Don't Stand Me Down

Kinda shit

There's an abnormal amount of blaa blaa blaa for something that isn't a 90s rap album. ... wait...isn't that "Werewolves of London"? So this IS actually a rap album? Despite its shortcomings (one song is just "I love you" over and over) I'm really enjoying it (not the talking). Lovely vocals (not the talking), delightful instrumentals, unique. It could be better but it's pretty good as is (not the talking).

Crap

This was a flat, dull album. Not sure why it made the list. I listened to the whole thing so I would give it two stars.

Sounds like a high school band. Dreadful.

Yapsession?

Nice

Seems like an interesting turn given their previous line up. Nothing really grabbed me.

What the hell is this? Why is this on here? These guys were one hit wonders at best and that hit isn’t even on this album.

Recognized one song. This type of 80s music doesn't do it for me. Also, the album cover looks like those people are going to murder me American Psycho style after a bougie happy hour.

Stop talking over the music I'm trying to listen to it!!

Intense but open Enjoyed Funny enough been listing to dexys for few days now catching seeing what I missed.

"The album was a commercial failure upon release, and its rejection by both critics and the public resulted in the group's disbandment in 1987. The album was later described as a "neglected masterpiece" by Uncut, and was selected as one of the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die." - WHY?

This album "was a commercial failure upon release, and its rejection by both critics and the public resulted in the group's disbandment in 1987" so I'm excited to hear this. It already sucks dude. I can tell why no one liked this album. It's not good. Why in the world would I need to hear this before I die. This is not enjoyable. It's a bunch of brits talking. I don't wanna hear that. It's like they're trying and failing to be the Smiths. Favourite: This Is What She's Like Least favourite: Reminisce - Pt. 2

Buena musica, no me gustó la voz o la forma de cantar así que no me gustó

Dull

Had never heard of this, but loved it

I love the sound of Dexy's Midnight Runners.

Shouldn’t be on a list of essential albums, kind of silly and poorly made. But I like his voice/delivery.

I don't think this should be on the list, but I have to admit I enjoyed it.

Pure shite for wankers.

This was a really cool album! Unfortunately nothing too much to say about it as I wasn’t able to give it the full attention it deserved, but there wasn’t really a moment I didn’t enjoy. 4/5 ⭐️ 220/1089

5.5/10

I, like I'm guessing most who remember Dexys Midnight Runners, only knew them from Come On Eileen. That's a great song. This album doesn't include its equal, or anything close to it. I'm wondering why this was included in the 1001 albums that must be heard. It isn't the worst - there just isn't anything that grabs my attention other than the singer's voice and style get annoying after a few minutes. Let's say there was a category for an album that wins the category "What album seems most like it is comprised of filler?" This might be first nomination. It's between one and two stars for me, but I reserve 1 star for albums that are truly difficult to get through. This one was just blah.

Natuurlijk geen 'Come on Eileen'... Wel veel gebabbel...

I listened then read the wiki on it. I don't get why it's here. It's not good. Over half the band left before this was made. They went from 10 people on their most popular album to 4 then made this one. It failed when it came out. Time hasn't helped it AT ALL. I thought it had a tiny glimmer of hope when I heard the start of one song. NOPE they just stole the music from Werewolves of London. It's mind boggling why it's on the list. Then I find out these wankers have THREE albums on the list! THREE! Belafonte zero, Tool zero, but these fucks have three and this one hurts. This one is especially terrible. Honestly I want to meet those of you that gave it five stars. I suspect your all in a mental hospital and this is the only album you can listen to. It would prove to me that Stockholm Syndrome is real...

The “average” song on this album is probably somewhat better than the “average” song on Searching For The Young Soul Rebels. I love the sound, even if no song grabbed me in particular.

Good stuff. Need to spend more time with it though.

Hmmmm. I suppose the music is ok, but this album is not very striking. It's not bad, but it's nothing that will have me re-listening on purpose.

https://youtu.be/xlA5spxWzww?si=bjfDQ4ptZQbztke1&t=80

Snnnzzz...

There seems to be a run of ´forgotten classics’ at the moment which, according to my ears, are not really classic and probably forgotten for a reason. This was a perfectly fine album but it really had nothing there that made me think it was significant.

Dexys are ok in small doses but I’m not sure the album format is their thing. Not keen on the affectation given to sone of the lyrics and the whole interplay with the sax gets overdone quite quickly. Disappointed to see that there are two more of their albums that will be coming up at some point and I’m not sure they are going to get a particularly high rating from me. Special shout out to the dogshit intro to ‘this is what she’s like’. What a way to really sap any energy out that might have been built up by the previous song.

listened to this one late, was very confused when it would just randomly be a guy talking. idk nothing stood out to me at all

Some interesting sounds, but it's not really my kinda thing

Good album, nice little concept with the conversations running through it.

2.9/5

Album 271. Don't Stand Me Down — Dexys Midnight Runners (1985) It's okay, but nothing caught me anyway 2/5 No liked songs

I get the goals, didnt really connect with the results. Doesnt belong here but whatever, 1000+ albums sure is a lot One of Those Things clamoring "It all sounded the saaaaaaaaame" over Werewolves of London's riff has only aged better with the lasting relevance of Sweet Home Alabama, Kid Rock's version and even now Don Toliver's Sweet Home. I'm certain there are even more too.

Yet another album that never hit in the USA. Over here DMR were a one hit wonder. After fully consuming this album, that's justified. I've tried listening to the top DMR songs on Spotify in the past because "Come On, Eileen" is such a brilliant pop song. I thought to myself "how could they not have a few more really good songs that no one is aware of?" I determined sometimes the stars just align. It's truly hard to believe they'd follow that 1982 megahit album with such a slow roll of barely enjoyable pop songs. Who at their label signed off on releasing such a boring album with a few 6 minutes, one 7 minute, one 8 minute and a 12 minute song?! Read the room. You hit radio gold with a 4 minute singalong diddy then you go all Pink Floyd with 12 minute fiddle songs?! Several songs start with 30+ seconds of silence at the beginning, no one does that intentionally. I'm baffled as to how they thought this would sell records and keep the band's trajectory. I am convinced they had no idea how to follow a gigantic hit and had the worst case of writers block, this dreary boring album is the result. After 40 years, one song ("Listen To This") has over half a million listens, that's not a classic. "One Of Those Things" stole the melody from "Werewolves Of London" and took it nowhere, it's clear they ran out of ideas. He mumbles into the mic for 3 minutes before "Reminisce Pt 2" takes shape but it's too late to save by that point. Wow. "Listen To This" is just him saying "I love you" over some horns for 3 minutes. "The Waltz", and whatever kind of vocal delivery that is, takes you right to the front gate of Boredomtown. This has to just be a personal favorite of the author, there's no reason this should be in the Top 1001. The long pause intros, the weak-weak songs, the lack of energy, zero hits, the length of the 7 songs (46 mins), and the melancholy-mood kill this album. 2 stars because it's just slightly better than silence.

