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This
cheapo CD pack of Prefab Sprout's first three albums captures the delicately
furious energy of Paddy McAloon's virgin creative surge. Swoon, featuring Cruel
and Couldn't Bear To Be Special, remains intriguingly wistful, subtle and
loose-limbed of word and melody-qualities sensitively enhanced by a Thomas Dolby
gloss finish on Steve McQueen (When Love Breaks Down, Desire As). Then with
Protest Songs (recorded in '85, though released four years later), the Prefab
Sprout got tougher, almost strutting through Life Of Surprises and Tiffanys. The
three-pack offers plenty for those who want to dig for the details beneath the
gorgeous sound-especially when McAloon's lyrics break through the sort of
personalised codification that would baffle a crossword king to lay out couplets
like Behind the soft and peachy skin / Where DNA or God begin.
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