Kathy Sparling
Country of origin:
U.S.
Type of music generally:
Contemporary folk
Status:
Most recent release, Blind Spot (2014)
See also:
Kathy Sparling's site
Comparisons:
Natalie Merchant, Jill Sobule
Covers/own material:
Own
General comments:
Kathy Sparling is a thoughtful and precise singer. (stjarnell@yahoo.com)
Recommended first album:
Either
Recordings:
- As You Believed (2010)
- Blind Spot (2014)
As You Believed
Release info:
2010—Kitchen Songs—KS002
Availability:
See Kathy Sparling's site
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Kathy Sparling—vocals, ukulele, tenor guitar
Guest artists:
Steven Strauss—ukulele (1, 2, 6, 10), electric ukulele (8), bass (1, 3–6, 8–14) vocals (2, 11, 14), keyboards (5), sequencing (2, 4, 8), sandblocks (1)
Charlie Hancock—paino (1–3, 6, 8, 10, 11, 13), organ (10)
John Hanes—drums (1–3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11)
Kurt Stevenson—guitars (4, 9, 14), vocals (2, 11, 14)
Bobby Santos—congas (2, 5, 12, 13), tambourine (11), bell tree (2), triangle (5)
Federico Gil Sola—drums (4, 12), bomba (9)
Julian Smedley—violin (3, 9)
Steve Kirk—guitar (5, 11)
Dennis Finnegan—guitar (12)
Tim Fox—guitar (13)
Don McClellan—pedal steel guitar (2)
Wally Sound—bass (2)
William Abernathy, Sheiliani Alix, Mark Brosamer, Ed Oasa, Jane Robbins, Sarah Rogerson, Scott Sparling, Steven Strauss—the ukulele strumming chorus (2)
Produced by:
Steven Strauss
Comments:
Kathy Sparling's debut sees her craft thoughtful, insightful songs and sing them in a sweet voice. The whimsy of "The moon is coming with us" is balanced by the hard-earned wisdom of "Voyager". She's not afraid of writing songs about seemingly trivial things and making them count. It's a lovely debut. (stjarnell@yahoo.com)
Blind Spot
Release info:
2014—Kitchen Songs—KS003
Availability:
See Kathy Sparling's site
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Kathy Sparling—vocals, tenor guitar, toy piano
Guest artists:
Myles Boisen—guitar (1, 8, 11); organ (1, 13); bass (2, 4, 5, 9, 11); electric guitar (4, 6, 10); effects (6); electric bass (10); lap steel (11)
Steve Kirk—guitar (1, 2, 9); bass (1)
Tim Rowe—drums (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11); percussion (3, 8); effects (6)
Chris Grady—trumpets (2, 3)
Dennis Finnegan—guitar (3)
Lisa Mezzacappa—acoustic bass (3, 6, 7, 8, 10)
Lila Sklar, Felix Sparling—violins (3)
Austin Willacy—harmony vocals (4)
Robert Armstrong—saw (5)
Dan Cantrell—pump organ (5); piano (7, 12); celeste (12)
Ralph Carney—tenor sax, trumpet bass clarinet (9)
KG Greenstein, Vanessa Lowe, Sophie Sparling, Karry Walker—Blue Sky Choir (13)
Produced by:
Tim Rower and Myles Boisen
Comments:
Kathy Sparling continues with her literate folk, with thoughtful songs and loses nothing. The opening title track has an insightful lyric and a sweet vocal.
"Dancing with Eleanor" is a dreamy, Spanish-style song with a great chorus. It makes a great change of pace.
"Whisper it" is a song sung with her usual great delivery, proving she can delve deep with subtle means. It's a fine album. (stjarnell@yahoo.com)
Thanks to stjarnell@yahoo.com for work on this entry.
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