Paul David Heaton (born 9 May 1962) is an English singer-songwriter. He was the lead singer and main lyricist of the Housemartins, who had commercial success in the UK and other European countries between 1985 and 1988, releasing several singles including "Happy Hour" and the UK number-one single "Caravan of Love" in 1986, before the band disbanded. Heaton then formed the Beautiful South with the Housemartins' drummer, Dave Hemingway, and the band's debut single, "Song for Whoever", and debut album, Welcome to the Beautiful South, were released in 1989 to commercial success. They had a series of hits throughout the 1990s, including the number-one single "A Little Time". They disbanded in 2007.
The British newspaper The Guardian described Heaton as "one of our finest songwriters: his music reveals an exuberant ear for melody, his lyrics a keen eye and a brilliant wit".[1]AllMusic said: "The warm, mellifluous voice of Paul Heaton often masks the jagged satirical content of his lyrics."[2]
Early life
Paul David Heaton was born in Bromborough, Cheshire, on 9 May 1962 to parents Doris and Horace Heaton.[3] Heaton has two older brothers Mark Heaton and Adrian Heaton. At the age of four his family relocated to Sheffield.[4] While living in Sheffield, Heaton became interested in football, and while his elder brothers elected to watch Sheffield Wednesday, Heaton chose to support Sheffield United. After moving to Sheffield, Heaton's father took a job in management and Heaton described his childhood as being "fairly middle class, although you wouldn't know it given the schools I went to and the friends I had".[5]
After a childhood in Sheffield, Heaton moved to Chipstead, Surrey during his adolescent years, an early life Heaton described as "bred in Sheffield, fed in Surrey".[4] Whilst in Surrey he, with his brother Adrian, formed their first band "Tools Down" with friends John Box and Stuart Mair. At sixth form, he met Norman Cook and Chris Lang and formed a band called the Stomping Pond Frogs, but this band broke up when Cook and others went to university.[6][7][8] Heaton did not go to university, but held a number of office jobs, which would influence his later songwriting.[7]
After leaving Surrey, Heaton spent time hitch-hiking around Europe before moving to Hull in 1983, where he formed the Housemartins. Heaton also lived in Leeds for a year.[9]
Throughout his childhood, Heaton's main interest was football, and he regularly attends Sheffield United games.[10] Heaton played over 700 competitive games at junior and amateur level, often insisting on driving back from gigs on a Friday or Saturday night to attend his Saturday and Sunday matches.[11][12]
The Housemartins' lyrics were a mixture of Marxist politics and Christianity (the inner sleeve of London 0 Hull 4 contained the mantra "Take Jesus – Take Marx – Take Hope").[14][15]
In 1988, Heaton formed the Beautiful South. The initial lineup consisted of Heaton, Dave Rotheray on lead guitar, former Housemartins roadie Sean Welch on bass, David Stead on drums and Housemartins former drummer Dave Hemingway, now in the role of joint lead singer and frontman. The writing partnership of Heaton and Rotheray proved very successful. The Beautiful South released two top ten singles, "Song for Whoever" and "You Keep It All In"; the latter featured Irish singer Briana Corrigan on vocals. In 1989, the band released an album, Welcome to the Beautiful South. The band's biggest success to date is the single "A Little Time", released in 1990; it reached number 1 on the UK chart.
The band went on to release eight more albums, including two (1996's Blue Is the Colour and 1998's Quench) that reached the number 1 on the UK Albums Chart, as well as releasing the best-of compilation Carry on up the Charts, which also reached number 1 and achieved platinum status, before the band split up.
After a band meeting on 30 January 2007, they decided to split. They released a statement on 31 January, in which their reasons for splitting were "musical similarities".[16] On an interview with BBC Breakfast in July 2008, Heaton clarified this by saying that the Beautiful South had made similar-sounding albums for the past ten years.
Solo albums
In 2001, Heaton released a solo album using the persona of Biscuit Boy (a.k.a. Crackerman). This double name, including the parenthetical a.k.a., was the official project name on all early releases.
The solo album, called Fat Chance, was not a commercial success, peaking at number 95 for one week on the UK albums chart. Also, "Mitch", the lone single credited to Biscuit Boy (a.k.a. Crackerman), reached only number 75 in the UK Singles Chart.