Perfectly pleasant album but I didn't need to listen to it and I certainly needed no more then one Dexys album

Much more chill than the previous album, and what I know of DMR.

01) The Occasional Flicker - 6,0 02) This Is What She's Like - 5,5 03) Knowledge of Beauty - 6,0 04) One of Those Things - 7,0 05) Reminisce Part Two - 6,5 06) Listen to This - 6,0 07) The Waltz - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,14 (61/100) Current ranking: 746/987

What a horrid experience. Add this to the 1001 Albums I Could Have Dies Having Never Heard list. At times there's too much nattering, which I found myself eagerly anticipating ending, then the music would kick in and I'd eagerly anticipate that ending too. THEN they smeared themselves all over Sweet Home Alabama, leaving nothing but putrid dribble and a something that resembles a slug trail over it. It all sounded the saaaaaaaaame.

This is way more interesting that Too Rye Ay, which was frankly very grating and chaotic. The spoken word dialogues add good balance here and a bit more chilled out. It does jump into being discordant is places with the fast violins; the country aspects are much nicer and relaxed.

occasional flicker … of quality I understand the frustration but it’s funny how many reviewers are annoyed by the number if Dexys album in this list . All I can say is there is at least one to many - and it’s this one

I've read many less than complimentary reviews and I agree it's odd that Dexys have a 100% album inclusion record on this list., and maybe also I was lucky only to get the shorter single version of 'This Is What She's Like' on my playlist. But... I can't help loving Kevin Rowland's attitude, putting his heart and soul into everything he does even if no one else will like it or care.

Kinda liked this despite myself

Ehhh

What a weird album. The overview describes it as a commercial failure rejected by critics and the public, and I can understand why. Maybe I'm a bit of a philistine, who's drawn to three-minute pop songs that get stuck in your head - and far be it from me to criticise an artist from trying to better themselves. But hearing Dexys Midnight Runners trying to compose eight-minute introspective pieces is like hearing Dwayne Johnson recite haiku; sure, they can do it, but they still sound like themselves and I'd rather they'd start going on about "too rye ay" again. (Or, in the case of Dwayne Johnson, being hench and knocking bad guys through windows.) Fair enough if they were striving to better themselves, but it doesn't quite come off. The best ones on here were the ones that sounded more like their old stuff.

The tracks that were just dude talking were definitely more interesting than the rest of the album. Overall it was a good pop album, but I think it's the worst of the 3 original albums by the band.

Their song “Geno” still holds in my rotation today after hearing it earlier on this list. But I feel like their other music, at least for me, fall short and I’m still chasing that high energy, electric first album. There are moments in here that I feel are a natural progression as a band ages, for example The Waltz. Still has those iconic horns and his voice, and it’s progressed into this nice tune. That’s what I would expect as a band evolved over time. But I honestly felt like some of these songs here just really fell flat.

Sometimes if the critics and the general audience hate it, they can actually be correct.

decent. Kevin Rowland definitely informed a lot of what Justin Hawkins does in his vocals, which is something I never would have expected going into this album.

I wonder whether Dexys Midnight Runners (or rather Kevin Rowland) were image conscious or just clothes horses. In any event this album is touted by some critics as a lost masterpiece. Well, I didn't hate it, but those spoken conversational sections ruin it for me. It's OK, probably not as bad as it was made out to be at the time, but certainly not a lost masterpiece.

no se merece estar seleccionado. No es representativp de los Dexys.

This was fun. I don’t really like a lot of 80s pop stuff bit this made me feel like I was watching 80’s/90’s movies. Good vibes here.

Wow it's been awhile since I had to listen to an album as boring as this. I can't remember anything about it!

Die britische Band um Kevin Rowland hatte sich zum Zeitpunkt der Aufnahmen auf ein Kernquartett reduziert, ergänzt durch zahlreiche Sessionmusiker, und nahm das Album über Monate in Londoner Studios auf, ehe die finale Abmischung in den Electric Lady Studios in New York erfolgte – ein aufwendiger, von Konflikten mit dem Label Mercury Records begleiteter Prozess. Das Ergebnis ist ein Bruch mit allem, wofür Dexys zuvor standen: An die Stelle der folkloristisch-soulgetriebenen Hits von "Too-Rye-Ay" tritt ein introspektives, oft gesprochenes, theatralisches Songwriting, das sich jeder schnellen Zugänglichkeit verweigert. Stücke wie "This Is What She's Like" oder "The Waltz" entfalten sich über viele Minuten hinweg, mit ausgedehnten Dialogpassagen, Harmoniegesängen und einem fast schon literarischen Erzählduktus. "Listen to This" bietet zwar einen greifbareren Popmoment, bleibt aber die Ausnahme auf einem Album, das konsequent auf Sperrigkeit statt Massenkompatibilität setzt. Gerade diese Kompromisslosigkeit macht die Platte im Rückblick so bemerkenswert: Sie verweigert sich dem Nachfolgerdruck von "Come On Eileen" vollständig und verfolgt stattdessen eine eigene, unbeirrbare künstlerische Logik. Kommerziell scheiterte das Album seinerzeit krachend, was letztlich zur Auflösung der Band führte – doch genau dieses Scheitern verleiht "Don't Stand Me Down" seine bis heute anhaltende Faszination als verkanntes Meisterwerk. Wer sich auf die Länge und Eigenwilligkeit der Stücke einlässt, entdeckt eine der mutigsten Popplatten der Achtziger. Ein Album, das seiner Zeit so weit voraus war, dass es sie schlicht verpasste.

Music is okay but the album cover is like walking into a panel interview when they've already decided you're not getting the job and starts with "Okay lets get this over with..."

How is this album 7 songs long but it's still minutes? I'll tell you why. Because some of the tracks have about a minute to a minute and a 1/2 of just talking. Why? I don't know, because it doesn't add anything. It just baffles me why it goes on for so long. How is it that at no point did anybody say to them 'Maybe we should just cut this out', which was my initial thought. Even on the song that I liked most, they talk for so long about nothing. Why. Aside from that, the songs are just too long in general, most of them are upwards of 5 minutes each, and none of them need to be that long. My other issue is the Vibrato style of the vocals. I don't understand this choice. It becomes very distracting. The actual music itself is fairly inoffensive. It's really nothing special though, I would maybe leave this on if it was on the radio, but that's the most I can give it for praise. Fav Track: This Is What She's Like

non sono riuscito a finirlo, mi ha annoiato :/

I enjoyed the blend of bluegrass, country, and Celtic folk with pop and New Wave. If not for Kevin Rowland’s unconventional vocals—which I realize are a big part of Dexys Midnight Runners’ identity—Don’t Stand Me Down probably would have earned a higher score from me.

Music is fine enough and the vocals are a bit over the top. Not sure why these guys have more than one album on this list. One was already suspect enough.

