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The Prefab Sprout Project

Writing and recording original songs that pay great homage to the music of Paddy McAloon and Prefab Sprout! Written by Sprout fans!

The Prefab Sprout Project

Writing and recording original songs that pay great homage to the music of Paddy McAloon and Prefab Sprout! Written by Sprout fans!

1 Campaign |

Tacoma, United States

$2,965 USD 41 backers

141% of $2,100 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal

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FAQ

Updates 4

Comments 11

What is The Prefab Sprout Project?

A global event that has brought together song writers and musicians from around the world to write and record music that pays great homage to the brilliance of Paddy McAloon and the band Prefab Sprout.

And So The Story Goes ...

From the moment I first heard the Sprout song "Lions in My Own Garden: Exit Someone", I new I was listening to something very, very special. That was back in my teen years when music was shaping my world in a very powerful and magical way. Since that time The Sprouts have released allot more music, and for me.. they have provided the proof that Paddy McAloon is a genius, a master of words and music, music that he has fused and stretched in complex ways that only The Beatles, Brian Wilson or George Gershwin have been able to do before him.

Think Tank

And now that the band has matured and moved on with life, I started thinking about all that great music they left behind for future generations and how cool it might be to honor or pay homage to them - in a way that makes sense to me. So, I decided to try and unite sprout fans from all over the globe to team up for one massive recording project. A project where any writer/musician or sprout fan could submit words or music for others to build on, like a giant "think tank" or workshop, if you will. Now multiply that by 10! And with many writers submitting material to a single editor, who would then take those ideas and build them up from scratch in a professional recording environment, and try to re-create that lush Prefab Sprout sound with the help of some very Sprout sounding music and vocals. And so, that is how The Prefab Sprout Project came about.

The idea was hatched and the website was created just over a year ago (www.theprefabsproutproject.com) and sprout fans everywhere heard the call! A great deal of demos, songs, lyrics and ideas were submitted via the site and once we locked down the songs needed, the next logical step was the fundraiser.

Not A Tribute Album

Since this isn't really a tribute album in the usual sense, and we are not covering any sprout songs for the album, we are treating all of this original music and production to a more controlled environment. We want these songs to sound as if they were written by the same band, so that even though a dozen writers might be involved, the songs feel like they all belong together on the same album. So, in keeping with the 'sprout sound' there will be two voices heard on all songs throughout. Scott McPherson (hey, that's me!) will sing lead male vocal and the ridiculously talented Andrea Perry will sing lead female vocal, sticking true to the style of Paddy and Wendy, who were in fact the voices for Prefab Sprout.

Scott McPherson & Andrea Perry

The Song Writers and The Songs

This project has introduced me to so many talented song writers and musicians from around the world, and it has also created many new friendships and writing partners, which I hadn't really factored into the equation while I was dreaming this project up. I feel very honored to be a part of such a large collective of talent and I look forward to recording these songs with them.

One new friend who has emerged from the writers pool has very special ties to Prefab Sprout. A spirited writer by the name of Roy McCalvey, who has contributed the song "Coming Home" to the project. His song is very special in that he wrote it with his then guitar playing band-mate, Paddy McAloon, as both men were in the same band together -called "Avalon". Avalon was pre-Prefab Sprout - by a few years, but it was the band by which Paddy 'cut his teeth' or learned the ropes of being in a band. Roy shared with me many rehearsal and gig recordings of the band performing, but one day he mentioned this song called "Coming Home", and told me that it was an unfinished piece of music that Paddy had been noodling with at rehearsal. Roy had asked Paddy what he was playing and Paddy told him it was just something he was tinkering with, but decided not to pursue. Well, Roy quite liked it and asked Paddy if he could have a go at it, to which Paddy replied "It's yours". Roy did indeed run with it and Avalon performed it live a few times, with Paddy on guitar! Fast forward to 2012, Roy and I are discussing the song - when he suggests that I should write some more verses for the tune, tiddy it up bit and record it for the project. That was a special moment for me, and I can't wait to record that song properly with all the sprout like trimmings! All Hail McCalvey!

The Musicians

After the drums are recorded, the instruments performed on the songs will be farmed out to various song contributors and invited musicians who have the means to record those parts professionally. Scott will handle a great deal of the guitar parts as well as some keyboard, piano and production.

Why We Need The Funding

We will perform and record these songs from the ground up to the best of our ability, but of course the framework for a song starts with the drums. And here is where the roller coaster ride begins! We have the opportunity to hire the great Neil Conti to play drums on all songs to be recorded. Neil Conti was the actual drummer for Prefab Sprout! He has his own recording studio in France, and a price has been negotiated with his assistant. This is the first major reason for this fundraiser, and it's a big one! It's the kind of reason that will give every person involved a very special connection to the Prefab Sprout spirit.

We have set our goal at a reasonable amount so that we can at least afford Mr. Conti on drums. But, if we can raise a bit more we might be able to hire the artist Landraagon, AKA "East Orange", who was responsible for the "Swoon" album cover .... which was Prefab Sprouts debut album. And if we raise even more funds, well...then we can press some CD's and posters of the cover art. Worst case scenario, we miss our goal but make enough to hire a fine Nashville drummer, and the project moves ahead.

Sprout drummer: Neil Conti (photo courtesy of Alison McKelvie)