Who is the best singer in The Beautiful South? Is it an impossible question?

The 80s/90s band The Beautiful South were a fixture of my upbringing in, ironically, the south of England (Dorset); however, it's obvious that the band's name was not selected in honour of people from that region but rather in critique of the stereotypical 'soft southerner', which band member (originator, lyricist, vocalist) Paul Heaton himself had to move to - from Surrey to Hull - as a teenager.

Lyrically, The Beautiful South combine the sardonic tone of Morrissey with the dry humour of poet Philip Larkin (perhaps the more positive comparison of the two). Musically, they have spent over forty years composing - thanks to musician Dave Rotheray amongst others - deeply catchy ear-worm tunes which stand the test of time, at least in the most part.

In this week's episode, it's essentially an opportunity to wax lyrical about what a great band this is (and what a genius Paul Heaton is, to boot). With a numerous array of vocalists with a varied range of tones and styles (Briana Corrigan; Jacqui Abbot; Heaton himself; Dave Hemingway; later, Alison Wheeler) their wide-ranging history does them credit in terms of the song-writing itself, clearly a key inspiration for post-folk such as Belle and Sebastian (and perfects someone like Neil Hannon from The Divine Comedy, although I think he's nearer to a contemporary). In spite or perhaps as well as the succinct and wry comedy of the lyrics, however, their songs are enormously pleasurable to listen to and certainly catchy, even a little uncomfortable or thought-provoking on occasions.

This podcast is a loose attempt to compare the range of vocal styles, but it was a challenging subject; after all, there are an enormous number of variables involved due to the large back catalogue of the band and the rotating carousel of guest vocalists.

If this week has shown me one thing, it's that learning to be a podcaster is rife with issues (mainly to do with struggling to find the time to commit to getting things correct). Nobody's perfect, but I've annoyed myself this week by muddling up the three different Daves in the band and unfortunately mis-naming Hemingway as Rotheray. Apologies for the mistake to those involved; I've mostly edited it out on this shortened version.

With that in mind, I'm taking an indefinite hiatus so that I can use my time properly: by writing and recording music and giving proper time to my more challenging (but ultimately more rewarding) projects. Like last year, I'm hoping to release two albums in 2025, and to do as much as possible of it independently. Watch this space for news!

You can also find the full #podcast on #spotify as always, and in the meantime, please can I suggest you support me as an artist and my indie music making - on a shoestring - by visiting my website to find out how:

https://lizarcanesongwriter.com/how-y...

#lizarcane #podcaster #musicpodcast #thebeautifulsouth #versusverses #paulheaton #brianacorrigan #jacquiabbot