Lucky Soul are not just a six-piece pop group from South East London, they … Read Full Bio ↴Lucky Soul are not just a six-piece pop group from South East London, they are a bag of contradictions. Their intricate, insanely addictive pop seems effortless but is painstakingly, meticulously crafted; and even when the second album A Coming of Age seems to speak of sweet, uncomplicated love, you’ll find it to be actually doused in heartache and existential angst. Think of the barbed lyrics of a latter day Brian Wilson run through a magpie-esque pop sensibility taking in Stax, Motown, Edith Piaf, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, The Arcade Fire, Scott Walker...

The first swirls of what would become Lucky Soul took place in Glasgow in the imagination of a sound engineering student called Andrew Laidlaw. Inspired by the classic Sixties soul playing at a tiny night club called Papa Cool, he began sneaking into the studios at night, plotting to take a seemingly lost kind of pop music and update it for the 21st century. When the course finished, he moved to London, recruited a few friends and put out a classified ad for a singer. A heartfelt request for “no divas, no faux-American accents” seemed to have little effect, but alongside 300 Aguilera-clones emerged a honey-haired woman by the name of Ali Howard with a voice perfectly poised between power and vulnerability and a look that seemed tailor-made for Laidlaw’s music.

The first Lucky Soul album followed in April 2007. Released on the band’s own label Ruffa Lane (set up with the financial help and know-how of a couple of close friends) The Great Unwanted was a massive critical and commercial success: greeted with 4 and 5 stars – “an immediate classic”, “pop at its most glorious and heartbreaking” – across the board and sold 50,000 records worldwide, picking up a top 10 hit in Japan along the way.

Laidlaw’s pop vision had been vindicated, but the band had also thrown everything at that first record. Once the touring was done and with no financial safety net to fall back on while the royalties came through, Lucky Soul returned to their normal lives. Not for the first time, Laidlaw found himself stone broke and south of the river. This time he had no choice but to live inside the band’s studio, then in a draught-ridden converted fire station on the gloomier side of Greenwich. He played piano til the early hours and showered in the local swimming pool, and put his heart and soul into creating a second album, going by his own admission a bit crazy along the way.

Turning down an offer from legendary Bowie producer Tony Visconti, the band opted to retain complete creative control. Laidlaw produced the record himself, only turning to outside help for the mixing sessions, handled in New York by Victor Van Vugt (Nick Cave, Sons & Daughters, Kirsty Macoll, PJ Harvey). Howard, Laidlaw and mercurial guitarist Ivor Sims were all that remained from the original lineup. Russell ‘Rusty’ Grooms and kiwi maverick Paul Atkins took the bass and drum briefs, and a new keyboardist was found in the form of Art Terry, a former protégé of Arthur Lee from Love who had initially just turned up to tune Laidlaw’s piano…

Months were spent in the studio, as Laidlaw – a synaesthetic to whom music appears in the form of vivid visuals that look “like an avant-garde Russian cartoon” – heaved his vision into awesome life. The result is a record with the gloves off, as trumpeted in the form of two advance singles Woah Billy! and White Russian Doll. The first album’s shameless love for pure melody remains, but any hint of knowing pastiche has been replaced with big, confident, lean production; it’s a soaring album of modern pop – music for a new decade.

Lips Are Unhappy
Lucky Soul Lyrics

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Shake shake shimmy
You know that you soothe the aches
And the troubles within me
Pretending that everythings cool
When I’m twenty seven shades of blue
And my lips are unhappy without you
My lips are unhappy without you

Honey suckle, you’re missing
But I make the morning dew glisten
By just hoping and wishing
Pretending that I’ve got a clue
When I’m twenty seven shades of blue
And my lips are unhappy without you
My lips are unhappy without you
My lips are unhappy without you

Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shake shimmy shimmy

Shake shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shake shimmy shimmy!
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shake shimmy shimmy!
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shimmy shimmy
Shake shake shimmy without you
My lips are unhappy without you
My lips are unhappy without you

My lips are unhappy without you
My lips are unhappy without you

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Lucky Soul's song "Lips Are Unhappy" refer to the pain and emptiness one feels when they are separated from a loved one. The phrase "shake shake shimmy" is used as a way of expressing that this person makes the singer feel better, helping to soothe their aches and troubles. However, despite trying to pretend that everything is okay, the singer is still deeply affected by the absence of this person. They describe themselves as "twenty seven shades of blue," indicating that they are feeling very sad and down. The line "my lips are unhappy without you" is repeated several times throughout the chorus, emphasizing just how much this person means to the singer.

The second verse highlights the sense of longing that the singer is experiencing. They miss the other person ("honey suckle, you're missing") and are trying to find comfort in things like the morning dew. However, it's clear that this is not enough - the singer feels lost and without direction ("pretending that I've got a clue"). Once again, they repeat the idea that their lips are unhappy without the other person, reinforcing the idea of how much they are missed.

Overall, "Lips Are Unhappy" is a song that expresses the intense pain of separation from someone you love. Despite trying to find ways to cope, the singer can't shake the feeling that something important is missing from their life. The repetition of the phrase "my lips are unhappy without you" underscores the depth of their emotions and the power that this other person holds over them.

Line by Line Meaning

Shake shake shimmy
Take action and try to forget about the pain

You know that you soothe the aches
You have the power to make me feel better

And the troubles within me
You're the only one who can ease my worries

Pretending that everythings cool
Putting on a brave face even when things are tough

When I’m twenty seven shades of blue
When I'm feeling really sad and down

And my lips are unhappy without you
I miss you so much that it's physically affecting me

Honey suckle, you’re missing
I'm feeling your absence

But I make the morning dew glisten
I try to find beauty in the world despite my sadness

By just hoping and wishing
I'm holding onto the hope that things will get better

Pretending that I’ve got a clue
Trying to convince myself that I know what I'm doing

Shake shimmy shimmy
I'm trying to distract myself from my thoughts