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Topic: Ron Mael


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In the News (Wed 9 Dec 09)

  
 Ron Mael and Russell Mael Biography
Ron and Russell's father was a graphic designer for the old daily the Hollywood Citizen-News, their mother, Miriam, a librarian.
At time Russell Mael finishing high-school was the regular beach blanket bingo, though he tended to wear a T-Shirt on the hot sand in a paranoid attempt to preserve a skin of lily white.
Ron and Russ Mael moved to England where their parents were living, and Sparks relocated in the UK but without the Mankey brothers and Harley Feinstein.
graphikdesigns.free.fr /halfnelson-ron-russ-mael.html   (1273 words)

  
 Ron Mael   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
Ron Mael is the elder of the brothers in Sparks.
When the band hit the peak of its popularity in the 1970s, he was well-known for his strange appearance, especially his Charlie Chaplin-like moustache.
As the mystery of pop music's landscape continues to unfurl, Ronald Mael and brother Russell continue to be perceived as trailblazers, historic in their influential style and artistic vision.
www.xasa.com /wiki/en/wikipedia/r/ro/ron_mael.html   (96 words)

  
 Illinois Entertainer July 1982 Sparks Ron Mael interview
Songs like "Occupations" and "Goofing Off" left no doubt as to what kind of band Sparks was trying to be; the Maels wore their slightly twisted minds on their sleeves, and it wasn't every rock 'n' roll fan who could appreciate what they were trying to do.
Ron Mael doesn't hold much stock in writing political songs that probably won't accomplish what they're meant to anyway.
At the start, pretty boy Russell was the focus of the band, bare chest and all, while Ron (The Musical Brains) stood stonily nearby, barely aware he was in something other than a concentration camp line.
www.xs4all.nl /~cvbreuke/illent.htm   (1075 words)

  
 SPARKS/HALFNELSON - Ron Mael and Russell Mael, Earle Mankey and Jim Mankey, Harley Feinstein
Russell Mael was finishing high school among cheer leaders, football and body surfing, while Ron Mael was entering college and becoming involved with Cinema and graphic design.
So, at the end of 1973, figuring that their quirky, strangely british-style music and lyrics would be more appreciated overseas than in the United States, Ron Mael and Russell Mael phoned the guy who had looked after them while they toured Europe and the original band sort of disintegrated.
Ron and Russell's parents had already moved to London, so the Mael brothers went to England and Sparks relocated to the UK, but unfortunately, without the Mankey brothers and Harley Feinstein...
graphikdesigns.free.fr /sparks-ron-russell-mael.html   (1295 words)

  
 The Sparks at Giorgio Moroder Site
Ron Mael, older brother of Russel, behind the Keyboards.
Ron with a 'Hitler' style moustache is the Keyboardplayer and his brother Russel is the Vocalist.
Started as "Halfnelson" in 1968 with John Mendelssohn on drums and 1971 evolved in "Sparks" in which the band were joined by Earle Mankay as guitar-player, Jim Mankay as bass and Harley Fernstein on the drums.
www.angelfire.com /de/moroder/sparks.html   (572 words)

  
 Ron Mael - Biography - AOL Music
In collaboration with vocalist brother Russell, composer/keyboardist Ron Mael was the mastermind behind the skewed pop smarts and wiseguy wordplay of cult favorite Sparks.
Born August 12, 1950, in Culver City, CA, Mael spent his childhood modeling young men's apparel for mail-order catalogues; while attending UCLA in 1970, he and Russell formed their first group, Halfnelson.
Get Ron Mael biography information, download, listen and watch Ron Mael music, mp3's, song lyrics, music videos, Internet radio, live performances, concerts, and use the music search function to find information on other new and established recording artists.
music.aol.com /artist/ron-mael/100837/biography   (202 words)

  
 New York Press   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
That’s perfectly okay with Ron, the Mael best known for spending the 70s and 80s as the Songwriting One with The Hitler Mustache (and is now just the Songwriting One with the Thin Mustache and the Creepy Smile).
Ron is happy to finally get past some of the clowning: "We’ve been humbled by other people’s attitudes about how we’re doing.
After years of being maligned and dismissed, you’d expect the Brothers Mael to at least be reveling in some genuine smugness.
www.nypress.com /print.cfm?content_id=8629   (1513 words)

  
 Ron Mael - AOL Music
Ron Mael's toothbrush moustache and neatly parted hair prompted John Lennon to...
Ron Mael and Russell Mael (later Sparks) grew up in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles at the lower edge of middle-class...
Download, listen and watch Ron Mael music, mp3's, song lyrics, music videos, Internet radio, live performances, concerts, and more on AOL Music.
music.aol.com /artist/ron-mael/100837/main   (114 words)

  
 Sparks Collaborations
On this album, Ron plays "african wood" (percussional instrument) on the track "In My Life", and Russell did put his vocals on the Soft Cell classic "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye".
Laura Campbell of Mulu has written a song "David", and asked via BMG links if Russell would be interested in adding vocals (she had him in mind when she was writing it).
Also on this album is a hidden track, immediately after track two, which has Ron introduce himself and go into a brief, verbal thirty second tourist introduction to the geography of Japan, in English, after which the members of Pizzicato Five applaud.
www.xs4all.nl /~cvbreuke/collaborations.htm   (755 words)

