Paddy McAloon is an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

  singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 and member of the band

Band (music)

In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...

 Prefab Sprout

Prefab Sprout

Prefab Sprout are an alternative English pop rock band from Witton Gilbert, County Durham, England who rose to fame during the 1980s. Eight of their albums have reached the Top 40 in the UK Albums Chart, and one of their singles, "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", peaked at number seven in the UK...

. Allmusic describes him as "one of the most underrated lyricists of the '80s".

Career

Prefab Sprout enjoyed considerable success in the 1980s and early 1990s. They peaked commercially with a Top Ten hit single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 in the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

, with "The King of Rock 'N' Roll

The King of Rock 'N' Roll

"The King of Rock 'n' Roll" is a single by the British rock group Prefab Sprout, released in 1988. It was the second single taken from their album of that year, From Langley Park to Memphis, and makes reference to a washed-up '50s star who is only remembered for his one-hit novelty song, which is...

".

McAloon has also written

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 song

Song

In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...

s that have been recorded

Sound recording and reproduction

Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...

 by Kylie Minogue

Kylie Minogue

Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...

 ("If You Don't Love Me"), Cher

Cher

Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...

 ("The Gunman"), Wendy Matthews

Wendy Matthews

Wendy Joan Matthews is an Australian adult alternative pop singer originally from Canada who has been a member of Models and Absent Friends and is a solo artist...

 ("God Watch Over You" and "Ride"), Sondre Lerche

Sondre Lerche

-Career:Sondre Lerche was born in Bergen, Norway. Growing up, Lerche was heavily influenced by the '80s pop that emanated from his older siblings' rooms. Compelled by a defining fascination for bands such as The Beatles, A-ha, the Beach Boys, and Prefab Sprout, Lerche began formal guitar...

 ("Nightingales"), Danny Seward

Danny Seward

Danny Seward is a British television actor who was born in Salford, Greater Manchester, England on 17 May 1976.Danny started his career at the age of 15 at the Oldham Theatre Workshop. However it was not until 1997 at age 21, that he landed his first TV role in the soap Emmerdale for 3 episodes...

 ("Home (Where The Heart Is)") and various songs for Jimmy Nail

Jimmy Nail

James Bradford "Jimmy" Nail is an English singer-songwriter, actor, musician, film producer, film score composer and television writer....

 as well as his own band. "God Watch Over You" has also been covered by Frances Ruffelle

Frances Ruffelle

Frances Ruffelle is an English musical theatre actress and recording artist. Her mother is Sylvia Young, the founder of the famous theatre school at which Frances trained, and her daughter is recording artist Eliza Doolittle. Her younger sister is actress Alison Ruffelle...

, and "When Love Breaks Down" has been covered by both The Zombies

The Zombies

The Zombies are an English rock band, formed in 1961 in St Albans and led by Rod Argent, on piano and keyboards, and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group scored a UK and US hit in 1964 with "She's Not There"...

 and Lisa Stansfield

Lisa Stansfield

Lisa Stansfield is an English singer and songwriter.-Early years:Stansfield was born to Marion and Keith Stansfield in Heywood, Lancashire, in England, where she attended Redbrook School, Rochdale. Her first television appearance was on a talent programme in the Granada TV area in 1982...

. In 2008, the various artists covers album Independents' Day 08 included a version of "Bonny" performed by McAloon's labelmates Editors

Editors

Editors are a British indie rock band based in Birmingham, who formed in 2002. Previously known as Pilot, The Pride and Snowfield, the band consists of Tom Smith , Chris Urbanowicz , Russell Leetch and Ed Lay .Editors have so far released two platinum studio...

.

In recent years, McAloon was diagnosed with a progressive medical disorder  that affects his retina

Retina

The vertebrate retina is a light-sensitive tissue lining the inner surface of the eye. The optics of the eye create an image of the visual world on the retina, which serves much the same function as the film in a camera. Light striking the retina initiates a cascade of chemical and electrical...

 and impairs his vision. He has also been diagnosed with Ménière's disease

Ménière's disease

Ménière's disease is a disorder of the inner ear that can affect hearing and balance to a varying degree. It is characterized by episodes of vertigo and tinnitus and progressive hearing loss, usually in one ear. It is named after the French physician Prosper Ménière, who, in an article published...

, an inner ear condition.

McAloon released the spoken word

Spoken word

Spoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....

/instrumental

Instrumental

An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....

 album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

, I Trawl The Megahertz

I Trawl the Megahertz

I Trawl The Megahertz is a 2003 album by English singer-songwriter Paddy McAloon.The debut solo album from McAloon, it marks a notable stylistic change from his work with Prefab Sprout, the act he is best known for...

(UK #167), under his own name in 2003, on the EMI

EMI

The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

 subsidiary, Liberty Records

Liberty Records

Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...

 label

Record label

In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...

. In 2006 Prefab Sprout's Steve McQueen

Steve McQueen (album)

Steve McQueen is the second album by English pop band Prefab Sprout, released in June 1985. It was released in the United States as Two Wheels Good due to a legal conflict with the estate of American actor Steve McQueen...

album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 was re-mastered (by Thomas Dolby

Thomas Dolby

Thomas Dolby is an English musician and producer. Best known for his 1982 hit "She Blinded Me with Science", and 1984 single "Hyperactive!", he has also worked extensively in production and as a session musician.-Early life:Dolby was born in London, England, contrary to information in early 1980s...

) and then released in 2007 as a two CD

Compact Disc

The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

 package. The second CD was a new acoustic

Acoustic music

Acoustic music comprises music that solely or primarily uses instruments which produce sound through entirely acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means...

 version (recorded in 2006) of most of the original album.

On 7 September 2009, Paddy and Prefab Sprout released their latest album, Let's Change the World with Music

Let's Change the World with Music

Let's Change the World with Music is the eighth album from UK band Prefab Sprout. It was released in the UK on 7 September 2009. It is the band's first album of new material since 2001's The Gunman and Other Stories and marks a return to their former label Sony Music. The album reached #39 in the...

. It features the lead single 'Let There Be Music'.

On the 13th February 2011, North East Radio reported that Olivia Newton-John and Curtis Stigers had invited McAloon to join the 'Hetton Thunderer' project. A collaboration between musicians and the Hetton-le-Hole Historical Musical Society to re-invent forgotten musical instruments. Paddy expressed his long term dream of developing a larger version of the 'Lituus' which he believes will be the lowest sounding of all currently used musical instruments.

External links

• [ Paddy McAloon biography] at Allmusic website
  Website
  A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
  
  
• Let There Be Music by Sean Curnyn, First Things