Don't Stand Me Down

Not good. I don’t even know why. It’s just like… noise… sound. Only song I kind of liked was One of Those Things and that’s only because it samples Werewolves of London. (1.5 stars)

I've really enjoyed these guys in the past, but this one just didn't do it for me. A bit too repetitive, and the talking bits were cool in the first song but got a bit much.

Ignore it.

Better than I expected but didn't jump out at me. Will revisit but not ready to commit a fourth star.

Well, this is disappointing. I had no idea when I listened to "Too Rye Ay" that there could possibly be more Dexys Midnight Runners in our future, largely because it seemed like a novelty-esque album and not much there (but still a fun enough album). I'm not really sure they count as a one-hit wonder band, but this album only reinforces that they had only so much to share with the world, and I'm kind of dreading listening to their debut album some future day from now. On *this* album, though, the (relative) high points were probably "One of those things" (despite blatantly stealing Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" riff, and only attributing it much later in an album re-release) and the closing "The waltz", while the unending meander of "This is what she's like"--trying to be a quasi-Bohemian-Rhapsody--is (hopefully) their cumulative nadir, an unintentionally melancholy version of something from "Too Rye Ay". It's not their fault that the "1001 albums" editors chose to include Dexys' entire discography (at least from the 80s), but that doesn't mean we have to enjoy everything they throw at us. And despite the glowing review in the "1001 Albums" book, and however much Kevin Rowland agonized over pointless details across the many months of recording this, I'm very comfortable in opining that this album doesn't belong in the collection, sadly.

I'd like a little less talk and a little more rock.

ok

< the Beatles As many people have pointed out already, why the fuck are there THREE DMR albums on this list. The first one was enough to show that they were more than one hit wonders. This is the biggest evidence yet of the extreme English/UK/Ireland bias this list has.

2.5 stars. Tries to break out of the standard 80's pop sound but is a bit tough to listen to at times. Rowland's singing voice can be annoying. Enjoyed some of the snarky lyrics in "One Of Those Things". Standout is "Listen To This". Would like to re-visit at some point when in the right mood to get into it.

Alright, nothing stood out but nothing offensively bad

Kinda boring in my opinion. Wasn’t a super big fan

This was a pretty good album. Their first two albums were definitely more energetic and horn driven, but this one leans heavily into soulful new wave and sophistipop. Even though it’s a full length album, it only has seven songs, so they clearly focused more on the songwriting, and crafting longer, more introspective tracks than what you’d expect from their earlier work.

- The Occasional Flicker, is about the whole song too long, and for some reason has a rambling section about heartburn… The album doesn’t start strong and then the next song is an outrageous 12 minutes plus and opens with a un-inspiring monologue which goes nowhere and leads into a mopey vocal section, then like a weak clap of English thunder, POW, it kicks right off with a classic 80s snare hit, and we are out of the gates and out of second gear, finally! But only into third gear at a push, though it’s a marked improvement. The song is painfully stop start, but each time it picks up, it has something to offer, though it feels there must of been a better way segway these sections, rather than complete collapses in the song. The third track is a typical ballad, with a country taste, and the terrible spoken word bollocks that plagues this record. I must say my introduction to this band, is one of horror, it’s only 7 tracks, so it’s hard to believe it is this difficult to endure. One of Those Things, is just Sweet Home Alabama… If I had to pick a highlight it is Listen To This, the most focused effort on the record. ⭐️

It is really strange that a band that is essentially a one hit wonder has 3 albums on this list. This album really could be left off. It isn't bad, but nothing really stood out. A lot of the songs feel too long as well. Mid 3.

Favorite Track: One Of Those Things

“Come on Eileen” is the only song I know from this group and prior to this, I realize I’ve never seen them before lol. Yeah come on Eileen is the only song I needed to hear. I fear I can see why they were one hit wonders.

These songs are not good enough to be this damn long

Ok

The only moment that stood out was the obvious lift of the “Werewolves of London” riff on "One Of Those Things." Beyond that, this is an incredibly dull and forgettable album with nothing worth revisiting.

