mean.
746
01:13:07.480 --> 01:13:09.840
Christian Huey: Maybe the most radical change they ever made.
747
01:13:09.970 --> 01:13:11.100
Christian Huey: In, in my opinion.
748
01:13:11.100 --> 01:13:16.270
chris: Probably it still is, isn't it? I mean, that was
749
01:13:17.640 --> 01:13:24.209
chris: very, very brave, because he was going to go one of 2 ways. I think I think he was either going to just sink like a stone
750
01:13:24.741 --> 01:13:27.389
chris: or he was going to do extremely well.
751
01:13:28.360 --> 01:13:35.299
chris: And there was some elements over in Britain. I think that what that happened in 74 you could see happening a bit again
752
01:13:35.430 --> 01:13:48.869
chris: with Number One in heaven. You could see I was reading and hearing the same reactions. What is that guy doing on the keyboards? And these were people who hadn't seen it 1st time around. And there isn't a singer cute, and there was a sense of that coming back.
753
01:13:49.330 --> 01:13:54.420
chris: And to work with Moroda was genius
754
01:13:54.530 --> 01:13:58.920
chris: absolutely the right person to work with and
755
01:14:00.520 --> 01:14:06.519
chris: I don't know. Maybe you can see that running through their work to this day some of what they learned from working with Moroda. Perhaps
756
01:14:06.890 --> 01:14:10.660
chris: I'm certainly up to gratuitous sacks you could see coming through there.
757
01:14:10.820 --> 01:14:18.560
chris: Yeah, that album, some of the ones after that. But yeah, I I just wish it was longer. Is the album, I mean.
758
01:14:18.560 --> 01:14:19.270
Christian Huey: Agreed
759
01:14:20.420 --> 01:14:27.460
Christian Huey: I could not agree more. So that is, as I said, full disclosure. That is my favorite sparks album
760
01:14:28.529 --> 01:14:32.359
Christian Huey: I never tire of it every time I I listen to it.
761
01:14:32.520 --> 01:14:38.479
Christian Huey: I I did pull from your book. If I can pull those pages up that.
762
01:14:38.480 --> 01:14:38.940
chris: Yeah.
763
01:14:38.940 --> 01:14:42.110
Christian Huey: There were some questions that I had
764
01:14:42.911 --> 01:14:51.539
Christian Huey: about the instrumentation that I didn't know about. Like I I had assumed that you've got Keith Forsey doing all the drums, and maybe that is.
765
01:14:51.540 --> 01:14:51.900
chris: Yep.
766
01:14:51.900 --> 01:14:57.310
Christian Huey: That's true. Oh, gosh! What was it? But there were some things going on
767
01:14:57.550 --> 01:15:06.809
Christian Huey: that I wasn't aware of. I don't know. Maybe while I look for that May. Maybe maybe you can speak to that a little bit, because we've got.
768
01:15:07.750 --> 01:15:11.889
Christian Huey: of course. Giorgio, who, I assume, is
769
01:15:13.040 --> 01:15:17.430
Christian Huey: is he playing all the synths, or is he just setting up the synths for Ron to play.
770
01:15:18.040 --> 01:15:25.150
chris: No, he simply has to be playing on it, and the reason he has to be playing on it is that if you listen to records he's made before that.
771
01:15:27.110 --> 01:15:33.490
chris: There's a certain sound he has on the synths and keyboards that there's a Moroda style which had already
772
01:15:33.610 --> 01:15:36.249
chris: been played by him on other records.
773
01:15:37.200 --> 01:15:37.680
Christian Huey: Right.
774
01:15:37.730 --> 01:15:39.640
chris: Without any doubts at all.
775
01:15:41.560 --> 01:15:43.740
chris: So Ron is collaborating
776
01:15:44.270 --> 01:15:50.680
chris: on cables, and and this is when it gets it's got a bit trickier over the last few albums.
777
01:15:52.070 --> 01:16:03.199
chris: Discreet. Really, you either can't hear run, or you're not sure whether he's from, and I'm introducing Sparks. I'm not sure when he is Ron or one of the other thrill. People plays are accredited on the record.
778
01:16:03.300 --> 01:16:06.269
chris: and and I'm number one in heaven, I think.
779
01:16:06.770 --> 01:16:14.529
chris: look at the songwriting credits for some clues as well. If I wrote is on the songwriting, then he's almost certainly him. You can hear playing on it as well.
780
01:16:14.680 --> 01:16:26.370
chris: That's that was how I tended to spot that it was him he's definitely on there. I mean, there are stories which I'm gonna have to get to for the next book that that Ron doesn't play our notes on Terminal Jive.
781
01:16:27.066 --> 01:16:28.969
Christian Huey: Yeah, well, so I,
782
01:16:29.540 --> 01:16:35.380
Christian Huey: I also read that at some point. And then I read something else saying that that was not strictly true
783
01:16:36.910 --> 01:16:39.918
Christian Huey: although to a large part true.
784
01:16:41.200 --> 01:16:44.578
chris: Yeah, I'm hoping to find out on that. But Number number one in Evan, I think.
785
01:16:45.890 --> 01:16:53.249
chris: and so much of the album is released a single thing. So one track is released as A B side or an A side on it at some point or another.
786
01:16:53.500 --> 01:16:54.360
chris: Think it's just
787
01:16:54.360 --> 01:16:57.669
chris: that's right. There was not a contract that was not released as an A or A B side.
788
01:16:57.920 --> 01:17:03.720
chris: Yeah, only one. I think the ability to put out these pick the disks and 12 inch disks, and
789
01:17:04.150 --> 01:17:04.970
chris: maybe it must.
790
01:17:04.970 --> 01:17:07.319
Christian Huey: Either voice was not released, and as a.
791
01:17:07.320 --> 01:17:12.204
chris: Is that one? It's 1 of them didn't make it to onto anything.
792
01:17:13.550 --> 01:17:20.309
chris: it's it is the singles dominate, I I think, on that. And over here in Britain that that's the perspective.
793
01:17:20.310 --> 01:17:21.110
Christian Huey: You've got.
794
01:17:21.110 --> 01:17:21.770
chris: Also let me.
795
01:17:22.450 --> 01:17:23.160
Christian Huey: Yeah.
796
01:17:23.160 --> 01:17:27.749
chris: Yeah, when when sparks play live, that's those singles are the ones that
797
01:17:28.130 --> 01:17:32.020
chris: people want to hear. But it is an astonishing album
798
01:17:32.320 --> 01:17:36.810
chris: and the best cover in a long time. I'm going to say, yeah.
799
01:17:36.980 --> 01:17:41.340
chris: yeah. I thought I'd seen it around there.
800
01:17:42.600 --> 01:17:45.100
Christian Huey: There she is somewhere back there. Yeah.
801
01:17:45.100 --> 01:17:55.079
chris: Yes, very, very brave thing to do. And it it kind of works them I don't see, indeed.
802
01:17:55.320 --> 01:17:57.420
chris: don't think it did as well as it is. A.
803
01:17:58.190 --> 01:18:05.399
chris: That's my opinion. When I look at the those singles, I think they could have had a number one number 2. It over here probably should have done.
804
01:18:05.720 --> 01:18:10.589
chris: I think they were. They were good enough to have done that. They they didn't do as well as that.
805
01:18:15.500 --> 01:18:19.919
Christian Huey: No, I'm sorry, so we we haven't talked about this this very much. But you know I
806
01:18:20.050 --> 01:18:24.960
Christian Huey: no, I I came up in the Mtv era.
807
01:18:25.120 --> 01:18:32.360
Christian Huey: And when I started discovering that Sparks had videos from from this time from
808
01:18:32.840 --> 01:18:40.450
Christian Huey: then, and even and even some some promotional clips from before then, like this town it.
809
01:18:41.070 --> 01:18:45.570
Christian Huey: That's when things really start to click for me
810
01:18:45.760 --> 01:18:48.270
Christian Huey: what what they were all about. Aesthetically.
811
01:18:48.270 --> 01:18:48.870
chris: Yes.
812
01:18:48.870 --> 01:18:57.509
Christian Huey: And I'm did you guys in in the Uk, did you happen? Did you see much of that from 74 to 79.
813
01:18:57.790 --> 01:19:03.370
chris: No, no, really. And what used to happen in the Uk was you'd appear on top of the Pops
814
01:19:03.980 --> 01:19:07.399
chris: commonly. Then they would reuse that performance
815
01:19:07.920 --> 01:19:18.509
chris: a couple of weeks later, or 3 weeks later, and then they might use a promo film. They seem to dislike using promo films on top of the pops, so we only occasionally really saw those
816
01:19:18.710 --> 01:19:21.955
chris: I can remember one for Ali Scooper being shown, and
817
01:19:23.090 --> 01:19:38.539
chris: Certainly the human rhapsody was shown. So so these promo things really became something we collected on on video cassettes when we were collecting anything we could about sparks. It would be, it would be like, Oh, somebody's got the promo video of this town
818
01:19:38.790 --> 01:19:48.580
chris: on a scratchy old video to say. And you would you do have this? Of course, not having seen it when he was on the 1st time. He's been like 15 years later, or something.
819
01:19:49.920 --> 01:19:51.810
chris: No, he never think it was.
820
01:19:52.769 --> 01:19:56.400
Christian Huey: So I wanted to ask you about what? Because I I was
821
01:19:57.730 --> 01:20:06.749
Christian Huey: I I was I was somewhat surprised and pleasingly to see that you had included
822
01:20:06.950 --> 01:20:26.910
Christian Huey: some other works that they had done in 1979 after number one in heaven, and that was an album that I've come to appreciate a lot which is noels. Dancing is dangerous, or there's more to life than dancing. I can never remember the name of the actual Lp.
823
01:20:27.390 --> 01:20:27.980
chris: Yeah.
824
01:20:28.622 --> 01:20:30.549
Christian Huey: So and so
825
01:20:31.250 --> 01:20:38.230
Christian Huey: when did you 1st hear that? And it I sort of do gather from your book that you know you weren't
826
01:20:38.580 --> 01:20:43.160
Christian Huey: very struck, you know, positively by that.
827
01:20:43.850 --> 01:20:45.549
Christian Huey: When did you 1st hear that.
828
01:20:46.551 --> 01:20:50.200
chris: That would have been probably in the nineties. Something like that.
829
01:20:52.210 --> 01:21:02.210
chris: As we're saying, that these things were not widely disseminated, unless presumably, you're in the Bank Club, and I did. I don't know because I I wasn't. I was in it for a short while.
830
01:21:02.450 --> 01:21:10.459
chris: and then I ended up sending postal orders and checks and whatever. So I just dropped out of that. So maybe people are in the Bank Club knew if you weren't in the Bank Club.
831
01:21:11.187 --> 01:21:15.630
chris: It would have been in the British music past Ron and Russell. I think
832
01:21:15.830 --> 01:21:17.980
chris: so now it's we're we're doing this album.
833
01:21:18.280 --> 01:21:21.669
chris: But you're still gonna go and buy it, because no one you aren't gonna hear it.
834
01:21:22.390 --> 01:21:25.940
Christian Huey: Oh, no, very few people would.
835
01:21:25.940 --> 01:21:28.060
chris: Like the record shop to put it on
836
01:21:28.939 --> 01:21:33.220
chris: and then the Adrian Munzi's say sheep. I'd heard about that.
837
01:21:33.630 --> 01:21:35.760
chris: I'm excited about you. Yeah.
838
01:21:36.185 --> 01:21:46.819
Christian Huey: I I had known about. It's it's its existence. But I had dismissed it as because I didn't. I didn't even hear it as a
839
01:21:46.960 --> 01:21:58.540
Christian Huey: a cover of sache with just a sheep. And
840
01:21:59.120 --> 01:22:10.140
Christian Huey: and then I finally recently actually listened to Adrian Muncies original piece, and then heard the one that he did, and I realized it was had nothing to do with that at all.
841
01:22:10.140 --> 01:22:11.700
chris: So right.
842
01:22:12.250 --> 01:22:19.219
Christian Huey: So that's fun. Do you know, I mean, how much of that? Do you know, did you talk to anyone involved with that.
843
01:22:19.640 --> 01:22:21.050
chris: Yeah, I spoke to Adrian.
844
01:22:21.330 --> 01:22:27.719
chris: and he was one of these exact cases of the guys going about his business, and nobody ever asks him
845
01:22:28.170 --> 01:22:30.300
chris: about this at all. Nobody.
846
01:22:30.580 --> 01:22:34.669
chris: And I emailed him and said, You want to talk? Oh, yeah, give me a call like today.
847
01:22:35.030 --> 01:22:37.252
chris: And he was thrilled to bits and
848
01:22:37.700 --> 01:22:42.995
chris: see, when you listen to it, I I've heard about it because a guy I used to work with
849
01:22:43.820 --> 01:22:47.220
chris: used to do a lot of work with a British singer called Helen Shapiro.
850
01:22:49.020 --> 01:22:52.859
chris: And she sings backing vocals on. Say, she.
851
01:22:53.800 --> 01:22:57.380
Christian Huey: Yeah. And she wanted, because she's got to earn some money in the in the.
852
01:22:57.840 --> 01:23:03.770
chris: Suppose what you might call the twilight of her career, and she could still sing. So she was. She was doing that
853
01:23:04.380 --> 01:23:05.250
Christian Huey: That's so bizarre.
854
01:23:05.400 --> 01:23:07.680
chris: I've never actually heard the record.
855
01:23:08.250 --> 01:23:15.150
chris: because, like you, I just thought it'd be some jokey thing over there. And and when I started putting the book together, I thought.
856
01:23:15.600 --> 01:23:17.690
chris: what if I actually play on it
857
01:23:19.160 --> 01:23:26.080
chris: when I listen to it? I knew Ron was playing on it straight away because it. It's the keyboard. So it's it's
858
01:23:26.450 --> 01:23:35.360
chris: I thought, this is wrong. Now that it is Ron, he said. Oh, yeah, yeah. Ron plays all the keyboard since, and everything.
859
01:23:35.360 --> 01:23:38.330
Christian Huey: Played the lot on on that, on this issue.
860
01:23:38.330 --> 01:23:44.790
chris: No 18 months, he said, he said, and and probably let's be frank, because that would have been the cheapest option, wouldn't it?
861
01:23:45.330 --> 01:23:46.340
Christian Huey: Make, sense.
862
01:23:46.700 --> 01:23:53.470
chris: I suppose they chucked a lot of money at it, and an agent went on, for at 2 h
863
01:23:54.170 --> 01:23:59.489
chris: recording of these there's not much in the book, but if you want to know whose sheep they were.
864
01:24:00.240 --> 01:24:03.869
chris: all that seats open, wicked pants in shape
865
01:24:06.000 --> 01:24:11.429
chris: and and he looked at he? He just looked at that he was part of the sparks.
866
01:24:11.580 --> 01:24:18.960
chris: Storage since it was Virgin are doing it at the time, you know. We've got this guy, did you fancy doing this? Oh, yeah, we'll do that
867
01:24:19.200 --> 01:24:23.919
chris: doing these peculiar radio ads for the for the album.
868
01:24:23.920 --> 01:24:26.820
Christian Huey: How on earth did they find each other? I mean, that's just.
869
01:24:26.820 --> 01:24:31.000
chris: Peter Cook was recording for virgin records. They'd signed him up.
870
01:24:31.340 --> 01:24:34.549
chris: Peter and he would have been sat around the offices, probably not
871
01:24:35.279 --> 01:24:41.639
chris: doing this, and he would have said something. Probably I'm guessing of how much are you paying for me to do it
872
01:24:42.480 --> 01:24:43.960
chris: right?
873
01:24:44.936 --> 01:24:49.800
chris: So I think they saw sparks. And this is the impression that I got is being that
874
01:24:50.140 --> 01:24:55.900
chris: the band they could work with on different levels and and develop, and they would just pop up on different things
875
01:24:56.100 --> 01:25:04.250
chris: weren't dropped for them was when Terminal Jive was submitted. And and when I spoke to them they were.
876
01:25:04.610 --> 01:25:07.959
chris: They basically said, We can hear one song on it that's
877
01:25:08.250 --> 01:25:10.059
chris: that they thought was any good
878
01:25:10.420 --> 01:25:12.920
chris: right, and that, of course, is when I'm with you.
879
01:25:12.920 --> 01:25:16.819
chris: you know, with you, they said, apart from that, forget it. And they just said, Okay, we're not gonna
880
01:25:17.330 --> 01:25:23.250
chris: not gonna keep the contract going. That that's it. I think this this moment is past. Maybe it has.
881
01:25:23.860 --> 01:25:24.460
Christian Huey: Yeah.
882
01:25:25.750 --> 01:25:26.310
chris: Have.
883
01:25:26.650 --> 01:25:33.329
Christian Huey: Do you have any predilection of doing a follow up
884
01:25:33.540 --> 01:25:35.539
Christian Huey: to to this for the eighties.
885
01:25:36.300 --> 01:25:48.629
chris: Well, yeah. And the reason for that is because of people like yourself, Monty, Larry, and and various other sparks fans who've been so kind and welcoming and
886
01:25:49.090 --> 01:25:52.646
chris: letting me have the time to speak to you about these things. And
887
01:25:53.600 --> 01:25:59.040
chris: There was a there was a feeling that would sparks in the eighties appeal to anyone.
888
01:25:59.494 --> 01:26:03.280
chris: That with people like yourself who will have might want everything
889
01:26:03.820 --> 01:26:08.889
chris: there might be. Some people are going. Well, I I don't know about that era. I like this seventies stuff, or
890
01:26:09.120 --> 01:26:18.190
chris: and are there any people who only like sparks? Eighties, U.S.A. Style you aren't interested in. I don't know. So there's a risk element attached. But we're going to take the risk.
891
01:26:18.500 --> 01:26:20.389
chris: and I'm starting on it.
892
01:26:21.760 --> 01:26:30.769
chris: Probably be, I should imagine maybe after Christmas I need a break from that, and I'll start again the same way. So I'll list everybody
893
01:26:31.850 --> 01:26:39.459
chris: it is. And I think it's an interesting story, because, of course, we get the whole thing with you know, base motel, and so on. And during them.
894
01:26:39.970 --> 01:26:46.710
Christian Huey: And and actually sparks looking like a band more than they have since 1972 yeah.
895
01:26:46.984 --> 01:26:56.589
chris: And I'm hoping to get hold of the guys. And so that's where I'm I'm anyone that they can help put me in touch with them, because I I think that that's gonna be important.
896
01:26:56.810 --> 01:26:57.980
chris: I know.
897
01:26:58.320 --> 01:27:08.052
Christian Huey: Monty and I have both spoken with David. He's spoken more with David Kendrick than than I have, but he seems to be a very willing
898
01:27:09.026 --> 01:27:19.059
Christian Huey: interview subject, and he enjoys talking about that time period. So I think I think you'll get a lot out of out out of him about that time.
899
01:27:19.060 --> 01:27:32.610
chris: I hadn't heard claiming spies stuff till a while ago, and I think that struck me straight away, was the similarity to Sparks. And now I'm thinking how much of a cross pollination was going on. There.
900
01:27:32.910 --> 01:27:36.035
Christian Huey: That's a great question. And
901
01:27:36.860 --> 01:27:47.720
Christian Huey: I didn't get close enough to David, because the only he's the only only one that I was ever able to talk to about those things to really get into the
902
01:27:48.530 --> 01:28:02.689
Christian Huey: and nitty gritty about about that sort of thing. But I I didn't. I didn't get the impression that sparks were that Ron and Russell were much involved with the songwriting, nor the production
903
01:28:03.285 --> 01:28:06.540
Christian Huey: of the the gleaming spire stuff, but you know rather.
904
01:28:06.540 --> 01:28:06.890
chris: No.
905
01:28:07.480 --> 01:28:17.479
Christian Huey: I I hesitate to say it was a 1 way street, but it seems like it was probably more that way than the other. But you know there's probably a whole lot of discovery to be made there.
906
01:28:18.120 --> 01:28:28.019
chris: Well, I think you're right. What I want to find out from David is how much they had an influence. And input. Into the songs on those sparks, albums.
907
01:28:28.020 --> 01:28:30.110
Christian Huey: Oh, I see. Yeah.
908
01:28:30.110 --> 01:28:40.470
chris: Is there a sense that the Run and Russ have got these Demos? And then they go? Well, we could do this. We could do that because they just sound so similar to me to their own airports at times.
