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Lil' Beethoven
''Lil' Beethoven'' is the 19th album by the American rock band Sparks, released on November 26, 2002. The album was a radical musical departure compared to their previous works. The band only used strings, piano, and voices but no drums: the result was both classical and pop music. The album was received to critical acclaim in the UK and the US. Background By 2002, Sparks had released eighteen albums, the last several of them in the new wave/synthpop vein. While this had been successful, breaking them in the US with 1983's " Cool Places" and in Germany with "When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'?" in 1995, it had not secured them much critical acclaim or a consistent audience. 1997's ''Plagiarism'', which consisted entirely of new recordings of earlier material, had been intended to introduce the group's back catalog to their new German audience, while building on the success with high-profile collaborations for the UK and US audience. It had only been partially successful. The next ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sparks (band)
Sparks is an American pop and rock duo formed by brothers Ron (keyboards) and Russell Mael (vocals) in Los Angeles. The duo is noted for their quirky approach to songwriting; their music is often accompanied by sophisticated and acerbic lyrics—often about women, and sometimes containing literary or cinematic references-- and an idiosyncratic, theatrical stage presence, typified by the contrast between Russell's animated, hyperactive frontman antics and Ron's deadpan scowling. Russell Mael has a distinctive wide-ranging voice, while Ron Mael plays keyboards in an intricate and rhythmic style. They have been much more successful in Europe than in their native U.S., though they maintain a loyal cult following in the States. Career highlights include "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us", which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart in 1974; the disco hit "The Number One Song in Heaven" in 1979, resulting from a collaboration with Giorgio Moroder and marking a stylistic shift ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the database was first made available on the Internet in 1994. AllMusic is owned by RhythmOne. History AllMusic was launched as ''All Music Guide'' by Michael Erlewine, a "compulsive archivist, noted astrologer, Buddhist scholar and musician". He became interested in using computers for his astrological work in the mid-1970s and founded a software company, Matrix, in 1977. In the early 1990s, as CDs replaced LPs as the dominant format for recorded music, Erlewine purchased what he thought was a CD of early recordings by Little Richard. After buying it he discovered it was a "flaccid latter-day rehash". Frustrated with the labeling, he researched using metadata to create a music guide. In 1990, in Big Rapids, Michigan, he founded ''All Music Guide' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sparks (band) Albums
Sparks may refer to: Places *Sparks, Georgia *Sparks, Kansas *Sparks, Kentucky *Sparks, Maryland * Sparks, Nebraska *Sparks, Nevada *Sparks, Oklahoma *Sparks, Texas * Sparks, Bell County, Texas *Sparks, West Virginia Books * ''Sparks'' (Raffi novel) (1884) * ''Sparks'' (Ally Kennen novel), 2010 *''Sparks!'', a graphic novel by Ian Boothby and Nina Matsumoto Film and TV * ''Sparks'' (film), a 2013 film * ''Sparks'' (TV series), a 1996-1998 American television series starring Terrence Howard and James Avery *Sparks (Matrix character), a character in ''Enter the Matrix'' and ''The Matrix Revolutions'' *Sparks (G.I. Joe), a fictional character in the G.I. Joe universe * Sparks, a fictional football team in ''Footballers' Wives'' Music *Sparks (band), a rock band led by brothers Ron and Russell Mael ** ''Halfnelson'' (album) or ''Sparks'', their debut album * ''Sparks'' (Imogen Heap album) (2014) * ''Sparks'' (Fiction Plane album) (2010) * ''Sparks'' (Sahara Hotnights album) (2009) * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amateur Hour (song)
"Amateur Hour" is a song by Sparks. It was released as the second single from their 1974 album ''Kimono My House''. Bassist Martin Gordon was requested to replace his original bass part (recorded using a Rickenbacker 4001 bass) with a Fender Precision bass, belonging to his subsequent replacement in the band. A re-recording was produced in 1997 for the retrospective ''Plagiarism'' album. This new version was given a complete electronic synthpop overhaul and was performed with Erasure. On 25 June 2009, the song "Amateur Hour" was featured in a stunt when UK magician and mentalist Mark Cairns predicted that radio personality George Lamb would choose the Sparks song, in a free choice from a list of 100 tracks that had been recently played on Lamb's ''BBC Radio 6 Music'' show. Track listing # "Amateur Hour" — 3:37 # "Lost and Found" — 3:21 Personnel *Russell Mael - vocals *Ron Mael - keyboards *Martin Gordon - bass * Adrian Fisher - guitar *Norman "Dinky" Diamond Norman Vi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us
"This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us" is a song by American pop band Sparks. Written by Ron Mael, it is the opening track on their third studio album ''Kimono My House'' (1974), and was the lead single from the album. Although it did not chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us" achieved major success in Europe, peaking within the top ten of the charts in the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. In the latter country, the song peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, where it remained for two consecutive weeks. The song has become the highest-charting for Sparks on the UK Singles Chart, held off from the top spot by The Rubettes' bubblegum pop song " Sugar Baby Love". Background The original idea for the song was that after each verse Russell Mael would sing a movie dialogue cliché, one of which was "This town ain't big enough for both of us". They dropped the idea of having different phrases and instead used only t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Number One Song In Heaven