Loved this. What a great ride. 5*

3/10 Aside from the hits, Dexys is a band that I’ve never spent much time with. Looking at the history of this album, I suspect this wasn’t the best place to start. It wasn’t well received, happened after the band had shed over half its members, and they ended up splitting not long after its release. In all honesty, I can see why. There are some real indicators of quality that bubble along under the surface here, and the band are clearly skilled players, with some really great bass playing a particular highlight. But they spend a lot of their time getting in their own way, particularly when it comes to the vocals and spoken word sections. Kevin Rowland has a very particular way of singing, but it also seems to be delivered in levels, so sometimes the affectation is fairly mild and works really well and others, like the opening track, he sings with the slurring mispronunciation of a deaf person who is speaking based on a life of lip-reading rather than hearing speech. At least it’s tuneful for the most part. They also seem determined to make every song as long as they possibly can. You could probably make a pretty good version of some of these tracks by trimming them to 3-4 minutes, but having to hear compositions that don’t offer vast variation over a 12 minute period is just hard work. The spoken word sections are seemingly intended to evoke some sort of concept or narrative across the album, but either the message didn’t really get to me, or they never really committed to the process, because they often just felt tacked on and unnecessary. All in all, this was a bit of a jumble that could probably have been made into something decent with another round of studio time and a good producer, but unfortunately it ended up being a swing and a miss. The Occasional Flicker - This is kind of plodding and Kevin Rowland seems determined to sing in his most extremely affected way. The actual track is pretty good. There are some great piano lines in particular, but it all drags on too much and spends too much time being hidden by the warbling vocal that descends into having a chat for a good chunk of the song. There’s a good song in there somewhere, but they didn’t find it. This Is What She's Like - A minute of inane chatter from one paranoid friend to another. Ok. Then another minute of very drawn out intro. When they bother starting the track, it’s not bad. When singing like this, Rowland’s vocal style is a bit less annoying. The vocal melody is pretty meandering though, but the chorus hook is pretty good. The breakdown section in the middle is quite nice and there are some good harmonies as things build back in, before things kick up a gear, which is pretty good, before another inexplicable pause. I feel like this could have been a really good 4-6 minute track, but it’s a meandering 12 minute epic without enough ideas or range to justify it. Knowledge Of Beauty - This is nice enough, I just don’t feel they’ve done enough to earn the patience for a track like this. It’s fairly pretty and has a nice little country twist, but the vocal is way too loud in the mix, and it’s way too long and it sounds a bit like Kevin’s been drinking quite a lot as the song goes on and he’s had too much by the end. One Of Those Things - There’s a bit of cool swagger to this track. The spoken vocal actually kind of works here as part of the intro. The track has a good vibe, but it just doesn’t really go anywhere. There’s some really good playing in there. Solid bass playing in particular, and the band are doing good work to add musical variety, but the core structure just keeps on plodding. It all sounded the same indeed. Reminisce Part Two - Another rambling spoken intro. Only it’s not just the intro, it’s the whole song. The music in the background is nice enough, but this just feels a bit of a jumbled, directionless record at this point. Listen To This - Here comes something better! There’s more structure, the vocal works better with the track and it feels altogether more coherent. It’s not a brilliant track, but it’s pretty good. There’s a bit of urgency to things and there are some nice little riffs here and there, and there’s a bit of dynamic and variety too. The Waltz - Another meandering, country tinged track. Again, nice touches here and there, the piano playing being a highlight, but it’s just a bit rambling and WAY TOO LONG. If you’re going to write songs this long, they have to offer something to justify the length. This does build, drop and build again, but it takes too long doing it and it just drags because of that.

pretty good for easy listening type shit. but nothing fabulous

Dexy Music? This band is like a B-Rate Roxy Music with all of the worst excesses of that great group amplified to the max. Why do we need so much unintelligible muttering over 12 minutes of a same and unchanging dance groove? I'm glad this band didn't really make any more records.

4/10. No termino de entenderlo porque no le he hecho mucho caso (la mayor parte del disco he ido conduciendo). Estoy seguro de que si lo escucho atentamente, me va a gustar, porque recuerdo partes que me han sonado a Queen o a la ELO, así que por semejanza, seguro que me gusta, pero me da pereza volver a escucharlo.

There was too much to unpack on this one from one listen. Putting a 12 minute track as your second song with various passages of music and even conversation, it’s a difficult one to piece together and needs more time. The album recovers well though with the best track and the well known _One of these Things_. So this didn’t exactly land on first listen but there’s enough here to revisit.

holy shit like i don’t mine dexys midnight runners (i actually think they’re quite alright) but why is every SINGLE fucking album they ever made on this list. if u hear one you’ve heard all of them. enough. Does dexys midnight runners and Elvis costello have some form of dirt on the fucking author of this stupid list or what is going on? the album was actually alright but since im so fucking tired of seeing them all the time, i feel like giving them less

hmm boring, maybe just wrong time and place cause i like their other albums on this list

eh wtf.

Didn"t mind it. Pleasant enough music, a little hard to hear what he is saying. Weird Werewolves of London rip off song

Great surprise! Especially as this album seems to be considered something of an act of self sabotage. I only really knew Geno, Eileen and Jocky. Obvious (longform) Van influence - Reminisce also sounds like it may have been the template for Pulp's David's Last Summer.

I hadn’t listened to this album for a good number of years, and I was sceptical to say the least. I remember it being the weakest and least approachable of their three early releases. As a self-confessed northern soul fanboy, I’m admittedly smitten with SFTYSR, but always thought DSMD was too self-indulgent. It can be hard to access this album. I can totally understand why people might find Rowland’s “vocals” grating, and the rambling dialogue is it best a strange concept, but upon reflection, I think it works well, for example, in building up the revelation of what she is actually like. Long story short, I really enjoyed this revisit. There’s some fine tunes underpinning the album and if not a masterpiece, then it certainly deserves my recognition and a second look. Dexy’s for the win. Again!

I'd score it higher if there wasn't talking on the album!

Meh it was alirght 3 stars. I like their voice. I could have sworn that was Freddy Mercury on the second track.

Yeah the songs never ended they were like a loop. A few really long songs I didnt like amd couldnt wait for them to finish.