This is a moody album. In terms of you have to be in the right frame of mind to listen. A lot of this is chin stroking twaddle however this is what's she's like and knowledge of beauty elevates it

la peor poronga q escuche en mi vida

Very enjoyable album with incredible instrumentation, and inspirations from genres souls as blues, soul, new wave, and pop. Highlights for me are “This Is What She’s Like”, “One of Those Things”, and “The Waltz”.

I mean, it is not bad bad, only slightly annoying, but there is so much "Talking heads" stuff one can digest 5/10

the cobvos r so asme

I don't really get the hate for this album. I wouldn't have included it if I were to make the list, but I enjoyed listening to it. A solid 3,5 for me.

It’s not great. Definitely has the feel of a band past their zenith, with their fusion of pop and Celtic folk styles that make their big hits more of a mess here. The length of tracks doesn’t help, including some odd talking sections that add nothing- why did they think some Brummie mumbling would help a 12 minute song? Not sure why this made the list, especially when they have two already.

‘Neglected masterpiece’? Absolutely not. In this case, the original critics were right. It’s overlong, dull, meandering, pointless. It’s a shame as you can just about hear a half-decent album trying to get out, and the fusion of soul, pop and Celtic folk is great in theory. Kevin Rowland’s vocals are one of the biggest problems; they sound awful. Also, several songs contain rambling spoken word sections and are way too long. The worst offender, ‘This Is What She’s Like’, which is meant to be funny, but isn't, has no business being over TWELVE minutes in length. Just barely 2 stars.

дуже британська тема, проте музика була жвава та цікава! 3.5 ближче до 3 бо я ніхуя не зроз про що вони там базарили, а в цьому типу і був весь прикол?..

This must be the album they added to get over 1,000.

This was not great. No Come on Eileen either.

Oh Dimery, you beautiful person. I may question some of your picks, but then you come out with some curveball like this gem and all is forgiven. I knew this album by reputation before diving in, I knew that of their original run, this is meant to be their challenging record, with very long songs and a lot of spoken word. Having now listened to it, I kinda love it. I see why it is divisive, the songs are indeed long and there is a lot of spoken word, but it makes sense with what the album is shooting for. The lyrics are often very conversational and balance between intimate, avoidant, and kinda awkward. As a result, the album feels very messy and very human. While the songs are long, the music itself is great. It takes the soul and folk of their first two records and combines it into an off kilter art pop sound that is often funkier than it has any right to be. Say what you will about this record, but one thing you can't call it is derivative. I have never heard anything like this album before, and it definitely feels like an album that a music nerd needs to hear before they die.

No wonder why Come on Eleein is a one hit wonder.

Nice

Musically I like it but I don't enjoy the vocalist.

🤮 Go back to the 80’s

Derivative at best, horribly boring at worst. How Dexys managed to spin one song into having multiple albums included in this project is bizarre to me. Nothing here worth your time

Production is nice, I'll give you that. Beyond that, this sounds like a band breaking up, and not in a good way. Listen to This is a nice jam. I didn't need 12 minutes of This Is What She's Like. I didn't need Reminisce - Pt.2 at all. After this I'm rethinking giving Too Rye Ay a 2, because this is worse.

Rate: 7/10.

Awful, unlistenable, rubbish. Shouldn't be on this list.

It's not bad it doesn't have Cum On Eileen on it

I would love to say I listened to this and that I *get* it. But unfortunately I don't. It was a bit of a drag. I did think The Waltz was a nice song, so that's my playlist pick.

nah

Me gusta el rollo, pero pierde contra el otro disco que me tocó de ellos

3.6

This was better than the other DMR I got, like I don't understand why this one is so maligned. This one is more daring and tries to be interesting and for the most part succeeds. Too Rye Ay has Eileen and then a bunch of mediocre songs.

Oh, it's the Come on Eileen band, but not the album with Come On Eileen

I'm guessing this album is here because it killed the band and not because it's good. This Is What She's Like is way too long and so was the rest of the album considering how unremarkable the songs are.

Hm. I suppose this was pretty experimental at the time. It hasn't really aged well, in my opinion but it's not totally crap.

I've heard of this band but not their music. Good stuff but just not for me

Tiene una especie de Medley que suena como muchas de sus canciones, dura unos 12 minutos, no está mal. Sin embargo, me he guardado otra canción: Listen to this. El disco es bonito pero no llega a brillar en ninguna canción en concreto aparte de esa. ¡Qué voz tan particular la de su cantante!

WT…and I mean this…AF is this doing on here. Three albums of this group???

Felt a bit "and album too fat" nice moments tho'.

Way too much spoken word for me, and the songs just aren't that compelling.

I can’t tell if this guy is singing or having a medical emergency.

Kinda crap to be honest with you

Not really sure why these guys are on this list, even once. It is boring and shite.

more intimate than other DMR albums

Pretty hard to listen to but alright

No standouts

Mer brit pop. Meh

Nja. Lite experimentellt och int helt min grej. Inte rykande dåligt heller.

DMR are an okay band (thumbs up)

Listened Before? N I didn't expect much going into this one - I'm unfamiliar with anything these guys have done other than the Eileen song and I can't stand that song. This album actually made me want to listen to more of their stuff. It's an odd concept - almost a conversation, where they just burst into song sometimes. Almost like a 47 minute nightclub set on an album. I really enjoyed it. Added to Library? Y Songs added to playlist: Listen To This

Any value this might have had was sabotaged by poor pacing and lengthy chatting throughout. Look, I love deep cuts, but Dexys Midnight Runners are pretty much the epitome of "one-hit wonder". Hell, a quick Google search of "one-hit wonder" specifically names them in the AI results: The phenomenon stretches across decades, with certain tracks becoming cultural staples: 1970s: "Spirit in the Sky" by Norman Greenbaum and "My Sharona" by The Knack. 1980s: "Take On Me" by a-ha and "Come On Eileen" by Dexys Midnight Runners. 1990s: "What's Up?" by 4 Non Blondes and "Macarena" by Los Del Rio. 2000s: "Stacy's Mom" by Fountains of Wayne and "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton. So, to say the entire album with their one hit was a must hear experience would have been a stretch, but to also say it about their other albums, too? Mind numbing. But I guess these things will happen when you're under pressure from your publisher to fill out a list of 1,001 albums and don't know what you're doing.

These guys? Wild choice. Maybe they were bigger outside the US? This album gives me insight as to why they didnt resonate.

Well its Eileen again. Before this site was showing me these guys I only knew that. And I would assume most americans at least would say the same thing. But I grew to like their music a fair bit. Its fun music. Generally its fun. This album kinda throws a wrench in that. This is much more subdued and just more of a downer. Lots of spoken word and just slower sadder songs. Much less of the fun horns im used to. Its much less my thing. But its still a decent record. Just probably my least favorite of the first couple records. Not bad in any way just not for me. I have no ill will toward this batch of songs I just prefer the older more energetic albums. Thats what it comes down to. I still liked what I heard im just having a hard time seeing myself coming back to this one.

Not bad. Easy to listen to.

