Paul Heaton formed The Housemartins in the early 1980s. The Housemartins released a number of singles and two studio albums, London 0 Hull 4 and The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death. Their most famous hit was an a-capella version of the Isley Brothers' Caravan of Love, which was a Christmas number one in the UK.
In 1988, Paul Heaton formed The Beautiful South from the ashes of The Housemartins. The Beautiful South released two top ten singles, Song for Whoever and You Keep It All In, which featured Irish singer Briana Corrigan on vocals. In 1989, the band released an album "Welcome to the Beautiful South" by which time Corrigan had joined the band as a full time member. The band's biggest success to date is the release of the single "A Little Time" in 1991. It reached number 1 on the charts. In 1993 the band released their third album, "0898 Beautiful South".
In 1994, Briana Corrigan left the band and a new female vocalist, Jacqui Abbott, was brought in. During the recording of the band's fourth album "Miaow", Heaton was increasingly irritated with the band and at one time told them to get their act together or he would leave. "Miaow" is some of Heaton's most depressing songwriting (only their fifth studio album, "Blue Is The Colour", is considered sadder). Heaton was going through a break-up with his girlfriend and other problems at the time. After the release of Miaow's third single, "Prettiest Eyes", the record company was worried about the band's sales, so they proposed a greatest hits release to save the band. Heaton hated the idea as he was trying to keep the band as far away from mainstream as possible, but nevertheless, "Carry on up the Charts" was released in December 1994 and it sold overwhelmingly, going platinum and becoming one of the biggest selling albums of all time in the UK.
The band returned to form a number one album, "Blue Is the Colour". Their sixth album, "Quench", also hit the top spot. In 2000, after the release of "Painting It Red", Jacqui Abbott left the band to care for her son. A second compilation album, "Solid Bronze", was released and two more studio albums with a new female vocalist, Alison Wheeler. The first, Gaze, became the first Beautiful South album to fail to reach the top 10, and the band were then dropped by Mercury Records.
The following year (2004), newly signed to Sony, they released the curiously named covers album Goldiggas, Headnodders and Pholk Songs, an eclectic album that featured the Beautiful South's unique take on a wide variety of tracks by the like of ELO, Blue Öyster Cult, John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, S Club 7, and Rufus Wainwright. Again, despite considerable publicity and promotional TV appearances, the album failed to make the top 10.
2006 saw the release of yet another album of new material, "Superbi." Reviews were generally positive. "Superbi" has more of an alt-country sound (plenty of slide guitar, for example) than previous Beautiful South releases. The album maintains the band's trademark eccentricity, however, featuring a dobro on one song.
On the ITV documentary music series Faith & Music screened 29th October 2006, Paul talks openly and honestly about his atheism and his battle with alcoholism.
Heaton is the father of two daughters, although he has never married.
www.paulheatonmusic.co.uk
I Do
Paul Heaton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Before we'd even met
I took those pin-ups to my heart
Cause I hadn't found you yet
In back of cab in the streets of Rome
I drunkly called a name
On 13th floor in Paris hotel
In bus shelter and phone box
Whilst piss the piss ran round my feet
I caught wrong bus, rang wrong number
Cause my life was incomplete
So in case you think it wrong to ask
In case I don't ask you
In case it may just cross your mind
In case it don't, I do
In case you think it's up to me
In case I need a clue
In case you want that bended knee
In case you don't, I do
In pick-up truck on dusty road
The wheel your only friend
What kept that big wheel turning
Was the thought of you at end
On desert highway hitch-hiking
Thumbing from A to B
I knew not where I headed
Before my map to thee
At foot of the Alps in Switzerland
I yodelled through the rain
And it sort of kept me going
To think you'd probably do the same
So in case you think it wrong to ask
In case I don't ask you
In case it may just cross your mind
In case it don't, I do
In case you think it's up to me
In case I need a clue
In case you want that bended knee
In case you don't, I do
Now again we're miles apart
We talk but do not touch
Water, food and alcohol
I miss them half as much
Cause halfway up that mountain pass
No compass or no guide
Still don't stand me steady for
When you I'm not beside
So if you need a shelter
I guess I'll need one too
If you want the same address
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
I do, I do,
Even if you don't, I do
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do
The lyrics of Paul Heaton's song "I Do" describe the singer's journey through life and his constant search for love. Before he met the person he is singing to, he found comfort in pin-up girls, and he reminisces about his past travels around Europe, all the while thinking of this person. He recalls being drunk in Rome, looking out the window of a Paris hotel, catching the wrong bus or dialing the wrong number to talk to them. But despite all of these barriers, the singer is confident in his feelings towards this person and vows to love them, even if they don't feel the same way.
Through these lyrics, Heaton emotionally describes the lengths that he's gone to in his search for love, even though he hasn't always gone in the right direction or made the correct decisions. Ultimately, he wants his message to be clear - he loves this person, and he will always love them, regardless of whether it's reciprocated or not.
Overall, the song conveys the message of the resilience of love, despite obstacles and hardships. The singer's extravagant journey to find love also illustrates how the hardships of the journey made him a better partner when he finally found love.
Line by Line Meaning
In the 60s and the 70s
Before we'd even met
I took those pin-ups to my heart
Cause I hadn't found you yet
Before meeting you, I cherished the pin-up girls of the 60s and 70s because they were my only source of love and affection.
In back of cab in the streets of Rome
I drunkly called a name
On 13th floor in Paris hotel
I looked north west in vain
I was so desperate to find you that I cried out your name in a cab in Rome and searched aimlessly on the 13th floor of a Paris hotel.
In bus shelter and phone box
Whilst piss the piss ran round my feet
I caught wrong bus, rang wrong number
Cause my life was incomplete
Feeling unfulfilled without you, I made desperate attempts to connect with you - even dialing the wrong number in a phone booth with urine at my feet.
So in case you think it wrong to ask
In case I don't ask you
In case it may just cross your mind
In case it don't, I do
In case you think it's up to me
In case I need a clue
In case you want that bended knee
In case you don't, I do
I don't want to assume you'll say yes, but I want to be clear that I am ready to commit to you and propose to you if you're willing to marry me.
In pick-up truck on dusty road
The wheel your only friend
What kept that big wheel turning
Was the thought of you at end
On a lonesome journey, the thought of seeing you sustained me and kept me moving toward our eventual reunion.
On desert highway hitch-hiking
Thumbing from A to B
I knew not where I headed
Before my map to thee
With you as my end goal, I didn't care about the final destination on a long journey through the desert, because reaching you was all that mattered.
At foot of the Alps in Switzerland
I yodelled through the rain
And it sort of kept me going
To think you'd probably do the same
During a low moment in the Alps, I imagined you doing the same thing and this thought gave me the motivation I needed to carry on through the rain.
Now again we're miles apart
We talk but do not touch
Water, food and alcohol
I miss them half as much
Cause halfway up that mountain pass
No compass or no guide
Still don't stand me steady for
When you I'm not beside
Even when we're apart and just talking, the absence of basic necessities like water, food and alcohol are less of a concern than not having you by my side to steady me through the rough parts of life.
So if you need a shelter
I guess I'll need one too
If you want the same address
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
Even if you don't, I do
I do, I do,
Even if you don't, I do
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do
I want to be with you no matter what and will always be willing to share a home with you, even if you're not willing to commit in the same way.
Writer(s): Tony Ray Haynes, Troy Taylor, A. Clifton, Naija Mcdowell, Tremaine Neverson, Ezekiel Lewis, E. Hudson Copyright: Downtown Music Publishing LLC, Haynestorm Music, Les Etoiles De La Musique
Contributed by Aubrey M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.