909
01:28:42.320 --> 01:28:44.000
chris: Maybe they must have
910
01:28:44.800 --> 01:28:48.580
Christian Huey: Yeah. Well, I know that. Those
911
01:28:50.020 --> 01:28:56.580
Christian Huey: those couple of eighties records at least as the the whomp and and angst.
912
01:28:56.890 --> 01:29:00.800
Christian Huey: a lot of those were. The music was
913
01:29:01.280 --> 01:29:09.430
Christian Huey: largely improvised in in the studio or or in rehearsal, so that the the members of
914
01:29:11.291 --> 01:29:13.979
Christian Huey: the Bates motel slash
915
01:29:14.579 --> 01:29:22.720
Christian Huey: gleaming spires had had a lot of influence on that sort of stuff, particularly when you're hearing the drum work, which is, you know.
916
01:29:22.920 --> 01:29:39.209
Christian Huey: you know all, all, David, but but I I do think and you know, and hopefully you'll you'll get some some more fine point information on this, but I I do think they had a lot of influence on the sound
917
01:29:39.420 --> 01:29:42.210
Christian Huey: of those those couple of records at least.
918
01:29:42.900 --> 01:29:47.440
chris: It doesn't look like a band, because I mean they even tour, don't they? I mean, it's.
919
01:29:47.440 --> 01:29:47.990
Christian Huey: Yeah.
920
01:29:48.630 --> 01:30:15.489
Christian Huey: And they toured long after they had, from my, from my knowledge, they toured with sparks long after they were actually have having much of an influence on the recorded material like in outer space, which was fairly minimal. And then and and even 84, 86, with the records that followed, but they still kept those guys around
921
01:30:15.870 --> 01:30:17.779
Christian Huey: to to follow on tour.
922
01:30:19.120 --> 01:30:26.293
chris: Going back, I mean, I mean, Trevor I was talking to when I spoke to Trevor White about indiscrete. I was telling them how much I love the
923
01:30:26.670 --> 01:30:30.380
chris: the kind of the glitter kind of glam rock was a big thing
924
01:30:31.130 --> 01:30:41.030
chris: Britain, which is my kind of early thing and I've seen how much I love the Glam rock kind of feel. And then hospitality on Pre really goes into that big kind of blizzard base.
925
01:30:41.230 --> 01:30:44.970
chris: And Trevor White said, that that's my bit. That's my idea.
926
01:30:45.180 --> 01:30:45.780
Christian Huey: Unbelievable.
927
01:30:45.780 --> 01:30:52.540
chris: To to run. Why don't we do this? And in having you listen to you can tell me somebody else's idea. It's it's so obvious.
928
01:30:53.170 --> 01:31:00.730
chris: and that was his bit of influence. So whether there was anything else that came in then I don't know, but it does show they are willing to listen to
929
01:31:01.050 --> 01:31:02.759
chris: idea. So that was good.
930
01:31:02.980 --> 01:31:10.339
Christian Huey: Well, the Glam kind of came to to them right I I don't think you know they they made the glam happen, you know.
931
01:31:10.340 --> 01:31:18.409
chris: 71 in Britain, I think, with with T. Rex and Hot Dog, and Ride. The White Swan was the the stars at 72 was big.
932
01:31:18.650 --> 01:31:25.849
chris: but it was still going in 74. So anybody who looked a bit odd and with a big, kind dramatic and
933
01:31:26.310 --> 01:31:34.919
chris: could be loosely put into the Glam here, and of course you're not saying no, are you? If somebody's labeling you, it means they might probably like you, I guess, is that
934
01:31:35.250 --> 01:31:40.099
chris: if the way they would have looked at it. Any publicity is good publicity, isn't it?
935
01:31:41.278 --> 01:31:47.889
chris: I hope they carry on. I mean, I'm enjoying the new album. I'm seeing them next Saturday, in fact.
936
01:31:48.220 --> 01:31:53.949
chris: so we can't see them on the tour. It looks like we're in for a good night, and we have got goofing off, I believe.
937
01:31:54.240 --> 01:31:55.949
chris: set this, which is good.
938
01:31:56.270 --> 01:31:57.890
Christian Huey: You've got the goofing office on.
939
01:31:58.268 --> 01:32:02.049
chris: It's been in the set list so far in Britain.
940
01:32:02.050 --> 01:32:14.063
Christian Huey: Okay. I have not, had an opportunity to to see them. This go around because they have not come to North America yet, and I probably won't be able to make it to to Europe this year. But I did see them in
941
01:32:14.580 --> 01:32:19.569
Christian Huey: 23, and and they had some stuff from
942
01:32:19.730 --> 01:32:34.240
Christian Huey: from 88 on there from interior design, which was surprising in a good way, so I would love to hear anything from from back then. So where are you? What's the venue where you're you're going to see them.
943
01:32:34.680 --> 01:32:41.120
chris: We're going to Wolverhampton. At the Civic Hall, and they they do Wolverhampton now each time they come.
944
01:32:41.660 --> 01:32:46.249
chris: And it's a it's a strong set list. If if we're getting the same one, it's certainly, I think
945
01:32:46.510 --> 01:32:51.709
chris: it's probably the best sort of final running of songs at the end of the night that
946
01:32:51.820 --> 01:32:56.859
chris: that I think they've done in a long time. So that that's really good, and there's a few deep cuts in there.
947
01:32:57.820 --> 01:33:02.800
chris: So all all to play for. Say, it'll be good hopefully enjoy that.
948
01:33:03.880 --> 01:33:04.560
chris: They also
949
01:33:04.560 --> 01:33:10.090
chris: about all this is I could say that thing about when I 1st saw sparks in 74.
950
01:33:10.590 --> 01:33:15.170
chris: It's May. I was older than 12 years old.
951
01:33:17.130 --> 01:33:19.709
chris: I was 13 in the December. So I was 12.
952
01:33:19.950 --> 01:33:22.260
chris: Yeah, that's 1974.
953
01:33:22.790 --> 01:33:29.220
chris: You kind of think to yourself that that's like most of my life. I and Ron and Russell Mayo
954
01:33:29.720 --> 01:33:31.210
chris: lurking around.
955
01:33:31.210 --> 01:33:34.528
Christian Huey: Yeah, that will happen to me before I know it.
956
01:33:35.834 --> 01:33:43.170
Christian Huey: So just to be, I'm being forthright here like I I didn't cotton on
957
01:33:43.350 --> 01:33:50.349
Christian Huey: to sparks until fairly late, very late. Actually, I should say very late. 2,008.
958
01:33:51.760 --> 01:34:10.869
Christian Huey: I did not. I know that's a blank. I understand that blank stare. I did not. I did not really get into sparse, or really even know about sparse until 2,008. I was 28 years old, so they they had been around and done all this stuff, and they had completely passed me by.
959
01:34:11.810 --> 01:34:18.440
chris: Story that I've heard I've come over here was that in America they were popular in.
960
01:34:18.790 --> 01:34:22.670
chris: They had strongholds in Los Angeles and New York to some degree.
961
01:34:22.920 --> 01:34:23.520
Christian Huey: Yeah.
962
01:34:23.970 --> 01:34:26.520
chris: And and pretty much that was about it.
963
01:34:26.690 --> 01:34:32.780
chris: and that if you were anywhere outside of there, your chances of encountered them were almost nil.
964
01:34:33.160 --> 01:34:33.689
Christian Huey: You know.
965
01:34:34.008 --> 01:34:37.830
chris: So it does look to me as though they've been working more
966
01:34:38.070 --> 01:34:40.529
chris: in America in the last few years.
967
01:34:40.800 --> 01:34:46.360
chris: And this I find interesting because it reminds me of another dynamic.
968
01:34:46.490 --> 01:34:47.160
chris: Do it.
969
01:34:47.160 --> 01:34:50.119
Christian Huey: Oh, I just saw them about 2 months ago.
970
01:34:50.750 --> 01:35:00.930
chris: When they seem to be working hard, and they were back in their you know, their prime, if you want to call it that, you're more likely to see them now. You were back whenever putting out the original albums.
971
01:35:03.300 --> 01:35:09.069
chris: so I mean, maybe they'll command again. I I think I'm certain that Ron and Russell mail will not stop.
972
01:35:09.400 --> 01:35:13.639
chris: I think they'll carry on making records. Even if they don't. Tour.
973
01:35:14.573 --> 01:35:18.440
chris: Always sell, won't they? I mean, I'm I'm
974
01:35:18.840 --> 01:35:21.559
chris: I'm I'm not asking you how old you are now
975
01:35:22.330 --> 01:35:24.509
chris: we'll carry on buying them, won't we?
976
01:35:25.080 --> 01:35:26.490
chris: That's meant for.
977
01:35:26.490 --> 01:35:27.999
Christian Huey: Yes, of course I will.
978
01:35:28.000 --> 01:35:37.230
chris: What's mid forties? Absolutely, but that's it. You're now done for the rest of your life with this, so you'll always be buying sparks, records.
979
01:35:37.230 --> 01:35:38.279
Christian Huey: Oh, forever.
980
01:35:38.550 --> 01:35:43.390
Christian Huey: until the end of time, and you know the way things are going with them. They may outlive me.
981
01:35:44.890 --> 01:35:49.079
chris: One of the things I find interesting about them wanted to touch on. This is they? They
982
01:35:50.640 --> 01:35:53.279
chris: put their comments on their albums in the book.
983
01:35:53.380 --> 01:35:56.670
chris: You look back and think. What did they say at the time?
984
01:35:57.010 --> 01:35:59.829
chris: And each of these records? And the answer is not a lot.
985
01:36:01.670 --> 01:36:07.460
chris: The view I'm I was getting once was that this is our album. This is our persona.
986
01:36:07.660 --> 01:36:08.680
chris: There you go.
987
01:36:09.600 --> 01:36:10.140
Christian Huey: Yeah.
988
01:36:11.140 --> 01:36:11.989
chris: There you go.
989
01:36:12.650 --> 01:36:18.190
chris: And they did. An interview with a British comedian. Rob Bryden, with them recently
990
01:36:18.910 --> 01:36:30.490
chris: saw the one clip from it where he. He tells him what his favorite song is, and you're waiting to hear what that is. And he says it's reinforcement. So you go. Okay, interesting.
991
01:36:31.460 --> 01:36:32.360
Christian Huey: That's a good one.
992
01:36:34.370 --> 01:36:42.940
chris: And he reads out the entire 1st verse to to run. And Russell, it's absent.
993
01:36:43.210 --> 01:36:44.419
chris: What side of that?
994
01:36:44.720 --> 01:36:48.879
chris: What is this? Where does this come from consequence upon the wrong.
995
01:36:49.210 --> 01:36:53.309
chris: and he just gives an enigmatic look and laughs. But it doesn't tell.
996
01:36:55.880 --> 01:36:58.760
Christian Huey: Man that that is the wrong mo.
997
01:36:59.880 --> 01:37:04.669
chris: I know we could go on for ages, but I've got to ask you what you personally, I used to wonder
998
01:37:05.210 --> 01:37:07.620
chris: when you have a thing like here comes Bob.
999
01:37:09.290 --> 01:37:16.140
chris: What is that? I mean? Because this is a guy who could be writing short stories, isn't it? Or books? I could have been a short story. Here comes Bob.
1000
01:37:16.440 --> 01:37:17.509
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
1001
01:37:18.657 --> 01:37:27.859
chris: These are not real people, but are these are these people who are real to him in some way, or is he? Are any of these songs is running any of them.
1002
01:37:28.440 --> 01:37:29.310
chris: It's all.
1003
01:37:29.550 --> 01:37:41.280
Christian Huey: So that's a great. Okay? So I I think, what what you're asking is is the so are these people that he's actually encountered, or these people just in his mind that.
1004
01:37:41.280 --> 01:37:47.500
chris: Well, some of them in his mind. I'm assuming hiccup. I hope that the guy in hiccups, probably sitting in his real person, driving.
1005
01:37:47.870 --> 01:37:49.610
Christian Huey: Inspired by, I suppose? Yeah.
1006
01:37:50.282 --> 01:37:58.109
chris: But then you start to look at the other sons. Don't you like this town ain't big enough? And did he ever experience a situation where he was a love rival
1007
01:37:58.570 --> 01:38:02.730
chris: with another guy over a girl. And and you want to believe that is so
1008
01:38:02.840 --> 01:38:05.120
chris: likely to something. Amster Hour.
1009
01:38:05.830 --> 01:38:13.450
chris: Is that him thinking back to some of his early sort of sexual experiences? Or is he just got this fervent imagination
1010
01:38:13.920 --> 01:38:17.589
chris: does run ever come through? Does Run's life experience.
1011
01:38:18.410 --> 01:38:19.040
Christian Huey: Right.
1012
01:38:19.040 --> 01:38:23.750
chris: Coming through is something. We just can't see it, because it's so covered up.
1013
01:38:24.350 --> 01:38:36.829
Christian Huey: You know. I think if if Freud were still around, I think he would have an absolute field day with a lot of Ron's lyrics. And so, yeah, I think a lot, especially.
1014
01:38:37.140 --> 01:38:44.989
Christian Huey: you know his earlier lyrics, you know. We're informed, you know. Of course we'll never know if they're you know, informed by literally.
1015
01:38:45.697 --> 01:38:50.879
Christian Huey: you know events or experiences from his own life. I mean, he's he'll he'll never be Neil young.
1016
01:38:51.860 --> 01:38:55.569
Christian Huey: but you know, but I think that there is.
1017
01:38:56.460 --> 01:39:05.879
Christian Huey: you know, something more autobiographically true. There, then, I think he'll he'll be keen to admit.
1018
01:39:06.070 --> 01:39:08.259
Christian Huey: just because he doesn't want to
1019
01:39:08.906 --> 01:39:14.720
Christian Huey: you know. But yeah, I don't think we'll we'll ever really know. But I think that is revealing of Ron's Psyche.
1020
01:39:15.080 --> 01:39:17.539
Christian Huey: and and that, and based on.
1021
01:39:17.920 --> 01:39:21.830
Christian Huey: you know his own life, and in some real way.
1022
01:39:23.020 --> 01:39:27.299
chris: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. It does make them endlessly fascinating, doesn't it?
1023
01:39:27.550 --> 01:39:27.870
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1024
01:39:28.920 --> 01:39:39.649
chris: I mean, big boy was one that I used to see because you used to see these these adverts in American comics when we're young, and you know, do you get Sand kicked in your face by the the beach? Bully.
1025
01:39:39.950 --> 01:39:42.890
chris: and he's a he's a manual. You can buy.
1026
01:39:43.130 --> 01:39:52.079
chris: and you read this manual. It'll tell you how to handle the beach. Bully, when he comes and kicks sand in your face, and I thought, I'm sure that's where he's got that from.
1027
01:39:52.320 --> 01:39:56.350
chris: But you can imagine that Ron would have been the guy getting Sam kicked in his face.
1028
01:39:56.350 --> 01:39:58.450
Christian Huey: Oh, totally. Yeah.
1029
01:39:58.850 --> 01:40:00.697
Christian Huey: Yeah. You know the
1030
01:40:01.160 --> 01:40:01.790
chris: Yeah.
1031
01:40:02.700 --> 01:40:06.030
Christian Huey: Are you familiar with? Robert Crumb with our crumb? The the cartoon.
1032
01:40:06.030 --> 01:40:07.860
chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
1033
01:40:07.860 --> 01:40:13.340
Christian Huey: That that to me that that is the comic book version of Ron Mail.
1034
01:40:13.910 --> 01:40:31.999
Christian Huey: I mean, from the look to the point of view, you know, maybe not quite as pathological, I mean Ron's probably not as pathological as as Robert Crum, but but I see a lot of parallels, you know, and they came up around the same time around the same things, too, which I thought was interesting.
1035
01:40:32.870 --> 01:40:38.439
chris: Thing happened in Britain when a guy was bought London Bridge, thinking he was buying Power Bridge.
1036
01:40:39.700 --> 01:40:46.270
chris: actually buying the old Blackbridge, which doesn't open up, and he bought London Bridge, and he's somewhere over in America now, I believe. Still.
1037
01:40:46.920 --> 01:40:53.569
chris: I always wondered if Ron had. You know. Okay, guys bought London Bridge. What if? What if you bought a river.
1038
01:40:54.750 --> 01:41:00.470
chris: And I'm I'm wondering if that's kind of how he, how he goes, and and then he's off on a tangent.
1039
01:41:02.118 --> 01:41:07.930
chris: That's a creepy one the move where the statue is alive.
1040
01:41:09.530 --> 01:41:13.239
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, the statue is alive.
1041
01:41:13.480 --> 01:41:18.190
chris: Some of these things are, you know, that woken me up at night over over the years.
1042
01:41:18.490 --> 01:41:19.650
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1043
01:41:19.930 --> 01:41:23.090
chris: That's what it was. It looked like a tongue in cheekness and.
1044
01:41:23.380 --> 01:41:26.560
Christian Huey: Mine that got me in this standing digging up when I first.st
1045
01:41:26.760 --> 01:41:34.069
chris: Had the lyrics which came out in the local music press, and he's got these magazines of lyrics past hits.
1046
01:41:34.240 --> 01:41:38.149
chris: And it was that one line daily, except for Sunday.
1047
01:41:39.573 --> 01:41:41.390
Christian Huey: Daily, except for Sunday. Yeah.
1048
01:41:41.390 --> 01:41:45.749
chris: That was the line. Probably if I'd speak a line that said, This is a band for me.
1049
01:41:47.210 --> 01:41:52.330
chris: Don't say anything. It was daily except for Sunday, because nobody else I knew.
1050
01:41:52.330 --> 01:41:58.470
Christian Huey: No one would say that there's something grounded in your everyday experience that you would.
1051
01:41:58.470 --> 01:41:59.470
Christian Huey: It's back to hear.
1052
01:42:00.710 --> 01:42:09.170
chris: See her every day of the week. Yeah, yeah, it's shut on Sunday.
1053
01:42:09.470 --> 01:42:12.779
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, I love. Yeah, no great point.
1054
01:42:12.780 --> 01:42:16.859
chris: And and that sort of detail that he gets into there.
1055
01:42:17.200 --> 01:42:21.489
chris: You know it's a lot like playing the violin. You cannot start up and be. Who do you mean?
1056
01:42:22.360 --> 01:42:23.230
Christian Huey: Know.
1057
01:42:23.450 --> 01:42:31.759
Christian Huey: and you're not going to hear that sort of reference, and very many pop songs this side of they might be giants or something.
1058
01:42:32.250 --> 01:42:32.990
Christian Huey: you know.
1059
01:42:33.150 --> 01:42:41.810
chris: Oh, and I also wants to say that I think, as well as a great lyricist. And Russell, is it probably the only person who could sing run songs really.
1060
01:42:42.790 --> 01:42:50.750
chris: and does a fantastic job. With that, I think, long as melody gifts occasionally, like Ralph Hutter in graph work also has this ability.
1061
01:42:51.020 --> 01:42:54.090
chris: it just startle you with a simple melody.
1062
01:42:54.250 --> 01:42:58.306
chris: a lot of compute stuff which I think was another thing that he wrote for his
1063
01:42:59.620 --> 01:43:09.259
chris: young girl who's babysitting for, and he he wants it to to get him to go to sleep as a London by that central melody lining computer love. You know.
1064
01:43:09.670 --> 01:43:10.060
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1065
01:43:10.060 --> 01:43:14.681
chris: And he came up with that, and and and it's that melodic gift that simple melodies.
1066
01:43:15.360 --> 01:43:26.849
chris: And I hear on the new album mad in branding the sea of tears. The bit that gets me in that is, when that those those big kind of string, Cynthia, kind of watches of saying, coming in the background.
1067
01:43:27.800 --> 01:43:33.287
chris: Saving strings, and I thought that you can still do that and kind of move you with.
1068
01:43:33.830 --> 01:43:36.109
chris: I'm a lot of gifts, and he's definitely not.
1069
01:43:36.540 --> 01:43:41.309
Christian Huey: He can still, yeah. Surprise you with, yeah, with a note coming from
1070
01:43:41.840 --> 01:43:43.279
Christian Huey: where you may not expect it.
1071
01:43:44.029 --> 01:43:51.519
Christian Huey: Well, Chris, this has been an immense pleasure, and I would love to have you on again, and I hope to do so.
1072
01:43:51.830 --> 01:43:52.530
Christian Huey: and.
