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Music, chat and Russell Mael from Sparks

Mark Radcliffe presents a feast of great music, plus Russell Mael from Sparks shares his 鈥楩irst, Last and Everything鈥� and chats about the band's forthcoming new album

Mark Radcliffe presents solo, with a feast of great music and chat for weekend breakfast.

Today Mark hears from singer, songwriter and one half of American band Sparks, Russell Mael. Russell shares his 鈥楩irst, Last and Everything鈥� - that鈥檚 his first record, the most recent one he's enjoyed and the record that means 鈥榚verything鈥� to him - and chats about the band's forthcoming new album.

Russell (singer & charisma) and older brother Ron Mael (keyboards, songwriting, moustache) were born and raised in Los Angeles, and first recorded under the name Urban Renewal Project and subsequently Halfnelson, before settling on the name Sparks in 1972. Despite being mentored and produced by Todd Rundgren and signed by Bob Dylan's manager Albert Grossman, American audiences initially proved unreceptive to Sparks' uniquely arch, ironic aesthetic, and their breakthrough came instead after they relocated to London with a new backing band, scoring a huge hit in 1974 with the cinematic, staccato single 'This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us', and unleashing full-scale Sparksmania in the UK.

Their latest album 鈥楳AD!鈥�, released later this month, finds Russell and Ron examining cultural phenomena such as branded backpacks, tattoos, performative devotion and the hegemony of banter.

Also on the show... long-running feature 鈥楾he Chain鈥� which gives listeners the chance to pick a track that links in some way to the last. The list now contains over 8000 songs.

With a selection of music old and new to get the weekend started.

2 hours

Last on

Sat 3 May 2025 08:00
成人快手 Radio 6 Music

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Music Played

  • Sparks

    The Number One Song In Heaven

    • The Best Of.
    • Island.
    • 10.

  • Mount Palomar

    L'Aliment (feat. Karla Chubb)

    • Nice Swan Electronic.

  • The Alarm

    Where Were You Hiding When The Storm Broke?

    • EMI Records.

  • Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

    成人快手

    • Rough Trade Records Ltd..

  • Soft Loft

    Paper Plane

    • Modern Roses EP.
    • [PIAS] Recordings Germany.

  • Yasiin Bey

    Umi Says

    • Black On Both Sides.
    • Rawkus.
    • 1.

  • Friendly Fires

    Paris

    • CD SINGLE.
    • XL.
    • 1.

  • SHERELLE & George Riley

    FREAKY (JUST MY TYPE)

    • Method 808.

  • Kerala Dust

    Bell

    • Play It Again Sam.

  • Canned Heat

    On The Road Again

    • EMI.

  • Mark Pritchard & Thom Yorke

    Gangsters

    • Warp.

  • Little Dragon

    Ritual Union

  • Ennio Morricone

    The Ecstasy Of Gold

    • The Good, The Bad & And The Ugly Original Score.

  • Metallica

    Enter Sandman

    • Vertigo.

  • Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs

    Glib Tongued (feat. 贰濒鈥怭)

    • Rocket Recordings.

  • Missy Elliott

    Bring The Pain (feat. Method Man)

    • Elektra.

  • The Jam

    Precious

    • Polydor.

  • Bon Iver

    Walk 成人快手

    • Jagjaguwar.

  • Sparks

    Do Things My Own Way

    • Mad!.
    • Transgressive Records.

  • Little Richard

    Rip It Up

    • Little Richard 22 Classic Cuts.
    • Ace.

  • Sam Sauvage

    Les Gens Qui Dansent (j'adore)

    • Wagram Music / Cinq 7.

  • Michel Legrand, Jos茅 Bartel & Danielle Licari

    Final (Bande originale du film "Les parapluies de Cherbourg")

    • Les parapluies de Cherbourg (Bande originale du film).
    • Universal Music Division Decca Records France.
    • 30.

  • jasmine.4.t

    Tall Girl

    • Saddest Factory.

Broadcast

  • Sat 3 May 2025 08:00
    成人快手 Radio 6 Music