7.5 Very cute and nice record! Love all the jolly fanfare etc need to listen again when I can actually hear the quiet talking bits my earphones aren’t great so it just sounded like minutes of silence in between the songs lol

that was a long early song. These 80s pop albums always seemed semi experimental, but a lot of times just ended up kind of dull.

british people do not make good music

The only thing is album inspired me to do was look up a thesaurus and look up synonyms for dreadful. There's appalling, atrocious, awful, dire, frightful, ghastly, harrowing, hideous, repulsive. Just to name a few. All describe this album and this band.

There’s a reason the and broke up after this one hit the shitter. No reason it makes any list of good albums.

There are pieces that could have been a hit in the album, but any cohesion was out of their minds when they were doing the album recording. Music from other countries should be more represented than a repeated artist that failed to seize the zeigest.

The music was fun to listen to, and I enjoyed a bit of the dialogue back and forth with the band. However, the chatter overstayed its welcome, and I just wanted to get back to the music.

Best Song: Listen to Me I wish I could understand this, we get one James Brown album but the "C'mon Eileen" band we get three albums from. And, they are NOT anywhere near worthy of three albums on here. Sad and a waste of my time. 2/5.

Sounds like the music that would play in the background of an 80s comedy

I could stand two Dexys albums on the list, they were both pretty good. But this third one just doesn't belong here at all, it was a total slog to get through. You can tell they were going for a bit artistic statement here, but just fall flat on their faces by not having a single memorable melody or musical idea. Maybe that was the idea, maybe they wanted to move away from the accessibility of their previous work. Even if that's the case, it should have been way more interesting than this grey blob.

I think this was good, but I wasn't really blown away by it, which I am slightly sad about. I want to give it another shot but first impressions are what I am scoring these albums on

Fun album

nice follow up to "C'mon Eileen". More polished and tight

For the most part couldn't understand lyrics. It sounded like a lot of mumbles and I didn't understand why I was listening to it

'One of those things' being just okay and how chill 'reminisce pt 2' was have narrowly saved this from being a 1. 'Listen to this' came in like a nasally jumpscare. How do you have a 12 minute song and still manage to make all the others feel too long. This could have very easily been a 1 and perhaps it still should be. 'the waltz' is 8 minutes long. Nevermind. This shit is a 1.

My final Dexy's Midnight Runners album! When I went in I was like "oh, it's only 7 songs, that's not so bad" but then somehow every one of those 7 songs was 10 minutes long, which is honestly so detrimental to the album as a whole. I don't hate this music style, but we've had better examples of it already on this list (and on other DMR albums), so at the end of the day this just feels like unnecessary filler.

Cool music to listen to!

This was a bit of an odd album. Seemed to blend into the background for the most part. It hints at being interesting but never really delivers it. I was only familiar with their singles previously, so had higher hopes. It is executed well enough (aside from the pretentious talking sections) but overall, it was just a bit dull.

This reminds me of Roxy Music, without any of the pathos or art.

2.5/5

Wow - that was unbelievably bad. No wonder they disbanded

54/1089 This isn’t for me, especially because of the vocal styling, i’m really not a fan of when it feels like a singer sounds like they’re forcing their voice to sound “quirky” or kinda warbly and deepened, which is already quite prominent on The Occasional Flicker The instrumentation is fine though, i could see myself enjoying that more with a different vocal. I love the conversational start of This Is What She’s Like but it would be better if it were turned up a little. i like the change ups for the second half of This is what she’s like One of Those Things is a classic and an easy standout, it has such an easy going vibe and the chatting over the music is pretty effective here 2 stars or 48/100 it’s a fine album not to my tastes, the score would move up to a 3 star if it had vocals that i found less irritating

Just meh

Come On Eileen is a medley of their greatest hit. Every other song is blah.

Penile implants, perhaps?

Blah

Didn’t like this one. The talking sections were terrible and I never realised that Dexys did One Of Those Things, I HATE that song.

Meh

It's OK. There are some pretty parts but most of it sounds kind of pointless.

Puede ser una de las peores portadas que he visto en mi vida. Las canciones están pasables, pero está forma de cantar sólo es aceptable como jingle publicitario. No sé si he terminado de escucharlo, porque este señor se queda a vivir en tu cabeza como un anuncio de pizzas precocinadas. En fin, un coñazo.

På pappret borde jag älska det här albumet. Älskar ju soul och brittisk musik, men det låter lite väl plastigt och rent röstmässigt ganska svagt. Mellansnacken mellan och i låtarna blir för långa och förstör rytmen i skivan också. Tyvärr alltså. Musiken är ju fortfarande bra dock!

Come on, Eileen. You really only had one good song?

This is definitely a product of the 80s. They lean into a lot of the same sounds throughout the album, which echo "Come on Eileen." Which leaves me wanting to abandon this album for that track, which is overall more polished and has more life to it. I do love the bassy, desperate sound of "Listen to This".

Yikes. There was a reason these guys were a 1 hit wonder.

Very bland.. Like a vegan meal.

What garbage! I cannot believe this is the same band that wrote Come On Eileen.

I really don't like saxophone in songs, lol.

There was The Occasional Flicker of something good with this album, but overall, I don’t think I would Listen to This again.

It’s the band’s third and final album on the list, and at least I can take comfort in knowing I’ll never have to endure another one.

Why why why is this band so beloved. They’re terrible.