1073
01:43:52.530 --> 01:43:53.620
chris: You next time.
1074
01:43:53.800 --> 01:44:00.299
Christian Huey: And we we absolutely will. And so I I forgive. Did you say what you were working on next.
1075
01:44:01.240 --> 01:44:08.100
chris: I'm working on 2. I'm going to do sparks in the eighties. Which will be
1076
01:44:08.790 --> 01:44:14.819
chris: very interesting one very different to the seventies. And I'm also just been asked to do
1077
01:44:15.270 --> 01:44:18.330
chris: book entirely on one record.
1078
01:44:18.830 --> 01:44:23.080
chris: The whole book is on one jeez. Alice Cooper's 1 billion dollar movies.
1079
01:44:24.400 --> 01:44:28.340
Christian Huey: I got it deep. Dive in I've got. I've got.
1080
01:44:28.340 --> 01:44:28.760
chris: I'm helping.
1081
01:44:28.760 --> 01:44:29.550
Christian Huey: There, man.
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Christian Huey: so I I will do that. I will go back and listen to Alice Cooper. That that I've missed.
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01:44:36.100 --> 01:44:42.349
Christian Huey: But thank you so much. This has been such a great conversation. We've gone on for such a long time, and I think it's all brilliant.
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Christian Huey: and and thanks for for the Great Book and for gifting it to me. By the way, and we'll we'll chat again real soon.
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chris: Yeah, I I'm going to I will be talking about the entities. One. What I'm hoping is to kind of lean on a few people for their thoughts and input
1086
01:45:03.707 --> 01:45:08.169
chris: I I think it'll make that an interesting, more interesting journey. I think this time.
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Christian Huey: I'm looking forward to it.
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01:45:11.310 --> 01:45:17.749
chris: Thank you so much, Christian, for the opportunity, and everyone is listening and watching. And I hope. You love it too.
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Christian Huey: There you go talk to you soon.
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chris: Take care bye.
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Christian Huey: Oops!
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Christian Huey: All right.
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chris: Hi.
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Christian Huey: There. We are great. Okay?
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Christian Huey: So just a minute, because it looks like I'm appearing as 2 different entities here.
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chris: You want? Yeah.
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Christian Huey: Let's see, remove Christian Huey, keep Christian Huey
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Christian Huey: and looks like we're good. Okay?
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Christian Huey: So that says that we are recording. And I believe that is good.
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Christian Huey: Let's see here record pause, recording great, we're okay. Good. All right. Naturally, this will to all the deleted.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. Okay, Hi, there, Chris, how are you today.
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chris: I'm extremely hot. It's a cool day here for you, I would imagine, Christian, but it's about 32, 34 degrees here, so we're all sweltering away.
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Christian Huey: I'll pretend I did. I didn't already respond to that. You know. Yeah, I mean to be to be completely frank with you that is too hot for me.
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Christian Huey: It's just that I'm saddled with that here
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Christian Huey: about 8 months out of the year.
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Christian Huey: and you are. You're Chris. I'm sorry you're you're in Birmingham right now.
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chris: No, I was born in Birmingham, spent most of my life there, which is very handy. If you're into music because it's a big Music City, Birmingham, home of Black Sabbath. We must mention that this week, of course.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah.
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chris: And yeah, yeah, absolutely. And so anyway, we moved to Malvern in Worcestershire, which is
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chris: much smaller rural place, the perfect place to write a book about sparks. In fact.
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Christian Huey: Nice. I love that. Yeah, yeah, it's interesting. Because, see, you know, we there are all these
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Christian Huey: rural spots all throughout the the British Isles that you know nobody over here is has ever heard of, you know. If you if you tell someone Birmingham, someone might know.
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Christian Huey: they may at 1st think you're talking about Alabama or something
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Christian Huey: but when you mentioned the the smaller little towns, and in villages we have, we have no clue.
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chris: Yeah, so.
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Christian Huey: So? How far is that from from Birmingham?
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chris: It's about an hour by train. I know that I do that 3, 4 days a week, which is usually when I do.
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chris: Most of the writing is that I try and do about 500 or a thousand words a day
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chris: on average. That's the biggest.
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Christian Huey: Digits.
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chris: It sort of is, but you kind of break it down. So it's some bits of what I would call creative where you're trying to be
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chris: erudite and well written, and there's other bits which are a bit more meat and potatoes, because you're just churning out information that you simply have got to include.
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chris: Yeah, so if I'm not feeling especially on top form, that that's usually what I'll do is and to the nuts and bolts stuff, all of which you, for example, would know inside, and could probably recite off the top of your head. But, A lot of people can't, and that's the thing with these books. Christian is because, you're appealing to
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chris: broadly, to audiences. There's people like yourself who are looking for the deep stuff. That's what you want, I guess.
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chris: And then you're looking for the other people who have no idea about
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chris: even half of the albums. Probably more than that, they could probably just name a few songs and then pick the book up, or have got it, because they quite like those few songs they heard.
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chris: and and to them things like introducing sparks will be a completely unknown quantity, you know.
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Christian Huey: For most people.
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chris: Oh, yeah, I was just going to say that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely. So.
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Christian Huey: Can I? So let me, just, you know, start off from our listeners. Chris Sutton has written this book here, which you will see if I do release a video version of this which is part of his on Track series sparks 1969 to 1979, every album and every song.
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Christian Huey: 1st of all, great read I found it to be at first, st you know, when I thought well, gee! About 140 44 pages, I mean, you know how how much information could there be in there? I found it very dense, and I mean dense in the best way and that there's there's a lot of as a lot of information in there for the hardcore fans such as myself and and such as you.
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Christian Huey: And you know I I hope it also appeals to those more sort of fair weather fans. But I I wanted to ask you, Chris, a couple of questions about
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Christian Huey: well, 1st of all, what began your career in rock and roll music, writing journalism.
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chris: I've always wanted to do it, and never thought that I was good enough, or was the sort of person who should I run a museum heritage center.
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chris: I'm a museum manager. I've written plays, and I've acted in plays in the amateur dramatic stakes. I've never done a music one.
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chris: and I'd always been very forensic, probably, like yourself.
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chris: I love all the details and and the details are my thing. I love details, I like to know when things happen, why they happen, what order! They can be more details than than most people would probably.
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chris: And really the lucky break for me was locked down in 2 ways because somebody gave me a sonic bond book
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chris: and I read it, and on the back it said, Do you fancy writing a book for us.
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chris: And I thought, Okay, so I pitched a book.
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chris: and Stephen Lam kindly got back to me the next day and said, Okay.
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chris: and and that was probably my number one passion, you know. Everybody's got a band. You've got a lot of favorite bands.
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Christian Huey: Most of us have are into music the way that we are, but probably, if you strip them away one by one by one, you probably would have one band left.
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chris: Maybe, and for me
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chris: it actually wouldn't be sparks. It would be the Alice Cooper group. And there's a lot of reasons for that. And a lot of that is about the right time. Right place, right moment
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chris: could have been sparks. But but Alice Cooper was in a similar way with that top of the Pops appearance they had in 1972 for me, with sparks 2 years later. It's that top of the Pops appearance which
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chris: he's 1 of still one of the most talked about appearances from anybody who saw it on top of the Pops, without a doubt, even if he didn't like it.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, I I do definitely want to talk about that. The top of the Pops appearance there.
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Christian Huey: So the the folks at Sonic Board publishing you, said they. They reached out to you.
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chris: No, I reached out to them because it's in the back of a book which was about Queen, and said, Do you want to write. Have you got something you want to do? And quite clearly what they were doing was doing any and every band. And I mean that in the nicest sense. Why wouldn't you?
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chris: And and I could see which bands they hadn't done?
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chris: It was something I had done. I was thinking, Oh, God, I wish
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chris: most of the ones I wanted to do were not on the list.
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chris: So I got in touch and and I've started working through. I did want to do, Roxy, but somebody else had done Roxy. Somebody else had done hawkward. That wants to do.
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chris: But of the big ones left. I got most of the ones that I wanted and nobody done sparks which surprised me.
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chris: But it's a lot of people yourself, Monty, and other the big fans
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chris: who could have done an excellent superb job as well. I I was very lucky because
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chris: a lot of people were happy to talk.
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chris: and I don't want to do. I don't like to do a book that that's my views.
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chris: one of the issues that you get. And and again, I don't mean this unkindly. There is a word, Count, because you can see the way the book is bound. You can see how many words are. That word count defines quite a lot. That book could have been
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chris: probably at least another 30,000 words. It's 65,000 worth. It's at least 30,000 work
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chris: a lot more. Martin Gordon. Example, who's in there was cut because he just had to be.
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Christian Huey: Talks.
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chris: And the money, so you can't.
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chris: You can't kind of ramble in a in a kind of a vanish way, that you might want to do
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chris: at times, and that's where it gets a little bit tricky.
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chris: So you have to find a way around that.
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Christian Huey: So was it as as simple as
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Christian Huey: You saw what they had in their catalog and said, Oh, you're you're you're missing a bit here. Sparks is a big one. I happen to know quite a bit about them, and I'm you know, and I have access or feel confident I will have access to enough people to make this.
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Christian Huey: you know.
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chris: And
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Christian Huey: Make it happen.
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chris: I I got off to a fly. The 1st one I did was Alice Cooper in the seventies, and on day one that I agreed to do it. The drummer, Neil Smith.
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chris: emailed me back because I sent him one of those precocious emails
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chris: and said, Please help me with this book. I can ask you 5 questions. Nobody else has ever asked you.
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Christian Huey: He came back and said, Give me a call.
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chris: And I did the 5 questions, and nobody else had asked him those questions.
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chris: And then he gave me the bass player, Dennis Dunaway's number, and I've got Dennis who gave me Mike Bruce's number.
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chris: And so suddenly I felt I had something that was credible. I got lots of other people to talk
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chris: some of them, I think, because they had nothing better to do in the nicest possible sense, and and they weren't necessarily getting the acclaim. And this is an interesting thing with sparks, because.
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chris: you see, you say sparks, and in Britain, if you say that, you think Oh, that's a band.
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chris: it must be a band, because it's not somebody's personal name. It's not Russell Mayo. It's sparks. It's obviously a band, and of course, eventually find out that it's not actually a band in the sense that we know a band to be.
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chris: and it'd only ever been a band in that sense for the 1st 2 albums.
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chris: which is, is kind of another story. But I did. I make a list. I made a list of every engineer, every producer, every musician, every string arranger backing all of them. I make a list of 1st thing I do.
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chris: And then I go through Facebook, Linkedin online forums.
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chris: Anything anybody who can get me to that person.
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chris: and some of them come back quickly. Some of them. You will send 9, 10 emails and then they'll finally see your email, even though you've emailed same email several times.
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chris: some of them come back and are hurt. Should we say there's at least one in the book who made it quite clear that he did not want to even
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chris: think about his time for sparks.
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chris: and I did that down so it didn't seem too bad, because you don't want to upset anyone's feelings.
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chris: Yeah. And my personal favorite in that book you're going to come. See? Is Dean Detrick, Jr. That that was my happiest moment.
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chris: What's the tracking down.
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Christian Huey: So I that.
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chris: In, the.
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Christian Huey: Name. It wasn't familiar to me
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Christian Huey: when when I was reading through the book, and I thought, What's wrong with me? It was Dean, and I'm sorry, Dietrich.
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chris: Detrick, Junior Detrick, Jr.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, and and there was one that that pat there it is right there, and he was
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Christian Huey: He was involved in the in the Woofer Album. Correct.
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chris: Well when it was when they did the re-release over in the Uk called 2 originals of sparks.
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chris: which was the Woofer album and the Sparks album. They, the Ron and Russell, did some sleeve notes, comments on each song.
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chris: and Ron mentions Dean Detrick, Jr.
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chris: I thought, well, you can't go far on looking for a Dean Detrick, Jr. In America.
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chris: and he turned up in Los Angeles as an artist designer. I thought, that has got to be him.
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chris: And he had his email. So you emailed the guy. And you got to imagine this guy's probably spent what 50 odd years and nobody's contacted him and asked him about what he's mentioning.
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chris: and but he was quite helpful.
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chris: You get other people who are with a
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chris: upset about its army sparks. Other people more philosophical.
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chris: Some people I some of the best times I've had writing books, Martin Gordon.
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chris: if you can get even though I've no doubt you could get Martin Gordon.
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Christian Huey: We? We've talked. Yeah, he, we've talked quite, quite a bit, and he's yeah, he well, he's a fantastic interview. He's a great
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Christian Huey: oh, my God, artist! And he has no shortage of things to say
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Christian Huey: of of all kinds, with, with motivated by all, all kinds of emotions. About that time.
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chris: Yeah, that that's absolutely true. There was. There was some sections had to be cut down when it came back for the from the final edit, which is the one after the final edits. After the final edit. There was a section of an interview within Hampton that had to be removed
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chris: when talks about their appearances on top of the box. These encounter with Jimmy Savile.
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chris: It was, yeah.
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chris: Yeah. And that happened to go.
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chris: it's very, very interesting, I think. And james Lowe, who I only recently found out, had gone. I've missed that news, and he was such a terrific, warm, engaging man.
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chris: I'll tell you this. He was absolutely thrilled to bits that that anybody
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chris: we'll get in touch, and would say that was their famous part example, which is mine.
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chris: And he was just so pleased.
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chris: But and we had this session. We were like, 2 people in therapy, having the same
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chris: issues where I think, I said, that I spend all of the laughter, Leon, 1st album, waiting for James Mankey to play an extra long little league. He does at the end of the choruses.
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chris: you know, plays a little bassly, and then once he extends it a bit longer. I spend the whole song to this day waiting for him to do that.
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Christian Huey: You're okay.
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chris: I told James Mankey this, and he and he's 1 of the most unassuming
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chris: people I've ever spoken to me in my life. You can praise that guy all day long, and he'll go well.
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Christian Huey: Of his accomplishments. You know.
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chris: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So if it's quite a journey.
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chris: you go. I did ask Ron and Russell Mayo while their manager. That was the 1st thing
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chris: kind of think to yourself. If they had taken part in the book, it means technically, they have to authorize it because they're talking to you.
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Christian Huey: Oh, I see, I see! So that's the hurdle.
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chris: There's no, and that's true. There's no way around that
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chris: they talk to you. Then it's it's it's an authorized interview. What they say is, is represents them.
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chris: So I'm a.
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Christian Huey: Assuming you had to not to, you know, to call anyone out, and
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Christian Huey: particularly, but I assume you had to go through their their manager who is Sue Harris.
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chris: I did. And I approached. And basically, I just got no, yeah.
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chris: no. And I thought, Well, okay, I know where we are. I have asked, and and that's okay. But just before the book went to print we got a message saying that they wanted a copy to look through
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chris: before it actually got published.
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Christian Huey: I suppose.
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chris: The general view is that when when people in in
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chris: available ask this sort of question, it can mean trouble.
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Christian Huey: Okay, yeah, that makes sense.
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chris: It's not the same as it used to be, where you could write or say anything.
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chris: It's known as facial biography or program.
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chris: and that would be okay. Now, people at certain status and position, and
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chris: and take some steps to shut down publications and TV programs just by making it very difficult
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chris: in. In honesty there was only there were only 2
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chris: problems that we had to get around for the book.
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chris: Which is why it was delayed. The 1st one
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chris: was the the aristo Demos, as they're known.
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chris: And originally discussed.
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chris: Yeah.
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Christian Huey: We've discussed all of them.
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chris: But I agreed to withdraw any that have not been officially released.
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chris: Comments on them. I could mention them, but not review them.
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chris: That's interesting.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. So I'm sorry. So you you could mention them as you did
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Christian Huey: in the book, but you couldn't opine on them.
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chris: No.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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chris: That was good, doing.
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Christian Huey: Can I ask you something?
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Christian Huey: Because, you know, I want my. My notes are in chronological order. So that's where my mind tends to go.
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Christian Huey: Any hardcore sparks fan is deeply curious about that urban renewal project
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Christian Huey: thing that they recorded, and of course never released except for that one track. Many, many years later.
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chris: Years ago.
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Christian Huey: And you're right, computer girl.
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Christian Huey: Did you attempt to ask any questions about that? And if so, what kinds of responses did you get?
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Christian Huey: That's right.
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chris: Well, we know that they exist. The songs certainly still exist. That is a fact. I've got enough evidence that they do.
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chris: But I couldn't speak to anybody who had a copy.
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chris: and and we'll come to that later, as we ask me that again, because we'll come to that around the big big time who has actually got material and who has not
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chris: big sticking point was the demo album, although it sparked. It's supposed to be sparked in the seventies.
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chris: But Stephen Lamb, my publisher, who's a very understanding chap, I said. Look.
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chris: I've really got to include this demo album for me. The story starts with that. He's 69.
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chris: Can we stretch and put that in? And I thought that would be okay, because it's all over Youtube for anyone who doesn't know.
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chris: There's websites that review and discuss it.
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chris: The 1st response that we got was, no, you can't include it, that's all.
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Christian Huey: Was from management.
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chris: No, from the Publishing Company.
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Christian Huey: Public publisher. You're a publisher.
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chris: Holy Shit, their Publishing Company.
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Christian Huey: Oh, their publishing company.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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Christian Huey: Oh, interesting.
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Christian Huey: Okay.
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chris: Basic argument is, these are unreleased songs that they have chosen not to put out.
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chris: Therefore you're commenting on stuff that's not authorized.
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chris: It's not released. The argument I had was was that in the Blue Rail, DVD. Of Sparks Brothers, you clearly see Russell and Ron Mail give a copy To Todd Rund to look at and tell him that they produced about 100 copies. So I said, well, that alludes to the fact that to some degree he was released.
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Christian Huey: It was published in some way. Yeah, okay, nice.
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Christian Huey: So you got them on on the technicality. Did did they have any any sour feelings about that?
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chris: It's just going out in the recording, isn't it?
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chris: What happened was the the Publishing Company.
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chris: I think fundamentally he hasn't realized that you're probably like this that I was just never, ever gonna let it go
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chris: ever.
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chris: I would literally just think I can email you this week and next week, and the week after I can ring you and I will keep pushing.
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chris: And eventually I spoke to the guy at the Publishing Company. I can't name him, but he told me that he was retiring following week, and he said, Have you taken out those Arista things? And I said, Yeah.
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chris: you know, happy Demo out, man.
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chris: So that was, yeah.
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Christian Huey: The trade trade off right there. Which
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Christian Huey: well done, and I think that was a good trade, because I think that. And you know. I'm sure you do, and many others. You know that
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Christian Huey: that really is, I think, where the where the sparks recorded history begins. I mean, you could say urban renewal project, but but I respect the fact that they were very that they were amorphous and didn't really know what they were doing at that point. But I think that that 1969 demo recording is when they were serious and they had a vision. And also, as you said, it's everywhere.
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chris: It is everywhere.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: Anyone out there hasn't got it. It! It's on Youtube. So there you go.
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chris: and it's worth listening to. I think it would be heralded as a lost sixties psych classic, if it was by an unknown band.
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Christian Huey: I noticed that you mentioned in in some of your descriptions of the stuff in the 1969 demo recordings there was a passing comparison to Sid Barrett Pink Floyd, which I thought was right on, and that was one of my 1st thoughts when I heard it.
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Christian Huey: I'm wondering. I'm wondering if that was something you passed on to him to anybody.
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chris: No, I think I think definitely so. I I do really love that demo album. It. It's
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chris: it's a Testament to Old Mankey's production genius to record that in in in his flat I think it was yeah.
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chris: I was looking to speak to John Mendelsohn and Ralph Oswald and John Mendelsohn is hilarious.
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chris: Very, very sarcastic. And and
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chris: what's really again, a lot of this stuff just had to go because you you think hang on.
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chris: He's very, very funny, that's all I'll say very, very.
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Christian Huey: Great. Now I I didn't get a chance to to talk to those guys in particular, nor nor Earl.
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Christian Huey: Well, so what was, how did you get a hold of earl, and how how forthcoming was Earl about talking about that time?
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chris: And I got James. I didn't get Earl, and what happened was I I've seen the Sparks brothers that had come out, and all had been in it, and I thought, great. He's talking
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chris: and
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chris: I got hold of James Mankey's email by circuitous route, and he didn't respond for a while. And then suddenly he did with his phone number.
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chris: See the face that you're doing now? That's me. I'm thinking I love this man's work on these 2 albums all these years, and I'm going to speak to him, and I can't even formulate a sentence.
