A LIFE IN PICTURES
In Paddy’s field: Prefab Sprout.
1 Fresh Sprouts: (from left) brother Martin and Paddy McAloon, Prefab rehearsal, ’77. 2 Great escapology: McAloon on wheels, circa 1985’s Steve McQueen.
3 Cigar club: the Prefabs celebrate finishing Jordan: The Comeback, 1990 (from left) Paddy, remix engineer Eric Calvi, Martin, Wendy Smith, Keith Armstrong. “I did like my cigars in those days,” he admits. 4 The King Of Rock ’N’ Roll: promotional shot of McAloon on tour. “I wasn’t convinced it was the life for me,” he says now. 5 El toro negro rides again: guest Stevie Wonder adds harmonica to Nightingales off 1988’s From Langley Park To Memphis. 6 Not a prisoner of the past: McAloon on-stage at the London Fleadh Festival, 2000.
7 Meet the fans: signing From Langley Park albums in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1988.
8 He’s gotta have it: Paddy meets film director Spike Lee, whose younger brother Cinqué scripted a musical – “on every page there’s a lyric from one of my songs. Surreal.” 9 Cue fanfare: McAloon in 1985. “Fame in itself interested me.”