In The Beautiful South, Heaton shared the lead singer's role with Hemingway and female singer Briana Corrigan to create a trio of lead vocalists. This set-up helped to characterise the bittersweet kitchen sink dramas played out in Heaton's often-barbed songs.
The band's music might sound like bubbly, catchy, lightweight pop but Heaton's sour, savage and amusing worldview on everything and anything (alcoholism, religion, sex, politics and, mostly, the down side of relationships) is always lurking beneath the surface of the quirky melodies. The tastes and smells of the local pub are never far away either, with the band gaining a reputation for boozing. The band's first album was Welcome to the Beautiful South (1989) and spawned the hits Song For Whoever and You Keep It All In. The release of 1990's Choke album saw the band claim its only Number 1 hit to date, A Little Time. 0898 followed in 1992, with hits including Old Red Eyes Is Back.
In 1994, after Corrigan quit the band when she saw Paul's lyrics for the forthcoming album Miaow, St Helens supermarket shelf-stacker, Jacqui Abbott, was brought on board to fill in. Heaton had heard her sing at an after show party in St Helens and remembered her vocal talents.
Jacqui's first album with the band was Miaow in 1994. Hits included Good as Gold (Stupid as Mud) and a cover of Fred Neil's Everybody's Talking, previously popularised by Harry Nilsson. The end of that year saw the release of Carry on up the Charts, a "best of" compilation consisting of the singles to date plus new track One Last Love Song. The album was massively successful and it is said that 1 in 7 homes in the UK owns a copy.
Blue Is the Colour (1996), Quench (1998) and Painting It Red (2000) followed with varying success. Jacqui also quit the band in 2000. After a second Greatest Hits album Solid Bronze in 2001, they recorded Gaze in 2003 with yet another female vocalist, Alison 'Lady' Wheeler. Wheeler was still in place for 2004's Golddiggas, Headnodders and Pholk Songs, an album of unusually arranged cover versions including Livin' Thing, You're The One That I Want, Don't Fear The Reaper and I'm Stone In Love With You. In 2006 the band released their tenth studio album, Superbi.
The band broke up in January 2007, releasing the statement: "The Beautiful South have split up due to musical similarities. The band would like to thank everyone for their 19 wonderful years in music."
Former members of the group have since played Beautiful South songs together as 'New Beautiful South' and more recently 'The South'.
In 2007, Mercury Records released Soup: The Best of The Housemartins and The Beautiful South, a compilation album containing 7 hit singles by The Housemartins ("The Housemartins Condensed") and 15 tracks The Beautiful South ("Cream of The Beautiful South").
Here It Is Again
The Beautiful South Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Turning young and happy into old and sad
Here it is again just passed by chance
All the way to the lawyer from a sloppy dance
It was another holiday argument
But she threw him into the sea
A glass bottomed boat pulled him up
His face was rotting in weed
If it never happens well it happened to me
Do you know who you love
Does anybody here have a clue
Just who they're with
And it was glance by glance
And it was blow by blow
Did they know
Just who they loved
Here it is again in the same disguise
Clean shoes, smart tie and deep blue eyes
Here it is again and it makes you sick
Watch the blind man walk along without a stick
Heads he was a beautiful lover
Tails he was definitely bad
Heads you're like no other
Tails just the best he'd had
You're the best he's had
You're the best so far
All the way to the church from the back of a car
Do you know who you love
Does anybody here have a clue
Just who they're with
And it was glance by glance
And it was blow by blow
Did they know
Just who they loved
Just who they loved
Just who they loved
Just who they loved
Just who they loved
The Beautiful South’s “Here It Is Again” is a song about the unpredictability and fickle nature of love, which can happen unexpectedly and disappear just as quickly. The song talks about the cyclical nature of love and how it can transform someone's youthful exuberance into regretful old age. The opening verse sets the tone of the song, declaring that love can be both maddening and transformative, as it can turn someone from young and happy to old and sad.
The song then references a holiday argument and the physical altercation that ensued. The lyrics hint that the argument was about something trivial, but the consequences were dire, as the woman throws the man into the sea. A glass bottomed boat then pulls him up, and his face is “rotting in weed.” This line implies that the man drowned and his body is now decaying underwater. The song makes the observation that love, like the drowning man, can consume and ultimately wreck us, leaving a rotting mess in its aftermath.
The song then shifts its focus to the blind man who can walk unassisted. This line symbolizes that sometimes, people’s outward appearance can deceive us. Those who seem weaker and needier may be more resilient than those who seem strong on the outside. The song then ends with the repetition of the words "just who they loved," suggesting that we never truly know who we are with and what they are capable of.
Line by Line Meaning
Here it is again it's so so mad
The situation is occurring once again and it is causing extreme feelings of anger and frustration.
Turning young and happy into old and sad
This situation is causing a complete reversal of emotions for those involved, taking them from a state of youthful happiness to one of old and deep sadness.
Here it is again just passed by chance
This situation has arisen by pure luck and coincidence, without any planning or forethought.
All the way to the lawyer from a sloppy dance
The situation has escalated to the point where legal intervention is necessary, even though it all started with a casual and carefree dance.
It was another holiday argument
This is a recurring argument that happens during holidays or special occasions.
But she threw him into the sea
During the argument, she threw him into the ocean.
A glass bottomed boat pulled him up
He was rescued by a boat with a glass bottom that allowed him to see the weeds and other debris he was tangled in.
His face was rotting in weed
He was caught in the weeds for so long that they began to rot his face.
It was rotting in weed, I've seen those people bleed
Seeing his face rotting was not a shocking sight, as it is something that happens often in people who get tangled in weed for too long.
If it never happens well it happened to me
Some people may never experience a situation like this, but unfortunately, the singer has.
Do you know who you love
The singer is asking if people truly know the person they love, and if they are truly compatible.
Does anybody here have a clue
The singer is questioning if anybody in the room truly knows who they are with and if they are with the right person.
Just who they're with
The singer is questioning if people truly understand the depth of their partner's personality and character.
And it was glance by glance
Their relationship was built slowly and gradually, with each glance adding to their attraction towards each other.
And it was blow by blow
Their relationship was formed through a series of events, much like a fight, with each event leading to the next.
Did they know
The singer is asking if they knew or truly understood the series of events that led to their current relationship.
Just who they loved
The singer is questioning if people truly knew who they were in love with.
Here it is again in the same disguise
The situation has once again presented itself, but in a similar form to the first instance.
Clean shoes, smart tie and deep blue eyes
The person causing the situation is dressed nicely, with clean shoes, a smart tie, and striking blue eyes.
Here it is again and it makes you sick
The situation is so frustrating and irritating that it literally makes the person feel sick.
Watch the blind man walk along without a stick
Even though he is blind, the man is able to walk confidently without the help of a stick or other aid.
Heads he was a beautiful lover
When looking at him in a positive light, he was a wonderful and attractive partner.
Tails he was definitely bad
When looking at him in a negative light, he was not a good partner and had many negative traits.
Heads you're like no other
When looking at the positive aspects of the relationship, the person is unique and unlike any other partner the singer has had.
Tails just the best he'd had
When looking at the negative aspects of the relationship, the person was still the best partner the singer has had.
You're the best he's had
The person the singer is addressing is the best partner they have ever had.
You're the best so far
The singer recognizes that there may be others in the future, but for now, the person is the best partner to date.
All the way to the church from the back of a car
Their relationship has developed to the point of getting married, starting in the back of a car and culminating in a wedding ceremony.
Just who they loved
The singer reiterates the question if people truly knew who they were in love with.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVE ROTHERAY, PAUL HEATON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind