SPARKS

[Sparks Moderator UK]

Ready for tonight's reviewers.

[Annika]

I can't wait to see this concert today online, it's going to be great :)
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Break the rules and make a fool out of me

[Raoul]

Well,this show was great too(although the sound on my laptop isn't high quality)Did Ron have his Chaplin moustache?Or was it just shadow?(visuals aren't great either ,but I can see and hear the whole thing,even poorly,that counts to me!!!)
Russell feeling very comfortable.
Barbecutie so nice!!

[RODDON]

Let's face it - this night was never going to fail. Most Sparks fans' fave album with their most famous track as an opener. A triumph from the first note to last. Talent Is An Asset the highlight for me. Even threw in Barbecutie as a bonus. Russell in top form once again - where does he get those suits? Ron was, er....well....Ron. Hard to tell, but was THAT moustache back? The band played superbly, and the audience again sang along to every word. A good time had by all. My house was rocking 600 miles away!!
The only problem with these concerts is as each night passes I regret more and more not being able to be there.
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The mountains may crumble............

[12stringbassist]

Did they play an extra song? The streaming stopped here while Russell
was making his announcement re the last show and the choice of songs.
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"Life isn't much but there's nothing else to do...."

[Sage the owl]

Yes Ron had his Chaplin moustache, no glasses and the little looks! Great show, seemed to be a lot of crowd chit-chat during and between the songs

[Micke]

The whole band rocks!



...and btw, Equator was pure stage magic

[Stephen Aitcheson]

Hey all, I just tuned in too to Kimono My House with my 15 yr old son who thought it was great. I have to say that the whole album was awesome and they were all brilliantly done but, my highlights were This Town, Hasta Manana, and thank God it's not Christmas...Just 'The Jinkie's'- as we say in Scotland....(well, some of us do!)..Again, the band were brilliant and I can't wait to hear Propaganda. Rock on Sparks!!!!!!!!!!

[Noisy Boy]

Setlist
This Town Ain’t Big Enough For The Both Of Us
Amateur Hour
Falling In Love With Myself Again
Here In Heaven
Thank God It’s Not Christmas
Hasta Mañana Monsieur
Talent Is An Asset
Complaints
In My Family
Equator

Barbecutie

Band
As previously (Marcus Blake on every song)

Support
Mathieu Bouthier (DJ)

More reports from the (literal) front line! This was absolutely brilliant, and as much an improvement in every respect (including the sound, which even down the front was superb) as the second night was from the first. Unsurprising perhaps, given the capacity crowd (who grew impatient during the DJs protracted set, booing and chanting for him to get off, at least until he dropped a remix of Good Morning as his final song) and the widely known material, but still wonderful to see the enthusiasm that Ron & Rusell put into material they must be sick of playing, especially This Town and Amateur Hour, which both set the evening off to rapturous applause. What’s more, Ron had even changed his moustache to the classic ‘Hitler’ look, and save for the odd extra line didn’t look 34 years older than the fellow on the rear sleeve of Kimono My House! While Russell didn’t quite go for the full afro look (shame!), his voice was in fine fettle, and again if you closed your eyes, you could believe that only days had passed rather than years.

Once they launched into Falling In Love With Myself Again, it was obvious that the enthusiasm was uniform for all the songs, as was the high level of playing, most notably Russell’s continued absence of any sort of prompt sheet or reminders, and Jim Wilson’s note-for-note rendition of Adrian Fisher’s fine fretwork. What was also noticeable was the Marcus Blake had much more of a role, and occasionally their dual lead playing was a spectacle to behold. Not to dismiss the contributions of the rhythm section – both Steves play the material as if they’ve been playing it for years. The call-and-response between guitar and bass in Falling In Love With Myself Again drew much applause and rightly so.

The energy reached fever pitch during the clapalong intro to Talent Is An Asset (again, flawless) and continued during Complaints, and into Family Tree. The abiding image of the evening is Russell stood behind Ron, leading the crowd in a clapalong while Ron looked his usual deadpan self. A brilliant image.

The only real clunker of the night was Equator. I’ve a feeling that all the musicians messed this up at some point or another, and Russell’s vocals dipped a bit during the really high parts, but all was made up for with the final vocal which slowly faded out, the audience leading the response with help from Jim & Marcus – I wasn’t at the Kimono/ Lil’ Beethoven show for Morrissey’s Meltdown, but I imagine that the starry-eyed reverence that attendees talk about when they mention the end of Equator could apply here too. Cue more rapturous applause, and the first bow, but a second clunker – this time Steve’s beautiful Rickenbacker 4001 took an off-balance dive straight onto the floor, causing him to miss the bow and look extremely distraught, (and rightly so since they’re not cheap!!). When they came back out for the encore, a quick fix took place while Russell re-told his story of rubbish hairspray. But once they powered into Barbecutie, it was a delight- I’d previously asked Ron & Russell to play this song when they did the Hello Young Lovers show in London, and they politely declined, but now I was able to see it, and rock it did. Russell mentioned it was a ‘contender’ for the final show setlist, whatever that means, so if they do it again, I’ll be twice as happy!

Until Propaganda on Tuesday night then…

[themightybishop]

I thought it was another wonderful night. I even got to ask Russell about his hairspray and got a reply!
Highlights for me, Hasta Manana and Thank God...
Russell had to work so hard to make Equator work, but pulled it off with help from a willing audience.
I loved it and every moment in their presence is a privilege.

[lazysunbathers]

Yes, the Chaplin moustache was back - and I was transported back into my teenage bedroom with the first LP I ever bought. Some people above have said it was slightly anti-climactic or complained of bum notes; quite frankly, I can't imagine what they must have been expecting! So what if there's an occasional bum note? That's what gives live gigs a different character to the clinical efficiency of recorded tracks. To hear this revolutionary album played live in its entirety - and in a relatively intimate venue - was just breathtaking (I was not in the country for the Meltdown performance). As others have commented about the previous nights' shows, what struck me most perhaps was how MODERN and FRESH the material sounds - it hasn't dated in the least. Sparks ought to be winning EVERY music magazine's godlike genius/lifetime achievement award this year: in 1971 they seemed to arrive out of nowhere with music that sounded like nothing before; they're STILL making music that sounds like nothing else - and they've influenced two (?) generations of musicians.

Highlights? The entire set was a highlight for me. Though perhaps the crowd's spontaneous singalong with the "falling, falling" chorus of Falling In Love With Myself Again - and ditto the "doo, doo be doo" at the end of Equator deserve a mention.

Lowlights? I may be unpopular for saying this, but Russell's haircut! Is it straightened or is it a weave? Whatever it is, he fiddles with it all the time, it looks silly and it ages him terribly.

[Annika]

I though it was just AWESOME!
It is not the same seeing it online and the streaming is not that good but they sounded just great and I loved every minute off it, ROCK ON GUYS!!!!
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Break the rules and make a fool out of me

[sparkette]

[Kermit]

Well I have just gotta say I have just had the best night of my life. "Kimono" is my number one album of all time. When I was 14 and heard that intro to "This Town" on the radio and that rush of adrenalin and Russells falsetto, I was hooked. Hooked for life!
It was certainly a packed out house tonight but the atmosphere was electric. Anyone moaning about any glitches in tonights show must have some serious inner issues going on because tonight could not be faulted. The sound was perfect from where I was jumping around, the band were tight and Russell was singing his little heart out as if it was 1974 all over again. "This Town " & "Amateur Hour" were storming intros but then when you get that intro of "Falling In Love with Myself Again" it just thunders in to your soul. Thank God for that light relief when i'm looking into that mirror staring and then fall in love with myself all over again. The suicide pact of "Here In Heaven" should be a movie. How I've visualised this story in my head over the years. Magical!
"Hasta Manana Monsieur" was delightful and me and my mate Patrick from the Brick Lane gallery were singing our little hearts out to every word. You're such a star Patrick. But with those words of "Kimono My House Mon amour" ringing in my ears and Russells castanette throwing in to the audience. Who got them? Lucky Sparks fan.
"Tallent is an Asset " had everyone clapping and clapping and clapping. Russells naughty look at Ron when "In my Family" got going was just pricelesss. What a look. And what a family it was. I really felt a special part of the Sparks family. Tear.
Then to "Equator" and every note was perfection. It was SIZZZLING on that equator tonight. And the extra "Equatours" we got were just so mammoth I felt like that I4 year old again driving my mum crazy with all this strange music coming from my bedroom and being told to turn it down. My Dad didn't mind though and quite liked it. My Dad was Ringo Starrs chauffeur when I was a kid so I got an extra special delight when I heard that line in "Baby Baby Can I Invade your country" about his favorite Beatle being Ringo. My Dad's got some stories to tell but that's another website all together.
Anyway, back to the B sides and the "B b b b........Barbequtie"! It nearly didn't get a light on but Russell held out with great humour and gave us a storming end...again!!!! Fantastic!
But then after the show and thanks to guitarist Jim Wilson (I love you forever) managed to get us back stage to say hello to Ron and Russ. I hope you like your little prezzie guys. Meeting you on the night of the one album that means so much to me has just left me really feelin so totally overwhelmed you'll never know how special this night has been to me. Sue stopped me from getting a photo with you Russell (Naughty girl) but hey I got to shake your hand and Ron too and thankyou for the music. You guys are true genius and I feel so totally priviliged to have been part of the Sparks family tonight.
Enough gushing. Need to get some rest and look forward to "Propaganda" on Tuesday. "Exotic Creatures" tomorrow.......Am I in heaven already????

[Dent Sinatra]

Ron singing the chorus of "Amateur Hour" along with Russell was my personal highlight. Just an amazing performance and I'm looking forward to "Propaganda" my favorite Sparks album.

[Brightonian]

[Annika]

Did Russell throw out the castanjette's (or at least I thought he was playing them) he was playing into the audience?
and if so did anybody catch them?
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Break the rules and make a fool out of me

[cygnenoir]

Thanks for the reviews everyone - I'm so envious of those of you who were able to attend. Unfortunately, I had to miss the webcast.

How adorable that Ron changed his mustache!

But here's my burning question: What color suit did Russ wear?

[BigManRestless]

[MarkRae]