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chris: And he was.
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chris: It's just such a lovely song.
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Christian Huey: And he, he! Just you. You cannot tell him how great he is, because he just.
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chris: I'm bashful about everything. But he passed on those email to me and said, I haven't spoken to only.
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Christian Huey: Really.
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chris: Correct
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chris: and email. Lots of times I tried everything you can think of. I I tried the fanboy aspect like that. I need your voice in this.
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chris: so I guess he's just done with talking about sparks.
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Christian Huey: Earl Menke
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Christian Huey: and actually, boy, I would love to talk about Jim as well. I would love to talk about Jim, because he, in his own right became something of a rock star. If a bit behind the scenes, I mean with concrete blonde, I don't know. Were you familiar with concrete blonde's work.
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chris: Yeah. And then Paul Thompson Roxy. Music was in there for a while, wasn't he? As well, yeah, as you know.
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chris: Yeah. I mean. He's a great musician. They say he's a better guitar player than a bass player, and that's probably true, because he's definitely a guitar player.
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chris: It's not a bass player. When he plays the bass he plays like a guitar player, which is fine.
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Christian Huey: A lot of.
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chris: Yeah, I mean, there's a there's a great record store day, double sided release there to be had from the Bearsville. Yes, I think about having no more Mr. Nice guys on one side, with things and apologies on the other.
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chris: and you'd have a very unique for me like Sparks. I love that.
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Christian Huey: It's such a you made it clear
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Christian Huey: in the book that your favorite sparks records are those 1st 2 lps, and there's so much
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Christian Huey: to enjoy. There, there's just there's
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Christian Huey: there are just so many layers, there's so much going on, there's so much
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Christian Huey: different personalities and different instrumentations and pathos, and all this stuff.
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Christian Huey: One thing that I this is why I've always wanted to to speak with Earl Manke. By the way, because his presence
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Christian Huey: it's so clear, almost on par with the males
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Christian Huey: in those 1st 2 records, and I'm wondering to me. And so I'm wondering if if you got a similar impression. And if
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Christian Huey: yeah, I'll just let you take it from there.
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chris: Yeah, I I spoke to Harley Feinstein and and James, and the clear impression is, the sessions were being run largely by Ron Mail
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chris: and or Mankey
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chris: and I think Harley says it's in the book that if if anyone was going to pick him up on his drumming or somebody on something it would 9 times out of 10 be oh, not wrong. It would be. No, we need to do this. We need to do that.
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chris: I mean. What had happened was
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chris: Mona. My house was like this, rumored, crazy, furious, odd things that were called songs.
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chris: And then, somewhere off there is like this dark, dusty room. No one's been in. It was even more mad. And bonkers
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chris: that which was wolf. I remember hearing that, and thinking what the hell.
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chris: You know, I thought, this is this is.
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chris: I can see where this links to that Bando, but I come away. I mean
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chris: thoughts and feelings and dreams. Even some like, you know, like the move and baptism, what the hell is going on.
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Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, but but yeah, bonkers, I mean, it's
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Christian Huey: you know, as as Ron went on, you could sort of follow his logic. But it's not. It's harder to do with these 1st couple of records like, why, you know what would make you
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Christian Huey: go there. This arts and crafts
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chris: Okay.
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Christian Huey: Festivity thing, the the lady in her quilt and the battery is not included, and you know and whatnot I mean. It was just absolutely everywhere all the time.
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chris: Absolutely extraordinary. So the the 1st 2 records, the 1st one is
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chris: probably more naive. It's less less full sound. Todd doesn't get the fullest sound on. And you get this interesting thing which I picked up. I was quite proud of this with big fans.
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chris: Why did nobody think of putting a big band in on the second half, you know.
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chris: It's the obvious thing to.
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chris: and but they obviously couldn't afford a big band or nobody thought, and I've always spotted. That was an early team. When I was a kid I knew I thought it was something odd.
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chris: I couldn't. I could hear that something had happened, and it was only when I spoke to Harley Feinstein for the book and said, That that's what it you know. That's an edit, isn't it. That's where you stopped and started
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chris: when it goes into the yeah, the full on section at the end.
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chris: just joyful record. The 1st one, I think, has a very sweet naivety, with some odd chills about it. Saccharine and the war. You know what the hell going on there, and no more. Mr. Nice guys with that? Well, that incredible guitar solo from James Manke, I mean. My God.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. As you were saying, you know, yeah, Jim Jim Menke was actually an incredible lead guitarist, even though he was kind of relegated to to bass
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Christian Huey: for these companies.
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Christian Huey: Records I can't, could not agree more.
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chris: I think, teasing it out from James. I got the feeling. He plays more guitar than he's let on.
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Christian Huey: Oh, on the on those records.
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chris: Yeah, he does. There's a couple of places. So, for example, he admitted to playing guitar on moon over Kentucky as well to some degree
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chris: I remember, and that's not mentioned
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chris: with with Ron Mail. So you can see that that. Yes.
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chris: I I love the swagger of the second album during tweets is when they come in. We go from Germany. Think what's happened to this band from the 1st album.
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chris: and it's just such
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chris: A curious, wonderful record, and it remains my favorite for many reasons I love the cover. I love that kind of even the cover I find unsettling.
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Christian Huey: Yeah. Now, which one? Which one do? Do we mean? Because I I
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Christian Huey: because, yeah, I guess you had the front and the back, and they swapped them at some point.
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Christian Huey: There's 1 where.
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chris: Like that. James is looking to the side. He's not even engaging with the camera.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And and rob mail looks fairly unique even then.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: Yeah. He's got the.
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Christian Huey: Long afro, and the longer.
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chris: Yes, sir.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And then there, there were things like, you know. Is is it okay to admit to liking? Do ray me. That was a big thing for me, you know.
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chris: You know this is from the sound of music, but you think you know, Mike.
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chris: do you know, I hear? And I hear that. And I I never think they're gonna make it to the end. Harley and Jen.
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chris: how are they doing that?
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chris: Which is this colossal rhythm they break into from that halfway. Which is.
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chris: it's just incredibly intense. And you think, how are they gonna get to the end of this song?
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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Christian Huey: you wrote about that. There's there's this really intense interplay right then, between Harley and Jim Manke. And somehow they're keeping up with each other
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Christian Huey: through this incredible run.
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Christian Huey: Did you get any sort of insight from Harley or Jim, or anybody? As to why that
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Christian Huey: Rodgers and Hammerstein's song even came into the repertoire.
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chris: They? They used to do 2 or 3 cover versions around the Woofer era live one of them, which apparently was the most popular was Baby come back the old equal son.
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Christian Huey: Yeah, right? Yeah, you're right about that. And I that was something that missed me the the 1st time around. I didn't know they did that maybe come back.
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chris: There's no, there's no known recording of it now. Of course you ask, don't you, you know? Hardly. Have you got one tucked away somewhere, you know, like. No, no, no, I think, he said. Larry Dupont, who's a guy you'll now work with sparks, design work, and been a road manager. He hardly reckons he has got
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chris: some demos or rehearsals, or whatever tucked away in that legendary garage that you guys have in America
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chris: seems to be top full of stuff you haven't touched in ages. I'm always hearing about outreach.
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Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
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chris: So yeah, that the thing that we had for us in in Britain was these albums did not exist.
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chris: not exist at all, and the fact that even toured Britain in 72 had passed me by because I was a little bit young. So for me, spark started in May, 1974 with Pop of the pops.
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chris: and it was only it was the the joy of backtracking to find these records
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chris: which it has to be said
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chris: you had to go and buy.
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chris: There was nobody who had them.
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Christian Huey: Yeah.
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chris: And you had to go and order them from a record shop, and you had no idea what they were in the sound right.
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Christian Huey: Right.
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chris: Probably like kimono. You would imagine
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chris: what you thought, and to some degree it does, and to some degree it doesn't. But you couldn't borrow them up anybody because nobody had them.
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Christian Huey: That's it's such a great point. And I think that's a
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Christian Huey: almost to state the obvious. But I think that's that's a difficult thing for people, especially young people, to really
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Christian Huey: appreciate that. You know, before, really, before the Internet it was. If you didn't know what a band's full discography really was, I mean, maybe you you could
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Christian Huey: join the Fan Club or something. But you didn't really typically know what was out there. And you didn't know you depended on either what your local record store has, or you would pick a phone and and call around, or maybe ask for a catalog. But you know, so so you didn't know right away, you know. Certainly from when you 1st saw the their top of the Pops performance in 74.
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Christian Huey: What else was out there.
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Christian Huey: When did you find out that there was more out there? And how did you track it down.
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chris: Well, the 1st thing was that top of the Pops appearance, and I don't know if you're aware of top of the Pops over, anyway. Fundamentally it was a show which had chart hits, ones that were moving up from the bottom end of the charts, and some people would appear in the studio, and some might be on film.
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chris: and you had to sit through all of it.
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chris: That is what you had to do. And and some of it would be truly terrible. You would hate it. Some of it would be okay.
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chris: and and your parents would be in there. They would watch it. They would love the stuff that you hated. They've had the stuff that you love, which was even better.
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chris: And but it it was just such a hugely watched program by millions of people.
342
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Christian Huey: And there was only one of a program one at the time in the Uk. Covering music, which was the old grey whistle test, which is stuck away in a graveyard time at night.
343
00:35:44.589 --> 00:35:49.559
chris: Top of the Pops was is, if you got on top of the pops you were going to sell a shed load of records.
344
00:35:49.949 --> 00:35:54.759
chris: even probably, if your record was dreadful, it's still going to sell a load of records to somebody.
345
00:35:55.289 --> 00:36:03.499
chris: And what Sparks did was to to use the medium of television, Ron and Russell, and it was just
346
00:36:03.649 --> 00:36:08.549
chris: the all dropping it that this time ain't big enough, which was like a
347
00:36:09.039 --> 00:36:12.839
chris: seem like a full film soundtrack in about 4 min
348
00:36:13.319 --> 00:36:15.119
chris: at this time in and and
349
00:36:15.259 --> 00:36:17.819
chris: and just rampaged around your living room.
350
00:36:18.389 --> 00:36:22.139
chris: and most people were still watching in black and white. Let's put it like that as well.
351
00:36:22.249 --> 00:36:26.989
chris: and all you could remember was that that death stare from Ron? What you know, what.
352
00:36:26.990 --> 00:36:27.840
Christian Huey: And let's say that.
353
00:36:27.840 --> 00:36:33.389
chris: And and and Cutesy Russell with that falsetto, high voice.
354
00:36:33.830 --> 00:36:38.359
chris: And it's it's no downplay to the rest of the band. They did their jobs, of course, but.
355
00:36:38.360 --> 00:36:38.830
Christian Huey: To moving.
356
00:36:38.830 --> 00:36:42.149
chris: Next day in the playground show my age
357
00:36:42.260 --> 00:36:53.780
chris: and talked about, and it was the same with Roxy music, with Virginia playing schools and other bands. That thought, This is this is my moment, and, by God, we we're gonna use it.
358
00:36:54.370 --> 00:36:57.400
chris: And and it was just incredible.
359
00:36:57.980 --> 00:37:07.679
chris: So then, in the weeks after he started going up the charts, etc, and and Baysville records. Did that thing which awkward companies do? I thought.
360
00:37:07.860 --> 00:37:10.260
chris: yeah, haven't we got some nice stuff.
361
00:37:11.390 --> 00:37:20.079
chris: and we got them, and and suddenly adverts started to appear, and we used to read all the music papers. We read Melody to make a new musical express and sounds.
362
00:37:20.640 --> 00:37:26.110
chris: Somebody had copies of those disk as well. We would read those. We'd read them all every week.
363
00:37:26.310 --> 00:37:33.279
chris: devouring anything and everything. And suddenly, Bearsville, I think they released girl from Germany, got that out really fast.
364
00:37:34.130 --> 00:37:38.104
chris: and then you went into your local record shop and said, can I order this?
365
00:37:38.570 --> 00:37:39.370
chris: It's called
366
00:37:41.652 --> 00:37:46.619
chris: What the hell did that mean? We had no idea what that meant.
367
00:37:47.560 --> 00:37:48.206
chris: All right.
368
00:37:48.880 --> 00:37:51.020
chris: I think it was years later I found those
369
00:37:52.140 --> 00:37:57.809
chris: that it was, you know, bass and treble, woofer and tweet, and that's the 1st we've heard of it, and
370
00:37:58.710 --> 00:38:04.329
chris: and then baseball manages to get that 2 originals of spark set as well. So they got more bias
371
00:38:05.080 --> 00:38:08.229
chris: on that front. So, and then sparks were really
372
00:38:08.570 --> 00:38:14.179
chris: pretty big in 74 in Britain. They were on top of the Pops a lot, and they had a good run in singles.
373
00:38:14.320 --> 00:38:18.130
chris: and the kimono album did extremely well.
374
00:38:18.640 --> 00:38:23.650
chris: and and propaganda is like a sister album. In effect, I suppose to
375
00:38:23.770 --> 00:38:26.150
chris: you know, you can certainly see the links.
376
00:38:26.630 --> 00:38:31.759
chris: A big credit to Ron. He doesn't use any of those demos that are mentioned in the book for kimona
377
00:38:32.140 --> 00:38:40.989
chris: when the guys up against it touring Britain and Europe, and he's got to make a second album that year. There's an awful lot of unused tracks he could have easily picked up.
378
00:38:41.490 --> 00:38:44.380
Christian Huey: Use for propaganda. And he doesn't use any of those.
379
00:38:44.870 --> 00:38:45.490
Christian Huey: Yeah.
380
00:38:45.850 --> 00:38:52.270
Christian Huey: Yeah. So that's another interesting point. Because
381
00:38:52.970 --> 00:38:55.200
Christian Huey: going back to that 1st demo.
382
00:38:56.470 --> 00:39:13.980
Christian Huey: They're all these songs written by Ron and some by Russell. A couple of Russell ones got got got picked up for the the 1st proper record, and none of the Ron Run ones did, and and I know there were likewise
383
00:39:15.540 --> 00:39:19.880
Christian Huey: demo recordings, songs that were not picked up for
384
00:39:21.130 --> 00:39:23.549
Christian Huey: for kimono that did not make
385
00:39:23.690 --> 00:39:47.560
Christian Huey: make it over to propaganda as well. And this is this is a theme that kind of continued throughout the seventies. And you did write about that a little bit in here they've got. There's this just such a just an effluence. There was such a flood of all of these songs, and it seemed that rarely did they feel the need
386
00:39:47.710 --> 00:39:48.580
Christian Huey: to
387
00:39:49.570 --> 00:39:58.279
Christian Huey: to to pick up any of these leftovers. I suppose you could say and carry them over to the next project like they just sort of wanted to start
388
00:39:58.480 --> 00:39:59.530
Christian Huey: anew.
389
00:40:00.740 --> 00:40:04.590
chris: There. There are occasions where I I'd hear a song.
390
00:40:04.840 --> 00:40:17.059
chris: because you go back and listen to the albums again and again, again, and you think? Hang on a minute, and I did one that I did clearly with Sal made the late Sal made a sadly was I bought the Mississippi River.
391
00:40:17.540 --> 00:40:23.790
chris: and as I was listening to the big beat album, I thought you know this. This lyrically could have fitted on
392
00:40:24.130 --> 00:40:30.709
chris: mono propaganda almost back to woof. It somehow had that kind of feel to me
393
00:40:31.340 --> 00:40:37.620
chris: of one of those some. And he did confirm that. Yeah. He thought, too, that it was one that had been around
394
00:40:37.970 --> 00:40:41.789
chris: for a while, but of course they were up against it. Big time for big days.
395
00:40:43.630 --> 00:40:49.681
Christian Huey: So you've discovered your sparks. Origin story was 74 with the the top of the pops, and
396
00:40:50.000 --> 00:40:50.520
chris: Yes.
397
00:40:50.520 --> 00:41:01.510
Christian Huey: And and this town ain't big enough and and huge fan of those island records, of course. So when they left the scene
398
00:41:01.660 --> 00:41:04.979
Christian Huey: physically, and went back to the States.
399
00:41:05.520 --> 00:41:11.550
Christian Huey: Did you know that they were still an ongoing concern? When did you find out that they were still recording.
400
00:41:12.470 --> 00:41:18.550
chris: Well, we had little, because the only way you got information was in the British music person. I wasn't in the Sparks fan club
401
00:41:19.152 --> 00:41:21.480
chris: simply because he was based in America
402
00:41:21.750 --> 00:41:29.599
chris: and getting anything from America was tortuous if it arrived at all. So I just hadn't bothered and no other sparks. Fans, I knew.
403
00:41:29.790 --> 00:41:34.689
chris: had bothered either. It was literally as though they closed the door
404
00:41:35.180 --> 00:41:43.849
chris: and and gone off. And and that's entirely their prerogative. But occasionally one of the music places would would mention that an album
405
00:41:44.090 --> 00:41:54.179
chris: had occurred which some of them didn't even come out in in Britain at all, and nobody I knew nobody bought any of those albums after terminal jive.
406
00:41:55.870 --> 00:41:59.580
Christian Huey: I'm sorry. No, nobody knew about anything after Terminal Jive.
407
00:41:59.850 --> 00:42:04.970
chris: Well, they might have known about it, but I don't know anybody who bought an album oxygen
408
00:42:04.970 --> 00:42:09.939
chris: at all. I didn't for my scenes, either I I,
409
00:42:10.370 --> 00:42:17.220
chris: for whatever reason things had moved on or changed, and I still like those albums. But it was, though they they gone.
410
00:42:18.220 --> 00:42:18.780
chris: Yeah, yeah.
411
00:42:19.970 --> 00:42:27.390
Christian Huey: So what point did you did you catch on that? That they when did you, I suppose, pick up.
412
00:42:27.590 --> 00:42:36.270
Christian Huey: pick back up your your fandom of sparks to take take up where you know 75 had left off.
413
00:42:37.150 --> 00:42:42.753
chris: Well, there was. There was a compilation came out, and I can't remember the dates, and you'll know which was the
414
00:42:43.520 --> 00:42:49.710
chris: It's a double disk compilation of sparks. I'm trying to remember the name of it, and it's 2 Cds on rhino. I think it was.
415
00:42:49.850 --> 00:42:50.270
Christian Huey: Yeah.
416
00:42:50.270 --> 00:42:54.519
chris: And he covered the early years in the eighties, and Ron and Russell had done a commentary in it.
417
00:42:55.009 --> 00:43:02.559
chris: And and I thought that was really really good. I got it for Christmas, and I thought, Oh, I've missed out on some really great stuff here.
418
00:43:03.070 --> 00:43:12.390
chris: and then they kind of did that reinvention thing which was something they do on occasion and come back with national crime awareness week.
419
00:43:12.390 --> 00:43:13.360
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
420
00:43:13.840 --> 00:43:25.790
chris: And and that was like, Oh, you know, this is. And you thought, this is, this is good. I like, this is good. So we had that, and then we had the gratuitous Sax which they told Europe doing that. And then that was kind of
421
00:43:26.440 --> 00:43:34.269
chris: a real reawaking, awakening a rebirth. Sparks in Europe, without a doubt. They just pulled back
422
00:43:34.740 --> 00:43:39.533
chris: a load of old fans and got a load of new ones on the strength of that material.
423
00:43:40.930 --> 00:43:42.210
chris: massively sad.
424
00:43:42.430 --> 00:43:52.839
Christian Huey: It. It's it's it's interesting to me, because it seems that you know certainly before I don't know whatever the turn of the millennium, or whatever
425
00:43:53.130 --> 00:43:56.759
Christian Huey: those times when Sparks had any traction
426
00:43:56.960 --> 00:44:05.469
Christian Huey: within the United States, they had no presence outside of the United States, and and the reverse of that was also true.
427
00:44:06.720 --> 00:44:07.380
Christian Huey: It.
428
00:44:07.380 --> 00:44:17.273
chris: Yes, it fundamentally what what we see is a complete flip, that they that Europe and British success, and nothing in America swaps over and becomes
429
00:44:17.930 --> 00:44:23.759
chris: you know, a really good decade for you guys in the eighties, largely speaking, that you did well there
430
00:44:23.920 --> 00:44:29.629
chris: with some good albums, I must admit, but we we got nothing, I mean nothing at all.
431
00:44:29.660 --> 00:44:33.998
Christian Huey: You had no womp that sucker, and you, you had no
432
00:44:34.360 --> 00:44:35.050
chris: No.
