Biography

As of September 2008, he lives in Mokelumne Hill, California, a former gold mining town, with his wife, Diane Jergens. They live in a historic building, which is also a museum of memorabilia of the gold rush days, and Diane occasionally tends bar at the Hole In The Wall Saloon, located in the downstairs of their home.

Founder and first musical director of The New Christy Minstrels.

One of the group's first hits was Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land." Their debut album in 1962 for Columbia Records won a Grammy and went to #19 on the Billboard charts. A hit single off their second album, "Green, Green", hit #3 in 1963.

Sparks left the group in May 1963 after growing tired of the demands of arranging, managing, supervising the group, as well as performing. The group disbanded in 1971 after such minor hits as "Chim Chim Cheree" (#20) from the Mary Poppins (1964) soundtrack. He recently returned and performed with a revived group of "Minstrels."

His first wife, Jackie Miller, was one-half of Jackie and Gayle (Gayle Caldwell) and was part of the original ten-member lineup of The New Christy Minstrels in 1961. Gayle came in later as a replacement.