Izzy Sparks (February, 17th, 1969, New York City, New York, United States Of America) is a playable character in the Guitar Hero series. He first appeared with the Grim Ripper as one of two unlockable characters in Guitar Hero, and has appeared as a regular starting character in each game in the series since.
Inspiration
He is American. He is known for his large hair, flamboyant style, wild attitude and outrageous costumes. He is inspired by Blackie Lawless (WASP singer/guitarist/bassist),Vince Neil and Nikki Sixx (respectively, Mötley Crüe's vocalist and bassist), C.C. DeVille (Poison's guitarist), Vinnie Vincent (KISS and Vinnie Vincent Invasion's guitarist), Howard Leese (Heart), Izzy Stradlin (Guns n' Roses' rhythm gutarist), Iggy Pop (The Stooges), SPIKE (Quirboys), Tyla (Dogs d'amour), Mike Monroe (Hanoi Rocks), Lexxi Foxxx (Steel Panther) and other 80s hard rock icons. He was named after Izzy Maxwell of the Sound Mixing Department at Harmonix, the developer of Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, and Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s.
Biography
- A wild man on and off the stage, Izzy is famous for his guitar playing and infamous for his hard partying ways. The press can't get enough of this bad boy, who never leaves a crowd unhappy or a hotel room un-trashed. - Guitar Hero in-game bio
- Izzy is known for his wild hair, wilder outfits, and even wilder parties - and of course for his crankin' guitar. He says he needs to customize his guitars to accommodate his ultra fast technique. Changing bands like other people change shoes, Izzy has played for dozens of bands including Arsenic, Gold Rush, Medusa's Hair, and Gang of Two. Press and fans alike can't get enough of his bad-boy antics and monster chops. Izzy named his last album "Banned in Seven States", which was true - three states ago. Though most venues cite his unruly stage presence as reason to keep him out, Izzy claims that he gets barred because his guitar "makes girls think impure thoughts." He recently customized his amps to match his outfits. Says friend and band mate Jax Hummer, "you have to be damn good to get away with that kind of behavior. And he is." - Guitar Hero manual bio
- A real crowd pleaser, Izzy thrills all with his energetic onstage showmanship while delighting the media with his offstage debauchery, Izzy's fan base is even bigger than his hair. - Guitar Hero II in-game bio.
- Media darling and pop culture icon, Izzy Sparks is living the rock and roll dream and every mother's nightmare. With his love of legato and leopard skin, Izzy brings metal to the mainstream masses. - Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s in-game bio
- Daughters, lock up your mothers... Sunset has not fallen upon the Strip! Izzy returns with the flair and the hair, and isn't stopping until your ears bleed pure rock. Glam never tasted so good. - Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero World Tour, and Guitar Hero Metallica in-game bio
Outfits
Guitar Hero He is dressed in leather and spandex,with platform boots, makeup, and a skull shaped codpiece.
Izzy Sparks in GH1
Guitar Hero II Almost the same outfit, but with linebacker makeup (like that worn by Nikki Sixx in the 80s), and is now yellow and black.
Izzy Sparks, in his "Top Hat" outfit from GH2
The unlockable top hat outfit is when he is wearing zebra print pants, white boots, a black feather open vest and a white top hat.
Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s Izzy wears a jaguar-print headband, a pink sleeveless shirt with a neckerchief, tight black leather pants and boots.
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
The Rockstar
In the PS2/Wii Version, he has a darker skin tone.
Leopard: Leopard print spandex jumpsuit, big hair, makeup, yellow boots, and various scarves tied around his legs. (See above)
Lizard: Green leopard print Spandex.
Viper: Red spandex and a white scarf. Ironically, he looks like Shawn Michaels.
The Peacock
Fantasy: Blue spandex jumpsuit, large feathers on one shoulder, and more chunky, pieced hair. Very over-the-top.
Neon Knight: Purple hair, green feathers, sleeves and pants.
Grandiose: Black and red outfit. Blonde hair.
Guitar Hero World Tour
Izzy in GH:WT
- Torso: Leftovers
- Pants: Cuffs and Stripes
- Shoes: You've Been 86ed
- Accessories: Demo Wrap (left arm), Leathery Spike (right arm)
Guitar Hero Metallica
Izzy in GH: Metallica
Izzy by default looks similar to his appearance in World Tour, except that he is wearing a black vest with black pants and white sneakers. Like many of the other Guitar Heroes, this is to make him look more Metal. Torso: Gilded Glam Pants: Hurricane Chaps Shoes: Deez Sneakers Accessories: Wrist Snuggler (left arm) and Xcessive Rings (right arm)
Guitar Hero Smash Hits Izzy looks almost if not exactly like he did in World Tour.
Guitar Hero 5; Guitar Hero The Animated Series: Izzy has new outfits in this game.
Glam Tease: This outfit shows him with his usual, more outrageous style: he has white blonde hair that reaches his shoulders with a section of it sticking up diagonally. He wears a zebra print jumpsuit with gold fur trim.
Sideshow
Stiki
The Immpresario: This outfit shows him with blonde short hair that shades over one eye. He wears a black trench coat with a large amount of black fur trim and black pants.
Band Hero Izzy has two outfits at the beginning of the game, and one can be unlocked in career. His first outfit called "10 Minutes Till Pluto" looks a lot different than his usual appearance; he has black hair in a style the game calls "The Catolano". He wears a blue shirt under a black vest with scribbled writing covering it, accessorized with a yellow bandana. He wears purple pants with purple and green socks and white sneakers that have scribbles all over them. He wears a wristband on his right arm and his arms have many tattoos.
Trivia
- Izzy's signature guitar is a Custom Rising Sun Gibson Explorer, which was made for him in GH1.
- Izzy Sparks is one of two characters that you can see, without buying them. (Along with Grim Ripper).
- Arsenic, the name of one of his bands mentioned in his Guitar Hero bio, may be a reference to the bands Poison or Anthrax.
- Interestingly, Izzy Sparks' default outfit in Guitar Hero 2 appears as his outfit in Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock.
- Izzy Sparks is unlockable as a bonus character in Quickplay+ in Warriors of Rock by reaching rank 28.
- His appearance in GH5 might have been based on that of the late singer David Bowie, who was also a Glam Rocker.
- Izzy's hair in GH5 is called Hooligan and looks a lot like David Bowie's 1970s alter ego, Ziggy Stardust's hairstyle.
- While not appearing in the game physically, Izzy's name is shown to be one of the nine opponents in GHTV's Premium Shows in Guitar Hero Live.