Rotterdam Or Just The Kings Hall
(April 1997)

It was to prove an important day and the possibilities of a drink filled night were high.  England beat Mexico 2-0 and Northern Ireland drew with Portugal at Windsor Stadium.  And I was certainly onto a winner with a little meeting I’d arranged with Mr. Dave Rotheray at the Joxer’s Bar that night.  With who?  Where?  Well Dave Rotheray is the guitarist and co-songwriter with The Beautiful South, one of Britain’s biggest pop bands of recent years.  The Joxer is their favourite bar in Belfast.  Through just one or two little e-mails I had managed to locate Mr. Rotheray and asked him for a little interview for Allegedly.  He kindly agreed.

Or was he just fobbing me off.  There I was with Simon my trusty photographer in the bar with my glass of Pernod in one hand and Dictaphone in the other.  Six thirty came, as did seven o’clock.  My God we’ve been stood up.  Nothing we could do really but buy another drink, sit down, beside some friendly looking folks, and relax watching England’s World Cup qualifier.  That we did.

The main problem was that I could not hear the football and the screen was a little too far away for me to see the score.  I couldn’t hear because the jukebox was turned up so customarily loud.  But hang on a wee minute, isn’t that song by The Beautiful South?  Indeed it was.  Rotterdam (Or Anywhere), The Beautiful South’s largest selling single in seven years has just come on.  And what the heck, in walks Rotheray with furry hat and all.  The timing was implausible.  There was no way that this was an accident.  I sat nervously as he approached the bar for a drink.  He began looking for somewhere and it looked as though he approached me.  In fact the friendly looking people I’d sat beside happened to be some of the roadies with the band.  A night of coincidence loomed far ahead.  As Jaqueline Abbott’s vocals can be heard dying away in stereo I introduced myself (after having knocked back my last pernod).  Mr. Rotheray began, “I love that song.”

The Beautiful South first graced the pop scene in 1989 with their huge hit Song For Whoever and have since been a force to be reckoned with.  Their albums always entered the charts in the top ten yet they have only had one No.1 single and only a handful of top tens.  That is why then the band were so surprised when the “Greatest Hits” album Carry On Up The Charts got to No.1 and stayed there for 11 weeks.  They celebrated by drinking champagne.

Mr. Rotheray says, “ I guess it’s because everyone knows the songs.  They’ve heard them all on the radio.  Perhaps they didn’t like them enough to go out and buy them all individually, but all of these catchy pop tunes on one album was too good to miss.”

I remember going to see you two years ago and Jaqueline didn’t sing because she was pregnant, have you got the whole band with you this time - I mean she isn’t preggers again is she?
Well yes she is, but she’s going to sing this time.  We’ve got everyone along this time.  Except our support band.

Yes, I heard Space weren’t joining you - what’s the scandal then?
There isn’t one.  Earlier in the week their lead vocalist lost his voice.  We’ve been very lucky though.  We rang Shed Seven on Wednesday of this week and they agreed to do the tour.  They haven’t played a live gig in around 12 months.  Tonight will be like their rehearsal gig.
 

For the duration of our short meeting I wanted him to bitch about some one, anyone.  But he didn’t.  He just sat and looked like he was interested in the questions.  Looking straight at me.  In fact it was almost scary.  “Is he staring?” I asked myself.  I glanced behind me to see that he was staring, at the TV behind me showing the England -v- Mexico.  I want you to bitch man.

What do you think of the Spice Girls?
They’re alright.  At least they have some song writing credits on their album.  No they’re OK.  Not bad.

Briana Corrigan (former singer for the band) is from Portstewart and may get her hands on a copy of our wonderful publication.  Have you got a message for her?
Yeah.  Tell her I said hello!

No it’s impossible to get this man to bitch about anyone.  On with the questions.

So what do you do for fun then?
Well I love to find out if people are cleaning their homes properly, so when I visit someone’s home I’d take a piece of gum, stick in under a chair and check if it was still there the next time I call around.

That’s Fun?
Yeah.  But this one’s better.  I sometimes want to check the efficiency of Airports Security.  So when I’m going somewhere I’d tape a small pouch of flour to the underside of a table in the airport.  If it’s still there when I come back then Security is not doing it’s job properly!

Now that’s fun.  I hear that Paul Heaton (lead singer and songwriter) collects crisp packs.  Do you collect anything unusual?
Well in 1993 I started accumulating condoms.  It’s a somewhat unique collection, in that you are constantly hoping that the next day it will have decreased in number.  There’s nothing more depressing than waking up to 500 glistening shrink-wrapped packets of used condoms.  One foreign journalist believes I collected ‘condiments’.  I still receive the occasional saltcellar from Japan.

Tell me one strange thing about yourself.
I once tried to change my name to ‘Dixie’.

Name the worst place you’ve been to.
A small town in California called King City.

Why?
I went there just for the name.  Arriving at 8pm we went straight to the motel bar.  We asked someone, “What time does the bar close please?”
“8.30.”
“Where’s the other nearest bar?”
“There isn’t one...”

And you’re favourite place?
It would have to be the drinker’s choice.  I believe Belfast is the best good-time city in the world, with the most up-for-it people you could hope to meet.  Many is the time I’ve stopped off in Belfast for a few beers with an old friend, only to wake up in Singapore with a full beard.
 

And so enters the rest of the band, Jackie, Dave, David and Sean - there is a quick round of “Happy Birthday for their one-year-older percussionist Gary, then Paul “El Heato” Heaton enters to whisk them off to the gig.
Mr. Rotheray leaves ensuring that myself and Simon have a drink and are sorted for the after show drink.  He is truly a nice man