In an attempt to relaunch the album, Mercury Records re-issued Fat Chance in 2002. The album featured new artwork, and was now credited to Paul Heaton. However, this record charted even lower in the album chart, hitting number 168. "The Perfect Couple", a single pulled from this re-release also did poorly, peaking at number 102 in the UK. Heaton subsequently rejoined the Beautiful South from 2002 to 2007.
With the 2007 dissolution of the Beautiful South, Heaton formed a new band, The Sound of Paul Heaton.
Heaton's second solo album, The Cross-Eyed Rambler, was released on 7 July 2008, preceded by the single "Mermaids and Slaves" on 30 June, and he toured in support of it throughout July. The album charted at number 43.
Heaton released his third solo album, Acid Country, in September 2010.[17]
The 8th
In 2011, the Manchester International Festival endorsed the writing by Heaton of an anthology of songs based on the 7 deadly sins, to be called The 8th. The song was broken down into a section for each sin, which was to be performed by a different artist. The singers for the original piece were: Wayne Gidden, Aaron Wright, King Creosote, Simon Aldred, Cherry Ghost, Jacqui Abbott, Yvonne Shelton and Mike Greaves. The individual sections were incorporated with a narration written by Che Walker[17] and performed by Reg E. Cathey.[18]
The 8th debuted in July 2011 at the Festival Pavilion Theatre in Manchester's Albert Square. Six further performances took place in the summer of 2012.[19] Accompanying Heaton on the 2012 tour were Gareth Paisey of Los Campesinos!, Cherry Ghost, Wayne Gidden, Christian Madden of The Earlies, Yvonne Shelton, Mike Greaves, Aaron Wright, Simon Aldred, and Steve Menzies.[20]
Along with the live shows in July 2012, a recording of The 8th was released on a CD/DVD format, including tracks by Simon Aldred of Cherry Ghost, Aaron Wright, Mike Greaves, Yvonne Shelton, Jacqui Abbott and Heaton himself.
Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott performing live in Warrington England in June 2017
Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott
Heaton reunited with former Beautiful South vocalist Jacqui Abbott in 2013 to record new material. What Have We Become? was released on 19 May 2014. The album reached number 3 in the UK Albums Chart. The album contained 12 new songs (the deluxe version an additional four new songs). The majority of the songs were written by Heaton and his current songwriting partner Jonny Lexus, with "D.I.Y", "When it Was Ours" and "You're Gonna Miss Me" written by Heaton only.
On working with Abbott again, Heaton said: "Working with Jacqui again was like going into your garage and discovering a beautiful, covered up Rolls-Royce that hadn't been started in years. Jacqui is one of the best singers I've worked with and is also part of my past. It was only a matter of time before I asked her."[21]
On 11 November 2014, BBC Radio 2 broadcast a world premiere of "Real Hope", featuring the Grimethorpe Colliery Band, from the deluxe edition of What Have We Become?.
Heaton and Abbott's next two albums together, Wisdom, Laughter and Lines[22] (2015) and Crooked Calypso (2017), both reached the UK top 10, and their fourth, Manchester Calling (2020), became their first UK Number 1 album for over twenty years. They followed this up with a further UK Number 1 album, N.K-Pop in 2022 and a UK & Ireland arena tour, which included a night at the London O2 Arena. During the tour in December 2022, Abbott took ill which forced Heaton to continue the tour solo, before adding guest singers for the Ireland shows in early 2023 and his subsequent summer festival appearances.
Heaton performed at Glastonbury on 28th June 2024 with backing singer Rianne Downey.[23] Earlier in June, it was announced that a new album, "The Mighty Several", produced by Ian Broudie, will be released on Friday 11 October 2024.
The Last King of Pop
On 16 November 2018, a career-spanning collection of Heaton's music titled The Last King Of Pop was released on the Virgin EMI label. It featured 23 of the songs written by Heaton throughout his career in the Housemartins, The Beautiful South, his solo years, and his collaboration with Jacqui Abbott.
The track listing included the Housemartins' 1985 debut single "Flag Day", The Beautiful South's "Don't Marry Her", "Rotterdam" and "Perfect 10" through to 2017's Heaton & Abbott single "I Gotta Praise" + a 2018 re-record by Paul and Jacqui of the Beautiful South song "A Little Time", and a brand new song, entitled "7' Singles".