A little boring.

Wasn't a fan of this, and I think this was the worst of the Dexys albums we had to listen to.

This was a pretty good album. Their first two albums were definitely more energetic and horn driven, but this one leans heavily into soulful new wave and sophistipop. Even though it’s a full length album, it only has seven songs, so they clearly focused more on the songwriting, and crafting longer, more introspective tracks than what you’d expect from their earlier work.

Repetitive and grating.

One hit wonders for a reason.

‘The Occasional Flicker’ was Len’s nickname for his 31st wife. She was never satisfied! 3.5 7/7 The Waltz

neglected masterpiece

Knowledge of Beauty is a pretty alt-country ballad. I can do without the unintelligible mumbling. The irony of One of Those Things sounds A LOT like Werewolves of London.

The best moments are mediocre pub rock that sound very similar to that other song that’s on the top of your tongue but you just can’t place. Then there are the talky bits that kill whatever English Dad Rock groove you were about to settle into. This didn’t need to be on this list… and astonishingly there are 2 more Dexy’s albums to come apparently.

Meh

Boring and underwhelming

Terrible. Maybe there’s a deeper meaning I didn’t get but this just bounces around with songs that are way to long and a guy with such a thick accent I couldn’t even understand.

Absolutely no reason for them to have THREE albums on this list. I do really like them, but their first two were much better. Seriously, why is this here?

Hated this

I don't know how anyone can fight the urge to listen to come on Eileen and Geno within a few seconds of starting this album.

Drôle de style. C'est vrai qu'on dirait que c'est David Byrne qui est au micro... Là s'arrête la comparaison avec Talking Heads par contre.

Des tounes de 10 minutes où il se passe absolument rien? La voix du dude de talking heads sur les accords de Sweet Home Alabama? Du mumbling sur une track de piano honky tonk un peu désaccordé? Non merci.

Ok album, Félix est un peu rough avec son 1 etoile. Mais en effet des longues tounes qui mènent nulle part, un beat qui copie sweet home alabama, un chanteur pas tant inspiré. Dommage j’aimais vraiment le cover!

I was pleasantly surprised but this one but the talky interludes and quite starts got in the way for me.

The extent of my knowledge of Dexys Midnight Runners is "Come on Eileen" - so this exposure is something else, opening up the doors to what they were beyond the hit. But it's like… this was the last album before the broke up, and it's fitting, because it just doesn't feel like a solid album, but more of a dying rattle.

Today I learned why I did not hear anything from Dexys Midnight Runners after the release of their homage to bukkake, Come On Eileen, went to #1 in the US and was an early MTV staple. They committed commercial suicide with the release of their follow-up album Don't Stand Me Down. Of course, just like The Cure is Robert Smith. Dexys, as they came to be known, is Kevin Rowland. And Kevin Rowland's voice on this album could be related to Robert Smith's voice. Maybe not in the higher register, but definitely mid to low. Like, if their voices are not brothers on this album, then cousins. Aside from the citation of Warren Zevon on One of Those Things in the 1997 re-release, I was also picking up Lou Reed's Satellite of Love vibes on Knowledge of Beauty. I might have even heard a hint of Fleetwood Mac's That's All for Everyone somewhere, but I could not be bothered to listen again to find out. Though not completely without artistic merit, I found this album bland with the conversational elements bringing it down further. Recommended tracks: Warren Zevon's Werewolves of London, Lou Reed's Satellite of Love, Fleetwood Mac's That's All for Everyone and The Cure's A Strange Day.

another "this really isn't my thing," and there were no songs i liked enough to save from this album. i could hear elements in this album that i really liked - i am a sucker for orchestral pop music. but then as soon as i thought i was enjoying myself, the tune would shift into something grating. i wanted to be wrong and end up liking this, but again: not for me!

How does a band that is a one-hit wonder get three albums on this list? Even more important, How does a band that is a one-hit wonder get three albums on this list AND WHO'S WIKIPEDIA PAGE FOR THIS ALBUM SAY: "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." I like Dexy's. I don't love them and even I can say this album does not belong here. 2/5

There's attitude and intent oozing from every single second of this album. I'm not sure I understand all the low scores - this is mesmerising stuff from start to finish so far as I am concerned. (And, yes, that is a complete Werewolves Of London rip-off, you've got me there). Even if I wasn't already a convert, this is exactly the kind of album I would imagine this list should be all about - if it turns out this isn't your bag, you should still hear it at least once in your life. A brilliant, heartfelt, unorthodox pop classic.

Interesting but a bit boring

It has some nice tunes which are cool but it’s not that great if you listen to the whole record.

Ugh im so disappointed :( the only song i knew (and LOVE) by them before hearing this album was Come on Eileen, so my expectations were slightly high. I just could not get behind the leads voice i dont know:/ i found myself just waiting for the album to get better so i stuck it out and kept listening but his vocals just werent quite there for me and i felt distracted by that to enjoy much else of any of the songs :/

I was really excited to hear this after reading that this is a lost classic but I dont see it. Decent bur nothing extraordinary.

idr

I liked some of the music. But not enough to think it deserved to be on this list.

