Dexys Midnight Runners

Dexys Midnight Runners formed in Birmingham in 1978, Kevin Rowland assembling a band that drew on Northern Soul, Van Morrison, and post-punk in ways that felt genuinely new. Their debut single 'Dance Stance' (1979) and debut album 'Searching for the Young Soul Rebels' (1980) were immediate critical successes — raw, passionate, and unlike anything else in British music. The album's opening track, which sampled a radio presenter dismissing punk, announced their ambitions perfectly.

Rowland's obsessive perfectionism drove constant lineup changes and reinventions. The second phase — dungarees, fiddles, Celtic soul — produced 'Too-Rye-Ay' (1982) and 'Come On Eileen', which reached number one in both the UK and the US and became one of the most recognisable songs of the decade. The third phase, 'Don't Stand Me Down' (1985), was a commercial failure but is now regarded as a masterpiece.

Dexys have continued intermittently, with Rowland reforming the band for 'One Day I'm Going to Soar' (2012), which was widely acclaimed. Rowland's singular vision — passionate, obsessive, and entirely uncompromising — has made Dexys one of the most distinctive and important acts in British music history. Their back catalogue, taken as a whole, is extraordinary. ⚠ Flag: post-2012 activity — verify any releases since 'One Day I'm Going to Soar'.