433
00:44:35.530 --> 00:44:40.910
Christian Huey: That. Why can't I think of it now? It's 1 of my favorite. It's my favorite album, practically.
434
00:44:40.910 --> 00:44:42.170
chris: In my pants.
435
00:44:42.170 --> 00:44:43.650
Christian Huey: Yes, angst. Angst, thank you.
436
00:44:43.860 --> 00:44:46.599
Christian Huey: My second favorite sparks. Album. Yeah.
437
00:44:46.600 --> 00:44:47.749
chris: No, they just.
438
00:44:47.750 --> 00:44:48.520
Christian Huey: Not known.
439
00:44:49.820 --> 00:44:53.609
chris: Nothing. It it was. It was as though they just had gone.
440
00:44:54.270 --> 00:44:56.950
Christian Huey: You know, but that's you're in the front room
441
00:44:57.430 --> 00:45:00.900
Christian Huey: unless you were in the Fan Club. Of course you know which and they want
442
00:45:00.900 --> 00:45:03.439
Christian Huey: time was was was curated by
443
00:45:04.556 --> 00:45:12.257
Christian Huey: their their mom, who went by Mary, I forget now. But
444
00:45:12.760 --> 00:45:17.879
Christian Huey: but yeah, it was their their mother who was who was at least a vocal voice in their Fan club for quite a while.
445
00:45:18.240 --> 00:45:24.584
chris: Yeah, so it it it was just how he was. There's an awful lot of banners that the same thing happened to.
446
00:45:26.100 --> 00:45:37.990
chris: you mentioned. I know you're Fan of Roxy music, and they vanished for 4 years, and that seemed like the longest 4 years ever. Yeah, they were seen for you thought 4 years, and they're coming back when it's nothing nowadays. Of course.
447
00:45:37.990 --> 00:45:42.399
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, came back with manifesto when there was there were, there were like a whole new group.
448
00:45:42.970 --> 00:45:43.760
chris: Yeah.
449
00:45:44.160 --> 00:45:48.119
chris: So it was good to have sparks back, and there was a sense of regret. But it
450
00:45:48.360 --> 00:45:54.930
chris: there would have been nothing I could have done, so to speak, I would have picked up some albums and heard them by buying them. I import, which I didn't do
451
00:45:55.396 --> 00:46:02.660
chris: so it was a lot of catching up, in effect, to do. And and there was this compilation which I'm trying to find out. The name of. It was a double CD,
452
00:46:03.070 --> 00:46:04.810
chris: so which include.
453
00:46:05.050 --> 00:46:05.810
Christian Huey: Or is it later one.
454
00:46:05.810 --> 00:46:06.410
chris: Cool.
455
00:46:06.650 --> 00:46:10.330
chris: I think it might have been the pro. Apparently it's 2 Cds.
456
00:46:11.670 --> 00:46:15.389
Christian Huey: Know there was a there was sort of a weird hell and heaven collection.
457
00:46:16.050 --> 00:46:16.710
Christian Huey: Yeah, I don't see.
458
00:46:16.710 --> 00:46:17.320
Christian Huey: G.
459
00:46:17.870 --> 00:46:18.910
chris: That was good.
460
00:46:19.600 --> 00:46:24.280
chris: Yeah. This one had somebody on a bicycle, I think, on the road, on the cover.
461
00:46:24.680 --> 00:46:25.890
Christian Huey: Oh, let's see
462
00:46:26.196 --> 00:46:34.460
Christian Huey: and yes, something for amnesiacs or no. No, no, I think that I know what you're talking about. There was like a sort of a cartoon image.
463
00:46:34.650 --> 00:46:37.220
chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
464
00:46:37.220 --> 00:46:41.909
chris: it escapes me because I reached that age. But that was really that did an amazing job.
465
00:46:42.561 --> 00:46:47.910
chris: And he had the 1st release of. I like girls on it as well. With the original band
466
00:46:48.140 --> 00:46:55.199
chris: was was on there, and some some nice live stuff. So so that was a nice crash course in what I've missed
467
00:46:55.480 --> 00:47:09.409
chris: through the eighties. And I thought it was good stuff, but they cherry picked the best of those albums and from the seventies. So it was good. And now, with the way the world is and things have changed, you can just keep up with anything. So problem solved.
468
00:47:09.410 --> 00:47:12.230
Christian Huey: Absolutely if were you?
469
00:47:13.390 --> 00:47:20.659
Christian Huey: Well, one of my favorite albums, aside from from Angst and Number one in heaven, which is my all time favorite.
470
00:47:20.920 --> 00:47:28.850
Christian Huey: Just to put that out. There is. Was indiscreet.
471
00:47:29.370 --> 00:47:34.289
Christian Huey: I absolutely adore indiscreet. I I thought that
472
00:47:34.490 --> 00:47:41.280
Christian Huey: that you know they the the production job was incredible. On there, by by Tony Bisconti.
473
00:47:42.360 --> 00:47:49.970
Christian Huey: How much were you able to get out of it and and forgive me! I like I
474
00:47:50.120 --> 00:47:56.570
Christian Huey: read through the whole darn thing. But I mean, did, were you? You weren't able to get a hold of Tony himself, were you, or were you.
475
00:47:56.570 --> 00:47:59.639
chris: No, we got close. It got very, very close.
476
00:47:59.640 --> 00:48:00.020
Christian Huey: Yeah.
477
00:48:00.020 --> 00:48:05.900
chris: He. He'd agreed, and we were setting a time and chat to Tony, and I'm thinking, oh, great
478
00:48:06.498 --> 00:48:09.840
chris: and then he backed out, and you never! You never know why
479
00:48:10.190 --> 00:48:16.959
chris: it it could be that he'd phone somebody. And they said, No, we're not doing it, so we won't do it. That that's quite common
480
00:48:17.470 --> 00:48:23.479
chris: you'll get asked are are such and such gonna do it. And and if they're not doing it, you know I won't do it, either.
481
00:48:24.910 --> 00:48:26.861
chris: so it would have been a shame.
482
00:48:27.720 --> 00:48:31.520
chris: on the hell collection. He's credited with playing bass for sparks.
483
00:48:32.060 --> 00:48:34.479
chris: Just one thing I've considered about. Yeah.
484
00:48:34.710 --> 00:48:35.450
Christian Huey: No kidding.
485
00:48:35.450 --> 00:48:37.819
chris: Tony Visconti's a good bass player.
486
00:48:39.060 --> 00:48:43.040
Christian Huey: That makes sense sure. He played on some of the Bowie records at that.
487
00:48:43.040 --> 00:48:52.519
chris: Yeah. And I stay in Hampton. I said, can I ask you any delicate question? Based on indiscrete? We should have to do that one?
488
00:48:52.670 --> 00:48:55.119
chris: And he said, No, I play all the bass on that album.
489
00:48:55.650 --> 00:48:58.239
Christian Huey: Ian Hampton said he did everything.
490
00:48:58.240 --> 00:48:59.480
chris: Now update everything.
491
00:49:01.920 --> 00:49:02.750
chris: Did you.
492
00:49:04.670 --> 00:49:08.760
Christian Huey: Did you talk to anyone? You know, speaking of
493
00:49:09.820 --> 00:49:14.390
Christian Huey: delicate questions and people who are involved?
494
00:49:14.690 --> 00:49:22.230
Christian Huey: Anyone anyone close to Dinky or anyone in close close to Adrian Fisher.
495
00:49:22.800 --> 00:49:24.509
chris: Yeah. Well, trepid white
496
00:49:25.300 --> 00:49:36.350
chris: who plays an indiscrete and propaganda. I I spoke to him, for I spoke a couple of times for some time, and he was very frank.
497
00:49:36.970 --> 00:49:38.609
chris: very frank indeed.
498
00:49:41.310 --> 00:49:47.250
chris: as regards Dinky, I mean. Obviously you know what happened to him, and and that it was it was suicide.
499
00:49:47.580 --> 00:49:48.140
Christian Huey: Yeah.
500
00:49:49.810 --> 00:49:55.970
chris: Trevor wine's view, which I I think I sort of phrase very carefully, was that he'd never been
501
00:49:56.180 --> 00:49:59.989
chris: quite the same since things broke down with sparks.
502
00:50:01.430 --> 00:50:07.829
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, that's that's that's difficult. Because you know, we we you've got a.
503
00:50:08.760 --> 00:50:25.379
Christian Huey: you've got an act with such a long history and so many different players, and so many different personalities and so many different stories. There's going to be some tragedies in there, and I'm sure obviously you you encountered some of those like you did with Adrian and and Dinky and whatnot.
504
00:50:26.000 --> 00:50:30.301
chris: You do? I mean. One thing Trevor White said was was
505
00:50:32.080 --> 00:50:40.869
chris: He? He feels that his problem with indiscreet, which you won't be too surprised about is is any songs on which the band don't play.
506
00:50:41.330 --> 00:50:47.519
chris: and there's there's a quite a few songs where the band are not on at all, or not on very much.
507
00:50:47.800 --> 00:50:49.150
Christian Huey: Get in the swing. Maybe.
508
00:50:49.990 --> 00:50:57.799
chris: Well, there's looks, looks, in fact, nobody whatsoever plays on that from the band, or even Ron.
509
00:50:58.310 --> 00:51:01.379
chris: He's not even Ron.
510
00:51:01.630 --> 00:51:02.189
Christian Huey: Wow! I didn't.
511
00:51:02.940 --> 00:51:04.089
chris: No, he's on it.
512
00:51:05.154 --> 00:51:09.930
chris: It's the Ted Heath orchestra play everything on looks, looks. Looks
513
00:51:12.040 --> 00:51:17.910
chris: So so there you go. Yeah. Trevor White was was run.
514
00:51:18.690 --> 00:51:21.109
chris: Yeah, I think he sees it for what?
515
00:51:21.780 --> 00:51:27.989
chris: What it probably was really, which is that you've got 2 guys, Ron and Russell, who
516
00:51:28.160 --> 00:51:31.390
chris: believe they are sparks which they are.
517
00:51:31.690 --> 00:51:35.460
chris: and they are working with effectively hired hands.
518
00:51:36.020 --> 00:51:41.619
chris: And and that's really what they have done. And I think it's down to whether you accept that fact.
519
00:51:42.790 --> 00:51:44.240
chris: You can live with that.
520
00:51:44.540 --> 00:51:48.370
chris: or you have a lot of trouble with it. And I think some of these
521
00:51:48.520 --> 00:51:53.299
chris: people, particularly the ones who were upset seem to feel they were joining a band.
522
00:51:53.770 --> 00:52:03.760
Christian Huey: Right, right, and you know, and and it it does seem that some of those players were almost
523
00:52:04.470 --> 00:52:16.270
Christian Huey: promised something other than what they got they were, were at least led to believe that they were, that they were going to be walking into somewhat of a democratic institution, and that was.
524
00:52:16.270 --> 00:52:16.980
chris: Well.
525
00:52:16.980 --> 00:52:17.590
Christian Huey: Gone!
526
00:52:17.590 --> 00:52:21.440
chris: Well, we're talking particularly here about Martin Gordon, aren't we?
527
00:52:21.440 --> 00:52:23.170
Christian Huey: We're talking about Martin Gordon, the great.
528
00:52:23.170 --> 00:52:25.430
chris: And and and
529
00:52:25.800 --> 00:52:33.410
chris: he doesn't need defending at all, because what Martin produced for me, Andy, as I'm talking to you, he did the same. He was holding up diaries
530
00:52:33.520 --> 00:52:36.390
chris: and notebooks from 1974.
531
00:52:36.390 --> 00:52:39.000
Christian Huey: Would you hopefully in your book.
532
00:52:39.000 --> 00:52:45.599
chris: Yeah. Yeah. And he he kept a diary for every day. Now, either the guy was making up stuff every day
533
00:52:46.840 --> 00:52:53.499
chris: through 1974, or has rewritten it since the cover. 74. If you speak to him.
534
00:52:54.070 --> 00:52:58.919
chris: he is extremely credible, and it sounds utterly believable to me.
535
00:53:01.340 --> 00:53:01.910
Christian Huey: Yeah.
536
00:53:01.910 --> 00:53:04.170
chris: I think Ron and Russell may all have.
537
00:53:05.100 --> 00:53:13.280
chris: One of the challenges they probably have is that I'm sensing from people to try and find a way around. It is they probably hate confrontation.
538
00:53:14.480 --> 00:53:15.769
chris: And that's okay
539
00:53:15.890 --> 00:53:24.510
chris: to me. I I don't care pretty much either. And there are ways of dealing with issues. And in bands there's always going to be issues about publishing, and who does what whatever.
540
00:53:24.720 --> 00:53:28.420
chris: And one way around that is to get somebody else to deal with the problem.
541
00:53:28.800 --> 00:53:36.300
chris: You know the Trevor White says they were sacked when they were having breakfast at the hotel when they were touring in America, and told, well, that's it now, boys.
542
00:53:36.560 --> 00:53:40.340
chris: and he was saying, Well, where's Ryan and Ross? And they'd already gone.
543
00:53:42.380 --> 00:53:43.260
chris: And
544
00:53:44.530 --> 00:53:51.229
chris: then Muff Wynwood I interviewed, and he said, look, I'll tell you this, Chris, he said, if you're going to get on in the music business. If you can't be tough.
545
00:53:51.350 --> 00:53:53.169
chris: you can't sack people
546
00:53:53.580 --> 00:53:58.160
chris: or relinquish them when they're no good to you anymore, or you want to move on. You're never going to make it.
547
00:53:59.970 --> 00:54:04.360
Christian Huey: What was it like talking to, to win, to.
548
00:54:04.360 --> 00:54:05.159
chris: Oh, we're both.
549
00:54:05.160 --> 00:54:21.259
Christian Huey: Excuse me. Yes, Winwood could, because he's I mean he's such a celebrated name and music, particularly at that time. With with sparks, with with the the cars with. I I think, Queen, if I remember correctly at some point, or maybe I'm misremembering.
550
00:54:21.750 --> 00:54:29.410
chris: Yeah, he was. I was very lucky, because he's from Birmingham and he's wine was from Smith, where I run the museum.
551
00:54:29.560 --> 00:54:30.529
chris: so I've got.
552
00:54:31.110 --> 00:54:32.620
chris: I got another angle.
553
00:54:33.128 --> 00:54:37.740
chris: I messaged him and said, in fact, I wrote him because I got his address.
554
00:54:38.330 --> 00:54:44.319
chris: and I said, Look, can we talk about smetic. No one's gonna ask him about that. Ever probably.
555
00:54:44.530 --> 00:54:45.000
Christian Huey: About? What.
556
00:54:45.000 --> 00:54:54.269
chris: And yeah, a place where he lived when he was younger, when he was in the Spencer Davis group. So you it kind of makes you look different.
557
00:54:54.940 --> 00:55:07.879
chris: You're coming from that viewpoint, and and also about his Tommy Sparks. Mark Wynwood was like. He was very friendly, very nice, and if he was giving evidence in court he'd have no trouble, because when he tells you something
558
00:55:08.060 --> 00:55:09.729
chris: you think that's how it is.
559
00:55:10.410 --> 00:55:16.620
chris: So I said to him who was offered to you when they came to Ireland.
560
00:55:17.000 --> 00:55:21.809
chris: What! What was your opinion of what? What you were getting? You? Said Ron and Russell, man?
561
00:55:23.110 --> 00:55:29.810
chris: I said to him, he said, with the original band the other 3 offered as well, and he said, Not when I was around. Now.
562
00:55:30.090 --> 00:55:32.330
chris: the manager
563
00:55:32.863 --> 00:55:38.890
chris: was was just basically gonna recruit 3 new British musicians, and as long as they were good. That was fine by me.
564
00:55:39.420 --> 00:55:42.170
Christian Huey: And and you can see, that's that's probably true.
565
00:55:42.650 --> 00:55:43.210
Christian Huey: Yeah.
566
00:55:43.700 --> 00:55:46.399
chris: It's probably true. Isn't it very sad?
567
00:55:47.020 --> 00:55:50.674
Christian Huey: Yeah. Good units at Ireland. Indiscrete as you said.
568
00:55:51.820 --> 00:56:01.619
chris: They were struggling over here in Britain and Europe. By the time indiscrete came out they knew they needed a bit of a change after propaganda, almost certainly.
569
00:56:02.250 --> 00:56:07.347
chris: and I think that always wanted to do something along the lines of what they did with this county, of having
570
00:56:07.980 --> 00:56:10.090
chris: spring quartets and
571
00:56:10.250 --> 00:56:18.920
chris: biddles and all sorts of things on it, and being a very diverse record, and and I think in some respects now, Monty, we spoke a while ago
572
00:56:19.800 --> 00:56:25.629
chris: he saw certain parallels which I thought was really good between indiscrete and wood, for in a way that there was that
573
00:56:25.880 --> 00:56:35.169
chris: trying to try different things that he could see that it started with. Here comes Bob, and Batch is not included, and he's quite right, and I thought that was interesting. But
574
00:56:35.410 --> 00:56:38.010
chris: I think indiscreet was not what
575
00:56:39.310 --> 00:56:41.750
chris: lot of people wanted over in Britain.
576
00:56:41.970 --> 00:56:48.020
chris: They probably would have wanted the diminishing returns of the amount of propaganda part 3.
577
00:56:49.290 --> 00:56:50.040
chris: So if this.
578
00:56:50.040 --> 00:56:52.480
Christian Huey: That's interesting, you know.
579
00:56:53.390 --> 00:57:12.569
Christian Huey: because when when that when that record came out in discrete 1975 and it, it in my mind occupies a similar space to queens and night at the opera, and that they were just throwing, you know, whatever they they could at the wall, and most of it stuck because they had gotten so good
580
00:57:12.770 --> 00:57:23.890
Christian Huey: at at doing all these, you know, sorts of different ideas and and and different genres and and whatnot. So it's it was somewhat strange to me to to hear
581
00:57:24.040 --> 00:57:28.349
Christian Huey: I wasn't there at the time that that that did not
582
00:57:29.742 --> 00:57:41.409
Christian Huey: grab hold of the the imagination of the British, you know. Music listening public, as did the Queen record at that time.
583
00:57:42.190 --> 00:57:44.655
chris: No, they had a problem, I think, gets in the swing.
584
00:57:47.750 --> 00:58:01.799
chris: it's not one of my favorites. I can see what they're trying to do on it, and I understand what they're trying to do on it. But something still stops me from going overboard on it. I must admit I do like looks looks very much. I I that always makes me smile.
585
00:58:01.980 --> 00:58:11.628
chris: I love the way that comes in. But the singles were dropping off the charts lower places in the top 30 so, and an industry was dropping down as well. So
586
00:58:12.440 --> 00:58:15.330
chris: Something had to change after that, and
587
00:58:16.590 --> 00:58:30.250
chris: I think even that was when you 1st realized for me that Sparks, the males, were capable of making a very big change to their sound. I could see a lineage up to them through the Islander albums.
588
00:58:30.440 --> 00:58:35.660
chris: and they had one island album to go when big Beat came out with that god. Awful cover! I've got to say.
589
00:58:36.310 --> 00:58:39.430
Christian Huey: Oh, you didn't like it! That's a famous cover by now.
590
00:58:39.550 --> 00:58:42.830
Christian Huey: By Richard Evidon, right? I don't want to say.
591
00:58:42.830 --> 00:58:45.650
chris: No problems. I've no problems with all of that.
592
00:58:46.410 --> 00:58:50.759
chris: When you, when when I spoke to Rupert Holmes about what he thought he was making
593
00:58:50.940 --> 00:58:52.820
chris: and what the idea was.
594
00:58:53.170 --> 00:59:03.699
chris: If you think about that concept, as was, he explained to him, screams out a kind of a shutdown side alley, or some sort of gritty kind of in your faceness.
595
00:59:04.960 --> 00:59:10.340
chris: Who is which it it it doesn't have at all.
596
00:59:10.800 --> 00:59:12.480
Christian Huey: Better stats.
597
00:59:13.320 --> 00:59:13.650
chris: I can see.
598
00:59:13.650 --> 00:59:16.309
Christian Huey: Sort of hinting toward that. But yeah, but not.
599
00:59:16.310 --> 00:59:19.039
chris: Yeah. yeah. I mean, that was.