Wow... another Dexys album... That is fucking crazy. Let me just recap what I said the last time I got an album from them that no one had ever listened to: "I know judging a band by their spotify listens is hardly the best way to go but how can you call a band anything but a one hit wonder when the 3 most listened to songs on the platform are all different recordings of the same fucking song?? And that song isn't on this album." This album was still listenable. Nothing amazing but fine.

A Dexys Midnight Runners' album *without* Come On Eileen? All in all, not bad, but not great.

Favorite Track: One of Those Things

Maybe this is one of those albums that you have to listen to loads of times to really get it, and listen intently. On a couple of listens across one day I get the sense there is something interesting there, but I am not investing a lot of time to concentrate on it. I had not heard dexys much before, but I was a fan of Dogs Die in Hot Cars and now I realise how much they were inspired by dexys

Music & unintelligible mumbling

Good record and it reminds me a lot of the Pet Shop Boys, Duran Duran, and The Cure! It’s really good!

How is this on the list? Nobody needs to hear it. It failed, because it sucked donkey farts.

boring

Nice bass, cliche lyrics, weird lead singer, is it pop? But really can’t say it is rock.

4.5

80s New Wave. Broke up because album did so badly. Bowie coded. An ok album.

Too much talking but this picked up in the second half. Last couple of tracks were good if extremely British. High 3.

A little better than I expected (and certainly better than their best known song -- C'mon Eileen -- that I absolutely hate), but still nothing special. Some touches of "blue-eyed" soul that weren't bad, but it wouldn't be on my list.

I’m floored that this band got more than one album with so many essentials missing. I will say that it was much more soulful than I expected and pretty fun to listen to. “One of those things” is just werewolves of London right?

I love Come on Eileen so I’m excited for this album. It’s got a good groove in the first song. My favorite song is either The Waltz or The Occasional Flicker.

Meh

a great singing voice horribly wasted on the british. the instrumentals set a good chill vibe but it's constantly ruined by the vocals. how do you have that voice and that vocal control and you use it to do... whatever this was? and is making albums of casual conversation over nonoffensive backing music what men did before they invented podcasts? normally i'm all for experimental music and concept albums, but i wouldn't count this among the "must listens".

Pretty good

Listened whilst cleaning bathroom and doing chores on 11th August. Interesting album at times, but a bit of a snooze fest. Lead singers voice started to grate on me.

third album of theirs on this list....so far... I just DON'T get it! this one was shorter and less mad than the others, so was preferred, but not for me in any way, shape or form

Fascinating album—you can hear a lot of new wave influence on here. There are parts that sound as if someone lifted The Talking Heads and dropped them in the UK. Is it the best album? No, but if you go into it with a curious mind you’ll get a good bit out of it.

Miksi välillä piti kuiskia, olisiko ne pitänyt kuulla ymmärtääkseen kokonaisuuden? Nyt meni muuten ohi, heräsin vain kun kuulosti kumman hiljaiselta. Efekti sekin.

I can understand why they disbanded after this album.

Music was kind of cool- not into the talking parts

Oduševljena sam vokalnim sposobnostima za koje nisam znala. Neki dijelovi su zaista dobri, ali generalno je dosta zbrkano. Mogu oni i bolje.

Really dull.

Not a fan

This album is annoying. Every song had at least one thing that sucked. The constant talking in the songs. The vocals. Ughh.

Oh my god why is every song either a spoken word interlude or 10 minutes, pick a lane.

Not my jam at all. There was nothing of interest for me here.

Once you realise Kevin Rowland sounds like Vic Reeves club singer you’ll never go back!

Don't Stand Me Down seems like Dexys Midnight Runners' attempt to save themselves from "one hit wonder" status after making mega-hit "Come On Eileen", unfortunately, it seems like this may have sealed the deal. Don't Stand Me Down was a critical and commercial failure at the time, but there has been a bit of a critical shift over time towards the narrative that this was more a work of messy, misunderstood genius. And I will say, the components of the story are there, but I'm not sure I buy it. There are some daring and baffling aesthetic decisions made across this album, however nothing near daring or baffling enough to justify just how much of a mess this comes across as. The biggest sticking point for a lot of people seems to be the vocals, which are admittedly kind of odd. It is very sort of deep and deadpan, and sometimes it feels kind of out of key, but it sort of feels intentional. Regardless, I still have some problems with the intonation and annunciation. It feels like Kevin Rowland is trying to intentionally lean into his voice's quirks, but it kind of sounds like he is almost making fun of himself in a few of the more particularly sour moments of delivery here. Although, I will say, I could see these vocals working in a punk-ier setting. Another sticking point here is the spoken word aspect. Kevin Rowland was interested in working "conversations" into the middle of these songs, which is an idea I'm sure *someone* could have pulled off. However, the execution is *extremely* clunky, the mix usually renders the conversations nearly inaudible, and maybe most importantly, no one seems to be saying anything interesting. It is an experience akin to catching a few words from a conversation a table over while eating in a restaurant. On top of it a lot of these songs are just kind of boring to me and they really can't justify the incredibly long runtime on most of them. Most egregious may be One Of Those Things, which basically sounds like a vamp of a couple of bars from Sweet Home Alabama coupled with like a monologue. I can appreciate on some level that this took risks, but when the results are this awkward and unenjoyable, it is kind of hard to award any bonus points.