  
 Sparks - Hello Young Lovers   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
Ron and Russell played to audiences in the UK, the USA, Australia and Japan.
L.A. brothers Ron and Russell Mael released their 20th album "Hello Young Lovers" in early 2006.
To achieve enormity and expansiveness, Ron and Russell worked in a limitless vacuum for the best part of 18 months.
sparks-mael-brothers.blogspot.com   (428 words)

  
 Never Mind the Buzzcocks: Ron Mael, Russell Mael, Pete Tong, Dave Johns - TV.com
Ron Mael, Russell Mael, Pete Tong, Dave Johns
Russell Mael (Himself), Ron Mael (Himself), Pete Tong (Himself), Dave Johns (Himself), Colin Pattenden (Himself (identity parade)), Omar (Himself (identity parade))
Tell the world what you think of Ron Mael, Russell Mael, Pete Tong, Dave Johns, write a review for this episode.
www.tv.com /never-mind-the-buzzcocks/ron-mael-russell-mael-pete-tong-dave-johns/episode/249163/summary.html   (171 words)

  
 Sparks - Lil' Beethoven - Palm Pictures / Lil' Beethoven Records - CD
With initial failure due to their extreme eccentricity, they moved themselves to England and began a successful string of highly innovative approaches to music that remain as eccentric today as they were in the past.
Comprised of two brothers, Ron and Russ Mael, and whoever were a part of the band’s grouping at any one time, Sparks proceeded to create interesting and musically rich songs that fed on part rock star persona and part offbeat talent.
Russ Mael’s rock star persona has been replaced by the John Mayer visual appearance thus never falling away entirely from the look of the time while Ron Mael’s Hitler-esque/German synth star appearance is still in place.
www.musictap.net /Reviews/SparksLilBeethovenCD.html   (709 words)

  
 LyricsVault: Hall of fame: Sparks
Sparks was a vehicle for the skewed pop smarts and wiseguy wordplay of brothers Ron and Russell Mael, Los Angeles natives who spent their childhood modeling young men's apparel for mail-order catalogues.
While attending UCLA in 1970, the Maels formed their first group, Halfnelson, which featured songwriter Ron on keyboards and Russell as lead vocalist; the band was rounded out by another pair of brothers, guitarist Earle and bassist Jim Mankey, and drummer Harley Feinstein.
While touring the U.K., Sparks was warmly received by the British music press, and ultimately, the Mael brothers relocated to London, leaving the rest of the band behind; Earle Mankey subsequently became a noted producer, while Jim later joined Concrete Blonde.
www.lyricsvault.net /halloffame/Sparks.html   (333 words)

  
 Compare Prices and Read Reviews on Kimono My House - Sparks at Epinions.com
Either they thought they were too off the wall or were put off by Russell Mael's Tiny Tim like falsetto.
Ron Mael's songs are as catchy as they are infectious.
Another example that Russell Mael is truly one of the most unusual singers of the pop era.
www.epinions.com /content_92627373700   (485 words)

  
 SPARKS :: View topic - The genius of Ron Mael
I was discussing the genius of Ron Mael's lyrics with a friend the other day.
One of the points that was raised was the shear precociousness of the word play and the almost innate insight he seems to have had into the human condition at such an early age.
But we are talking here about Ron Mael and, as we all know, Ron has angst in his pants.
www.allsparks.com /forum/viewtopic.php?t=1914   (391 words)

  
 [Mael-list] The Times
Wherever you alight in the Sparks canon, the fundamental things apply: namely, Russell Mael's semi-falsetto and Ron Mael's inability to pen a song about the sorts of things that other lyricists write about.
To the best of my knowledge, they're the only band ever to sing about sex from the sperm's point of view (Tryouts for the Human Race) or - on the current single, Perfume - the pheromonal allure of a woman who makes no attempt to conceal her own scent.
As Ron and Russell Mael celebrate their 35th year in Sparks, they play Pete Paphides exclusive extracts from their new album Hello Young Lovers, plus the new single Perfume.
lists.kuci.org /pipermail/mael-list/2006-February/000728.html   (693 words)

  
 Amazon.com: No. 1 in Heaven: Music: Sparks   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
The conflicting warm and sensual vocal performance over robotic trance music intrigued Ron and Russell who were already bored within the constraints of a 4-piece rock band.
Ron Mael expanded his keyboard repertoire with the Yamaha DX-7 and a Roland JP-8.
Ron un-slicked his hair and grew it long and wavy, resembling a mad scientist - or was it more "nutty professor"?
www.amazon.com /No-1-Heaven-Sparks/dp/B000026VL1   (1858 words)

