I'm clearing a small space of brush and stuff and planning on putting down bark chips (not mulch) to make it look nice. Do I need to put anything under the chips, like a layer of sand? or will they be OK on the bare raked soil?

Hi! It depends on what you are planning to do with it after. Is it just going to be bark chips or are you going to put plants in too? Do you have to worry about weeds? You may want to cover it with a weed block fabric or newspaper then put the bark chips on top. I wouldn't put sand down. Just my 2 cents. Hope it helps.