A few good tracks (Knowledge of Beauty, Listen to This, The Waltz) and good vibes throughout. But boy is this indulgent as a record.

I was not expecting to see Dexys Midnight Runners on this list, even less for something other than “Too Rye Ay.” I also wasn’t expecting to enjoy this album as much as I did, from the solid swampy grooves to the spoken word ramblings. Once I got over the uncanny “Werewolves of London” rip, the sassy lyrics of “One Of Those Things” became my favorite moment on the album, followed by the sweet, Van Morrison-esque ballad of “Reminisce Pt. 2.” This is the sad thing about breakout hits: they sometimes obscure an artist’s equally powerful, but less catchy, creations.

Rubbish. Nice pop at times, but it is drowned out by all the whispering.

What a fascinating and strange listen. Think it might be brilliant, but not totally sure. Love that Kevin Rowland constantly reinvents himself, this album being a case in point, and did he invent the album skit?

Quit nice. Verrassend

This album is very funny, so so enjoyable at many times. And I would actually consider it better than what it is if the songs were not that long (many times because of the spoken monologues, which are not actually interesting enough for me to consider them a good or decent addition to the album). The length consumes a lot of the energy of some songs, and some of them are not that great to be so long. It just makes them reflect what lacks of them. But, surely, there are some interesting moments, as well as those violins that I love hearing combined with the popish New Wave of the band. It makes it feel so bright and cheerful that it makes of this album a very lively musical experience, so full of joy.

It’s one thing to spend 11 minutes ripping off your own song, but to write a song, lamenting lack of variety in popular music and with the refrain “They all sounded the same”, and then lay it over the riff from Werewolves of London is a tiny bit hypocritical.

Dexy's doesn't do it for me. Over represented.

I’ve now listened to two (of the apparently three) DMR albums on the list. And neither is the one with their only American hit song. And contrary to the ratings on this website, I’ve really enjoyed both of them very much. I got their first album about six months ago and found it to be a great soulful mix of songs. I was a bit apprehensive today, reading a bit about this album ahead of listening. Lots of spoken parts? A commercial and critical bomb when it first came out? Yes, the spoken parts were a bit much (but also there wasn’t a whole lot), and I can understand why this didn’t sell back in 1985 after everyone would expect another Come On Eileen. But it was a hell of a lot of fun to listen to today. Musically it was all over the place in great ways (loved the Warren Zevon appropriation) and the vocals, while messy, just exude emotion. Standouts were Knowledge of Beauty, One of Those Things, and The Occasional Flicker. Respect to This is What She’s Like, even if it was all over the place. I’m not sure I’ll give it five stars, but I just might.

Pretty good, Too Rye Ay was pretty slapping too. Better maybe? This shit jams! But Idk it's shy of a 4 whatever. Good day.

A slow starter, but a solid enough album overall even if it is a bit plodding at times. “Listen To This” and the end of “This Is What She’s Like” the highlights of the album.

Sonoridade legal, não vai mudar a vida de ninguém mas é uma escuta divertida. Popzinho básico para desligar a cabeça. Algumas faixas são ótimas, de verdade, mas o disco como uma unidade completa não impressiona tanto. 3.5

It was ok

feels like im on acids

😯

Just kinda generic new wave, the vocals aren't super appealing.

1/2 millioner listens på spotify? vildt nok det er havnet her, gad om der er en grund til det er gået i glemmebogen. Umiddelbart er det ret irriterende... Men det er vel OK, jeg tror bare den her lyd ikke ligefrem ælder mega fedt. Sweet Home Alabama Cover er også meget grineren (One of Those Things), kan seriøst ikke høre andet. 2'er det rykker IKKE min verden det her... Der er sådan lidt talking heads knock off over det på en eller anden måde

Det var da en voldsomt irriterende mandlig vokal på åbningen Hvad er det for nogle horribelt lange snakke-passager hele tiden David Byrne, hvis han var markant dårligere til alt hvad han gør, ville være det her Der er noget super catchy ind imellem, og musikken er velspillet. Jeg kan dog ikke komme uden om, at vokalen er annoying, og at det er dem, der har lavet Come on Eileen, som også er irriterende, og det ligger i baghovedet hos mig. Lyder som jeg forestiller mig, at det ville lyde, hvis man bad Jack Grealish beskrive, hvordan Talking Heads lyder Jeg splittes henad vejen. De catchy elementer er virkelig undeniable, men snakken og nogle af impro-delene stikker helt ud for mig. Produktionen er jo vanvittig på mange måder, men jeg bliver lullet væk, når der bare snakkes (lavt). Uh, den er svær. 2.8

forgetful and pointless

2.5 - Meh

I thought the songs were pretty good. I don’t think they all justified their run times. I got a bit of a giggle out of the dialogue bits.

Competent songs that sound very good. Some daring diverse and long songs, too. I bet this would be fantastic in a live setting, but as an album it didn't really grab me. Faves: Knowledge of Beauty, The Waltz

5/10

Man, I wanted to like this. I really did. I went in open minded. I started it over because I didn’t feel like I gave it proper attention. But… it’s boring. Self-indulgent. And there are two more offerings from this band on the list. Based on what exactly? I thought about giving it a 3. But 3 is too many. 2 Boolean: NO

2.5

The music is… ok. The yippy 80’s singing from the dude always annoyed me.

Excleent album by a band that I only knew from their biggest hit. This singer has a great voice and this album was very varied in terms of musical styles and instruments.

I suppose it's not bad but I didn't find anything here that stood out to me.

Solid stuff. I liked it.

Tutte uguali

Woof that was a bear

Second album proposé après 'Searching For The Young Soul Rebels' que je n'avais pas vraiment apprécié (noté 2/5 - chant dérangeant qui gâche l'accompagnement). Même constat pour ce second album concernant le chant. De plus les morceaux sont inutilement longs, et sans variation suffisamment intéressante pour accrocher l'auditeur. =>2/5

60

Pretty nice, reminds me of my cousin. "Knowledge Of Beauty" was the best song imo

Would I listen again: yeah It was a bit weird and fun. Overall enjoyed but wouldn’t have me running back for more.

Ok, but not much more. ★★★

Loose extended (never-ending) pub-rock jams with vocals by that obnoxious singer. Sometimes the songs are accompanied by a spoken-word conversation instead. Sounds like they were going for a Springsteen thing, but this is tedious and boring.

Very nice

Dude sounds like a cartoon fat guy, but the music is decent.

Could almost be decent, but I cannot stand his voice at all.

How to descibe their sound? Acoustic new-wave (in that it is piano, brass and strings heavy)? Like new-wave/post punk meets pub singalong? Political on One Of Those Things, talking about other pop music and Ireland Spoken word sections are a bit lame Volume is all over the place though Best track - This is What She's Like, One Of Those Things 3 stars

I thought this was a veryyy interesting album. Some really cool songs. Some parts that dragged. As a Zevon fan, I dug the Werewolves of London sampling. The Waltz is a great finish. Might revisit soon

They should have just stopped with Come on Eileen. What a load of trash.