This is a little bit of a meh playlist, nothing really too exciting but it was alright just having it in the background and it was relatively enjoyable. I assume this was pretty normal music back in the day when it came out, even though there were definitely more exciting things.

It's "experimental" in the way I don't like. I don't know what I'm supposed to think about "music" that is a whole lot of nothing or so quiet it might as well be nothing. This isn't hyperbole, the record started with mostly nothing, then went back to even more nothing, and then wanted me to give a shit, and I couldn't. Outside of the "art," it's actually pretty consistent with their hit. It's never as fun, but it's the closest rednecks will get to being culturally appropriated.

Very boring, and actually kind of annoying. I'm surprised it's on this list.

Dexys Midnight Runners: Don't Stand Me Down: A very solid and chill album. It doesn't stand out too much, but I had a nice time listening to it. 7.5/10

Decent album! Some of the tracks were a little bland but the hits really made up for it overall. I’d say it’s 1:1 great:boring tracks

why is this here

Completely unexpectedly, I really really like this. For the most part, it’s just Kevin Rowland rambling on about this and that, over the top of some extended instrumentals. Given this premise, my expectations were low to mixed. The album exceeded them in unusual ways as it’s not an album full of catchy hooks and choruses but even after 1 listen I had had such a good time with it. Deserves more recognition

sin mas

I don't really understand this album's placement on this generator. The musicianship wasn't enough to save it. The vocals weren't great, the lyrics weren't good, and there is as much talking in this album as there is music. It isn't good. I couldn't find a single thing to like about it.

Also boring

I haven’t spent much time with Dexys Midnight Runners before, so I was excited to give them a proper listen—and Don't Stand Me Down felt like the perfect place to start. I really enjoyed this album. It’s a smooth and engaging listen—I played it three or four times within 24 hours. The standout track for me was This Is What She's Like. It perfectly captures that unmistakable Dexys energy: heartfelt, conversational, and a bit theatrical. Very Dexys indeed. Honestly, every track on the album feels like it belongs; nothing seemed out of place or like filler. The whole album holds together really well as a complete piece of work. As for the artwork, I really like the album cover. It has a clean, understated style that reflects the mature tone of the music. Favourite track: This Is What She's Like Least favourite: None – every song earned its place.

J - 2/5 Best Track - "Listen To This" F - 1/5

I do not care for Dexy’s Midnight Runners. There is no fucking way they deserve 3 !!!! spots on this list

Wel aardig om eens wat meer van deze band te beluisteren, in plaats van dat ene nummer dat je altijd hoort. Het geluid en de stem is herkenbaar, ze zitten onderling nog wat te geinen, maar gaandeweg zakt de aandacht weg, en groeit de irritatie over de jengelstem van de zanger. Dus wat mij betreft houden we het toch maar bij de hit.

Het eerdere album (met daarop wel een hit...) kreeg 4 sterren van mij. Dus benieuwd wat we nu weer krijgen. Toch begin ik te kijken hoelang ik nog te gaan heb. Nooit een heel goed teken. Hoe lang nog dan? We zitten blijkbaar pas aan het begin van nummer 3. Pfff... Niet dat er nooit iets gebeurt op de schijf. Het begint vaak saai, maar gaat nog wel ergens naar toe. Dat merk ik vooral als ik me los kan trekken van die rare stem, het grootste minpunt van dit album. Nu ik dit schrijf heb ik steeds de oorwurm All Summer Long van Kid Rock in mijn hoofd. De boosdoener: One of those things. Ik kan dit de band niet kwalijk nemen. Ze waren een paar decennia eerder. Maar tja...wat moet ik anders over dit album schrijven? Het is verder zó irrelevant.

Dexys Midnight Runners, huh? Die hebben toch 1 oorwurm van een hit en dat album hebben we al gehad. Ik ga uiteraard checken, blijken ze er met alle 3 hun albums in te staan. Wat. Da. Fak. Dan ben ik eigenlijk al gelijk boos, ondanks dat ik me niet meer wilde opwinden over de snobkeuzes. Maar het is toch van de zotte dat er 3 albums van deze one-hit-'wonders' in staan? Het positieve op dit album is dat de zeikerige stem van de zangert, wat meer ingetogen is. Ik zeg ingetogen, want het is niet zo dat hij minder prominent is. Maar het zeikerige komt minder naar voren. Het album heeft veel minder tempo dan hun succesalbum, de nummers zijn veel rustiger en wederom meer ingetogen. Eigenlijk zijn het betere liedjes, minder oorwurmen. Knowledge of Beauty vind ik stiekem best goed. Daarna volgen wel gewoon weer een paar enooooorrrrme kutnummers, dus ik kan alsnog een hekel hebben aan dit album gelukkig. 2 sterren, omdat het te weinig is voor 1 ster. Al doet de zanger nog ongelooflijk zijn best op Listen to This. Valser kan bijna niet.

This was definitely a case where the singer's voice really took away from the quality of the project for me - I could not get over it!

Almost everything I hate about 80s music combined in this Album. Remarkable. Fav: -

It's Dexys Midnight Runners, but not as we remember them - what happening to the energy? A truly boring album that doesn't merit its place in this list.

