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").
I'll Sail This Ship Alone
The Beautiful South Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you decide to give him another try
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I wrote the perfect love song
You would take me back
Well I wrote it but I lost it
And now will you take me back anyway
Now if, if you insist that this is for the best
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you swear that you no longer care
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
I'll sail this ship alone
Between the pain and the pleasure
I'll sail this ship alone
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
If you would rather go your way then go your way
I'll sail this ship alone
If, if you're afraid that I won't make the grade
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you agree to him instead of me
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I wrote the perfect letter
That I would have a chance
Well I wrote it, and you burnt it
And now do I have a chance anyway
If, if you swear that you no longer care
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
I'll sail this ship alone
Between the pain and the pleasure
I'll sail this ship alone
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
If you would rather go your way then go your way
I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I burnt myself alive
That you'd come running back
The chorus of this song, "I'll sail this ship alone," reflects the singer's willingness to take control of his own destiny, even if it means doing so on his own. The lyrics express a sense of rejection by the object of the singer's affection and the desire to move forward despite being alone. The use of conditional clauses aims to show how the choices of the other person will not affect the determination of the singer to move on with his life.
The song also portrays the singer's romantic efforts to win back his love, as he writes a perfect love song and a perfect letter but loses the first and burns the second. These lyrics also seem to show how the singer was told that there were formulas to get his love back, but none of them worked or yielded positive results.
Overall, "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" is a song about a man who's come to realize that he can only truly rely on himself, and is willing to go it alone rather than count on someone else who doesn't reciprocate his love.
Line by Line Meaning
If, if you choose that we will always lose
If you decide that we will never be successful
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
I'll continue on my own
And if, if you decide to give him another try
And if you choose to give him another chance
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll go it alone
Well they said if I wrote the perfect love song
They told me that if I wrote a love song that was flawless
You would take me back
You would come back to me
Well I wrote it but I lost it
I wrote it, but I can't find it now
And now will you take me back anyway
Regardless, will you still return to me?
Now if, if you insist that this is for the best
If you claim that this is what's best
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll move forward by myself
And if, if you swear that you no longer care
And if you vow that you no longer have feelings for me
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll continue without you
I'll sail this ship alone
I'll navigate this journey independently
Between the pain and the pleasure
Through both good times and bad
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
Through hazardous obstacles and rewards
If you would rather go your way then go your way
If you want to leave, then leave
I'll sail this ship alone
I'll continue on my own
If, if you're afraid that I won't make the grade
If you doubt that I can succeed
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll go it alone
And if, if you agree to him instead of me
And if you choose him over me
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll navigate without you
Well they said if I wrote the perfect letter
They claimed that if I wrote an impeccable letter
That I would have a chance
I would have an opportunity
Well I wrote it, and you burnt it
But I wrote it, and you destroyed it
And now do I have a chance anyway
Do I still have a chance despite that?
I'll sail this ship alone
I'll continue on my journey independently
Between the pain and the pleasure
Through both hardships and joys
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
Through difficulties and rewards
If you would rather go your way then go your way
If you want to leave, then leave
I'll sail this ship alone
I'll navigate this journey independently
If, if you swear that you no longer care
If you declare that you no longer have feelings for me
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Then I'll go it alone
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVE ROTHERAY, PAUL HEATON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@patrycjabanaszak5820
If, if you choose that we will always lose
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you decide to give him another try
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I wrote the perfect love song
You would take me back
Well I wrote it but I lost it
And now will you take me back anyway
Now if, if you insist that this is for the best
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you swear that you no longer care
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
I'll sail this ship alone
Between the pain and the pleasure
I'll sail this ship alone
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
If you would rather go your way then go your way
I'll sail this ship alone
If, if you're afraid that I won't make the grade
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
And if, if you agree to him instead of me
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I wrote the perfect letter
That I would have a chance
Well I wrote it, and you burnt it
And now do I have a chance anyway
If, if you swear that you no longer care
Well then I'll sail this ship alone
I'll sail this ship alone
Between the pain and the pleasure
I'll sail this ship alone
Amongst the sharks and the treasure
If you would rather go your way then go your way
I'll sail this ship alone
Well they said if I burnt myself alive
That you'd come running back
@ralfbodemann1542
"If, if you're afraid
that I won't pass the grade ..."
"If, if you agree
to HIM instead of me,
well, then I'll sail this ship alone."
Sardonic, double edged, dark and vicious. These lyrics are simply brilliant.
As is the songwriting, the arrangement, the musical and the vocal performance...
@barrylangford3276
The old lady in this video is the late Renee Bourne Webb. She was a client of mine from 1988 until she passed away. Her long career dated back to West End productions in the 1940s with the likes of Laurence Olivier. Late in her life, well into her 80s, she appeared in a few episodes of EastEnders on BBC TV, and said "Oh, this could open up new opportunities for me"! Such a sweet, proper English lady and a smashing actress.
@katrinabrowne2212
Beautiful. Thanks for that
@MegaSting1981
Beautiful story 😊
@MrDayjur
Barry Langford she is superb in this vid' .Renee.I am glad that i now your name, and who you were.Thanks Barry.
@codywhite1895
Cool!
@cac7865
Thank you so much x
@AltonTowersMemories
Paul Heaton is a criminally undervalued singer/songwriter. So many beautifully written songs, this being one of them. Along with the other very talented members of the group over the years they have made some brilliant and very interesting music.
@TheLastAngryMan01
He has a great gift for blending sardonic lyrics with a sweet melody.
@henrydownes6301
AltonTowersMemories yes I agree
@jilllittle3786
And his voice! Sublime.