"The Number One Song in Heaven" is a disco song by the American rock duo Sparks. Released as a single in 1979, the song was produced and co-written by electro-disco producer Giorgio Moroder. It became a top 20 hit in the UK, where it peaked at number 14. In addition to the standard black vinyl, both the 7" and 12" versions of the single were issued in a variety of coloured vinyl releases (red, blue, and green). Sparks rerecorded the song in 1997, one version of which featured vocals by Jimmy Somerville and orchestrations by Tony Visconti. This version peaked at number 70 in the UK, but was slightly more successful on the U.S. Billboard Dance Chart where it became a top 30 hit. Music videos The video for the 1997 version involves an angel singing with Satan trying to stop a ferris wheel, which pays homage to ''The Third Man''. Track listing 1979 release *7 inch Virgin VS 244 # "The Number One Song in Heaven" — 3:48 # "The Number One Song in Heaven" (Long Version) — 6:56 *1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dean Menta
Dean Menta (born July 23 1966) is an American music editor and composer living in Los Angeles, California. Biography In 1995, Dean Menta became involved in the band DUH and appeared on their second album ''The Unholy Handjob''. Menta went on to serve as the guitarist for the rock band Faith No More from 1995 to 1996. He had been a keyboard tech for the band, first meeting them in 1991, while working at a San Francisco art gallery. Menta was recruited to handle guitar duties after Trey Spruance declined to tour for the album '' King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime''. He appears in their videos for "Digging the Grave", "Ricochet" and "Evidence". He was replaced as Faith No More guitarist by Jon Hudson. Since leaving Faith No More, Menta has been performing and recording with pop group Sparks. He has contributed to Sparks' albums: ''Plagiarism'' (1997) '' Lil' Beethoven'' (2002) '' Hello Young Lovers'' (2006) ''Exotic Creatures of the Deep'' (2008), '' The Seduction of Ingmar B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tammy Glover
Tammy Glover is a television producer, film producer, and musician. She served as the VP of Production for Comedy Central from 2007 to 2011, Senior Vice President of Production for FremantleMedia and is currently the Head of Physical Production for TNT, TBS, and TruTV, part of Warner Bros Discovery. Glover was on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences representing Production Executives. She played drums for Sparks from 1997 to 2011 and contributed to BBC Radio 6 Music's ''This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us: The Story Of Sparks'' presented by Mark Radcliffe. She also performs with Billy Zimmer (from Calgary) as the duo Thorcraft Cobra. Modern Drummer has done a number of features on Glover. and she has contributed session work for many projects, including solo work for David Dattner, and playing live drums for the Peter G Adams soundtrack of CodeGirl. Music career Glover is a musician who started her professional career in a house band at MTV. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The List (magazine)
''The List'' is a digital guide to arts and entertainment in the United Kingdom. The company's activities include events data gathering, content syndication, and running a network of websites carrying listings and editorial, covering film, eating and drinking, music, theatre, visual art, dance, kids and family, clubs and the Edinburgh Festivals. Originally launched in 1985 as a fortnightly arts and entertainment magazine covering Edinburgh and Glasgow, ''The List'' magazine switched in 2014 to publishing every two months throughout the year, and weekly during the Edinburgh Festivals in August. History ''The List'' is an independent limited company and was founded in October 1985 by Robin Hodge (publisher) and Nigel Billen (founding editor). The first editors were Nigel Billen and Sarah Hemming. In 2007 the company launched its listings website. In June 2016, ''The Sunday Times Scotland'' launched a fortnightly events guide pullout section, produced in collaboration with ''The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its coverage of rock music and political reporting by Hunter S. Thompson. In the 1990s, the magazine broadened and shifted its focus to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors, and popular music. It has since returned to its traditional mix of content, including music, entertainment, and politics. The first magazine was released in 1967 and featured John Lennon on the cover and was published every two weeks. It is known for provocative photography and its cover photos, featuring musicians, politicians, athletes, and actors. In addition to its print version in the United States, it publishes content through Rollingstone.com and numerous international editions. Penske Media Corporation is the c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater, visual arts, travel, and the Internet. History ''PopMatters'' was founded by Sarah Zupko, who had previously established the cultural studies academic resource site PopCultures. ''PopMatters'' launched in late 1999 as a sister site providing original essays, reviews and criticism of various media products. Over time, the site went from a weekly publication schedule to a five-day-a-week magazine format, expanding into regular reviews, features, and columns. In the fall of 2005, monthly readership exceeded one million. From 2006 onward, ''PopMatters'' produced several syndicated newspaper columns for McClatchy-Tribune News Service. By 2009 there were four different pop culture related col ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
