SPARKS

[Ruud]

Hello,

I'd like to draw your attention to the message below that was published in the Sparks Facebook groups:

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀
𝗕𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲
𝗜𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘆, 𝗼𝗸𝗮𝘆?

A 50th Anniversary Tribute to the classic 'Kimono My House' LP by the legendary Sparks!

Featuring an unbelievably diverse range of awesome bands from the underground rock scene including Besvärjelsen, Black Helium, Earl Of Hell, Sergeant Thunderhoof, Chaosmonaut, Krooked Tongue, SILVERY, Josiah, Tony Reed of Mos Generator & more to be announced!
https://www.kickstarter.com/.../sparks-kimono-my-house-50...

Glorious artwork provided by the ever fantastic Sara-Jane Swettenham - Illustrations, Mastered by Tony Reed.

We don’t tend to do things in a traditional run of the mill kind of way at Pale Wizard Records and that’s why we massively respect Sparks, who have made forging your own path an art over the last 50 plus years of their career. The lyrics above from the beautiful track ‘It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way’ from their very latest album could be the motto for many a small record label like us.

We have always tried to do something that little bit different when it comes to our releases. Our 50 Years Later series is the perfect example of that. We recruit a roster of rock bands to take on a classic album turning 50 years old in its entirety and then release our version exactly 50 years later to the original release date. But we don’t like to choose the obvious albums, otherwise we’d be putting out Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath or Deep Purple tributes every year.
Nearly 50 years before ‘It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way’ was released, Sparks made their commercial breakthrough with ‘Kimono My House’ in May 1974.

This is an album that holds a special place in the hearts of all Sparks fans. After all, it’s the one with ‘This Town’, ‘Amateur Hour’ and that perennial fan favourite track ‘Here in Heaven’. Whilst being the best-known Sparks album without a doubt, it was far from the most obvious choice of album for us to visit for 50 Years Later. But when it comes to obvious, it doesn’t have to be that way, okay?

So Pale Wizard Records proudly presents ‘Kimono My House: 50 Years Later’ a tribute to Sparks. We have curated a roster of some of the top underground rock bands from around the world to recreate all 10 tracks of Kimono in their own style. Our album will be released on coloured vinyl, CD and digitally through streaming and downloads on May 1st 2024, 50 Years Later. Our releases are properly licenced so Ron & Russell will be compensated for the use of their songs.

Today we are launching our Kickstarter campaign so backers of the project can receive some exclusive goodies. There is a special Kickstarter exclusive vinyl colour variant for example. There is a full FAQ on the Kickstarter page but I’m more than happy to answer any questions in the group. We have 10 top bands featuring on the LP and potentially more on the CD/digital version (depending on how the Kickstarter goes) as bonus tracks. I’ve also had Ruud from the wonderful Fanmael website very kindly agree to write some liner notes for this release.

This is the fourth volume of the 50 Years Later series, previously we have produced tributes to Alice Cooper, David Bowie and Budgie for 2021, 2022 and 2023 respectively.
For me personally, Sparks have quickly become my favourite band over the last few years since I fell for their charms around the time of Annette being released. This album has been an absolute joy to put together, and I aim to provide a quality product for fellow Sparks fans to enjoy and something that maybe even Ron and Russell themselves would get a kick out of.

If you like the sound of this, please take a look at the Kickstarter below and consider backing us.

Thank you.

Tim Hilleard
Pale Wizard Records

[Andy M]

Thanks Ruud - looks to be an interesting venture and well worth a punt!

[Brightonian]

Wondered if anyone else backed the Kickstarter? Pale Wizard have released the digital version to backers and I have to say this is fantastic tribute with some great covers that also works very well as a cohesive album.

It skews guitar-heavy (a good thing) and there's honestly not a bad cover on the album, even if a couple of the tracks may irritate anyone who feels cover versions should always be faithful to the originals.

I'd definitely recommend purchasing, which anyone can do by looking up 'Pale Wizard' on Bandcamp.

[Alex Robertson]

I had trouble with the Kickstarter...but I think I managed it. Thing is I can't remember, I was in contact with Pale Records and I think they sorted it out...

[Brightonian]

[palewizardrecords]

Thanks for the support guys, less than two weeks to the release now and I can't wait for everyone to hear how the album turned out!

There are a few tracks up on our YouTube channel for anyone who would like a bit of a preview. Here's 'Here in Heaven' covered by Josiah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttRW9caFyU0&ab_channel=PaleWizardRecords

There's some other Sparks related stuff on our YouTube channel including a chat about 'Kimono My House - 50 Years Later' itself and an epic ranking video of the whole Sparks discography!

You can buy the album on our Bandcamp and BigCartel pages on vinyl, CD (with two bonus tracks) and digital. Liner notes for this release were very kindly provided by Martin Gordon and Ruud from FanMael.

Tim (Pale Wizard Records)

[Spyke]

Thanks, and I'm looking forward to giving it a listen!
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"but we can hear what others can't hear..."

[Kermit!]

All tracks are available on YouTube now & they make very interesting listening to any Sparks fan who knows every note & words of the original songs. Some work better than others & everyone will have their own opinions on these wonderful tribute versions but there are some real gems to be found on this album.
As a tribute project recognising Sparks' invasion into the pop charts of the UK in May '74, you've really done it justice so thanks to everyone involved in making this happen. 50 years go by so quickly. I was 14 in '74 watching Sparks on Top of the Pops & now I'm nearing 64 I just don't know where the time has gone but I'm so glad that they've been the soundtrack to my life. They're more popular now than they've ever been & long may they continue! Cheers to Sparks & a happy 50th Kimono to you too! My favourite album of all time.
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The fan formally known as kermit

The Future! The Future!

[Eric Murray]

@ Kermit
Fully Agree
To think that Kimono is 50 years old is insane - it a timeless classic that has brought so much joy to the world.I am as well ( very ) fast approaching 64.
I have just purchased a Rega Turntable and Kimono will be its first spin when I set it up in the coming days.
Apart from that - Kimono inspired me to name my beautiful dog - Kimona - she brings with her so much joy as well.

[Andy M]

Received my package of albums today. Congrats to Pale Wizard, who did everything they said they would on the tin - an excellent production. My favourite interpretations are those of Hasta & Equator.

[waterloosunset]

i love the cover of Lost and Found by The Slightest Bits, a young and talented band from Portland, Oregon. This is the first track from the covers album that I have heard. It is very close to the original. Hats off to the vocalist, who hits those impossible high notes. I must listen to the whole thing tomorrow.
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better drop the requirement that everything be great

[Alex Robertson]

Finally got my copy today...there was a mix-up, which was entirely my fault...also got the Ziggy Stardust 50 Years On album.

[Henry McHenry]

you can listen to it on TIDAL