The Beautiful South is an English group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway both from The Housemartins. Who will be joined by Sean Welch, Dave Stead and Dave Rotheray. Then by Briana Corrigan for the first albums, Jaqui Abbott for the following and Alison Wheeler for the very last.
The name "The Beautiful South" would in fact be a counterpoint to their roots in the north of England.
The group released a first album "Welcom to the beautiful south" a year later in 1989 and for a first album it was successful to say the least. Album with particularly engaged texts which speak in particular of nationalism, domestic violence, hooliganism in football, among others. Not to mention an album cover that is also surprising, to say the least, and above all provocative ...
Album which mainly produces 2 Singles which are "You keep it all in" on the one hand. But also, and above all, the enormous "Song for whoever", a flagship Single which brought the group its first mega hit. A success of such magnitude that it will almost eclipse the enormous success that the two friends will have had previously with the Housemartins.
Almost equal success on the album "Choke" which was released a year later in 1990, an album carried at arm's length by the flagship Single "A little time".
New album "0898 Beautiful South" in 1992, album with less success but from which the biggest success of the group on the other side of the Atlantic will be extracted on the Singles side, namely "We are each other". Followed by "Miaow" in 1994, album which will do even less well than its predecessor and which will save the furniture only with the Single "Everybody's talkin".
The group came back in force in 1996 with the album "Blue is the color", album which will make a real success across the Channel, sell more than a million copies around the world and put the group back on the front of the scene in a shattering way. In particular thanks to 2 Singles which are "Rotterdam (Or anywhere)" and "Don’t marry her".
Back in force which is confirmed 2 years later with the album "Quench", flagship album of the group which will produce in 1998 one of their biggest Single hits with the title "Perfect 10".
A great adventure that will continue for the next decade, but that's another story.
To discover or rediscover...
Discography (among others ...) :
80s Decade :
Song for whoever 1989
You keep it all in 1989
I'll sail this ship alone 1989
90s Decade :
A little time 1990
My book 1990
Let love speak up itself 1991
Old red eyes is back 1992
We are each other 1992
Bell bottomed tear 1992
36D 1992
Good as gold (Stupid as mud) 1994
Everybody’s talkin 1994
Prettiest eyes 1994
Dream a little dream 1995
Pretenders to the throne 1995
Rotterdam 1996
Don’t marry her 1996
Blackbird on the wire 1997
Perfect 10 1998
Dumb 1998
How long's a tear take to dry ? 1999
2000s Decade :
Closer than most 2000
Just a few things that I ain't 2003
Livin' thing 2004
This old skin 2004
This will be our year 2005
Manchester 2006
Tracks :
1989 ... first title and first major global success, an ideal start to say the least. All thanks to this title which literally floats in the air and which will remain as their biggest record success. MAS-TER-FUL !
1989 ... an exceptional year 1989 which saw them link top hit to top hit. The group has become in a single year one of the biggest phenomena of the moment and does not intend to stop there ...
1989 ... a really special style that makes them almost unique. In a musical universe of the end of the 1980s where everything is only electronics and drum machines, the group plays it in a minimalist style and traditional instruments. And it works !
1990 ... still in their particular style, here they land their second biggest success and confirms all the good that one could think of them. A decade of 90 that starts in the best possible way !
1990 ... as much their style pleases and works perfectly on slow tempos, as the time lag is screaming when they are on fast tempos. With the key to a sudden drop in success in the Charts ...
1991 ... a fall of success which is confirmed in the Charts with this title and this despite the fact that the group leaves again in the Intimist, its field of predilection ...
1992 ... and paradoxically, it is on a fast tempo track that they will find their way back to success. All they had to do was change their style a little to stick a little more to the times ...
1992 ... they will have hardly penetrated in the USA and this title will be one of the very few titles to have been able to win there. A style that paradoxically will have spoken little to the rest of the Anglo-Saxon sphere ...
1992 ... another nice ballad of which they have the secret. But ballads are no longer really successful for them in this decade of the 90s when public expectations have changed somewhat ...
1992 ... anyway, the group still believes in it and continues its adventure for whatever reason. Even if the success now is limited exclusively to England ...
1994 ... after an empty year 1993, they are back in a form that we will qualify as average. The group evolves little in its style in the end and begins to seriously lose ground on the competition ...
1994 ... they dare to revisit here one of the biggest titles of the 1960s, namely the cult title of Fred Neil dating from 1968, a title whose most famous version will undoubtedly remain that of Nilsson dating from 1969. Attacking such a monument was risky. The group will do pretty well ...
1994 ... a decade of 90 which will prove to be more complicated to manage than expected. The group started off with a bang but their style has really struggled to find its place ...
1995 ... this time they revisit the title of Ozzie Nelson dating from 1931. A luxury cover that holds up again but which will not bring them more than that ...
1995 ... the group does not manage to catch up with the leading pack despite all its efforts. Without a drastic change of style, the miracle is unlikely to take place ...
1996 ... this title will do a little better than the others but without succeeding in changing the situation. When it doesn't want anymore, it doesn't want anymore ...
1996 ... a year 1996 which still allows them to straighten their heads somewhat. A slight hope is reborn and everything is still possible...or not !
1997 ... a title totally out of time and current standards. A nice title anyway but which will only know a very limited level of success ...
1998 ... we thought that the game was over for them but they will manage to make a big unexpected hit with this title. A big blow which will unfortunately be the last ...
1998 ... the return to earth will be violent with a direct relapse into the Charts. The - little - success will now be limited mainly to England ...
1999 ... the last title of the decade. A decade of 90 which saw the group gradually disappear from the radar despite obvious goodwill. Hard law of the trade ...
2000 ... that doesn't stop them from continuing to believe in it. Well, there is only them and the base fans to still believe it but everyone has the right to dream as they say ...
2003 ... it is clear that it is not with this kind of title that the group risks breaking the house. It's nice but light years away from the public's expectations ...
2004 ... this revisited version of the Electric Light Orchestra title dating from 1976 will allow the group to continue to exist a little bit in the Charts. This is called saving the furniture ...
2004 ... a title which works rather well but which will go almost unnoticed. The group does nothing more than figuration now and nothing, and no one, will be able to change anything ...
2005 ... a mid-decade 2000 which sees them reborn in an unexpected way. But it is already too much to reverse the course of time unfortunately ...
2006 ... the last year of existence. This time, the circle is complete and the group ends up coasting. A great adventure which ends a little more than 15 years after having started and which will have produced several titles of very high caliber. Rather flattering result !
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