The album reached Number 10 in the UK Charts and was certified Gold on 11 January 2019.[24]
Following the success of the shows, it was announced that Heaton and Abbott would perform The Last King Of Pop at an outdoor headline show at Stockport County's Edgeley Park on 21 June 2019. All 15,000 tickets sold out and a second night was announced to take place on 20 June 2019. Richard Hawley was announced as special guest at both shows.
A television documentary covering Paul Heaton's life and career was broadcast on Wednesday 12 December 2018 on Channel 4. The documentary included archived material and interviews with many key figures from throughout Heaton's life.
Personal life
Heaton lives in Manchester with his wife and three children.[citation needed]
Heaton has on occasion referred to the Beautiful South as having a heavy-drinking culture. Many songs by the Beautiful South, such as "Woman in the Wall", "Liars' Bar", "I May Be Ugly", "The Slide", "Look What I Found in My Beer" and "Old Red Eyes Is Back", have referred to alcoholism or drink-fuelled violence.[25]
In December 2011, Heaton purchased the lease of The King's Arms public house in Bloom Street, Salford, Greater Manchester.[26] He sold the pub in December 2015.
He is a keen collector and has a diverse range of collections including football memorabilia, crisp packets, beer mats, postcards and comics.[27]
Other appearances
During the 1990s, Heaton regularly appeared on Football Italia, Channel 4's coverage of Italian Serie A football as a pre-match guest and was frequently introduced by host James Richardson as an 'Italian football expert'.
Heaton appeared on BBC One talking head programme Why We Love the Royle Family, along with Noel Gallagher, in his capacity as a fan of the television sitcom The Royle Family.
In May 2012, Heaton set off on his 50:50 cycle tour of British and Irish pubs, promoting his latest album, British pubs, and cycling.[28] He covered 2,500 miles (4,000km) – 50 miles (80km) for each year of his life.[29]
In 2022, unable to do another cycling tour, he sent money to 60 pubs across the UK and Ireland to enable them to give free pints to celebrate his 60th birthday.[30]
In February 2023, Heaton and his crisp packet collection appeared on the Channel 4 documentary Grayson Perry's Full English, with Heaton donating a display of Murphy’s Crisps[31] flavours to Perry's exhibition of Englishness.[32]
Norman Quentin Cook, better known as Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist for the Hull-based indie rock band the Housemartins, who achieved a UK number-one single with their a cappella cover of "Caravan of Love". After the Housemartins split up, Cook formed the electronic band Beats International in Brighton, who produced the number-one single "Dub Be Good to Me". He then played in Freak Power, Pizzaman, and the Mighty Dub Katz with moderate success.
The Beautiful South were an English pop rock group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Hull group the Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members throughout the band's existence were former Housemartins roadie Sean Welch (bass), Dave Stead (drums), and Dave Rotheray (guitar). The band's original material was written by Heaton and Rotheray.
The Housemartins were an English indie rock group formed in Hull who were active in the 1980s and charted three top-ten albums and six top-twenty singles in the UK. Many of their lyrics conveyed a mixture of socialist politics and Christianity, reflecting the beliefs of the band. The group's a cappella cover version of "Caravan of Love" was a UK number one single in December 1986.
David Robert Hemingway is an English musician and songwriter, best known as a vocalist for the Hull based band The Beautiful South until they disbanded in 2007. Previously he had been a member of The Housemartins.
0898 Beautiful South, also referred to as 0898, is the third studio album by English band the Beautiful South. After the success of their previous work over 1989–1991, the band hired prolific record producer Jon Kelly and recorded the album at AIR Studios in London. The album contains a more "muscular" yet sometimes more sombre sound than their previous albums, although still entirely retains lyricist Paul Heaton's witty and bitter lyrical style. The album "deals in fragile melodies and harmonies, soulful but low-key instrumentation, and lyrics full of subtle social commentary and humour." The album title refers to the 0898 premium rate dialling code associated with sex hotlines in the UK at the time.
Miaow is the fourth album by English pop rock group the Beautiful South. It was released in 1994 via GO! Discs. As with most Beautiful South albums, the songs were written by Dave Rotheray and Paul Heaton. The cover originally depicted numerous dogs seated in a music hall with a gramophone on the stage. However, HMV made the band withdraw it as it mocked their trademark dog, and the band put out a second cover depicting four dogs in a boat. Both paintings were created by Michael Sowa.
