"Handsome Man" - Friends, or Sparkle (or both)?

[darrens]

Hi all,

There's a new disco compilation out which I am intending to buy. I was browsing through the track list and listening to mp3 samples, which you can see here:
Amazon
VARIOUS - Deep Disco Culture Vol One: Underground Disco Rarities & Future Club Classics

I listened to the sample of "Handsome man" by Sparkle. The only other track I know by Sparkle is "Disco Madness". Anyway, I recognised the track immediately as "Handsome Man" by the group "Friends" from the LP "Trans Am Dancing". It is the same recording - the same vocals, instrumentation, etc.

So I presumed that crediting the song to Sparkle was an error. However I also found a 12 inch release from 2004 with the same track:
Handsome Man / By The Way You Dance - Sparkle / Bunny Sigler: Available at www.tunes.co.uk, the dance specialists

Both the compilation and the 12 inch single are released by the same label, Salsoul (i.e. the new version of the label based in the UK), so it's probable the same mistake has been made twice.

Do people agree that it can't be Sparkle, or is there a further twist in the tale? Could Sparkle have been the vocalist in Friends, or something like that?

By the way when I have the CD I will review it on here as it doesn't look like it has been yet. ;-)

[Zef]

I have this track on a few compilations from Salsoul UK ones and US, some are from a good few years ago and they are all listed as Sparkle. The track is mixed by Larry Levan, I don't know the other version. Could it be that when it was originally released on 12" by Salsoul with the Levan mix that the name was changed? I know that it is not a mistake by Sussed who are the people putting out Salsoul stuff in the UK currently.

[neonlights]

I just got the Friends - Trans Am Dancing LP, the Canadian release on Vitamin Music (it seems it was recorded in France, but the Canadian version is the only one that I ever see).. After a bit of searching, I think I figured out the story on this..

Looks like they modified the credit on the original (I'm guessing) Canadian 12'' release on Vitamin, which was credited to 'Sparkle Tuhran & Friends,' with the mix by Bobby "DJ" Guttadaro. I guess 'Friends' was a bit too anonymous or something, so they put Sparkle Tuhran's name (who did all the vocals on the "Trans-Am Dancing" LP anyway) on the credit.

I guess that when Salsoul picked up the single for US release, they modified the credit further to just 'Sparkle' and had Larry Levan do another mix. So it seems 'Sparkle' and 'Friends' are pretty much one in the same..