Name: The Beautiful South

Occupation: Sarcastic yet romantic, surly yet witty, soul revue band from Hull

Why in the news: The Beautiful South will play the beautiful north - Dalby Forest, near Pickering, on June 25 - in their summer season of six Forestry Commission outdoor shows

Been there, done that: Beautiful South are following in forest foot steps of Paul Weller, Status Quo, Jools Holland, Pulp and the Levellers in playing Dalby's woodland clearing

Band history: Formed from ashes of "the fourth best band in Hull", The Housemartins, by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway in 1989, in tandem with guitarist Dave Rotheray, bass player Sean Welch and drummer Dave Stead

The Beautiful South's variation on Spinal Tap's disappearing drummers: Female vocalists. So far Irish redhead Briana Corrigan, former shop assistant Jacqueline Abbott and Alison 'Lady' Wheeler have spun through the revolving door

Best-known single: A Little Time, number one, 1992

Latest single: This Will Be Our Year, from last year's gold-certified Golddiggas, Headnodders and Pholk Songs album of covers. Released on February 7

Paul Heaton on Golddiggas' song selection: "Some that didn't look promising turned out really well, others just didn't happen. We really wanted to do Rainbow's Since You Been Gone but it just never sounded right. But these are ones that really worked, arrived at sort of democratically".

Covers include: You're The One That I Want from Grease, Blue Oyster Cult's Don't Fear The Reaper, The Ramones' Blitzkrieg Bop and S Club 7's Don't Stop Moving

Albums: Eleven, including number ones Carry On Up The Charts - The Best Of The Beautiful South, 1995, and Blue Is The Colour, 1996. Apparently Carry On Up The Charts has infiltrated one in every seven British homes

Dalby tickets: £24, plus booking fee, on 01842 814612 or on line at www.gigsandtours.com and www.ticketmaster.co.uk

Updated: 16:07 Thursday, January 20, 2005