• Home
  • About
  • Artists
    • Amoeba Teen
    • The Armoires
    • The Bablers
    • Anton Barbeau
    • The Brothers Steve
    • Dolph Chaney
    • Chris Church
    • The Condors
    • The Corner Laughers
    • Crossword Smiles
    • Kai Danzberg
    • The Flashcubes
    • Lannie Flowers (SpyderPop Records)
    • The Forty Nineteens
    • Nick Frater
    • In Deed
    • Blake Jones & The Trike Shop
    • Librarians With Hickeys
    • Bill Lloyd (SpyderPop Records)
    • Addison Love
    • The Lunar Laugh
    • Maple Mars
    • mylittlebrother
    • Richard Öhrn
    • Irene Peña
    • Leslie Pereira & the Lazy Heroes
    • Plasticsoul
    • Popsicko
    • Popular Creeps
    • Allyson Seconds
    • Shplang
    • Michael Simmons
    • Sorrows
    • Sparkle*Jets U.K.
    • The Speed Of Sound
    • Spygenius
    • The Stan Laurels
    • Steve Stoeckel
    • Trip Wire
    • Tony Valentino
    • Walker Brigade
    • Danny Wilkerson (SpyderPop Records)
  • Store
  • SpyderPop Records
  • Magazine & Apparel
  • Compilations
  • Contact

  • Home
  • About
  • Artists
    • Amoeba Teen
    • The Armoires
    • The Bablers
    • Anton Barbeau
    • The Brothers Steve
    • Dolph Chaney
    • Chris Church
    • The Condors
    • The Corner Laughers
    • Crossword Smiles
    • Kai Danzberg
    • The Flashcubes
    • Lannie Flowers (SpyderPop Records)
    • The Forty Nineteens
    • Nick Frater
    • In Deed
    • Blake Jones & The Trike Shop
    • Librarians With Hickeys
    • Bill Lloyd (SpyderPop Records)
    • Addison Love
    • The Lunar Laugh
    • Maple Mars
    • mylittlebrother
    • Richard Öhrn
    • Irene Peña
    • Leslie Pereira & the Lazy Heroes
    • Plasticsoul
    • Popsicko
    • Popular Creeps
    • Allyson Seconds
    • Shplang
    • Michael Simmons
    • Sorrows
    • Sparkle*Jets U.K.
    • The Speed Of Sound
    • Spygenius
    • The Stan Laurels
    • Steve Stoeckel
    • Trip Wire
    • Tony Valentino
    • Walker Brigade
    • Danny Wilkerson (SpyderPop Records)
  • Store
  • SpyderPop Records
  • Magazine & Apparel
  • Compilations
  • Contact

SPARKLE*JETS U.K. (Huntington Beach, CA)

Big Stir Records is thrilled to announce the addition of Orange County, CA pop legends SPARKLE*JETS U.K. to our roster with their first new release in 18 years: a limited edition colored 7” vinyl single that's of unique significance to both the band and the label. It's a pair of beautiful and emotional covers related to BSR's namesake Big Star – the band's classic “The Ballad of El Goodo” and the beloved Chris Bell solo cut “You and Your Sister” – both recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis with Jody Stephens on drums for the A side. Kenny Howes (yeah, that Kenny Howes) donated his guitar skills (and guitars) to the session as well.

It's a welcome return for sparkle*jets u.k., remembered as “one of the most adored bands in the power pop movement of the late '90s and early 2000s and mainstays of the early International Pop Overthrow Festival years, according to Jason Damas from All Music Guide. Their adorably geekly sensibility and their sound – a distinctive marriage of '60s and '70s rock and whimsical guitar pop -- set them apart, then and now. Founding members Michael Simmons, Susan West, and Jamie Knight first met in 1995 at an open mic show in Fullerton, CA. They were in three different bands at that time, and within a year had merged the bands into a single entity, blending their songs together. 

The group, which was initially dubbed Happy Birthday!, was renamed sparkle*jets u.k., including the very 80’s "U.K." tag as a gag. The three band members also shared a lot of musical common ground, starting with the Beatles. Their musical courtship engendered a love for ELO, Beach Boys, Jackson 5, Stax, and Big Star. They listened to Jason Falkner and Sugarplastic while engineering their own splash in the LA Pop scene. SJ*UK recorded their 1998 debut In, Through and Beyond and pressed just 1,000 CD’s. In the true spirit of DIY, Knight placed the band’s first CD on consignment in a display next to the cash register at Pepperland Music record store where rock journalist John Borack (Goldmine Magazine and the Shake Some Action power pop guidebooks) bought a copy, his decision based only on the cover art and 3.99 dollar price. After passing word onto pop fanatic and International Pop Overthrow organizer David Bash, sparkle*jets u.k. were soon inducted into the close-knit family of Los Angeles-based power pop acts and their fans, then in its fondly remembered heyday. 

