Welcome to the Beautiful South

Welcome to the Beautiful South
Original cover art by Jan Saudek
Studio album by The Beautiful South
Released	October 1989
Recorded	1988
Genre	Sophisti-pop, alternative rock
Length	50:17
Label	Go!, Elektra
Producer	Mike Hedges, The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South chronology
Welcome to the Beautiful South (1989) Choke (1990) Alternative Cover Alternative Cover

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Welcome to the Beautiful South is the debut album by English sophisti-pop band The Beautiful South, released in October 1989 by Go! Discs and the next year in America by Elektra Records. Three singles were released from the album: "Song for Whoever" (#2 in the UK), "You Keep It All In" (#8) and "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (#31).

The original album cover depicted two pictures by Jan Saudek, one of a woman with a gun in her mouth, and another with a man smoking. Woolworths refused to stock the album, in the words of the band, to "prevent the hoards [sic] of impressionable young fans from blowing their heads off in a gun-gobbling frenzy, or taking up smoking";^[2] an alternative cover featuring a picture of a stuffed toy rabbit and a teddy bear was therefore made.

NME included it in the "Top 100 Albums You've Never Heard" list in 2012.^[3]

Track listing

All songs written by Paul Heaton and Dave Rotheray, except where noted.

1. "Song for Whoever" – 6:10
2. "Have You Ever Been Away?" – 5:12
3. "From Under the Covers" – 4:05
4. "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" – 4:41
5. "Girlfriend" (Antonio Reid/Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds) – 2:54
6. "Straight in at 37" – 4:29 (Cassette and Compact Disc bonus track)^[4]
7. "You Keep It All In" – 2:54
8. "Woman in the Wall" – 5:16
9. "Oh Blackpool" – 3:01
10. "Love Is..." – 7:04
11. "I Love You (But You're Boring)" – 4:31

Japanese version

There is also a Japanese reissue released in 2004. It features all eleven original songs, plus five additional bonus tracks:^[4]

1. "You and Your Big Ideas"
2. "You Just Can't Smile It Away" (Bill Withers)
3. "It's Instrumental"
4. "But 'Til Then"
5. "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (Orchestral Mix)

Non-LP/CD B-Sides

As what was to become their usual modus operandi, The Beautiful South included unreleased material on the B-sides of the singles taken from their albums.^[4]

from the "Song For Whoever" 12" single and CDEP

• "Song For Whoever"
• "Straight In At 37"
• "You And Your Big Ideas"

from the "You Keep It All In" 12" single and CDEP

• "You Keep It All In"
• "You Just Can't Smile It Away" (Bill Withers)
• "I Love You (But You're Boring)"
• "It's Instrumental"

from the "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" 12" single and CDEP

• "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (single mix)
• "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (LP Mix )
• "But 'Til Then"
• "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (Orchestral Mix )

Personnel

• Paul Heaton - vocals
• Dave Hemingway - vocals
• Dave Rotheray - guitar
• Sean Welch - bass
• Dave Stead - drums

additional personnel

• Briana Corrigan - vocals
• Pete Wingfield - keyboards & piano
• Mel Wesson - keyboards and drum programs
• Martin Ditcham - percussion
• Peter Thoms - trombone
• Gary Barnacle - sax and flute
• John Thirkle - trumpet and fluglehorn

References