600
00:59:20.430 --> 00:59:25.699
chris: I mean, Michael's does really? Well, doesn't he? On that? I mean the drums you listen to you. Think, my God!
601
00:59:27.310 --> 00:59:29.600
chris: And a group of tomes is still.
602
00:59:29.790 --> 00:59:35.889
chris: I think he says he says the only thing he finds is, he finds if anybody says to the males.
603
00:59:36.300 --> 00:59:38.809
chris: what the hell happens with with big bees?
604
00:59:39.430 --> 00:59:45.800
chris: They'll they'll they'll tend to say something along the lines of with production problems.
605
00:59:46.710 --> 00:59:51.339
chris: And if anybody says to them, big B, what a terrific album! Oh, yeah, thank you.
606
00:59:52.826 --> 00:59:57.324
chris: But he says that that's just how it is. And it is
607
00:59:58.800 --> 01:00:01.680
chris: I mean Jeff Salem. What a guitar player.
608
01:00:01.960 --> 01:00:03.129
Christian Huey: Yeah, all that.
609
01:00:03.450 --> 01:00:04.170
Christian Huey: Yeah.
610
01:00:04.470 --> 01:00:06.190
Christian Huey: Did you get a chance to talk to him?
611
01:00:06.780 --> 01:00:07.550
Christian Huey: Is it.
612
01:00:07.550 --> 01:00:10.329
chris: Jess Islands unfortunately passed away some time ago.
613
01:00:10.450 --> 01:00:12.769
Christian Huey: Oh, I'm sorry, that's I forgot that detail.
614
01:00:12.770 --> 01:00:18.600
chris: I know well, I would only have known had I not, through checking stuff.
615
01:00:19.030 --> 01:00:24.529
Christian Huey: Well, you know, but of course, as you know, Sal's left us, you mentioned that, and.
616
01:00:24.530 --> 01:00:25.296
chris: He was
617
01:00:25.680 --> 01:00:26.980
Christian Huey: You can talk to Sal.
618
01:00:27.430 --> 01:00:31.780
chris: That was so funny. And he's played with anybody.
619
01:00:31.890 --> 01:00:34.073
chris: And I was on the
620
01:00:35.380 --> 01:00:44.020
chris: yeah, I he books great. And I was on the phone to him for a video Zip for ages. And we went through his Tommy Roxy, Robert Calvert of Hawkward.
621
01:00:44.200 --> 01:00:49.750
chris: the runaways. He plays all of the bass by one track on, waiting for the night, elm by the runaways.
622
01:00:50.650 --> 01:00:55.780
chris: and he was so funny and amusing, and a great bass player.
623
01:00:55.930 --> 01:00:59.980
chris: and he's very, very proud he was of his work on big beat and
624
01:01:00.850 --> 01:01:05.689
chris: and it's a very cohesive record, isn't it? It's do you like big beats?
625
01:01:06.570 --> 01:01:20.030
Christian Huey: I I like big beat. Yeah, I I don't think I'll ever love big beat. But there's there's a lot to I I do aesthetically. It's cohesive like you said, and there are some there are some bangers on there.
626
01:01:20.600 --> 01:01:48.499
Christian Huey: My, my! I guess my general opinion is that they were if they were either trying to run rust, trying too hard not to try too hard, or they weren't trying hard enough to to try. I I don't know if that makes sense, but I mean they were definitely going for a a stripped down sound, something that, like, you know, these days is called protopunk
627
01:01:49.985 --> 01:01:52.070
Christian Huey: and I guess
628
01:01:52.940 --> 01:02:04.908
Christian Huey: it just it just doesn't quite. It doesn't hit me the way those island records do. And I think that's probably the way for for a lot of fans, but you know, put it on, and like I'll jam out to
629
01:02:05.470 --> 01:02:07.435
Christian Huey: you know, to
630
01:02:08.610 --> 01:02:17.240
Christian Huey: throw away and get her a new one, or I want to be like everybody else, or nothing to do. I mean, they're they, they do have. They do have a punch.
631
01:02:17.580 --> 01:02:20.560
Christian Huey: It's just not one that I come back to that often.
632
01:02:21.620 --> 01:02:26.680
chris: Yeah, I see what you mean. Of course, this the runness quotient, isn't it? I mean, run so dialed down.
633
01:02:26.820 --> 01:02:32.270
chris: Yeah, that's what they wanted, and they didn't want run
634
01:02:32.590 --> 01:02:37.130
chris: prominent in the mix, and he's he's scarcely noticeable a lot of the time.
635
01:02:37.723 --> 01:02:47.990
chris: Which makes the live recordings from the bottom line and so on. It's a couple of live shows interesting because you can hear on quite clearly on the big beat songs on that.
636
01:02:48.360 --> 01:02:50.305
chris: But yeah, I mean, that was
637
01:02:50.970 --> 01:02:53.979
Christian Huey: That's nothing compared to the next curveball, though, is it?
638
01:02:54.190 --> 01:03:03.229
Christian Huey: Oh, boy, okay, but yes, so we'll we'll get to that. But I just want to take a moment to say that that that hilly Michaels
639
01:03:03.690 --> 01:03:24.490
Christian Huey: really carry, I don't want to say carries, but he carries a lot of weight and a lot of water on on big beat. And I really notice what what Hilly brings to this, and I was wondering if you had any thoughts about Hilly, or if you had listened to hilly stuff beyond that.
640
01:03:24.490 --> 01:03:25.220
chris: Yeah.
641
01:03:25.640 --> 01:03:32.369
chris: Yeah. Well, Rupert and I talked about Hilly because you you can't not talk about hilly Michaels on the album.
642
01:03:32.480 --> 01:03:39.609
chris: And and his view was, and I got it straight towards that. He said that I listened to him, and I thought, Oh, it's a Keith moon drummer!
643
01:03:40.550 --> 01:03:41.490
chris: That's gonna be a leak.
644
01:03:41.490 --> 01:03:44.320
chris: I thought, Yeah, can't argue with that.
645
01:03:44.550 --> 01:03:46.730
Christian Huey: Yeah. And then Jeff Salem.
646
01:03:47.090 --> 01:03:54.520
chris: Plays the more guitar solos, I think, on one record, and been on all the other records put together. Quite probably.
647
01:03:56.480 --> 01:04:02.749
chris: And he I mean the the one solo that he gets on Big boy. I think he's something like 4 solos at the same time
648
01:04:02.890 --> 01:04:08.110
chris: that ruby times recorded. I think when you get that, that's that noise.
649
01:04:08.550 --> 01:04:15.189
chris: It's a solo is about 4 solos just played at the same time. Different takes
650
01:04:16.200 --> 01:04:19.160
chris: is that song you're talking about.
651
01:04:19.580 --> 01:04:21.509
chris: It's on a big boy.
652
01:04:21.790 --> 01:04:23.640
Christian Huey: Oh, and big boy, okay. Okay.
653
01:04:23.640 --> 01:04:28.379
chris: Halfway through. There's this little break, and there's this short burst of frantic guitar.
654
01:04:28.380 --> 01:04:29.710
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah.
655
01:04:29.710 --> 01:04:36.180
chris: Okay, and and Rupert Home said, I'll play it again, play it again, buy it again.
656
01:04:36.350 --> 01:04:41.219
chris: and he couldn't play it the same way each time. So we just overlaid him. So that's what you get. You slide
657
01:04:41.430 --> 01:04:43.489
chris: Jeff Solon 4 times the maximum.
658
01:04:45.140 --> 01:04:45.890
Christian Huey: Leads.
659
01:04:46.490 --> 01:04:47.190
Christian Huey: Fantastic.
660
01:04:47.190 --> 01:04:53.278
chris: Thanks, Ed, but of course, originally supposed to be Mick Ronson, playing guitar, and
661
01:04:54.510 --> 01:04:59.629
chris: and that that intrigues me because we have this story about them trying to get Brian May in the band.
662
01:05:00.240 --> 01:05:00.630
chris: Yeah.
663
01:05:00.630 --> 01:05:02.955
Christian Huey: Yeah, that's an interesting footnote,
664
01:05:04.010 --> 01:05:16.580
chris: So the lead guitar playing songwriting. Brian May, yeah. And then they were going to work with the songwriting, lead guitarist, Mick Ronson, and that doesn't square with anything that we know about their modus operandi.
665
01:05:16.780 --> 01:05:17.220
Christian Huey: No.
666
01:05:17.220 --> 01:05:18.060
chris: That's all.
667
01:05:19.190 --> 01:05:35.940
Christian Huey: Yeah, very, yeah. That's yeah. That is a peculiar footnote, and the sparks story that they approached Brian May. Who? I'm a an immense fan of, and actually once dated a girl who was
668
01:05:36.120 --> 01:05:39.769
Christian Huey: friends with his daughter. But that's a story. For another time.
669
01:05:42.350 --> 01:05:52.349
Christian Huey: But yeah, yeah, agreed. So I guess we should move on to the the penultimate release of the seventies
670
01:05:52.720 --> 01:05:56.080
Christian Huey: which is introducing, which is.
671
01:05:56.080 --> 01:05:56.450
chris: Yeah.
672
01:05:56.450 --> 01:05:58.010
Christian Huey: A hell of a weird album.
673
01:05:58.750 --> 01:06:00.180
chris: What was that like.
674
01:06:00.320 --> 01:06:03.940
Christian Huey: Finding people, because there's an army of people to talk to.
675
01:06:05.260 --> 01:06:05.960
chris: Yeah.
676
01:06:06.370 --> 01:06:16.910
chris: yeah, that's right. I mean, of of all of the albums. And I said earlier about making a list of people you want to talk to. I looked at introducing. And I thought, Oh, oh.
677
01:06:17.170 --> 01:06:24.220
chris: because they're all session. It's the cream of session musicians. And there is a lot of them. And I emailed or contacted
678
01:06:24.810 --> 01:06:27.539
chris: hard to get so many of them.
679
01:06:28.300 --> 01:06:45.089
chris: And you know, and most of them just don't reply, or don't want to talk, or whatever which is, you know, is is absolutely fine. When you do get somebody who wants to talk, it's great. Now, over here it was interesting. I can only remember one bit of publicity for the entire album
680
01:06:46.009 --> 01:06:51.200
chris: which was they appeared on a kids TV show called Tiz was.
681
01:06:51.720 --> 01:06:56.380
chris: and there was a bit of promotion for the album. I think they played over the summer.
682
01:06:57.690 --> 01:07:01.039
chris: and and I thought, I remember thinking, Well.
683
01:07:01.630 --> 01:07:09.840
chris: what's this, you know? And it didn't really say much to me at all, unfortunately, right?
684
01:07:10.000 --> 01:07:15.000
chris: So I didn't particularly care for that. And then I I know, cover. So I looked at the cover. And I thought, Oh.
685
01:07:16.090 --> 01:07:17.650
chris: yeah, would you?
686
01:07:17.650 --> 01:07:20.060
Christian Huey: Look at that cover either side.
687
01:07:21.294 --> 01:07:24.149
Christian Huey: It's yeah. It's pretty.
688
01:07:24.750 --> 01:07:30.150
Christian Huey: I don't know. Desultory. What is the word? I don't know. It's it's it's something.
689
01:07:30.530 --> 01:07:49.229
chris: It was called Introducing spark, so that confused us over in Britain, introducing years. What's this about? And I realized now is irony or something, or whatever you listen to it. And and again I think I found somebody who bought, and this is how it was. It was like, Oh, such and such has got the new.
690
01:07:49.520 --> 01:07:53.470
chris: I must get around to his house to hear it, because it's the only I'm gonna listen to it.
691
01:07:54.450 --> 01:07:58.630
chris: And and occasionally there there'd be for me. There'd be little
692
01:07:59.150 --> 01:08:06.859
chris: moments or times. I thought, Oh, yeah, I can hear. This is spark. It sounded like they were struggling to get through this La Session
693
01:08:07.300 --> 01:08:16.189
chris: sort of soup, not really making it. And there was run again. I couldn't really detect Ron's videosyncratic keyboards.
694
01:08:16.975 --> 01:08:25.490
chris: So over the years I've managed to have a affection verging on love at some songs
695
01:08:25.840 --> 01:08:27.999
chris: and others I can listen to.
696
01:08:28.760 --> 01:08:31.260
chris: I think there's anything I can't listen to.
697
01:08:32.121 --> 01:08:38.348
chris: And one of my favorite spark songs is on there. It has to be said when they did the
698
01:08:39.380 --> 01:08:44.670
chris: 21 night shows, and they finished off with the final show.
699
01:08:45.180 --> 01:08:55.129
chris: They did goofing off. And then one of my happiest memories has been at the front. When they did goofing off and having a a wonderful time just leaping around crazily.
700
01:08:55.700 --> 01:08:56.889
chris: and on those.
701
01:08:56.890 --> 01:08:57.640
Christian Huey: We have to.
702
01:08:57.760 --> 01:09:21.559
Christian Huey: Yeah, I agree with, you know. If I were to have a Jewish wedding which is not at the cards for me for several reasons, but that's a song I would definitely want to play there. I mean, there's sort of that class, not the word. But there is like a traditional sort of Jewish dance sort of rhythm to goofing off, and it's just so wild and woolly
703
01:09:21.680 --> 01:09:25.288
Christian Huey: in a way that they hadn't really done
704
01:09:26.670 --> 01:09:32.890
Christian Huey: maybe at all quite in that way, since, like I I this is an album
705
01:09:33.140 --> 01:09:35.619
Christian Huey: that grows in stature with me
706
01:09:36.100 --> 01:09:40.379
Christian Huey: as as I listen to it, more and more, because it is so adventurous.
707
01:09:41.830 --> 01:09:48.389
chris: Do you mean there is? There is enough there that you can find more? I mean, I I always smile at occupation.
708
01:09:48.600 --> 01:09:52.469
chris: and really I shouldn't, because he should just be stupid and silly, but I do still.
709
01:09:52.630 --> 01:09:54.742
Christian Huey: I think it's perfect.
710
01:09:57.060 --> 01:10:01.649
chris: I mean goofing up is the big one for me, and these mysteries I adore.
711
01:10:04.210 --> 01:10:06.570
chris: I really do like forever, young.
712
01:10:07.350 --> 01:10:07.970
Christian Huey: Yeah.
713
01:10:07.970 --> 01:10:12.109
chris: Really like that. And and the guy I got to speak to it. Someone.
714
01:10:12.360 --> 01:10:18.659
chris: It was Tom Lotella, and who, I think I mentioned about a hundred times. In talking about the album.
715
01:10:19.470 --> 01:10:24.799
chris: My! That guitar. So I'm goofing up. It's worth the price of admitting for that on its own
716
01:10:25.260 --> 01:10:27.050
chris: Tom returns guitar. So.
717
01:10:27.570 --> 01:10:28.790
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, he's great.
718
01:10:31.540 --> 01:10:32.230
chris: Hey?
719
01:10:32.570 --> 01:10:41.259
chris: You do kind of wonder what would introducing sparks have been like if I hadn't had the cream of these La Session musicians. It had been more.
720
01:10:41.780 --> 01:10:44.909
chris: The sparksness quotients have been a lot higher.
721
01:10:45.050 --> 01:10:49.569
chris: and I think it could have been a an even more interesting record.
722
01:10:50.080 --> 01:10:56.289
chris: It it is what it is, and as you've said, it's it is an album. I think, that has grown over the years
723
01:10:56.410 --> 01:11:00.219
chris: for many fans. I never used to hear a lot of love. Well, any love.
724
01:11:00.440 --> 01:11:03.190
chris: or from anyone I know that has changed.
725
01:11:04.750 --> 01:11:12.750
Christian Huey: I mean the the if you just look at the songwriting. If you look at the individual songs themselves, I think there's there's good stuff there.
726
01:11:13.300 --> 01:11:15.459
Christian Huey: A big surprise is a
727
01:11:15.740 --> 01:11:30.669
Christian Huey: I, you know. It's a pretty raw song. Occupation, though it's not necessarily high-minded, is still like it. It works ladies, I mean, in some ways these are sort of like boiled down
728
01:11:30.800 --> 01:11:32.960
Christian Huey: lyrically
729
01:11:33.518 --> 01:11:41.630
Christian Huey: boiled down, you know, sorts of sparks or ron style songs. It's just ones that don't require quite as much thought
730
01:11:41.790 --> 01:11:44.180
Christian Huey: as maybe, you know, previous ones would.
731
01:11:44.960 --> 01:11:51.569
chris: It always strikes me as a very cheerful record. When I listen to it. I always feel it's got a happy warmth.
732
01:11:51.580 --> 01:11:54.979
Christian Huey: It's their California record. It's their I call it. Their beach boys record.
733
01:11:56.090 --> 01:11:58.739
chris: Yeah, I can go with that. Yeah, I can go with that.
734
01:12:00.240 --> 01:12:03.749
chris: It's not something. I mean, I've really encountered that often
735
01:12:04.020 --> 01:12:10.390
chris: with, yeah. And I, I think, probably was my age at the time. I wasn't necessarily ready for happy warmth.
736
01:12:10.980 --> 01:12:13.509
chris: Wanted something a bit more introspective and
737
01:12:13.630 --> 01:12:17.279
chris: a bit more difficult. So I mean that that was that was tricky for us.
738
01:12:18.500 --> 01:12:21.580
chris: Yeah, didn't really do a light here at all.
739
01:12:24.040 --> 01:12:29.210
chris: And then we're starting to see this pattern that time. Of
740
01:12:29.560 --> 01:12:40.510
chris: what are we gonna do now? And I think what they what they realized, which was very, very cute and clever was that if you take what they have, Ron and Russell, and what they can do.
741
01:12:41.030 --> 01:12:48.190
chris: you could bulk that onto other genres, other forms of music. And then you have got a very interesting combination.
742
01:12:48.400 --> 01:12:54.900
chris: And I think that I'm not sure how far back they start to realize this? Certainly.
743
01:12:55.810 --> 01:13:00.700
chris: probably by big beats. I I suppose you could argue they do, because it sounds so different.
744
01:13:01.464 --> 01:13:06.470
chris: But the the next change that they come to was brilliant.
745
01:13:06.830 --> 01:13:07.480
chris: I mean.
746
01:13:07.480 --> 01:13:09.840
Christian Huey: Maybe the most radical change they ever made.
747
01:13:09.970 --> 01:13:11.100
Christian Huey: In, in my opinion.
748
01:13:11.100 --> 01:13:16.270
chris: Probably it still is, isn't it? I mean, that was
749
01:13:17.640 --> 01:13:24.209
chris: very, very brave, because he was going to go one of 2 ways. I think I think he was either going to just sink like a stone
750
01:13:24.741 --> 01:13:27.389
chris: or he was going to do extremely well.
751
01:13:28.360 --> 01:13:35.299
chris: And there was some elements over in Britain. I think that what that happened in 74 you could see happening a bit again
752
01:13:35.430 --> 01:13:48.869
chris: with Number One in heaven. You could see I was reading and hearing the same reactions. What is that guy doing on the keyboards? And these were people who hadn't seen it 1st time around. And there isn't a singer cute, and there was a sense of that coming back.
753
01:13:49.330 --> 01:13:54.420
chris: And to work with Moroda was genius
754
01:13:54.530 --> 01:13:58.920
chris: absolutely the right person to work with and
755
01:14:00.520 --> 01:14:06.519
chris: I don't know. Maybe you can see that running through their work to this day some of what they learned from working with Moroda. Perhaps
756
01:14:06.890 --> 01:14:10.660
chris: I'm certainly up to gratuitous sacks you could see coming through there.
757
01:14:10.820 --> 01:14:18.560
chris: Yeah, that album, some of the ones after that. But yeah, I I just wish it was longer. Is the album, I mean.
758
01:14:18.560 --> 01:14:19.270
Christian Huey: Agreed
759
01:14:20.420 --> 01:14:27.460
Christian Huey: I could not agree more. So that is, as I said, full disclosure. That is my favorite sparks album
760
01:14:28.529 --> 01:14:32.359
Christian Huey: I never tire of it every time I I listen to it.
761
01:14:32.520 --> 01:14:38.479
Christian Huey: I I did pull from your book. If I can pull those pages up that.
762
01:14:38.480 --> 01:14:38.940
chris: Yeah.
763
01:14:38.940 --> 01:14:42.110
Christian Huey: There were some questions that I had
764
01:14:42.911 --> 01:14:51.539
Christian Huey: about the instrumentation that I didn't know about. Like I I had assumed that you've got Keith Forsey doing all the drums, and maybe that is.
