Dexy's Midnight Runners: Classic Or Dud

New Dexys album in 2012. Involves Mick Talbot.

http://thequietus.com/articles/06562-new-dexys-album-in-2012

Obviously there's been talk of this before but it feels like something might actually be occurring this time...

Kind of extcited and very nervous for this. I did like the two new songs on the best of and that demo they put on Myspace a few yeas ago was pretty cool so I'm hoping this will of a similar quality. The reunion show I saw them do in 2003 was the best gig I've ever been to, so much love for this band.

Guitarist is this fellow:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Hubbard

Seems like quite a lineup.

http://new.assets.thequietus.com/images/articles/6562/kev_1310344176_crop_420x300.jpg
http://www.boxofficefootball.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Arshavin-Meerkat.jpg

"Here is the influence "Don't Stand Me Down" had on the course of popular music.

None whatsoever.

You are all stupid scum and deserve to die, but that's another story."

http://www.hungoverdrawn.co.uk/dexys/03.html

only the plinth remains.

Chris Roberts all over the MFing money

Dug this out last week (I took a long time to find the DVD edition when I bought it. It should have been made obligatory)

The improvements (missing tracks added, general sonic improvements) and the fact that there were at least two singles that should have been issued, means that this was designed by KRowland to be a 'neglected masterpiece'.

As it was, the LP version was dominated by the conversational bits. It needed more songs, and now it has them.

At the moment, I am listening to "The Projected Passion Revue" on Spotify, I recommend this.

wd have to listen to it separately, i will never contradict K. Rowland's decisions on anything

Well, he decided it should come out, so yeh.

As it was, the LP version was dominated by the conversational bits. It needed more songs

I dont agree with this at all.

Well, that's how it seemed to me at the time.

(Yeah, that does read a bit Geirlike: purely my opinion there, probably should have played it more at the time.)

.. buat having "Kev Rowl's 13th dream" opening it now makes so much more sense, why did they not have it there in the first place? Running time issues?

BECAUSE IT'S PERFECT AS ORIGINALLY RELEASED

otm, 13th Dream a huge opener. Occasional Flicker makes sense, sort of, as statement of intent, but it's slow burn.

Quietus article mentions it, but in case Londoners do not know, Rowland DJing at How does It Feel on Saturday. I enjoyed it last time - he plays some 70s soul, sings along a bit (led crowd in acapella continuation of 'Let's Go Round Again'), generally A Good Time (though I spent large part of evening working myself up to say thank you for all the music, meant a lot to me etc etc to him). Will try to get along, but may have to persuade girlfriend. Not her crowd.

sorry xp otm, nv offtm

how often does he do this?

once every couple of years I think. This is the third time.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c1/Dexys_Midnight_Runners_Don%27t_Stand_Me_Down_Director%27s_Cut.jpg/220px-Dexys_Midnight_Runners_Don%27t_Stand_Me_Down_Director%27s_Cut.jpg http://www.strikeforce.com/imagesprites/vs.png http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/31/Dexys_Midnight_Runners_Don%27t_Stand_Me_Down.jpg/220px-Dexys_Midnight_Runners_Don%27t_Stand_Me_Down.jpg

maybe in two years i'll go

er, the director's cut looks way better at cd size, the original only works at vinyl size, so y'know

only saw the 12 minute This Is What She's Like Video (dailymotion + adverts, couldn't find a full youtube, soz) a few months ago – really show how great that look is/was.

The CD+DVD version sold for around £10 recently on ebay.

There's two on there now, but for £84 or £40, maybe waiting would be best...

I always thought the Creation issue was just fine. The "poor mastering" or whatever always struck me as total revisionist horseshit, an outgrowth of KR's tendency toward self-loathing (just as the "MY DEAR FRIEND VINCENT CRANE, RIP" stuff on the original DSMD reissue seemed way over the top in retrospect -- probably had more to do with the fact that the dude died and struggled with manic depression all his life than the fact that he was one of Kev's soul brothers).

Love the guy, but he's not the guy I go to for a strict accounting of the past.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6016/5931169483_b81253c34d_b.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6027/5931732896_f3f588d26d_z.jpg

KR looks like Alan Partridge in the pic from the opened-up booklet

I've always loved Don't Stand Me Down but the Director's Cut made it an even better album for me. Kevin Rowland's 13th Time works so much better as an opener than The Occasional Flicker. I seem to remember in the sleeve notes Kevin said he didn't want it on the original issue as he thought some of the drums were slightly out of time, didn't hear it myself. Not many moments in songs make me smile as much as him telling his joke half way through the song, especially the other band members reactions.

The DVD is essential, This Is What She's Like is so much fun but it's the performance of Listen To This that sums up just why I love them so much.

i've only ever heard the director's cut, haven't much tried to get into anything else they've done, but i fuckin love this to death:

You ever hear the one about the, ah, middle-class idiots, who sort of spend all their time analyzing their own emotions? And writin bullshit poetry? You know, that we're supposed to read? I mean as if we're fuckin interested.

where would that This Is What She's Like video have been seen at the time? i mean it's 12 minutes long and yet the single edit of the song was 3 minutes!

Absolutely nowhere, that's where.

Which was (one of) the problem(s).

New record.

I'll admit I was scared, but on a first listen it sounds tremendous. And their LPs are always growers, right?

Very Growers.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dexys-Midnight-Runners-Dont-Stand-Me-Down-CD-DVD-2002-Directors-Cut-/200749223250?pt=UK_CDsDVDs_CDs_CDs_GL&hash=item2ebd960d52

A reasonable price (at the moment), you guys!