Not super into it

Nope this could've been unheard before I die

This is far from the worst album I’ve ever heard, and maybe one day I’ll regret this review and go back and give it another chance but this album was just so boring. I can’t understand how this album got a place on this album over something original and different like a Primus album or a Gwar album, something interesting and silly or light hearted instead of this filler, waste of time album that just is so average and boring. I listened to this album twice and took away nothing…

Pretty good!

its nice!

nice enough

Man we did not need to hear this. Hated hearing this guy’s voice on this album and nothing memorable at all

I love Dexy’s. Screw all those arseholes who don’t. The second track on this slams, and even dips into a Beach Boys-esque homage. Then they improve werewolves of London. Ya gotta dig.

3/5

“The album was a commercial failure upon release” …ok yes I can see why… “The album was later described as a neglected masterpiece” …😶

Don’t Stand Me Down by Dexys Midnight Runners was an awful listen for me from almost the very beginning. The first track immediately took me out of the album — the vocals sounded like straight gibberish and came across as pretentious rather than artistic. The instrumentation itself is fine, but nowhere near good enough to make up for whatever is going on vocally. Then the song drags on with an extended talking section that feels completely unnecessary, adding minutes of dead air to an already frustrating experience. By the second song, I was already losing patience. It takes forever to actually start, and while there’s eventually some decent energy buried in there, the extended sections and more talk-singing ruin any momentum it builds. Honestly, if they had cut the first couple tracks and opened with the energetic section from song two, the album might have had a chance. Instead, it just keeps indulging itself. Three songs in, I realized I genuinely don’t like Dexys Midnight Runners. I can absolutely see why they’re remembered as a one-hit wonder, because this album is nowhere close to “must listen” territory. Knowledge of Beauty is Werewolves of London. The constant talk-singing becomes more irritating with every track, and none of these five-to-seven-minute songs justify their runtime with anything substantial. Reminisce was the point where I completely lost patience and started skipping ahead. Listen to This was the one moment that actually gave me something enjoyable to latch onto, but that may only be because the rest of the album set the bar so low. Then The Waltz arrived as another seven-minute endurance test that I couldn’t even finish. Overall, this album was a miserable experience for me. Bloated songs, pretentious spoken-word sections, irritating vocals, and very little payoff throughout. Outside of a few fleeting moments of energy, I found almost nothing worthwhile here. 0 stars.

no me encanta la voz, en alguna canción me agobia, pero las canciones son bonitas y tienen buena melodía. estaba leyendo las reseñas y pobrecitos, q mi me encantan las canciones que son hablar sobre la música de hecho esa (reminisce pt2) es de mis favoritas

no thank ya!

Ameno, aveces. Nada del otro mundo. Anticuado ya. No esta mal aunque te puedes morir tranquilamente sin escucharlo sin ningun problema y no creo que lo vuelva a escuhar en mi vida nunca mas.

This album sucks mega ass, and the singer sounds like Randy Marsh as Lorde.

Verbal Meme: Anakin and Padme 4-panel 1. Good news, today's album is by Dexys Midnight Runners 2. Ooh it has "Come on Eileen" on it, right? 3. [no text] 4. "Come on Eileen", right?!?! This album stinks....why is it just a soft rock band jamming for minutes on end while a dude just talks. Gimme the one-hit wonder and throw this shit in the Edgbaston Reservoir.

Feel this needs a remix without the talky, quiet bits, and that Warren zevon homage. Some strong songs behind all the pretentious stuff

Very forgettable.

Really great stuff! Brilliant mix of humour, interesting music and a wonderful voice

This was rough. 2 good songs on here and the rest were just such nothing. The speaking/joke bits just cut any vibe the album was building tbh.

why all the talking? plus the dumb voice, he can't help that. really not in the mood for this today.

I kinda get what he’s trying to achieve with the conversations but it unfortunately takes away from what are some really top tunes! Still great though.

I was only familiar with 'Come On Eileen' and the aesthetic of overalls and straw hats. I like 'Come On Eileen' a lot. It has a lot of variations, all of them good. It sounds sweet with a longing for love that sounds genuine. A lot of that I attribute to Kevin Rowland's unusual vocal timbre. This album is pretty far, musically, from the big hit single from their previous album. Most of the songs are long, most of them are chill. There's a lot of time spent on conversations that are meandering, and often funny, over a groove. All the aspects I like about Come On Eileen is present here, although the pop structure isn't. This is a hodgepodge of Blue Eyed Soul and New Wave with string arrangements. A third of the lyrics I couldn't parse through Rowlands thick accent. Doesn't matter. The melodies of the songs are so good, and his vocal melodies are even greater. I don't think I'd have ever listened to this without an extra push. I thought it was great. In it's favor, it's a good album to just put on and listen through, rather than cannibalize its best tunes for playlists.

Nothing here, annoying voice, empty songs Only one album left to go. 1.5

Wasn't very excited to see it pop up, especially with another album to come after this. Appreciated the greater experimentation on this and found it interesting to listen to.

no le di mucha bola para ser honesta pero son los q hacen come on eileen así q lol

Honestly, it's better than I expected. It's also way more talking than I expected. Why is he talking all the time? Some of the songs are pretty decent, some of them sound like they're meant to be a joke. And then there's just a lot of talking. Every time you think it's just a little bit of talking for an intro, it just ends up being more talking.

The band is tight, but the vocals drag this one to the bottom of the pile.

Is this the second album on this list? Why?

Already 2nd album from this Band I am getting on the list. I feel this time I am enjoying them slightly more, even marked one song as liked, however I think I am still being overly generous cause this cannot go for more than 3 stars surely.

not very good

Never really got into this band, even with their biggest hits, and this one didn’t do anything special

Enjoyed it, wanted to enjoy it more

No es mi estilo

Completely average ‘pubs clearing out’ music. I think the spoken segments are fun, but I can see why people would get annoyed by them. Songs are very long.

Have heard of Dexys Midnight Runners Had not heard Don't stand me down Had not heard any of the singles. Obviously know C'mon Eileen, great track. Wasn't sure what I'd get with this. First listen and my thoughts were it had moments, but was a bit of a rambling mess at times. A couple more listens and it clicked with me. Yep, it's pretentious, commercial suicide, but I like it. I think it deserves to be on the list and I'm glad to have listened to it.

4/10

Goddammit why is this growing on me so much. I want to hate but it keeps getting better and more interesting. 4/5

Blind album, know the artist. Too Rye Ay was way better. This was not as fun. 2.

Vamos hoy con otra banda que no juno de ningún lugar: nombre, tapa de disco ni canciones. El cantante suena medio Freddie Mercury y la banda, medio Talking Heads. Me coparon algunos temas pero hasta ahí nomás. No siempre se está de acuerdo con una selección, no? De eso se trata, seguramente. Hasta mañana

Não..

Engaging

Might have been a 3 if not for the bad Sweet Home Alabama ripoff.

boring

Didnt really like this one.

