One of the most acclaimed British pop bands of the '80s and '90s, Prefab Sprout was the creative vehicle of vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Paddy McAloon, who has been regularly hailed as one of the greatest songwriters of his era. McAloon has often been compared favourably to Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney, and even Cole Porter, not just because of his lyrical and instrumental gifts but for the ambitious creative vision of his catalogue. A notorious perfectionist who is also known for his shyness and his struggles with health problems, McAloon's body of work is relatively small (ten albums in three decades), but Prefab Sprout's music is beloved in the U.K., and they have a smaller but passionately loyal audience in the United States.