I'm really addicted to Nowhere is Home at the moment, his vocals sound so strong. Really quite excited for the album now. Some days I think they might just be my favourite band ever.

Is the book about them by Richard White worth reading?

This was them last night. They were brilliant.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_Y2DL6vt9VM/T6RUOlDT7sI/AAAAAAAAEIk/--7CABupVH4/s887/1336159526568.jpg

How were the new songs?

It just gets stranger and stranger.

In G2 today, a confused piece by Barney Hoskyns about Southern rock (i.e. Allmans, Skynyrd) which basically says that Southern rock is great but actually it's not because of the area's history of racism. Great logical thinking there.

I don't get either why the Grauniad has suddenly decided to have a downer on Amazon. Lots of drivel both in print and on the website about poor benighted booksellers being put out of business by Amazon, it stops new writers coming through EXCUSE ME! Haven't I had a book out for the best part of a year? And who is stocking it in their shops? Precisely one in central London and it's not just me either - all you see when you go into Waterstones is the same old bullshit, celebrity kitchen nightmares and lots of loss-leader discounts. Take away the discounts and you have Daunt Books. Whereas Amazon actually stocks my book and that's where nearly all my sales have come from. If places like Waterstones were serious they'd tell their Finance & Marketing departments to go take a hike and actually take chances on stocking books by new or unknown writers. Rave reviews in The Wire and Mojo, called the best music book of 2011 in the Telegraph of all places - but none of that means anything to the chains - finance say shit, Waterstones jump on the shovel.

So I don't actually give a toss about how much tax Amazon are or aren't paying; they sell new writers, and bookshops do not, and until that changes bookshops have no right to have a go because they should be doing a hell of a lot more for the likes of us.

Wurgh? I don't know what happened there, some strangeness with my phone - It seems to have quoted some text by Marcello on a thread from a while back. Sorry about that.

ANYWAY I've lived with "One Day I'll Soar" for a week or two now and it has grown on me as much as - more than - I'd hoped. It sounds like Dexys, which is a great start. It's closest in feel to "Don't Stand Me Down" but there are some delicious flavours of classy '70s soul: some WIllie Mitchell feeling here, some Philly business there. Like DSMD it doesn't have anything as hooky as "Come On Eileen" or "Geno" but the songs insinuate themselves very nicely. As ever with Dexys, you wind up feeling you have learned quite a lot about Kevin, sometimes maybe too much, but I find there are quite a number of laugh-out-loud moments on here too.

I adore the thing he does with the in-song conversations, and I don't know of anyone who does anything even vaguely similar. Do you?

I am now extremely excited about seeing them play the whole thing on Tuesday, especially with Nate's positive report here.

Sorry I didn't reply. The new songs really were great, although the un-song conversations were a bit strange to see live - KR leaning on the other guy's shoulder and whispering in his ear; singing to pictures of a girl projected onto a screen, and then acting out scenes with the same girl later on.

Also, seeing them play an extended version of Come On Eileen made me appreciate what a great song it really is. Overplayed to death, but actually a brilliant song.

Blatant self-promotion post but my 7000 word, 12-page interview/feature on Dexys is the cover story in the new Uncut.

http://www.uncut.co.uk/sites/default/files/imagecache/magazine_small/2012/04/u181-uncut-cover-uk-crop.jpg

Still only £4.80!

Tim, so glad to hear the new album is strong. Really can't think of anyone else that does the conversations in the same way, it's what makes Don't Stand Me Down such an incredible album. Is the new album out there now or do you have a promo copy?

Nate, I saw them on the 2003 tour and they did lots of strange skits and lots of banter during the songs. It was without doubt the strangest and best gig I've ever been to. I won't be able to catch them this time unfortunately but would love to see them again. I totally agree with your thoughts on Come On Eileen, it's so overplayed and not one of my favourite Dexys songs at all but when they played it, it was so great and seeing the reaction it got was really something. I think I've appreciated the song a lot more since.

Steve, I just bought Uncut yesterday (saving it for a long flight next week) It's the first music magazine I've bought in ages. Really looking forward to reading the article.

I got lucky with a promo - it's out at the start of June I believe.

new album http://open.spotify.com/album/2g7CqCHV0BEbWa2FgnTGWN

I really enjoyed it

This is brilliant. I'm so relieved.

im listening to it again right now funnily enough

This tour came to Australia for two theatre shows last week. It was ridiculously, heart-swellingly great.

People of a certain age will connect as deeply to this as I did to the records-over-the-phone sequence in The Virgin Suicides.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRyheUEkHuA

This tour came to Australia for two theatre shows last week. It was ridiculously, heart-swellingly great.

This. I don't think I've ever had so much *fun* at any type of show/concert ever.

whoa that there there my dear video is awesome!

YES it is

at this point, I'll do some press-ups

STOP

GO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmMPQ8H-ioo

Taken from the album Let The Record Show: DEXYS DO IRISH AND COUNTRY SOUL

Rowland DJing at How Does It Feel again in April:
https://www.howdoesitfeel.co.uk/hdifkevin.html
I missed the last one, but (as per me above) have been a couple of times and it is great fun.

spanning from Toots And The Maytals and David Bowie to T Rex and the Stooges, Kevin also sang along with some of the songs, making the night more like an intimate gig than a regular club.

I'm guessing he might get a bit more obscure in his choices than that, but sounds like fun anyway

That's a draft lyric for the first verse of "Come On Eileen"