Can see why our Noel likes these so much. Yeah some of the songs are long but the conversational aspect breaks it up well and tbf I enjoyed it.

caricature of bad music

first listen forgettable

People didn't like this at the time???? People don't like this currently???? What the fuck???? How can you listen to this and not have a good time? I get the sentiment of "oh the singer sounds a little weird I don't like that" but seriously... The point of this project is to hear "all kinds of different things that you might not normally have heard." And this is definitely that. The weird conversational pieces, the pastiches and even the wholesale lifting of Werewolves of London, the 12 minute long song that's basically just a bit... There's so much beautiful guitar work in this album! The keys, my god! What the hell! You guys really, REALLY didn't think it was funny that the song where they rip off Werewolves of London while lamenting that everything on the radio sounds the same is like, extremely funny? Maybe you're not paying attention? Come on. You, yes you. Did you start using this site so you could hopefully roll into yet another classic rock album you've already heard a million times so you could give it a five out of five and smugly write a blurb about how "nobody really gets it like you do, not anymore?" Try being a little more adventurous. Try being a little more curious. Try to understand and try to seek meaning. I think this site telling you to "rate albums" after hearing them one time is also bogus. You can't give a proper rating after hearing something once. Anyway, open your damn mind. Don't just write things off. LISTEN!!!

Is this a lost masterpiece or just something that doesn’t quite work? I’m still undecided. 𝘋𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘦 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯 feels very deliberate and personal, but also oddly distant. It’s clearly reaching for something bigger than a typical pop album, yet it rarely pulls me in. It’s not hard to see why it struggled — their label didn’t really get behind it, and there’s nothing here that comes close to a follow-up to 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗢𝗻 𝗘𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗻. You can almost hear the gap between expectations and what the band actually wanted to make. There are moments where it nearly comes together, but as a whole it never fully clicks for me.

Why have I had to listen to THREE albums by a one hit wonder band? They are a one hit wonder for a reason. There was a lot of talking on this album weirdly. It wasn't the worst thing I've ever heard, but I never want to hear it again.

kind of shocked by how much i liked this record, i didn't really have any expectations for dexys beyond the big hit. the whole record is really fun but the standouts for me include "This Is What She's Like", the interpolation of "Werewolves of London," and literally any time a twangy country guitar appears. i actually thought the spoken word was fun, too. it was a nice throughline. good on ya, dexys.

"Come on Eileen" was the only song in their oeuvre I was familiar with. Having listened to this album I can understand why. It's a poor album and certain mumbly bits just pissed me off.

A bit annoying.

It was ok

interesting album, will revisit

I listened to this a few times but never got into it. Soft neutral.

Enjoyed this - slightly mad.

The critics and the buying public were right about this at its release. It pretty much sucks.

This is surprisingly fantastic

Enjoyable enough I suppose.

You can drop two of their albums of the list Will I listen to again: 1%

A departure from the formula that made the prior albums successful, this was a critical and popular failure at the time that was so badly received that the band broke up over it. Talking for the majority of the album over rambling music is not worthy of inclusion on the list. 2⭐️

Dexys is a very consistent band, I can understand why they have three whole albums in here. I am more appreciative of them than I once was, when I only knew them as a one hit wonder band. This album might be their best, honestly, I enjoy the format of a short tracklist with longer songs.

Surprisingly good for a band I'd pigeon holed as one hit wonders

Great

Come On... this record is less a forgotten masterpiece and more an album better forgotten. Huge misstep by the band, they stood themselves down. While this isn't as sinister an inclusion in Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die book as J. Timberlake's Justified, the record still earns its one star in other ways.

Sophie - There is not a single need for them to have any songs clocking in at anything over 4 minutes. The style just doesn’t work for me. I’m not a massive Come On Eileen fan, but there’s a reason it’s the only song I know… 1/5

Like most Americans, I only know this band from “Come on Eileen.” There’s some music here that has potential. But it is a pop album with multiple tracks longer than 6 minutes, which might be fine if there were any transitions in the songs. But nope, just the same few chords played over and over with little variation for 6-12 minutes. And lots of talking over the music, instead of singing, which was like watching a terrible movie relying on voice over to tell the story. Didn’t like it.

Poppy. Not terribly annoying.

Solid 80's pop

Only recently became acquainted with this band's first album and I loved it. I don't know anything but the hit from the second album, but I can't stand that fiddle-laden drivel. This one, sits somewhere between those two. There is some good soul-inspired stuff on here, that is reminiscent of their early work but never really hits with the same power. The upbeat numbers are fun and listenable. I really enjoyed the obviously ascorbic satire of shamelessly ripping off Warren Zevon while singing "It all sounded the same" over the top of it. When they slow down and Kevin switches between talking over the music lounge-singer style and full on crooning it is simply unbearable though. It feels like filler and there's just way too much of it on here.

Estuvo lindo y parece muy buen producido. Dicho esto, la maldición de la rockosfera no termina más. Nota: 3.2

Alright, I guess ⭐⭐.75

This is not your sassy Come on Eileen Dexys and considering I'll probably never hear it again, I must say that I did enjoy the album.

Ik mis de wereld van een uur geleden waarin de Dexys Midnight Runners alleen 'Come On Eileen' hebben uitgebracht.

Prepare yourselfs, we krijgen alledrie de albums van Dexys uit de jaren 80 voorgeschoteld door deze generator. Het debuut stamt uit de relevante overgangstijd van Punk naar New Wave. Op de commerciele opvolger staat een knaller van een wereldhit. Daarna verlieten 6 leden de band en maken de resterende 4 leden een popplaat, zonder single, zonder commercieel succes en zonder grensverleggende aspecten van een muziekgenre. Wat doet deze plaat hier dan? Oke, schijnbaar is dit een 'missed masterpiece'. Dan veranderd dan toch weer de manier waarop je naar de plaat luistert. Het is makkelijk om deze af te doen als saai en niet interessant. Maar dan toch... Een track van 12 minuten (This Is What She's Like), het veelvuldig gebruik van spoken word. Het gebruik van een sample uit Werewolves of Londen. Er zitten echt best wel wat interessante elementen in dit album. Dit afdoen als simpele Engelse Pubrock (zie reviews) is echt te kort door de bocht vind ik. 7/10 Highlights One of Those Things

Why did they make me listen to this. Stop talking. The songs are too long. No one wants to hear this

Worst album I have had to endure thus far. Incredibly awful. Constant talking, annoying vocals….. just bad.