  
 NO. 1 IN HEAVEN
Teaming with Eurodisco’s primary proponent, Giorgio Moroder, the Mael boys subverted their musical hijinx to Eurodisco’s rigid template of pulsing rhythms and cold arrangements.
The result was one of Sparks’ most successful records in Europe, spawning hits in “The No. 1 Song In Heaven,” “Beat The Clock” and “Tryouts For The Human Race.” No. 1 In Heaven was in the right place at the right time, cashing in on the novelty factor of synthesizers and Sparks’ own strangeness.
Years from now, this album may claim its share of historical significance as a shining example of Giorgio Moroder’s trademark sound, but among Sparks records this is a damp match.
www.connollyco.com /discography/sparks/heaven.html   (345 words)

  
 Sparks | Russell and Ron Mael of Sparks
And although they have operated largely under the American radar — however justly or unjustly — since their inception, the one thing that has secured an influential place for Sparks in the cult history of modern pop music has been the group's unwavering penchant for inspired weirdness, whether in the studio or in live performance.
Over the years, Ron Mael has played numerous synths, keyboards and computer-based instruments — Moog's Polymoog, Roland's JP-4 and JP-8, the Wurlitzer electric piano and the Fairlight CMI, to name a few — but his workhorse favorites have been the Yamaha CS-80 (produced in the late '70s) and the sleeker S80 (introduced in 1999).
Sparks' latest album, Hello Young Lovers (In the Red, 2006), was tracked with MOTU Digital Performer, which the Maels use to stack literally dozens of vocals, synth and percussion parts for a lush, orchestral and pristinely mixed slab of pure anti-pop.
remixmag.com /artists/remix_sparks/index.html   (811 words)

  
 [Mael-list] [Comfortablydumb] SPARKS!!!!!!!!!!! (fwd)
The interview was actually with Russell (not Ron...
Though the album version is over six minutes long, we found a way to edit the piece to a single length so that it could take on its own life and not be glossed over by radio simply because of its length.
And even a song that is at once very accessible, 'Waterproof,' still plays with the accepted structures of pop music." The oft-predictable state of modern day rock wound up serving as an inspiration for pushing the boundaries on Sparks' latest.
lists.kuci.org /pipermail/mael-list/2005-October/000193.html   (514 words)

  
 Rolling Stone : Sparks: Kimono My House : Music Reviews
Like 10cc, Sparks plays music that is deeply rooted in the mid-Sixties "pop" vein — in fact, the uninitiated musical historian might well mistake them for the Honeycombs, whose "Have I the Right" bears a strong resemblance to the entirety of Kimono My House.
Muff Winwood's production of this, Sparks' third LP, has given the band a more contemporary (heavier) instrumental sound but at the cost of obfuscating the whimsical lyricism of head writer Ron Mael.
The already annoying chirping yodels of singer Russell Mael become a disappointing stab at intelligible vocals, sadly disguising the fact that Ron Mael is a composer with both a unique (if slightly warped) perspective and a volatile sense of humor.
www.rollingstone.com /artists/sparks2/albums/album/109101/review/5943727/kimono_my_house   (200 words)

  
 WireImage: Listings
Russell Mael performs in Sparks play - Act 2
Ron Mael performs in Sparks play - Act 1
Ron Mael performs in Sparks play - Act 2
www.wireimage.com /GalleryListing.asp?navtyp=GLS====213542&qckv=y&nbc1=1   (341 words)

  
 Ron Mael: Reviews, Discography, Audio Clips, and more ||| Music.com
Ron Mael: Reviews, Discography, Audio Clips, and more
Search the web for Ron Mael: Web Pages
Portions of Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC.
www.music.com /person/ron_mael/1   (63 words)

  
 VH1.com : Ron Mael : Artist Main
Born August 12, 1950, in Culver City, CA, Mael s...
Check out Ron Mael's movie page to watch trailers, see photos, find out about upcoming film projects and more!
E-commerce on this website is brought to you by MTVN Direct Inc.
www.vh1.com /artists/az/mael_ron/artist.jhtml   (139 words)

  
 Mael Characters Rice, Anne R Authors Literature Arts
Mael Characters Rice, Anne R Authors Literature Arts
Pitchforkmedia.comGhostface, Lupe, Rhymefest Ball for NBA 2K7Pitchforkmedia.com, IL - Jan 25, 2007In a move that thoroughly irked Ron and Russell Mael, aka Sparks, BBC London 94.9FM refused to play the pair's new single, "Dick Around", from their most...
Top: Arts: Literature: Authors: R: Rice,_Anne: Characters: Mael:
www.iaswww.com /ODP/Arts/Literature/Authors/R/Rice,_Anne/Characters/Mael   (78 words)

  
 Ron Mael - Free Music Downloads, Videos, Lyrics, CDs, MP3s, Bio, Merchandise and Links
Ron Mael - Free Music Downloads, Videos, Lyrics, CDs, MP3s, Bio, Merchandise and Links
Browse artists: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z #
Mark Stagg; Tony Visconti; Russell Mael; David Kendrick; Bob Haag; Leslie Bohem;
www.artistdirect.com /nad/music/artist/card/0,,461985,00.html   (142 words)

  
 Barnes & Noble.com - Music Search: Ron Mael
Barnes and Noble.com - Music Search: Ron Mael
We found 19 items for contributors: Ron Mael.
Portions of content provided by All Music Guide®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC
music.barnesandnoble.com /search/results.asp?z=y&btob=Y&ctr=147170   (48 words)

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