What started as an after-gig joke among their new musician friends in 2000 led to the delightfully absurd I Love Sparkle*Jets U.K., a multi-artist tribute album to themselves. They decided to curate the project, and within an hour of announcing it ran out of songs to include, such was the camaraderie of the pop scene at the time. They followed with their excellent 2001 sophomore album Bamboo Lounge which was first released on their own label, then throughout the world on Smile Records. 

The group went dormant just shy of completing their third proper album, having re-channeled their creative energies into their new career at The HB Academy for the Performing Arts. When Knight & Simmons started their unique popular music program (and West became the school’s business supervisor) they didn’t have any money for a drum set, so David Bash and John Borack donated money to buy one for the kids. Around this time was when one of their first students, Tisha Boonyawatana, joined the band on keyboards.  Ten years later, Simmons was so impressed with the pop sensibilities of two students (Big Stir artist Addison Love and Ginger Root’s Cameron Lew) that he would go on to produce and perform with them in a group called Yorktown Lads, releasing the Songs About Girls and Other Disasters LP in 2014. It was students like Addison Love, Nicole Kubis and Cameron Lew who would help Simmons and Knight become Apple Distinguished Educators and get Knight nominated as a Grammy Teacher of the Year. 

Simmons would go on to play a major role in pop cover band Popdudes with Borack, Knight, Kenny Howes, Robbie Rist, Kubis, Love and many more. His own solo album First Days of Summer, recently reissued in expanded form on Big Stir, adorned many a "Best of 2018" list. The album, along with occasional and warmly received SJ*UK reunion gigs, paved the way for the Memphis sessions which yielded the new single. 

Along with the El Goodo 45, Big Stir Records is making expanded versions of the two proper sparkle*jets u.k. albums available for download, and also offering the 2017 vinyl reissue of Bamboo Lounge in our store. There are rumblings that the much-rumored third LP may see eventual completion... stay tuned for further developments, and grab your 45 while they last!

The Ballad of El Goodo (7"): Blue Vinyl 7"
  • The Ballad of El Goodo (7"): Blue Vinyl 7"

The Ballad of El Goodo (7"): Blue Vinyl 7"

Includes a download of the album The Ballad of El Goodo (7")
In cart Not available Out of stock
$5.00

Big Stir Records is thrilled to announce the addition of Orange County, CA pop legends SPARKLE*JETS U.K. to our roster with their first new release in 18 years: a limited edition colored 7” vinyl single that's of unique significance to both the band and the label. It's a pair of covers related to BSR's namesake Big Star – the band's classic “The Ballad of El Goodo” and the beloved Chris Bell solo cut “You and Your Sister” – recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis with Jody Stephens on drums. Both the A and B sides will be available digitally ONLY with the physical 45 (until they're collected on the fourth Big Stir Singles CD in late 2019). The single is officially out Friday, July 26 and can be pre-ordered here:

www.bigstirrecords.com/sparkle-jets-u-k

It's a welcome return for sparkle*jets u.k., remembered as one of the most adored bands in the power pop movement of the late '90s and early 2000s and mainstays of the early International Pop Overthrow Festival years. Their adorably geekly sensibility and their sound – a distinctive marriage of '60s and '70s rock and whimsical guitar pop -- set then apart. Founding members Michael Simmons, Susan West, and Jamie Knight first met in 1995 at a gig for Simmons' band at the time, Virgin 7. Within a year the trio's separate acts had merged into a single entity, which included the first writing contributions from Simmons as well as material from West and Knight.

The group, which was initially dubbed Happy Birthday!, was renamed sparklekets u.k., including the "U.K." tag because the name wasn't nearly wacky enough. The three bandmembers also shared a lot of musical common ground, starting at The Beatles and running through Electric Light Orchestra, Brian Wilson, Teenage Fanclub, Pixies, The Jackson 5. SJUK recorded their 1998 debut In, Through and Beyond and pressed just 1,000 copies. Copies of the disc made it into a single store, where rock journalist John Borack (Goldmine Magazine and the Shake Some Action power pop guidebooks) bought a copy, his decision based only on the cover art and 3.99 dollar price. After passing word onto pop fanatic and International Pop Overthrow organizer David Bash, sparkle*jets u.k. were soon inducted into the close-knit family of Los Angeles-based power pop acts and their fans, then in its fondly remembered heyday.

