Heaton came to prominence with indie band Housemartins, who had a number of hits in the early 1980s.
When they split in 1988 he formed The Beautiful South, which went on to be one of the most successful bands of the 1990s.
After releasing 10 albums, the group broke up in 2007 citing “musical similarities” as the reason.
Since then he has recorded and performed as a solo act with guest singers.
His latest album “The Mighty Several” is released on 11 October.
In 2022, to mark his 60th birthday he put money behind the bar at 60 pubs across the UK so customers could have free drinks.
One of the bars was his former local the Grafton in Hull, which inspired the 1986 Housemartins hit Happy Hour.
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