765
01:14:51.540 --> 01:14:51.900
chris: Yep.
766
01:14:51.900 --> 01:14:57.310
Christian Huey: That's true. Oh, gosh! What was it? But there were some things going on
767
01:14:57.550 --> 01:15:06.809
Christian Huey: that I wasn't aware of. I don't know. Maybe while I look for that May. Maybe maybe you can speak to that a little bit, because we've got.
768
01:15:07.750 --> 01:15:11.889
Christian Huey: of course. Giorgio, who, I assume, is
769
01:15:13.040 --> 01:15:17.430
Christian Huey: is he playing all the synths, or is he just setting up the synths for Ron to play.
770
01:15:18.040 --> 01:15:25.150
chris: No, he simply has to be playing on it, and the reason he has to be playing on it is that if you listen to records he's made before that.
771
01:15:27.110 --> 01:15:33.490
chris: There's a certain sound he has on the synths and keyboards that there's a Moroda style which had already
772
01:15:33.610 --> 01:15:36.249
chris: been played by him on other records.
773
01:15:37.200 --> 01:15:37.680
Christian Huey: Right.
774
01:15:37.730 --> 01:15:39.640
chris: Without any doubts at all.
775
01:15:41.560 --> 01:15:43.740
chris: So Ron is collaborating
776
01:15:44.270 --> 01:15:50.680
chris: on cables, and and this is when it gets it's got a bit trickier over the last few albums.
777
01:15:52.070 --> 01:16:03.199
chris: Discreet. Really, you either can't hear run, or you're not sure whether he's from, and I'm introducing Sparks. I'm not sure when he is Ron or one of the other thrill. People plays are accredited on the record.
778
01:16:03.300 --> 01:16:06.269
chris: and and I'm number one in heaven, I think.
779
01:16:06.770 --> 01:16:14.529
chris: look at the songwriting credits for some clues as well. If I wrote is on the songwriting, then he's almost certainly him. You can hear playing on it as well.
780
01:16:14.680 --> 01:16:26.370
chris: That's that was how I tended to spot that it was him he's definitely on there. I mean, there are stories which I'm gonna have to get to for the next book that that Ron doesn't play our notes on Terminal Jive.
781
01:16:27.066 --> 01:16:28.969
Christian Huey: Yeah, well, so I,
782
01:16:29.540 --> 01:16:35.380
Christian Huey: I also read that at some point. And then I read something else saying that that was not strictly true
783
01:16:36.910 --> 01:16:39.918
Christian Huey: although to a large part true.
784
01:16:41.200 --> 01:16:44.578
chris: Yeah, I'm hoping to find out on that. But Number number one in Evan, I think.
785
01:16:45.890 --> 01:16:53.249
chris: and so much of the album is released a single thing. So one track is released as A B side or an A side on it at some point or another.
786
01:16:53.500 --> 01:16:54.360
chris: Think it's just
787
01:16:54.360 --> 01:16:57.669
chris: that's right. There was not a contract that was not released as an A or A B side.
788
01:16:57.920 --> 01:17:03.720
chris: Yeah, only one. I think the ability to put out these pick the disks and 12 inch disks, and
789
01:17:04.150 --> 01:17:04.970
chris: maybe it must.
790
01:17:04.970 --> 01:17:07.319
Christian Huey: Either voice was not released, and as a.
791
01:17:07.320 --> 01:17:12.204
chris: Is that one? It's 1 of them didn't make it to onto anything.
792
01:17:13.550 --> 01:17:20.309
chris: it's it is the singles dominate, I I think, on that. And over here in Britain that that's the perspective.
793
01:17:20.310 --> 01:17:21.110
Christian Huey: You've got.
794
01:17:21.110 --> 01:17:21.770
chris: Also let me.
795
01:17:22.450 --> 01:17:23.160
Christian Huey: Yeah.
796
01:17:23.160 --> 01:17:27.749
chris: Yeah, when when sparks play live, that's those singles are the ones that
797
01:17:28.130 --> 01:17:32.020
chris: people want to hear. But it is an astonishing album
798
01:17:32.320 --> 01:17:36.810
chris: and the best cover in a long time. I'm going to say, yeah.
799
01:17:36.980 --> 01:17:41.340
chris: yeah. I thought I'd seen it around there.
800
01:17:42.600 --> 01:17:45.100
Christian Huey: There she is somewhere back there. Yeah.
801
01:17:45.100 --> 01:17:55.079
chris: Yes, very, very brave thing to do. And it it kind of works them I don't see, indeed.
802
01:17:55.320 --> 01:17:57.420
chris: don't think it did as well as it is. A.
803
01:17:58.190 --> 01:18:05.399
chris: That's my opinion. When I look at the those singles, I think they could have had a number one number 2. It over here probably should have done.
804
01:18:05.720 --> 01:18:10.589
chris: I think they were. They were good enough to have done that. They they didn't do as well as that.
805
01:18:15.500 --> 01:18:19.919
Christian Huey: No, I'm sorry, so we we haven't talked about this this very much. But you know I
806
01:18:20.050 --> 01:18:24.960
Christian Huey: no, I I came up in the Mtv era.
807
01:18:25.120 --> 01:18:32.360
Christian Huey: And when I started discovering that Sparks had videos from from this time from
808
01:18:32.840 --> 01:18:40.450
Christian Huey: then, and even and even some some promotional clips from before then, like this town it.
809
01:18:41.070 --> 01:18:45.570
Christian Huey: That's when things really start to click for me
810
01:18:45.760 --> 01:18:48.270
Christian Huey: what what they were all about. Aesthetically.
811
01:18:48.270 --> 01:18:48.870
chris: Yes.
812
01:18:48.870 --> 01:18:57.509
Christian Huey: And I'm did you guys in in the Uk, did you happen? Did you see much of that from 74 to 79.
813
01:18:57.790 --> 01:19:03.370
chris: No, no, really. And what used to happen in the Uk was you'd appear on top of the Pops
814
01:19:03.980 --> 01:19:07.399
chris: commonly. Then they would reuse that performance
815
01:19:07.920 --> 01:19:18.509
chris: a couple of weeks later, or 3 weeks later, and then they might use a promo film. They seem to dislike using promo films on top of the pops, so we only occasionally really saw those
816
01:19:18.710 --> 01:19:21.955
chris: I can remember one for Ali Scooper being shown, and
817
01:19:23.090 --> 01:19:38.539
chris: Certainly the human rhapsody was shown. So so these promo things really became something we collected on on video cassettes when we were collecting anything we could about sparks. It would be, it would be like, Oh, somebody's got the promo video of this town
818
01:19:38.790 --> 01:19:48.580
chris: on a scratchy old video to say. And you would you do have this? Of course, not having seen it when he was on the 1st time. He's been like 15 years later, or something.
819
01:19:49.920 --> 01:19:51.810
chris: No, he never think it was.
820
01:19:52.769 --> 01:19:56.400
Christian Huey: So I wanted to ask you about what? Because I I was
821
01:19:57.730 --> 01:20:06.749
Christian Huey: I I was I was somewhat surprised and pleasingly to see that you had included
822
01:20:06.950 --> 01:20:26.910
Christian Huey: some other works that they had done in 1979 after number one in heaven, and that was an album that I've come to appreciate a lot which is noels. Dancing is dangerous, or there's more to life than dancing. I can never remember the name of the actual Lp.
823
01:20:27.390 --> 01:20:27.980
chris: Yeah.
824
01:20:28.622 --> 01:20:30.549
Christian Huey: So and so
825
01:20:31.250 --> 01:20:38.230
Christian Huey: when did you 1st hear that? And it I sort of do gather from your book that you know you weren't
826
01:20:38.580 --> 01:20:43.160
Christian Huey: very struck, you know, positively by that.
827
01:20:43.850 --> 01:20:45.549
Christian Huey: When did you 1st hear that.
828
01:20:46.551 --> 01:20:50.200
chris: That would have been probably in the nineties. Something like that.
829
01:20:52.210 --> 01:21:02.210
chris: As we're saying, that these things were not widely disseminated, unless presumably, you're in the Bank Club, and I did. I don't know because I I wasn't. I was in it for a short while.
830
01:21:02.450 --> 01:21:10.459
chris: and then I ended up sending postal orders and checks and whatever. So I just dropped out of that. So maybe people are in the Bank Club knew if you weren't in the Bank Club.
831
01:21:11.187 --> 01:21:15.630
chris: It would have been in the British music past Ron and Russell. I think
832
01:21:15.830 --> 01:21:17.980
chris: so now it's we're we're doing this album.
833
01:21:18.280 --> 01:21:21.669
chris: But you're still gonna go and buy it, because no one you aren't gonna hear it.
834
01:21:22.390 --> 01:21:25.940
Christian Huey: Oh, no, very few people would.
835
01:21:25.940 --> 01:21:28.060
chris: Like the record shop to put it on
836
01:21:28.939 --> 01:21:33.220
chris: and then the Adrian Munzi's say sheep. I'd heard about that.
837
01:21:33.630 --> 01:21:35.760
chris: I'm excited about you. Yeah.
838
01:21:36.185 --> 01:21:46.819
Christian Huey: I I had known about. It's it's its existence. But I had dismissed it as because I didn't. I didn't even hear it as a
839
01:21:46.960 --> 01:21:58.540
Christian Huey: a cover of sache with just a sheep. And
840
01:21:59.120 --> 01:22:10.140
Christian Huey: and then I finally recently actually listened to Adrian Muncies original piece, and then heard the one that he did, and I realized it was had nothing to do with that at all.
841
01:22:10.140 --> 01:22:11.700
chris: So right.
842
01:22:12.250 --> 01:22:19.219
Christian Huey: So that's fun. Do you know, I mean, how much of that? Do you know, did you talk to anyone involved with that.
843
01:22:19.640 --> 01:22:21.050
chris: Yeah, I spoke to Adrian.
844
01:22:21.330 --> 01:22:27.719
chris: and he was one of these exact cases of the guys going about his business, and nobody ever asks him
845
01:22:28.170 --> 01:22:30.300
chris: about this at all. Nobody.
846
01:22:30.580 --> 01:22:34.669
chris: And I emailed him and said, You want to talk? Oh, yeah, give me a call like today.
847
01:22:35.030 --> 01:22:37.252
chris: And he was thrilled to bits and
848
01:22:37.700 --> 01:22:42.995
chris: see, when you listen to it, I I've heard about it because a guy I used to work with
849
01:22:43.820 --> 01:22:47.220
chris: used to do a lot of work with a British singer called Helen Shapiro.
850
01:22:49.020 --> 01:22:52.859
chris: And she sings backing vocals on. Say, she.
851
01:22:53.800 --> 01:22:57.380
Christian Huey: Yeah. And she wanted, because she's got to earn some money in the in the.
852
01:22:57.840 --> 01:23:03.770
chris: Suppose what you might call the twilight of her career, and she could still sing. So she was. She was doing that
853
01:23:04.380 --> 01:23:05.250
Christian Huey: That's so bizarre.
854
01:23:05.400 --> 01:23:07.680
chris: I've never actually heard the record.
855
01:23:08.250 --> 01:23:15.150
chris: because, like you, I just thought it'd be some jokey thing over there. And and when I started putting the book together, I thought.
856
01:23:15.600 --> 01:23:17.690
chris: what if I actually play on it
857
01:23:19.160 --> 01:23:26.080
chris: when I listen to it? I knew Ron was playing on it straight away because it. It's the keyboard. So it's it's
858
01:23:26.450 --> 01:23:35.360
chris: I thought, this is wrong. Now that it is Ron, he said. Oh, yeah, yeah. Ron plays all the keyboard since, and everything.
859
01:23:35.360 --> 01:23:38.330
Christian Huey: Played the lot on on that, on this issue.
860
01:23:38.330 --> 01:23:44.790
chris: No 18 months, he said, he said, and and probably let's be frank, because that would have been the cheapest option, wouldn't it?
861
01:23:45.330 --> 01:23:46.340
Christian Huey: Make, sense.
862
01:23:46.700 --> 01:23:53.470
chris: I suppose they chucked a lot of money at it, and an agent went on, for at 2 h
863
01:23:54.170 --> 01:23:59.489
chris: recording of these there's not much in the book, but if you want to know whose sheep they were.
864
01:24:00.240 --> 01:24:03.869
chris: all that seats open, wicked pants in shape
865
01:24:06.000 --> 01:24:11.429
chris: and and he looked at he? He just looked at that he was part of the sparks.
866
01:24:11.580 --> 01:24:18.960
chris: Storage since it was Virgin are doing it at the time, you know. We've got this guy, did you fancy doing this? Oh, yeah, we'll do that
867
01:24:19.200 --> 01:24:23.919
chris: doing these peculiar radio ads for the for the album.
868
01:24:23.920 --> 01:24:26.820
Christian Huey: How on earth did they find each other? I mean, that's just.
869
01:24:26.820 --> 01:24:31.000
chris: Peter Cook was recording for virgin records. They'd signed him up.
870
01:24:31.340 --> 01:24:34.549
chris: Peter and he would have been sat around the offices, probably not
871
01:24:35.279 --> 01:24:41.639
chris: doing this, and he would have said something. Probably I'm guessing of how much are you paying for me to do it
872
01:24:42.480 --> 01:24:43.960
chris: right?
873
01:24:44.936 --> 01:24:49.800
chris: So I think they saw sparks. And this is the impression that I got is being that
874
01:24:50.140 --> 01:24:55.900
chris: the band they could work with on different levels and and develop, and they would just pop up on different things
875
01:24:56.100 --> 01:25:04.250
chris: weren't dropped for them was when Terminal Jive was submitted. And and when I spoke to them they were.
876
01:25:04.610 --> 01:25:07.959
chris: They basically said, We can hear one song on it that's
877
01:25:08.250 --> 01:25:10.059
chris: that they thought was any good
878
01:25:10.420 --> 01:25:12.920
chris: right, and that, of course, is when I'm with you.
879
01:25:12.920 --> 01:25:16.819
chris: you know, with you, they said, apart from that, forget it. And they just said, Okay, we're not gonna
880
01:25:17.330 --> 01:25:23.250
chris: not gonna keep the contract going. That that's it. I think this this moment is past. Maybe it has.
881
01:25:23.860 --> 01:25:24.460
Christian Huey: Yeah.
882
01:25:25.750 --> 01:25:26.310
chris: Have.
883
01:25:26.650 --> 01:25:33.329
Christian Huey: Do you have any predilection of doing a follow up
884
01:25:33.540 --> 01:25:35.539
Christian Huey: to to this for the eighties.
885
01:25:36.300 --> 01:25:48.629
chris: Well, yeah. And the reason for that is because of people like yourself, Monty, Larry, and and various other sparks fans who've been so kind and welcoming and
886
01:25:49.090 --> 01:25:52.646
chris: letting me have the time to speak to you about these things. And
887
01:25:53.600 --> 01:25:59.040
chris: There was a there was a feeling that would sparks in the eighties appeal to anyone.
888
01:25:59.494 --> 01:26:03.280
chris: That with people like yourself who will have might want everything
889
01:26:03.820 --> 01:26:08.889
chris: there might be. Some people are going. Well, I I don't know about that era. I like this seventies stuff, or
890
01:26:09.120 --> 01:26:18.190
chris: and are there any people who only like sparks? Eighties, U.S.A. Style you aren't interested in. I don't know. So there's a risk element attached. But we're going to take the risk.
891
01:26:18.500 --> 01:26:20.389
chris: and I'm starting on it.
892
01:26:21.760 --> 01:26:30.769
chris: Probably be, I should imagine maybe after Christmas I need a break from that, and I'll start again the same way. So I'll list everybody
893
01:26:31.850 --> 01:26:39.459
chris: it is. And I think it's an interesting story, because, of course, we get the whole thing with you know, base motel, and so on. And during them.
894
01:26:39.970 --> 01:26:46.710
Christian Huey: And and actually sparks looking like a band more than they have since 1972 yeah.
895
01:26:46.984 --> 01:26:56.589
chris: And I'm hoping to get hold of the guys. And so that's where I'm I'm anyone that they can help put me in touch with them, because I I think that that's gonna be important.
896
01:26:56.810 --> 01:26:57.980
chris: I know.
897
01:26:58.320 --> 01:27:08.052
Christian Huey: Monty and I have both spoken with David. He's spoken more with David Kendrick than than I have, but he seems to be a very willing
898
01:27:09.026 --> 01:27:19.059
Christian Huey: interview subject, and he enjoys talking about that time period. So I think I think you'll get a lot out of out out of him about that time.
899
01:27:19.060 --> 01:27:32.610
chris: I hadn't heard claiming spies stuff till a while ago, and I think that struck me straight away, was the similarity to Sparks. And now I'm thinking how much of a cross pollination was going on. There.
900
01:27:32.910 --> 01:27:36.035
Christian Huey: That's a great question. And
901
01:27:36.860 --> 01:27:47.720
Christian Huey: I didn't get close enough to David, because the only he's the only only one that I was ever able to talk to about those things to really get into the
902
01:27:48.530 --> 01:28:02.689
Christian Huey: and nitty gritty about about that sort of thing. But I I didn't. I didn't get the impression that sparks were that Ron and Russell were much involved with the songwriting, nor the production
903
01:28:03.285 --> 01:28:06.540
Christian Huey: of the the gleaming spire stuff, but you know rather.
904
01:28:06.540 --> 01:28:06.890
chris: No.
905
01:28:07.480 --> 01:28:17.479
Christian Huey: I I hesitate to say it was a 1 way street, but it seems like it was probably more that way than the other. But you know there's probably a whole lot of discovery to be made there.
906
01:28:18.120 --> 01:28:28.019
chris: Well, I think you're right. What I want to find out from David is how much they had an influence. And input. Into the songs on those sparks, albums.
907
01:28:28.020 --> 01:28:30.110
Christian Huey: Oh, I see. Yeah.
908
01:28:30.110 --> 01:28:40.470
chris: Is there a sense that the Run and Russ have got these Demos? And then they go? Well, we could do this. We could do that because they just sound so similar to me to their own airports at times.
909
01:28:42.320 --> 01:28:44.000
chris: Maybe they must have
910
01:28:44.800 --> 01:28:48.580
Christian Huey: Yeah. Well, I know that. Those
911
01:28:50.020 --> 01:28:56.580
Christian Huey: those couple of eighties records at least as the the whomp and and angst.
912
01:28:56.890 --> 01:29:00.800
Christian Huey: a lot of those were. The music was
913
01:29:01.280 --> 01:29:09.430
Christian Huey: largely improvised in in the studio or or in rehearsal, so that the the members of
914
01:29:11.291 --> 01:29:13.979
Christian Huey: the Bates motel slash
915
01:29:14.579 --> 01:29:22.720
Christian Huey: gleaming spires had had a lot of influence on that sort of stuff, particularly when you're hearing the drum work, which is, you know.
916
01:29:22.920 --> 01:29:39.209
Christian Huey: you know all, all, David, but but I I do think and you know, and hopefully you'll you'll get some some more fine point information on this, but I I do think they had a lot of influence on the sound
917
01:29:39.420 --> 01:29:42.210
Christian Huey: of those those couple of records at least.
918
01:29:42.900 --> 01:29:47.440
chris: It doesn't look like a band, because I mean they even tour, don't they? I mean, it's.
919
01:29:47.440 --> 01:29:47.990
Christian Huey: Yeah.
920
01:29:48.630 --> 01:30:15.489
Christian Huey: And they toured long after they had, from my, from my knowledge, they toured with sparks long after they were actually have having much of an influence on the recorded material like in outer space, which was fairly minimal. And then and and even 84, 86, with the records that followed, but they still kept those guys around
921
01:30:15.870 --> 01:30:17.779
Christian Huey: to to follow on tour.
922
01:30:19.120 --> 01:30:26.293
chris: Going back, I mean, I mean, Trevor I was talking to when I spoke to Trevor White about indiscrete. I was telling them how much I love the
923
01:30:26.670 --> 01:30:30.380
chris: the kind of the glitter kind of glam rock was a big thing
924
01:30:31.130 --> 01:30:41.030
chris: Britain, which is my kind of early thing and I've seen how much I love the Glam rock kind of feel. And then hospitality on Pre really goes into that big kind of blizzard base.
925
01:30:41.230 --> 01:30:44.970
chris: And Trevor White said, that that's my bit. That's my idea.