I don’t see why it gets all the hate that it does. It’s not a great album but it was an ok enough listen to.

This is stupid

Listened to half of it before goong to bed. Not bad. Like the vocals.

A bad album from a one hit wonder that doesn't even include their one hit. It's a stretch to include Too-Rye-Ay on this list, but two additional Dexy's Midnight Runners albums is just ridiculous.

A lot more boring than I expected from Dexys Midnight Runners. Lots of slow, quiet parts that I couldn’t really hear in my car. Too many long songs. Wasn’t a fan.

Finding out that Come on Eileen was basically a sellout for these guys doesn't make me love it any less. And I like this album as well. 3.5

This bloke is a 🚬

+love kevin rowland's voice +full 12 minute ver. of 'this is what she's like' is my favorite +surprised it was rejected by critics and the public

Edgy in a derivative way somehow

This album has the second worst sampling of Werewolves of London in One of Those Things. This whole album feels like someone sick with a fever trying to finish a paper minutes before its due. Just weird asides and conversation in the middle of songs, some guy just outright coughs in the second track. No enunciation at all, just stumbling through lyrics. bad entry.

Not good Dexy! Long indulgent songs with mumbled conversations instead of lyrics is not my idea of a good time. Definitely a One Album Wonder of a band

I like the Dexys but this album didn’t need to be on this list

3.6 Roentgen, not great, not terrible. Wild its reception caused the breakup of the band.

Alright album. I didn't realize this was the same group that did "Come on Eileen" which wasn't featured here, but I hear it now. I think the album tried pretty hard to be bold, so I give it credit for being just that. The 12 minute "This is what she's like" really exemplifies that, and apparently got a 3 minute radio edit months after a poor record sale. But how did it sound? Generally pleasing, just a little too in the background at times. I thought about how the instrumentation is presented most of the time, and there is clearly a huge vocal focus (as with most songs), but it felt even more pronounced. The drums weren't overdone but tried to keep it interesting, and there's a large blend of non-rock instruments to be fresh from most radio hits.

Fantastic surprise!

What do you do after scoring a surprise hit that has you all over MTV? Career reinvention / self-destruction in the Paul Wellee mode. An album of over-long and sometimes aimless pieces of sophista -pop with pointless conversational overlays. But, when it works it works (“This is What She’s Like”) and the album ends up being more enjoyable than it has any right to be. So is it a pretentious abomination or a lost masterpiece? Right smack dab in the middle.

Dexy's Midnight Runners?! Really? I'd question their inclusion on this list at all let alone the three times I've read that they are noted here. I've always considered them to be a one hit wonder, low B or C tier group at best. "One of Those Things" is a direct rip-off of Warren Zevon's Werewolves of London. The lead singer's voice is kind of annoying when he's singing and not just talking through the lyrics. It's not unlistenable but I didn't enjoy it and won't listen to it again.

It's okay - certainly not bad, but nothing here set me alight either.

Just a little bit boring and cheesy. Very "clean" and all that; they're not bad musicians. It was just not very interesting

This album was on my list of CDs to buy as I love Dexys but it was always so expensive, but after listening to it I think it is awful. Yes, Knowledge of Beauty is lovely but it is immediately followed by One of Those Things whose only redeeming quality is that it has the riff from Werewolves of London. I really can’t understand why this has been included, do the compilers of the book NOT want you to like Dexys?

I think I would love this after five listens. It’s good!

Not a huge fan of this vocal style, but they're a lot better than your typical one-hit-wonder. Pretty interesting album.

So somewhere along my time here, I stumbled upon the fact that Dexys Midnight Runners had three albums placed on the list. I don’t know why, but that felt hilarious to me. It’s like Robert Dimey was really into them and pressured people into listening to them outside of “Come on Eileen”. Apparently this is one of those albums that got a so-called “critical reappraisal” after getting not so good reviews when it came out. I hate to them that I don’t get it… actually I don’t. I don’t get it. I’ll be blunt: this was frustrating. There are glimmers of a good album here and I feel the same energy from DMR that they gave from that one song you know. But there’s just too much bullshit here. The songs are too bloated, Kevin Rowland’s vocals get too dopey, and there a lot of fucking talking. Did they think people want to hear them causally talking for a good chunk of the album? If they fixed a few things, I would have thoroughly enjoyed this one. But the fact is that it’s not good. Some things get the praise they deserve years after they come out. This ain’t one of those things. Favorite track: the parts of This is What She’s Like that are a coherent song Other hits: The Waltz, One of Those Things, Listen to This

it sounds ok

I feel like I liked this album more than I should have. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised because “Come on Eileen” is such a banger. Something about the off kilter vocals drew me in. I could have done without the “wearwolves of London” ripoff and some of the dialogue. Other than that I found myself grooving and enjoying fun band.

Quite boring. Not a fan of those vignettes where they talk to each other inanely.

"One of Those Things" sounds like someone singing a terrible song over a karaoke track of "Werewolves of London."

meh

Not a bad album, but nothing on here makes it stand out. A little underwhelming. 2.5/5 Probably won’t listen again

5/10

Please don't bore me with this crap.

