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Song for Whoever

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"Song for Whoever" is a song by English music group the Beautiful South, written by band members Paul Heaton and David Rotheray. The first and highest-charting single from their debut album, Welcome to the Beautiful South, it peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart in July 1989 and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in August 2024. Considered typical of the band's gently subversive, self-reflexive signature style,[2] it is sung from the point of view of a cynical songwriter who romances women solely to get material for love songs.

"Song for Whoever"
Single by the Beautiful South
from the album Welcome to the Beautiful South
B-side
  • "Straight in at 37"
  • "You and Your Big Ideas"
Released1 June 1989 (1989-06-01)[1]
Length
  • 6:10 (album version)
  • 4:00 (single version)
LabelGo! Discs
Composers
LyricistPaul Heaton
ProducerMike Hedges
The Beautiful South singles chronology
"Song for Whoever"
(1989)		 "You Keep It All In"
(1989)

Music video

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The music video for the song features a blancmange as the main character. Heaton said, "The blancmange is probably the best thing that's happened to the band so far. The idea is that there's this conveyor belt and all these pop stars come down it and get rejected by the record company people that then choose a blancmange. The blancmange goes on to be a big star but it all pretty much ends up in blancmange misery."[3]

Track listings

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All lyrics are written by Paul Heaton; all music is composed by Paul Heaton and Dave Rotheray.

7-inch, cassette, and mini-CD single[4][5][6]
No.TitleLength
1."Song for Whoever" 
2."Straight in at 37" 
12-inch and CD single[7][8]
No.TitleLength
1."Song for Whoever"4:00
2."Straight in at 37"4:25
3."You and Your Big Ideas"4:15

Charts

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Certifications

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Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[1] Gold 400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. 1 2 "British single certifications – Beautiful South – Song for Whoever". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 August 2024. Select singles in the Formats field. Type Song for Whoever Beautiful South in the "Search:" field.
  2. ↑ "1000 Songs Everyone Must Hear, Part 1: Love". The Guardian. 14 March 2009. Retrieved 8 April 2009.
  3. ↑ Blackie, Victoria (10 June 1989). "Beauty Without Cruelty" (PDF). Record Mirror.
  4. ↑ Song for Whoever (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1989. GOD 32.
  5. ↑ Song for Whoever (UK cassette single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1989. GOD MC 32.
  6. ↑ Song for Whoever (Japanese mini-CD single liner notes). Go! Discs, London Records. 1989. P00L 40018.
  7. ↑ Song for Whoever (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1989. GODX 32.
  8. ↑ Song for Whoever (UK CD single liner notes). Go! Discs. 1989. GODCD 32.
  9. ↑ "The Beautiful South – Song for Whoever" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  10. ↑ "The Beautiful South – Song for Whoever" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  11. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Image 9099". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  12. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 28. 15 July 1989. p. IV. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  13. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Song for Whoever". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  14. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 33, 1989" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  15. ↑ "The Beautiful South – Song for Whoever" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  16. ↑ "Official Singles Chart on 8/7/1989 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  17. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts (West Germany)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  18. ↑ "Year-End Charts '89 – Top 100 Singles". Music Week. London, England: Spotlight Publications. 3 March 1990. p. 16.
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