Carry On Up the Charts: The Best of the Beautiful South is an album by English Alternative rock band The Beautiful South. It is the group's fifth album and their first greatest hits collection. It was a major commercial success, reaching number one in the UK Albums Chart and going on to become the second biggest selling album of 1994.
Painting It Red is the seventh album by the Beautiful South, released in 2000. A concept album about impending middle age, Painting it Red is among the band's longest. A two-disc UK bonus version contains 20 tracks. The American release on Ark21 has only 17 tracks.
Solid Bronze: Great Hits is The Beautiful South's ninth album and second greatest hits compilation. It was released in November 2001 and contains 19 tracks. The album contains two songs that were released between Carry on up the Charts and Blue Is the Colour, and never made it onto any album.
David Rotheray is an English rock and pop musician, best known for being the lead guitarist for The Beautiful South.
"How Long's a Tear Take to Dry?" is a single by British pop rock group the Beautiful South from their sixth album, Quench (1998). It was written by Paul Heaton and Dave Rotheray. The lyrics, which take the form of a conversation between two reconciling lovers, are noted for a reference to the TARDIS from Doctor Who. According to the book Last Orders at the Liars Bar: the Official Story of the Beautiful South, "How Long's a Tear Take to Dry?" was originally to be called "She Bangs the Buns" due to its chord structure reminiscent of Manchester's the Stone Roses. The song reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the band's 12th and final top-20 hit.
Jacqueline Abbott is an English singer who was a vocalist with The Beautiful South from 1994 to 2000, following the departure of Briana Corrigan.
Alison Wheeler is a British singer, best known as the female vocalist for The Beautiful South from 2003 until they disbanded in 2007.
"Rotterdam (Or Anywhere)" is a song by English pop rock music group the Beautiful South, taken from their fifth studio album, Blue Is the Colour (1996). It was written by Paul Heaton and Dave Rotheray, was produced by Jon Kelly, and features Jacqui Abbott on lead vocals. Released in September 1996 by Go! Discs, the song reached number five on the UK Singles Chart and stayed in the UK top 40 for nine weeks.
Courteeners are an English band formed in Middleton, Greater Manchester, in 2006 by Liam Fray, Michael Campbell, Daniel "Conan" Moores and Mark Cuppello (bass); the last was replaced by the band's producer Joe Cross in 2015. They previously toured with pianist Adam Payne, who has been featured on every album, but in 2019 was replaced with Elina Lin. In December 2012, the band dropped "The" from their name, continuing simply as "Courteeners". In 2024, Cross and Lin became official members of the band.
Soup is an album released in November 2007 by The Housemartins and The Beautiful South on Mercury Records. It is in effect a greatest hits album for both of the bands, the first seven tracks bracketed together as "The Housemartins Condensed" and the remaining fifteen as "The Cream of The Beautiful South". All twenty-two songs were released as singles by the bands, and the track listing runs in chronological order by year of song release from 1985's "Flag Day" to 2003's "Just A Few Things That I Ain't". An associated DVD of the bands' music videos was also released.
John Owen Williams is an English A&R executive, record producer, photographer, manager, recording artist, and songwriter. In a career that has spanned over 35 years at major record labels, he has guided, A&R'd, mentored, and produced many artist careers including The Housemartins and The Proclaimers, as well as producing and signing Alison Moyet, Simple Minds, The Waterboys, Robert Plant, The Blue Nile, Status Quo, Cathy Dennis, Petula Clark, Ocean Colour Scene, J. J. Cale, Blancmange, Shriekback, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Jethro Tull, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Debbie Harry and Luciana.
What Have We Become? is a studio album by the former The Beautiful South collaborators Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, which was released on 19 May 2014 through Virgin EMI Records.
Manchester Calling is the fourth studio album by Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, both formerly members of the Beautiful South. The album was released on 6 March 2020 by Virgin EMI.
N.K-Pop is the fifth studio album by Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, both formerly members of the Beautiful South. The album was released on 7 October 2022 by EMI Records, and preceded by the release of the lead single "Still". The album debuted atop the UK Albums Chart.
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