‘I’ve never done karaoke in my life and I never will’ … Lucy Beaumont. Photograph: Debbie Ellis
As a tween, Hull’s finest learned the rap from Waterfalls – now she blubs to prog. But which song from a British singer-songwriter is her guilty pleasure?
The first song I fell in love with
Caravan of Love by the Housemartins, when I was four or five. They’re also from Hull, but I think I mainly liked it because my granny and grandad had a caravan in their garden that I used as a wendy house.
The first single I bought
I remember buying Thriller by Michael Jackson from HMV in Hull, even though it was before my time. Everyone loved Michael Jackson so I was probably copying somebody at school.
The song I inexplicably know every lyric to
I know the lyrics to loads of songs, but I actually sat down and learned the rap from Waterfalls by TLC when I was about 12.
The best song to play at a party
Superstition by Stevie Wonder.
The song I can no longer listen to
Anything by Coldplay – particularly Yellow. I have a visceral reaction. It’s not them – Chris Martin seems like a nice guy – but there’s something about the tone that makes me feel carsick.
The song I secretly like, but tell everybody I hate
Supermarket Flowers by Ed Sheeran. He wrote it about his grandmother dying, but from his mother’s point of view. I think it’s a really lovely song, but I’d never tell anybody.
The song that changed my life
As a teenager, I was really into hard house. Then, when I heard the first Stone Roses album, it was like nothing I’d heard before. The opening bars of Waterfall are especially rock’n’roll, but also feel so spiritual. It had a massive effect on me.
The song that gets me up in the morning
Movin’ on Up by Primal Scream – perfect if I’m hungover and have a busy day.
The song that makes me cry
Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd has been played at a couple of funerals, and it always gets me. I always think how amazing it must be to write something that people play at their most vulnerable moments, and that somehow explains life.
The song I do at karaoke
I’ve never done karaoke in my life and I never will. But if someone put a gun to my head I’d do These Boots Are Made for Walkin’ by Nancy Sinatra.
The song I want played at my funeral
At a funeral, you really listen to music as a group. So I’d have Try a Little Tenderness by Otis Redding.
Lucy Beaumont tours the UK 23 September to 20 June; tour starts Scunthorpe.