I like the few songs of theirs I know. It just never occurred to me to go check them out further. I actually really enjoyed this album abd it's further weirdness.

pretty good

5/10

We've already listened to one Dexys album and I remember really liking that at the start, but slowly liking it less and less. This was kind of a reverse experience: at first I was really annoyed by the vocalist, but they won me back over as the album went on. Ultimately, nothing blew me away, but it was pleasant enough to listen to.

too much yapping

Here we have Dexys Midnight Runners again... for some reason. Yeah, I don't need to tell you that this is not a must-listen album. However, there are things that I can say. Here's the thing. There are things that I can fault Don't Stand Me Down for, but being uninteresting isn't one of them. There are things of note to say here that differentiate this album from Too-Rye-Ay, the earlier album of theirs that I've reviewed. They're not exactly good differences, but they're there. Don't Stand Me Down is not the kind of albums that's meant to succeed commercially, like at all. These guys could've just rested on their laurels and tried to commercialize on the massive success of "Come On Eileen" by trying to make an album of 10 or so copy-cat songs with the goal of making hits, but Don't Stand Me Down is practically the complete opposite of that. In some regards, I respect this album's existence. But, that doesn't mean that I loved listening to it. Okay, to be fair, I didn't hate this. I didn't even dislike it. It's alright. But, it's got issues. The music is actually pretty good. I like the piano on some songs. The piano on "One of Those Things" is especially fun... mostly because it's literally just "Werewolves of London." Yeah, it's not exactly an original song, but I'll give Kevin Rowland this. It's not the worst song to sample "Werewolves of London." I'll take this over Kid Rock any day of the week, and I'll use any excuse I can to hate on Kid Rock. Fuck Kid Rock. Other than that, I thought the opener "The Occasional Flicker" sounded nice. The vocal performance isn't my favorite. One of the biggest complaints I've seen levied against this album is that there's a lot of rambling, and I don't disagree with those complaints. Why "This is What She's Like" had to take 2 whole minutes to start is beyond me. When it gets going, it's actually pretty good, but still, that's kind of a weird decision. In some regards, I do have respect for Don't Stand Me Down. Clearly, there is some level of artistic merit to the album, and the fact that it doesn't compromise its vision for the sake of commercial success is commendable. However, I do find it to be a tad self-indulgent for my taste. It's got some good stuff to it, but the core of the album isn't my thing. 3/5.

very dull, very bland very forgettable

1.5/5, this is ass man, did not need to be on this list for any reason.

Ya know, I gave this a second try. Still dislike it. It’s like listening to Pulp on heroin. 1/5

Good album. What she likes was a 12 minute masterpiece

Even bad Dexys is good Dexys

Flojo

fun

Aż dziwi, że oni nagrali coś oprócz come on Eileen, które niestety nadal jest ich najlepszym wytworem. Sama płyta nierówna, czasem niestety przegadana, ale ma momenty, które wynoszą ją do 6.5/10 równane w górę.

Je ne comprends rien de ce qu’il dit. Mais parfois, quand il chante comme ça, je me demande quelle langue il parle. C’est la que je m’ennuie le moins.

Somebody described this as pub rock and it makes sense. I didn't find anything monumental but I made it all the way through.

My first thought was "are there really 3 Dexys albums on this list"? They're considered a one-hot wonder here in the US, so I hadn't heard this before. Didn't even know it existed. This one's by far my favorite of the 3. Every song had something that drew me in. Didn't care much for the "conversations" in the earlier songs, but other than that, I liked it a lot.

Completely forgettable

I like them! I like this album. I really like "one of those things", I think I've heard it before.

Nothing special or offensive here. Easy listening songs for a drive to work.

5.5/10

2.5

3.5

I did like this one a good bit better than the debut, a good quarter star worth at least. It did start off a bit slow for me. The first two songs really didn't grab me, especially the overlong second one which for 12 minutes song it really doesn't go anywhere. As the album PROGRESSED, I really kind of dug the overall feel. I did note the "Sweet Home Alabama/ Werewolves of London" groove on "One of Those Things"... It made the montra line "they all sounded the same" quite frankly amusing (I don't know ir that was the intent) I do got to say the second half of the album really bump this up for me from the first half. Loved the closer "The Waltz" quite a good bit (7.4) ★★★½

Nice music, dislikes the vocal performance. 3.5 stars

Still not exactly sure why these guys have three albums in this book, but this was alright. The last two songs were probably my favorite. I'm glad Warren Zevon got co-writing credit on "One of Those Things", because after a few seconds, I was pretty sure Kevin Rowland was gonna get a big dish of beef chow mein at Lee Ho Fooks. 3 stars.

A lot more boring and pointless than their other records on here although the singing is still just as annoying. The one recognisable tune of course is the one that rips off Werewolves Of London. Arooooooo! I don’t know what the point was of the chatter at the start of track 2 so I just started imagining that it was the vultures from Jungle Book saying it. (“What are we going to do?” I dunno what do you wanna do?”)

No reason for this here. I like Dexy's but for FFS. Three?

I've listened to Searching For The Young Soul Rebels already. And now Don't Stand Me Down. And in the end, I still have the same opinion: these folks don't belong on the list. Especially without Come On Eileen (and you can be sure as heck the Runners would be nobodies without that single). But is the music on this album any good? Well... sometimes. The Occasional Flicker is a pretty damn strong way to start an album. It packs a piano-bar-esque punch with some decent singing and an incredibly danceable mood. It also isn't that memorable, at least on a first pass. In contrast, the later track One Of Those Things has a very similar mood, but with a simple chord progression (V-IV-I) that is absolutely hammered into your head for 6 minutes. And still manages not to get annoying. Hence: a better song. The issue with This Is What She's Like becomes obvious from the get-go: two minutes of British muttering to start off a 12-minute track. Admittedly, it does get better after the opening section. I'm not particularly convinced until the section around the 7-minute mark, which has an arrangement intensely reminiscent of late-60s/early-70s Beach Boys (their best era of music). The vocal delivery morphs into something bizarre, best described as "aggressive, tipsy Elvis". Sprinkle in a little Elton John, too, with the piano- and horn-heavy section towards the end. I was expecting a prog track, but this is just... weird. In a good way. I *think* Knowledge Of Beauty is a strong track. Strings and organs have a way of giving "good song" vibes even if the song isn't good. But we have other clues. The chord progression is something like IV-I-VIIb-I, which makes for a great anthemic outro section. Reminisce - Pt. 2 takes a page from the Lou Reed handbook by speaking weirdly overly a fairly innocuous instrumental part. (I'm referencing The Gift.) Unfortunately for the Runners, I can only put up with that gag so many times, and this is not one of those times. The present song is pretty boring and I'm glad to get past it. Listen To This is a relative return to form, again hitting a weird middle point between a few Elvises (mainly Presley and Costello), perhaps with some Elton John influence sprinkled in. The Waltz is a fine closer – nothing spectacular – but a 6/8 time signature isn't a waltz. I feel cheated. 3/5 Key tracks: Knowledge Of Beauty, One Of Those Things

hmmp First listen for me not bad. They are not what I expected. My only previous knowledge of them was "Come on Eileen".

