At some point in time an experience in Alberton, Prince Edward Island seems to have left a sour taste in Rick Sparkes’ mouth. Sparkes and his band, The Enablers, have returned with “Prince County Fair,” the latest single release of their upcoming album, The Trouble With The Light. Less of a qualm with the local mid-Summer exhibition, the song is about the emotional association with a place that can be hard to shake when things don’t turn out like you expect.
“Lyrically,” explains Sparkes, “it’s just a story about a guy lamenting [about] having been involved with someone who, on the outside was quite beautiful, but whose insides were as rotten as a November peach. You know, that old chestnut.”
Sparkes says that while writing the song he was heavily inspired by his obsession with Graham Parsons, Roger McGuinn and most of the Byrds’ catalogue as well as their modern alt-country counterparts, The Sadies.
“Aside from [their] beautiful harmonies, I think I just love the fact that [The Byrds] were able to work within the paradigms of traditional country music, but were also able to subvert that structure with elements of 60s era folk and pop, along with unconventional lyrics and really cool haircuts.”
“I hesitate to say that Prince County Fair borrows from the Byrds, but rather it pays “homage” to the alt country tradition.”
Sparkes says that the song came together fairly quickly once the band got down to recording it in the studio. The song quickly dives in with a relentless collage of guitars.
“Paul Koberinski, our lead guitar player, had prepared a few different solos for this song, but the one that made the cut was the one that we felt best suited the song. It’s fun, dynamic and a bit unhinged.”
Rick Sparkes + The Enablers are expected to release their first full album, The Trouble With The Light, sometime in September, 2018.