MYTHS, MELODIES & METAPHYSICS: - Prefab Sprout

"What's a little cocktail conversation If it gets the funds for your foundation Ev'ry time I
start to feel defensive I remember vinyl is expensive. A little bit of hype can be effective
Long as you can keep it in perspective Even when you get some recognition Ev'rything
you do you still audition."
McAloon claims, "A public conquered in advance can make me self-analyse and become
introverted. I'm not happy being 'part of the scene' if I'm conscious of it. Paris 1986 was a
'natural time' - I really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, that's not always the case. It has nothing
to do with the public."
The band stopped rehearsing after the Euro/Japanese tours as the endless bout of
rehearsals and touring were threatening to 'degrade' the songs.
Paddy maintains he is not a performer as such. He admits to having big problems with
concentration on stage; forgetting the lyrics to Cars and Girls on stage in front of
thousands of fans and finding he was talking to himself: "I was terribly scared. It was like
losing my self control."
McAloon had also become critical of touring just to promote one's latest product. The
Kane Gang, after all, had an overnight US/UK success in their early singles without
stepping on stage. He was becoming more concerned that very little reward in selfsatisfaction
had been forthcoming from the band's marathon touring schedule. Also, in
late 1985 the band had received quite a few bad reviews of their live gigs.
After the long stretch of interviews for Langley, McAloon had become bored with the
same questions and in having to talk about himself. It led him deeper into his 'terrific liar'
mode of interview techniques - 'Blueberry Pies' that we've all fell for at one time or
another. His mother pleaded with him as he left home to another interview, "Don't be too
controversial."
He withdrew from outside influences in order to fight off his weaknesses, forcing
himself into lengthy, secluded bouts of songwriting in order to experience contentment
within himself.
Similarly, this 'seclusion' is found in his admiration of music. He'll listen to the radio a
lot and deliberately hold back seeing his favourite artists live, maintaining he can enjoy
music more by keeping up the 'mystery' of the artist: "I understand that fascination with
myth and mystique. In fact it's becoming more apparent in my songwriting. As a kid I
bought Station To Station and thought 'I wonder what Bowie's doing this minute?' and
sometimes I'll think to myself 'I wonder what Warren Beatty's up to right now?'"
Of his self-proclaimed 'lonely' hours in songwriting McAloon says, "I've been writing
for a thousand years, which is why I hate all that stuff about the 'nance' bit, the
introversion, because I went through all that when I was twelve, doing stuff that no one
will will ever get to know about, touch wood.
"When I started, I looked at Marc Bolan's lyrics, all these words strung together in a
humorous, ironic way and I tried to copy that, but all I achieved was a sort of irony
without the irony. So I soon had a change of direction."
McAloon summarises: "It's a matter of priorities, a matter of how you see yourself. I
realise that I'm one of the few people who makes records who does see a division between
the two things of getting out there (and touring) and actually making records. It may
come from the fact that as a kid, I never even cared what anyone looked like. When I