The delightfully absurd I Love SparkleJets U.K. multi-artist tribute album and the excellent 2001 sophomore album Bamboo Lounge would follow before the group went dormant on the recording front. Simmons would go on play a major role in Popdudes (with Borack, Knight, Robbie Rist, BSR's own Addison Love and many more) and form another multigenerational in the form of Yorktown Lads (also with Love and Cameron Lew). His own solo album First Days of Summer, recently reissued in expanded form on Big Stir, adorned many a Best of 2018 lists. The album, along with occasional and warmly received SJUK reunion gigs, paved the way for the Memphis sessions which yielded the new single.

Along with “El Goodo”, Big Stir Records is making expanded versions of the two proper sparkle*jets u.k. albums available for download, and also offering the 2017 vinyl reissue of Bamboo Lounge in our store. There are rumblings that the much-rumored third LP may see completion and release in the year ahead... stay tuned for further developments, and grab your 45 while they last!

Read more…
Bamboo Lounge (Expanded Reissue) by sparkle*jets u.k.

Bamboo Lounge (Expanded Reissue)

sparkle*jets u.k.

In cart Not available Out of stock

Vinyl Download

In cart Not available Out of stock

Original Issue CD plus Bonus Content Download

In cart Not available Out of stock

The 2001 sophomore record from SPARKLE*JETS U.K. is back on limited edition vinyl with accompanying downloadable super-expanded version featuring an entire disc of bonus tracks from the vaults!

Read more…
0:00/???
  1. 1
    Monster 3:15
    0:00/3:15
  2. 2
    She May Be Nice 4:02
    0:00/4:02
  3. 3
    Sorry 4:00
    0:00/4:00
  4. 4
    Consult Your Physician 3:03
    0:00/3:03
  5. 5
    So Gone 3:08
    0:00/3:08
  6. 6
    Real Nice Time 2:38
    0:00/2:38
  7. 7
    Hate Your Hair 0:41
    0:00/0:41
  8. 8
    Beautiful Girl 3:14
    0:00/3:14
  9. 9
    It's Gotta Happen 3:29
    0:00/3:29
  10. 10
    Nobody's Girl 3:41
    0:00/3:41
  11. 11
    They Shoot Square Dancers Don't They? 3:06
    0:00/3:06
  12. 12
    Good Morning World 3:55
    0:00/3:55
  13. 13
    A Nice One 3:09
    0:00/3:09
  14. 14
    Bamboo Lounge 1:32
    0:00/1:32
  15. 15
    Monster (Phone Demo) 1:30
    0:00/1:30
  16. 16
    She May Be Nice (Guitar Demo) 2:49
    0:00/2:49
  17. 17
    She May Be Nice (Alternate) 4:05
    0:00/4:05
  18. 18
    Sorry (Demo) 2:40
    0:00/2:40
  19. 19
    So Gone (Demo) 4:28
    0:00/4:28
  20. 20
    So Gone (Tracking Session) 1:54
    0:00/1:54
In, Through, and Beyond by sparkle*jets u.k.

In, Through, and Beyond

sparkle*jets u.k.

In cart Not available Out of stock

The 1998 debut from SPARKLE*JETS U.K. with a full bonus CD of exclusive and rare tracks included!

Read more…
0:00/???
  1. 1
    She's My Fave 2:21
    0:00/2:21
  2. 2
    10 Inches 2:34
    0:00/2:34
  3. 3
    My Internet Love Song 3:51
    0:00/3:51
  4. 4
    Above the Clouds 3:57
    0:00/3:57
  5. 5
    Dat 2:43
    0:00/2:43
  6. 6
    Thirteen 2:42
    0:00/2:42
  7. 7
    Oh Poor Me 3:58
    0:00/3:58
  8. 8
    Haircut Girl 3:14
    0:00/3:14
  9. 9
    Girl Don't Tell Me 2:51
    0:00/2:51
  10. 10
    Space 36 2:50
    0:00/2:50
  11. 11
    She's So Mean 4:23
    0:00/4:23
  12. 12
    Golden 3:23
    0:00/3:23
  13. 13
    Listen to Me 4:18
    0:00/4:18
  14. 14
    Surfin' Monkeys 2:43
    0:00/2:43
  15. 15
    Love Sacrifice 3:19
    0:00/3:19
  16. 16
    She's My Fave (Car Demo Take 2) 2:59
    0:00/2:59
  17. 17
    10 Inches (Alternate Version) 2:31
    0:00/2:31
  18. 18
    Caught in the 'Net (Demo) 4:38
    0:00/4:38
  19. 19
    Above the Clouds (Demo) 3:59
    0:00/3:59
  20. 20
    Dat (Demo) 2:20
    0:00/2:20

BIG STIR RECORDS

Burbank, CA / Croydon, South London, UK / Wherever Pop Music Is Made

Copyright © 2021 Big Stir Records
All Rights Reserved.
Design © Big Stir Records

  • Log out