Doctor Sparkles
Meet Doctor Sparkles... mad scientist, story teller, cartoon character, rather suspicious fellow, no good drunk, mystical chicken, political commentator, beach bum, demonic hepcat, Santa's Elf, spaceship landing sequence, inciter of zoo uprisings, Mexican tomcat, Universal Boy, fantasy crooner, Multicolored Angel Bird, Mr. Gonad wannabe, Swinging Witch Doctor, Latin cornball, Ron Paul supporter, mushroom chorus, Hip Monkey, New Age wise guy, Death playing a trombone and more... His attitude is tropically infectious, he plays the ukulele and he's really a doctor... or at least he calls himself one...
Honestly, no one seems really sure what Doctor Sparkles is a doctor of,
and speculation into his background seems to further mystify this
enigmatic kook of uke. Many have seen the giant diploma from Silly U.
which he uses as the main sail on his ship "The Imagination", but most
question whether they should take such certification seriously and/or
personally. Certain internet search engines link Doctor Sparkles with
Atlantis University, but it remains vague as to whether he attended there,
taught there or, indeed, whether such an institution ever existed. He claims to be a representative from Paradise, here to witness some sort of planetary shift or other four dimensional nonsense, but whatever Doctor Sparkles' credentials may be, he sure is a wise guy.
Doctor Sparkles crooned onto the music scene in Spring 2006 with his debut album CD Sail Away, a prolonged musical fantasy vacation, which one reviewer called... "pseudo-psychedelic, island breezy, folky, Latin influenced ferris wheel ride for the child within." This hyper-creative appeal to the "child within" might well explain the mixed reaction to his recordings, ranging from "a sweet and light and happy spirituality tickling the canvas of the cosmic giggle" to "unnerving" as well as a certain hesitance venues and radio stations demonstrated in giving the music of this silly stick a chance. And then it could have been his red mad hatter's tophat and pimped out costume. Or perhaps just the name "Doctor Sparkles".
Despite reservations from the imaginatively conservative, Doctor Sparkles impressed members of grass roots musician-run organization Just Plain Folks, who voted Sail Away 2nd Runner-up for Best Cabaret Album and voted its title track Best Cabaret Song for its November 2006 awards show.
In 2007 Doctor Sparkles relocated to San Francisco where he began hosting a monthly ukulele cabaret - Jumping Flea Circus.
In 2008 Doctor Sparkles released his tribute to swing music (and to primates in general) Monkey Swing Monkey Doo, whose sounds have been likened to the music of "the Cherry Poppin' Daddies along with original swing masters such as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Louis Prima, etc.", being called named "one of the best swing albums of the year". Said one Monkey Swing Monkey Doo reviewer of Doctor Sparkles,
"This ukulele-strumming shaman-trickster-guru is here to provide you with a cartoon roadmap of creative mindfulness...)" Nominated by Just Plain Folks for "Best Cabaret Album", Monkey Swing Monkey Doo is now available for purchase at CD Baby and was been
Dr. Sparkles is currently working on his next uke-centric album "Scary Country" on the Big Island of Hawaii.