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MUSIC

Neil Sparkes is widely known as vocalist and percussionist with Indie dance group Transglobal Underground with whom he toured the World from 1992 to 1996. He appeared on all of TGU's commercially successful albums for Nation Records and Sony.

Neil Sparkes first solo release was the "Achtung Salaam!" EP, released by 2KOOL Records in 1996 while Sparkes was still a member of TransGlobal Underground. Released as a Ltd edition collectors item Picture Disc featuring Neil's paintings and images, this was the first of a series of three 12" Dub plates:

1996 - "Achtung Salaam!" - Ltd Edition Picture Disc/ 12"/ CD

1997 - "Saturday Night Shiva" - 12" Etched Vinyl

1997 - "Friday Night Shango" - 12" Orange Vinyl

Neil's debut solo album "Burning Mask" was released to wide acclaim ("A Musical Education" 5/5 - Pathaan, DJ Magazine) by Interchill Records. Recorded between extended visits to Cuba, where Sparkes lived for 6 months, returning regularly throughout the late 1990's; the album's release was followed by a British Council sponsored tour in Canada in 1999. Live shows in the UK featured UK saxophone Legend Dick Heckstall-Smith and Cuban Violinist Omar Puente (including BBC Music Live event on the South Bank, London). Other Interchill releases include remixes of Ekko on the Ekkocentric album; "Miramar" on the Chill Out album "Floatation"; "Talisman(Dub Praises Mix)" on the album "Talisman" which features Neil's paintings commissioned by Interchill.

Neil's ten year collaboration with legendary saxophonist Dick Heckstall-Smith is featured on the CD and book "Grandchildren of Albion" (New Departures). The duo's performances together from 1991 to 2001 include Ronnie Scott's,London; Literary and Music Festivals throughout Europe and the UK.

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Temple of Sound are releasing their fifth studio album "GlobalHead" on May 8th 2007 on Namaste Records/Koch in the USA;

A long term preoccupation with synthesising his multi-medic talents led to the formation of Neil's latest group Temple Of Sound with Count Dubulah. Temple of Sounds debut album "First Edition" was released by Wagram Music in 2002. "First Edition" contains twelve tracks written and produced by Sparkes and Dubulah. Sparkes also providing the painting and original artwork that graces the cover and inside booklet.

As producers and remixers, Temple of Sound have made the album "Peoples Colony No.1" for Peter Gabriel's label Real World, with Rizwan Muazzam Qawwali (nephews of the late great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan) in 2001 and "Shout At The Devil", an album co-written and produced with Jah Wobble for 30 Hertz Records in 2002. In 2005 Temple of Sound produced the album "LDA v The Lunatics" by Los De Abajo in Mexico City at the studios of grammy award winner Pepe Aguilar. The album is released on Peter Gabriel's Real World label. 2006 saw the release of Natacha Atlas new album "MishMaoul" on Beggars Banquet featuring tracks produced, performed and co-written by Neil Sparkes and Count Dubulah. The album was nominated in the BBC radio3 World Music Awards.

click here for LoungeClash

click here for BenBaddoo/Neil Sparkes BouGaRaBou Featuring Alan Barnes & Kadialy Kouyate

WORDS

As a poet and performer, Sparkes has read and performed widely in the UK ,Europe and Internationally; as well as alongside Michael Horovitz and Jeff Nuttall in the The Jazz Poetry SuperJam and Billy Childish's Hangman Poets. His work includes several collections of poetry published by Billy Childish, "All Metal And Other Mens Wives" (1989), "Rumba Rumba (Jazz From Hell)" (1990), as well as numerous appearances on BBC Radio.Magazines and anthologies include "Velocity" (Black Spring 2003); "Gargoyle" (Black Spring1999 ); Critical Quarterly" (1996); Grandchildren of Albion" (New Departures1992); Popular Front of Contemporary Poetry" (Apples & Snakes 1992), and the Hungarian/British collection "Fragile Continent" (Princes Trust 1991). A new collection "Drums In The Rain (New and Selected Poems & Drawings 1990 - 2005)" is to be published by Billy Childish's Hangman Books .

PICTURES

click here for a review of Neil's exhibition The Rhythms Inside My Head

Sparkes studied on the Foundation course at Maidstone, K.I.A.D. and then the B.A. Fine Art course at Goldsmiths College, London. A contemporary of Damien Hirst and the YBAs, his work has been exhibited in the UK and abroad. Neil's pictures have been sold to many Private Collections.