First on stage were the Bluetones. Despite their efforts they failed to get much of a reaction from the audience. It was freezing in the Ice Arena, which may partly explain the lack of response. There was a small ripple when they played 'Slight Return' but this could have been the crowd's attempt to get warm. Generally, the Bluetones failed to impress.

The stage was then set for The Beautiful South. Paul Heaton (lead singer) casually strolled on stage to ear-bursting applause. The stage was set with a runway extending out into the audience, and this is where Paul stood alone to perform the opening song 'Prettiest Eyes'.

Following this the curtain behind him dropped down to reveal the other band members. However, there was something missing. Jacqueline Abbot, the distinctive female vocals, left earlier in the tour due to 'personal reasons'. With no replacement, this left me wondering if we were in for a tedious night listening to slow melodic songs which don't require a female singer. Surely not?

After about forty minutes of listening to songs exactly like that, I'd had enough. Paul Heaton is an extremely talented singer. I have every respect for him. But I can only take so much and listening to slow ballad after slow ballad pushes boring to the extreme. I found my attention wandering to more interesting things, such as tarmac and carpet fibres. I would rather be at home watching floorboards warp!

As I was getting up to leave, Paul addressed the crowd and apologized to everyone who had bought tickets expecting to see Jacqueline. He said the band were just as upset about her absence and wished she was still with them. He then told us that he would have a 'bash' at doing female vocals, along with Dave Hemingway. At long last, the show really started to get the crowd moving, the slow and tedious part over with as the classic Beautiful South tracks were performed.

Paul and Dave took turns to sing the female vocals. They pulled it off with such ease, it was uncanny. They cruised through the classic tracks 'Rotterdam' and 'You Keep It All In'. They then slipped in a few new tracks such as 'You Can Call Me Leisure' and 'Closer Than Most'. They also did 'Don't Marry Her' but the highlight had to be 'Perfect 10'. This was hilarious. They included all the sexual innuendos and, if you didn't know this was originally a male-female track, you would swear that Paul and Dave were gay from the way they were acting during this song. They brought the performance to a close with 'Song For Whoever'. Paul and Dave managed to capture all of the emotion of this song, and some of the crowd actually cried!

Naturally, they returned for an encore. By this time the audience were eating out of the palm of Paul's hand. He could have read aloud from a telephone directory and they would have lapped it up. He sang 'Oldest Swinger In Town' and they jumped straight into 'Good As Gold' which left the audience on a high.

Despite a brain-numbing start, The Beautiful South are an excellent live band. It was a shame they didn't do 'A Little Time' but what we were given was very entertaining. They did so much, you definitely got your money's worth. However, a female vocalist really makes this band and without one they are like a car with no engine- they won't go very far! Paul Heaton, although unique and talented, needs his leading lady. 

Review used by kind permission from Rock City- www.rock-city.co.uk