926
01:30:45.180 --> 01:30:45.780
Christian Huey: Unbelievable.
927
01:30:45.780 --> 01:30:52.540
chris: To to run. Why don't we do this? And in having you listen to you can tell me somebody else's idea. It's it's so obvious.
928
01:30:53.170 --> 01:31:00.730
chris: and that was his bit of influence. So whether there was anything else that came in then I don't know, but it does show they are willing to listen to
929
01:31:01.050 --> 01:31:02.759
chris: idea. So that was good.
930
01:31:02.980 --> 01:31:10.339
Christian Huey: Well, the Glam kind of came to to them right I I don't think you know they they made the glam happen, you know.
931
01:31:10.340 --> 01:31:18.409
chris: 71 in Britain, I think, with with T. Rex and Hot Dog, and Ride. The White Swan was the the stars at 72 was big.
932
01:31:18.650 --> 01:31:25.849
chris: but it was still going in 74. So anybody who looked a bit odd and with a big, kind dramatic and
933
01:31:26.310 --> 01:31:34.919
chris: could be loosely put into the Glam here, and of course you're not saying no, are you? If somebody's labeling you, it means they might probably like you, I guess, is that
934
01:31:35.250 --> 01:31:40.099
chris: if the way they would have looked at it. Any publicity is good publicity, isn't it?
935
01:31:41.278 --> 01:31:47.889
chris: I hope they carry on. I mean, I'm enjoying the new album. I'm seeing them next Saturday, in fact.
936
01:31:48.220 --> 01:31:53.949
chris: so we can't see them on the tour. It looks like we're in for a good night, and we have got goofing off, I believe.
937
01:31:54.240 --> 01:31:55.949
chris: set this, which is good.
938
01:31:56.270 --> 01:31:57.890
Christian Huey: You've got the goofing office on.
939
01:31:58.268 --> 01:32:02.049
chris: It's been in the set list so far in Britain.
940
01:32:02.050 --> 01:32:14.063
Christian Huey: Okay. I have not, had an opportunity to to see them. This go around because they have not come to North America yet, and I probably won't be able to make it to to Europe this year. But I did see them in
941
01:32:14.580 --> 01:32:19.569
Christian Huey: 23, and and they had some stuff from
942
01:32:19.730 --> 01:32:34.240
Christian Huey: from 88 on there from interior design, which was surprising in a good way, so I would love to hear anything from from back then. So where are you? What's the venue where you're you're going to see them.
943
01:32:34.680 --> 01:32:41.120
chris: We're going to Wolverhampton. At the Civic Hall, and they they do Wolverhampton now each time they come.
944
01:32:41.660 --> 01:32:46.249
chris: And it's a it's a strong set list. If if we're getting the same one, it's certainly, I think
945
01:32:46.510 --> 01:32:51.709
chris: it's probably the best sort of final running of songs at the end of the night that
946
01:32:51.820 --> 01:32:56.859
chris: that I think they've done in a long time. So that that's really good, and there's a few deep cuts in there.
947
01:32:57.820 --> 01:33:02.800
chris: So all all to play for. Say, it'll be good hopefully enjoy that.
948
01:33:03.880 --> 01:33:04.560
chris: They also
949
01:33:04.560 --> 01:33:10.090
chris: about all this is I could say that thing about when I 1st saw sparks in 74.
950
01:33:10.590 --> 01:33:15.170
chris: It's May. I was older than 12 years old.
951
01:33:17.130 --> 01:33:19.709
chris: I was 13 in the December. So I was 12.
952
01:33:19.950 --> 01:33:22.260
chris: Yeah, that's 1974.
953
01:33:22.790 --> 01:33:29.220
chris: You kind of think to yourself that that's like most of my life. I and Ron and Russell Mayo
954
01:33:29.720 --> 01:33:31.210
chris: lurking around.
955
01:33:31.210 --> 01:33:34.528
Christian Huey: Yeah, that will happen to me before I know it.
956
01:33:35.834 --> 01:33:43.170
Christian Huey: So just to be, I'm being forthright here like I I didn't cotton on
957
01:33:43.350 --> 01:33:50.349
Christian Huey: to sparks until fairly late, very late. Actually, I should say very late. 2,008.
958
01:33:51.760 --> 01:34:10.869
Christian Huey: I did not. I know that's a blank. I understand that blank stare. I did not. I did not really get into sparse, or really even know about sparse until 2,008. I was 28 years old, so they they had been around and done all this stuff, and they had completely passed me by.
959
01:34:11.810 --> 01:34:18.440
chris: Story that I've heard I've come over here was that in America they were popular in.
960
01:34:18.790 --> 01:34:22.670
chris: They had strongholds in Los Angeles and New York to some degree.
961
01:34:22.920 --> 01:34:23.520
Christian Huey: Yeah.
962
01:34:23.970 --> 01:34:26.520
chris: And and pretty much that was about it.
963
01:34:26.690 --> 01:34:32.780
chris: and that if you were anywhere outside of there, your chances of encountered them were almost nil.
964
01:34:33.160 --> 01:34:33.689
Christian Huey: You know.
965
01:34:34.008 --> 01:34:37.830
chris: So it does look to me as though they've been working more
966
01:34:38.070 --> 01:34:40.529
chris: in America in the last few years.
967
01:34:40.800 --> 01:34:46.360
chris: And this I find interesting because it reminds me of another dynamic.
968
01:34:46.490 --> 01:34:47.160
chris: Do it.
969
01:34:47.160 --> 01:34:50.119
Christian Huey: Oh, I just saw them about 2 months ago.
970
01:34:50.750 --> 01:35:00.930
chris: When they seem to be working hard, and they were back in their you know, their prime, if you want to call it that, you're more likely to see them now. You were back whenever putting out the original albums.
971
01:35:03.300 --> 01:35:09.069
chris: so I mean, maybe they'll command again. I I think I'm certain that Ron and Russell mail will not stop.
972
01:35:09.400 --> 01:35:13.639
chris: I think they'll carry on making records. Even if they don't. Tour.
973
01:35:14.573 --> 01:35:18.440
chris: Always sell, won't they? I mean, I'm I'm
974
01:35:18.840 --> 01:35:21.559
chris: I'm I'm not asking you how old you are now
975
01:35:22.330 --> 01:35:24.509
chris: we'll carry on buying them, won't we?
976
01:35:25.080 --> 01:35:26.490
chris: That's meant for.
977
01:35:26.490 --> 01:35:27.999
Christian Huey: Yes, of course I will.
978
01:35:28.000 --> 01:35:37.230
chris: What's mid forties? Absolutely, but that's it. You're now done for the rest of your life with this, so you'll always be buying sparks, records.
979
01:35:37.230 --> 01:35:38.279
Christian Huey: Oh, forever.
980
01:35:38.550 --> 01:35:43.390
Christian Huey: until the end of time, and you know the way things are going with them. They may outlive me.
981
01:35:44.890 --> 01:35:49.079
chris: One of the things I find interesting about them wanted to touch on. This is they? They
982
01:35:50.640 --> 01:35:53.279
chris: put their comments on their albums in the book.
983
01:35:53.380 --> 01:35:56.670
chris: You look back and think. What did they say at the time?
984
01:35:57.010 --> 01:35:59.829
chris: And each of these records? And the answer is not a lot.
985
01:36:01.670 --> 01:36:07.460
chris: The view I'm I was getting once was that this is our album. This is our persona.
986
01:36:07.660 --> 01:36:08.680
chris: There you go.
987
01:36:09.600 --> 01:36:10.140
Christian Huey: Yeah.
988
01:36:11.140 --> 01:36:11.989
chris: There you go.
989
01:36:12.650 --> 01:36:18.190
chris: And they did. An interview with a British comedian. Rob Bryden, with them recently
990
01:36:18.910 --> 01:36:30.490
chris: saw the one clip from it where he. He tells him what his favorite song is, and you're waiting to hear what that is. And he says it's reinforcement. So you go. Okay, interesting.
991
01:36:31.460 --> 01:36:32.360
Christian Huey: That's a good one.
992
01:36:34.370 --> 01:36:42.940
chris: And he reads out the entire 1st verse to to run. And Russell, it's absent.
993
01:36:43.210 --> 01:36:44.419
chris: What side of that?
994
01:36:44.720 --> 01:36:48.879
chris: What is this? Where does this come from consequence upon the wrong.
995
01:36:49.210 --> 01:36:53.309
chris: and he just gives an enigmatic look and laughs. But it doesn't tell.
996
01:36:55.880 --> 01:36:58.760
Christian Huey: Man that that is the wrong mo.
997
01:36:59.880 --> 01:37:04.669
chris: I know we could go on for ages, but I've got to ask you what you personally, I used to wonder
998
01:37:05.210 --> 01:37:07.620
chris: when you have a thing like here comes Bob.
999
01:37:09.290 --> 01:37:16.140
chris: What is that? I mean? Because this is a guy who could be writing short stories, isn't it? Or books? I could have been a short story. Here comes Bob.
1000
01:37:16.440 --> 01:37:17.509
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
1001
01:37:18.657 --> 01:37:27.859
chris: These are not real people, but are these are these people who are real to him in some way, or is he? Are any of these songs is running any of them.
1002
01:37:28.440 --> 01:37:29.310
chris: It's all.
1003
01:37:29.550 --> 01:37:41.280
Christian Huey: So that's a great. Okay? So I I think, what what you're asking is is the so are these people that he's actually encountered, or these people just in his mind that.
1004
01:37:41.280 --> 01:37:47.500
chris: Well, some of them in his mind. I'm assuming hiccup. I hope that the guy in hiccups, probably sitting in his real person, driving.
1005
01:37:47.870 --> 01:37:49.610
Christian Huey: Inspired by, I suppose? Yeah.
1006
01:37:50.282 --> 01:37:58.109
chris: But then you start to look at the other sons. Don't you like this town ain't big enough? And did he ever experience a situation where he was a love rival
1007
01:37:58.570 --> 01:38:02.730
chris: with another guy over a girl. And and you want to believe that is so
1008
01:38:02.840 --> 01:38:05.120
chris: likely to something. Amster Hour.
1009
01:38:05.830 --> 01:38:13.450
chris: Is that him thinking back to some of his early sort of sexual experiences? Or is he just got this fervent imagination
1010
01:38:13.920 --> 01:38:17.589
chris: does run ever come through? Does Run's life experience.
1011
01:38:18.410 --> 01:38:19.040
Christian Huey: Right.
1012
01:38:19.040 --> 01:38:23.750
chris: Coming through is something. We just can't see it, because it's so covered up.
1013
01:38:24.350 --> 01:38:36.829
Christian Huey: You know. I think if if Freud were still around, I think he would have an absolute field day with a lot of Ron's lyrics. And so, yeah, I think a lot, especially.
1014
01:38:37.140 --> 01:38:44.989
Christian Huey: you know his earlier lyrics, you know. We're informed, you know. Of course we'll never know if they're you know, informed by literally.
1015
01:38:45.697 --> 01:38:50.879
Christian Huey: you know events or experiences from his own life. I mean, he's he'll he'll never be Neil young.
1016
01:38:51.860 --> 01:38:55.569
Christian Huey: but you know, but I think that there is.
1017
01:38:56.460 --> 01:39:05.879
Christian Huey: you know, something more autobiographically true. There, then, I think he'll he'll be keen to admit.
1018
01:39:06.070 --> 01:39:08.259
Christian Huey: just because he doesn't want to
1019
01:39:08.906 --> 01:39:14.720
Christian Huey: you know. But yeah, I don't think we'll we'll ever really know. But I think that is revealing of Ron's Psyche.
1020
01:39:15.080 --> 01:39:17.539
Christian Huey: and and that, and based on.
1021
01:39:17.920 --> 01:39:21.830
Christian Huey: you know his own life, and in some real way.
1022
01:39:23.020 --> 01:39:27.299
chris: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. It does make them endlessly fascinating, doesn't it?
1023
01:39:27.550 --> 01:39:27.870
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1024
01:39:28.920 --> 01:39:39.649
chris: I mean, big boy was one that I used to see because you used to see these these adverts in American comics when we're young, and you know, do you get Sand kicked in your face by the the beach? Bully.
1025
01:39:39.950 --> 01:39:42.890
chris: and he's a he's a manual. You can buy.
1026
01:39:43.130 --> 01:39:52.079
chris: and you read this manual. It'll tell you how to handle the beach. Bully, when he comes and kicks sand in your face, and I thought, I'm sure that's where he's got that from.
1027
01:39:52.320 --> 01:39:56.350
chris: But you can imagine that Ron would have been the guy getting Sam kicked in his face.
1028
01:39:56.350 --> 01:39:58.450
Christian Huey: Oh, totally. Yeah.
1029
01:39:58.850 --> 01:40:00.697
Christian Huey: Yeah. You know the
1030
01:40:01.160 --> 01:40:01.790
chris: Yeah.
1031
01:40:02.700 --> 01:40:06.030
Christian Huey: Are you familiar with? Robert Crumb with our crumb? The the cartoon.
1032
01:40:06.030 --> 01:40:07.860
chris: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
1033
01:40:07.860 --> 01:40:13.340
Christian Huey: That that to me that that is the comic book version of Ron Mail.
1034
01:40:13.910 --> 01:40:31.999
Christian Huey: I mean, from the look to the point of view, you know, maybe not quite as pathological, I mean Ron's probably not as pathological as as Robert Crum, but but I see a lot of parallels, you know, and they came up around the same time around the same things, too, which I thought was interesting.
1035
01:40:32.870 --> 01:40:38.439
chris: Thing happened in Britain when a guy was bought London Bridge, thinking he was buying Power Bridge.
1036
01:40:39.700 --> 01:40:46.270
chris: actually buying the old Blackbridge, which doesn't open up, and he bought London Bridge, and he's somewhere over in America now, I believe. Still.
1037
01:40:46.920 --> 01:40:53.569
chris: I always wondered if Ron had. You know. Okay, guys bought London Bridge. What if? What if you bought a river.
1038
01:40:54.750 --> 01:41:00.470
chris: And I'm I'm wondering if that's kind of how he, how he goes, and and then he's off on a tangent.
1039
01:41:02.118 --> 01:41:07.930
chris: That's a creepy one the move where the statue is alive.
1040
01:41:09.530 --> 01:41:13.239
Christian Huey: Oh, yeah, the statue is alive.
1041
01:41:13.480 --> 01:41:18.190
chris: Some of these things are, you know, that woken me up at night over over the years.
1042
01:41:18.490 --> 01:41:19.650
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1043
01:41:19.930 --> 01:41:23.090
chris: That's what it was. It looked like a tongue in cheekness and.
1044
01:41:23.380 --> 01:41:26.560
Christian Huey: Mine that got me in this standing digging up when I first.st
1045
01:41:26.760 --> 01:41:34.069
chris: Had the lyrics which came out in the local music press, and he's got these magazines of lyrics past hits.
1046
01:41:34.240 --> 01:41:38.149
chris: And it was that one line daily, except for Sunday.
1047
01:41:39.573 --> 01:41:41.390
Christian Huey: Daily, except for Sunday. Yeah.
1048
01:41:41.390 --> 01:41:45.749
chris: That was the line. Probably if I'd speak a line that said, This is a band for me.
1049
01:41:47.210 --> 01:41:52.330
chris: Don't say anything. It was daily except for Sunday, because nobody else I knew.
1050
01:41:52.330 --> 01:41:58.470
Christian Huey: No one would say that there's something grounded in your everyday experience that you would.
1051
01:41:58.470 --> 01:41:59.470
Christian Huey: It's back to hear.
1052
01:42:00.710 --> 01:42:09.170
chris: See her every day of the week. Yeah, yeah, it's shut on Sunday.
1053
01:42:09.470 --> 01:42:12.779
Christian Huey: Yeah, yeah, I love. Yeah, no great point.
1054
01:42:12.780 --> 01:42:16.859
chris: And and that sort of detail that he gets into there.
1055
01:42:17.200 --> 01:42:21.489
chris: You know it's a lot like playing the violin. You cannot start up and be. Who do you mean?
1056
01:42:22.360 --> 01:42:23.230
Christian Huey: Know.
1057
01:42:23.450 --> 01:42:31.759
Christian Huey: and you're not going to hear that sort of reference, and very many pop songs this side of they might be giants or something.
1058
01:42:32.250 --> 01:42:32.990
Christian Huey: you know.
1059
01:42:33.150 --> 01:42:41.810
chris: Oh, and I also wants to say that I think, as well as a great lyricist. And Russell, is it probably the only person who could sing run songs really.
1060
01:42:42.790 --> 01:42:50.750
chris: and does a fantastic job. With that, I think, long as melody gifts occasionally, like Ralph Hutter in graph work also has this ability.
1061
01:42:51.020 --> 01:42:54.090
chris: it just startle you with a simple melody.
1062
01:42:54.250 --> 01:42:58.306
chris: a lot of compute stuff which I think was another thing that he wrote for his
1063
01:42:59.620 --> 01:43:09.259
chris: young girl who's babysitting for, and he he wants it to to get him to go to sleep as a London by that central melody lining computer love. You know.
1064
01:43:09.670 --> 01:43:10.060
Christian Huey: Yeah.
1065
01:43:10.060 --> 01:43:14.681
chris: And he came up with that, and and and it's that melodic gift that simple melodies.
1066
01:43:15.360 --> 01:43:26.849
chris: And I hear on the new album mad in branding the sea of tears. The bit that gets me in that is, when that those those big kind of string, Cynthia, kind of watches of saying, coming in the background.
1067
01:43:27.800 --> 01:43:33.287
chris: Saving strings, and I thought that you can still do that and kind of move you with.
1068
01:43:33.830 --> 01:43:36.109
chris: I'm a lot of gifts, and he's definitely not.
1069
01:43:36.540 --> 01:43:41.309
Christian Huey: He can still, yeah. Surprise you with, yeah, with a note coming from
1070
01:43:41.840 --> 01:43:43.279
Christian Huey: where you may not expect it.
1071
01:43:44.029 --> 01:43:51.519
Christian Huey: Well, Chris, this has been an immense pleasure, and I would love to have you on again, and I hope to do so.
1072
01:43:51.830 --> 01:43:52.530
Christian Huey: and.
1073
01:43:52.530 --> 01:43:53.620
chris: You next time.
1074
01:43:53.800 --> 01:44:00.299
Christian Huey: And we we absolutely will. And so I I forgive. Did you say what you were working on next.
1075
01:44:01.240 --> 01:44:08.100
chris: I'm working on 2. I'm going to do sparks in the eighties. Which will be
1076
01:44:08.790 --> 01:44:14.819
chris: very interesting one very different to the seventies. And I'm also just been asked to do
1077
01:44:15.270 --> 01:44:18.330
chris: book entirely on one record.
1078
01:44:18.830 --> 01:44:23.080
chris: The whole book is on one jeez. Alice Cooper's 1 billion dollar movies.
1079
01:44:24.400 --> 01:44:28.340
Christian Huey: I got it deep. Dive in I've got. I've got.
1080
01:44:28.340 --> 01:44:28.760
chris: I'm helping.
1081
01:44:28.760 --> 01:44:29.550
Christian Huey: There, man.
1082
01:44:29.990 --> 01:44:35.429
Christian Huey: so I I will do that. I will go back and listen to Alice Cooper. That that I've missed.
1083
01:44:36.100 --> 01:44:42.349
Christian Huey: But thank you so much. This has been such a great conversation. We've gone on for such a long time, and I think it's all brilliant.
1084
01:44:42.510 --> 01:44:52.050
Christian Huey: and and thanks for for the Great Book and for gifting it to me. By the way, and we'll we'll chat again real soon.
1085
01:44:52.950 --> 01:45:02.821
chris: Yeah, I I'm going to I will be talking about the entities. One. What I'm hoping is to kind of lean on a few people for their thoughts and input
1086
01:45:03.707 --> 01:45:08.169
chris: I I think it'll make that an interesting, more interesting journey. I think this time.
1087
01:45:09.650 --> 01:45:10.890
Christian Huey: I'm looking forward to it.
1088
01:45:11.310 --> 01:45:17.749
chris: Thank you so much, Christian, for the opportunity, and everyone is listening and watching. And I hope. You love it too.
1089
01:45:18.520 --> 01:45:21.149
Christian Huey: There you go talk to you soon.
1090
01:45:21.670 --> 01:45:23.610
chris: Take care bye.