It's okay

I feel as though I am a Music Enjoyer. I hand out a lot of favorable ratings because I like it when things go into my ears and sound good, and not much sounds bad to me. I like rap, I like rock, I like jazz, I like harsh noise, I like country, I like hardbass, I like metal, I like Bronx drill, I like video game OSTs, etc. It's very rare for me to find something that I just can't listen to. This is an absolute fucking drag to listen to. It is actively putting me to sleep as I'm writing this. There's a difference between slow music and just... whatever this is. I don't see the musical value nor do I see the artistic value here. The constant yammering between the few bits of repeated strums and vocalizations is driving me up the wall. PLUS the way that goddamned accent hits my ears. It's just grating at some points. I would never listen to this again. The band is a one hit wonder FOR A REASON.

I like a lot of things about this album but some of the tracks just feel a little overly long and there were some other odd choices made when it comes to mixing (which I do know were likely intentional but that doesn't make me like them lol). The production, lyrics, vocal direction etc are sublime but I'm not sure if I'll listen to this one again. I think I'll listen to some of their other stuff though.

So British it hurts, more talking than singing, and each song is far too long. The entire time I felt like Tim Heidecker at the opera. No more bullshit!

yeah I gave up this was just Yorkshire boys yapping and forgetting to play music about halfway during a lot of these songs. I did not find it endearing just discordant and unfocused in a bad way.

only knew this band from come on eileen, a song i really dislike. happy to report this album is nowhere near as obnoxious to me as that. kind of a broad-strokes palette of new wave music, hearing berlin trilogy bowie, television, david byrne, and XTC in here. i think for the most part these tracks stay in their groove for a bit too long, not shaking things up quite enough to justify the length; funny enough the longest track by far, this is what she's like, fully earns its twelve minutes to me. unfortunately though i don't think it does quite enough to shake itself free of its obvious influences. this could go up later but for now a 3.5 feels about right. EDIT: this actually rocks. this whole thing is taking the piss out of us and we got fucking played. idk how a track about how all music nowadays sounds that same that interpolates one of the most interpolated tracks of all time flew over my head. plus the musicianship is great.

I would say it's flawed in a very charming and lovely way.

I can see some of what they're doing here. I can see hints of brilliance, lush production, cool ideas. This Is What She's Like's length and spoken word intro are pretentious nonsense. It's 3 songs stitched together, it's great but also exhausting. Reminisce Pt. 2 is mostly a spoken word track and is more pretention seeping into the record. There are neat things in here but the album is so uneven it's almost unlistenable to as an album for me. The Occasional Flicker and Listen To This are great, they're upbeat, they've got a good groove - Listen To This especially feels like a Dexy song. Fun times. Knowledge of Beauty and The Waltz are your ballads - your emotional anchors. The Waltz in particular is fantastic if you like that kind of emotional ballad (Or really, protest song but it feels like a ballad to me) but I just don't. Don't Stand Me Down is mostly brilliant but for me, and my taste, it's mediocre.

I haven’t heard this before. I’ve listened to their first two albums and thought they were alright. There are some decent songs on here but once it starts getting some momentum, new song will start with a minute or more of talking before the music starts. There is a 7 minute long song ripping off Werewolves of London, and there is another 11 minute long song with 2 minutes of talking before going into a medley that ends with 5 minutes of a rip off of Come On Eileen. It’s overall a rambling mess.

Wasn’t sure what to make of this before listened. Dexys, the super mega agreed fantastic hit. This the follow up album that somewhat bombed on release. Initial, that’s interesting by end of day love it. Yeah the talking was initially confusing but when got into it all made sense and as said love it. Great slow burn of a record, really a bit of a lost gem. This is why I keep doing this list,4 Stars, definitely adding to my physical collection.

ascaaa

molto carino, approvo. però non il top

Really amazing album first listen

Genuinely one of the most self indulgent, pretentious albums I have ever listened to. There are some good musical ideas here I like, but they are separated by the sound of this guy disappearing so far up his own arse he can see daylight again. I don't regret listening for the experience but I doubt I would revisit. 2 Stars

Although this was a commercial failure, Uncut magazine described it as a "neglected masterpiece." So I went into this with an open mind. But I've got to agree with the Trouser Press review: "a torpid snore that denies entertainment on every level." This is one of the more boring albums I've ever listened to. As if they were trying to put me to sleep, the band decided to take a boring song, "This Is What She's Like," and make it 12 minutes long. The album is not even that bad, it's just boring.

Come on Elieen is great, I don't need 46 minutes of not it.

Not bad, not great either

The twangy 'knowledge of beauty' has a great country arrangement with violins and lap steels, the rest is all brassy pop and wierd soul pastiche with nasal vocals and lots of energy.

Boof, I hate this dude's voice. It's like his nose is stopped up and he is trying too hard to sound like he is from the 80s. Very froggy and forced, I hate it. I think this is two stars, simply because the rest of it is just fine - but I would def judge someone who said this was good music.

Fuck off Eileen

Just didn’t think it was very good…and why is it on this list?

I would go out of my way to never listen to this album again, but it wasn't quite bad enough for 1 star. It constantly sounded one small step from breaking into too-rye-ay. I hated the weird vocals, the talking, and the sudden dips in volume for no reason. When it all came together, it was maybe pub-band quality, nothing more, a pretty awful 2 star album that I took great relief in finishing listening to.

Some decent toetapping music.

ke mu dadam vtora shansa nekogash, na rati go slushav ama ne mi ostavi nekoj poseben vpecatok

Very gen X and not in a good way.

The band is good and when he sings it's great, but the rambling conversations throughout ruins what could have been a decent album.

This is very odd, not phased by the talking parts necessarily but they don't really do anything for me and the whole thing just feels like a bit of a fever dream. It sounds a bit like a record put together to get out of a label contract on purpose, which I don't think was the intention. Kind of impressed by how it comes together but I don't like it - 2*

Okay this was a step down from their others

didn't expect them to sound like they did. I mean I've only heard Come On Eileen before this and this didn't stick with me at all

Not for me

"Don't Stand Me Down" offers a precious blend of the acoustics, including a great piano usage, and vocals that are in place. The first few tracks are especially lovely in terms of emotion, while the later part of the album is increasingly mournful. The music is rich, well-crafted and has a great balance of gentleness and liveliness. Pretty much every track has a complex and interesting composition. I also highly enjoy the random chatting stuff accompanied by good music as in "One of the Signs". This, along with songs 1, 2, and 7, would be my picks from the record, while the others, being a bit off the mark, are still good. It isn't an easy choice between four and five, but I'll go with the latter for the delight in the nuanced music of the album. Maybe it doesn't keep the the excellence all thoughout the runtime, but the better parts truly stand out, they are rich in good music choices and vary among themselves, making this album a decent entry om the 1001 list. Sort of 4.5 but leaning to 5 on the scale used here; a marvelous work by the Runners.

Did not care for this at all. His voice was very annoying. 03-12-2026

Not so great.

There should be a law that every Dexys Midnight Runners' album has to have Come On Eileen on it.

Yeah not sure why this is on the list

It’s good to know they have diversity but three of these albums??? This is what she’s like really needed to be 11 minutes long? It’s fine it’s just another album in a row where I know I will never listen to anything on here ever again.