Didn’t like this at all on the first listen but on the second listen I enjoyed it. It was definitely a bit odd with all the talking, but it grew on me. Not sure I would listen again, but I’m glad I gave it a second listen. Fav song: The Waltz Least fav: One Of Those Things - it just made me wish I was listening to Werewolves of London

This album was bloody awful. Only one is half-listenable. Why the hell is it making me adjust my volume just to hear what they are saying. Also not in this album but come on Eileen is shit. The main singers voice sounds like a horrid Henry character doing karaoke. Specific rating- 1.2 Fav song- one of those things Least fav- this is what she’s like

So much better than I thought it’d be

4/5. This was a surprising listen, especially after their hit album, which I found good but not great. This one was a lot more enjoyable for some reason, it felt like they wanted to make an album instead of hits. The main downsides were the "skits" during the songs but the raw vocals with the orchestral and big bad energy gave this album a very authentic feel, despite the quality production, which was still to its benefit. I wouldn't say it was perfect but I do think as a whole, this was a pretty complete and succinct album. It was also fun to listen to, so that's always a plus. Best Song: The Occasional Flicker, This Is What She's Like, One Of Those Things

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Nope

Thought I'd like it since these sorts of 80s English pop bands are usually right up my alley, but it was really disappointing. Generally good instrumentals. I'm usually a big fan of weird/unconventional vocals, but this wasn't that I just hate his voice. Sounds like he's trying his hardest to sound as whiny and nasally as possible. I have no problem with talking/monologues in songs, but these were completely rambly and pointless and just completely made me feel like they were enjoying trying to waste my time. If not for Knowledge of Beauty, I would say there's nothing good on this album at all

This was better than I expected it to be. It's not the first Dexys album that's been on here, but I enjoyed it rather more.

I enjoyed the pace changes, the talking was too low and too frequent.

OK - faded away while listening, need to think about listen platform and place

hooting and hollering or yapping over sweet home alabama. there’s no in between and both suck. even eileen can’t save them from this hot mess.

Too much ego, not enough talent

Really liked it, idk why but it was just groovin

Do they REALLY need 3 albums on the list?

Meh. Outside of their big single, I can't really get into this band.

a bit wacky first part, but it got a more structuralist core as it progressed

Two too many from these guys. No thanks.

3.5 pretty good. Couldn’t tell you a word he sang about tho

An apparent unicorn in the DMR catalogue, and who doesn't love a unicorn. I'm a bit of an outlier when it comes to DMR...Love Searching for the Young Soul Rebels which, upon release I found to be totally unique in the British alternative musical landscape. While i'm emerssed in bunnymen and Wire and Banshees and JD and The Jam and The Clash here comes this bizarrely engaging SOUL(?) record which I loved..."For God's Sake BURN IT DOWN!" as they shouted. Come on Eileen? Come On. Really? You've lost me now and DRM has now become for me, just another uninteresting pop band...sure a quality, somewhat interesting pop band, but not for me. This album comes up and apparently it was career suicide for these young soul rebels...well for me its a giant middle finger to everyone who just wanted Come On Eileen II. 7 songs, 3 of which are over 7 minutes long! How's that for a "Fuck You" to all you Come On Eileen cultists. Meanwhile, the music on this album though messy and lacking focus is wonderful. Melodies pop up their heads and disappear in a flash but linger in your mind long after they're gone. There's a psuedo Werewolves of London cover that swings like a mother fucker. And plenty of other gem like moments that gives me a renewed respect for this band that I knew were way more than the one-hit-wonder punch line that was the prevailing narrative. Way to go! 4.5 stars

So far, i don't really like it. The jazziness is fun, but it feels repetitive and kind of old...

The music is....fine...forgettable really, but the talking over everything....I certainly hope I'm just in a bad streak of experimental albums but it's wearing on me.

Too much talking like an asshat over songs

Not life changing

When I think of the 80s I think of this abandonment of melody, spoken word stuff.

This was surprisingly funny!

A good listen overall but more subdued than previous albums. The influences of soul, celtic, and other sounds all show through. The voice carries a Bryan Ferry emotive style that to me doesn't always work.

Interesting

Auf diesem Album klingen sie schon fast mehr so, wie 35 Jahre später als wie drei Jahre früher. Wie immer mit viel Elan und sehr passioniert, aber manchmal zu viel Emphase, und diesmal ohne offensichtliche Hits. Trotzdem eine schöne Fortsetzung der Soul Rebellion.

I'm one of those filthy casuals who only know Come On Eileen by this band. So I have no idea what their other music is like, and as a result the first song on this album is a heck of a surprise. It feels a bit weird. After the first few tracks bounced right off me and left me confused, the rest of the album... I dunno how but it started to grow on me. The music fit with the strange places the vocals were going, and it felt less weird as I got further into it. Surprisingly good.

I happen to love the vocalist of this band. However, they are - sadly - a victim of their success. I hear COE in every song. I enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek nature of this album so much that they just eked out an extra star.

So much unintelligible mumbling. Some good hooks, they can write (or copy) a decent tune but then to just ramble over it… I didn’t need to hear this before I die.

Largely inoffensive. Which, for me, means that it sits between the tremendous "Geno" and the appalling "Come On Eileen". I'll round up to three stars because I quite liked the vibe.

Better than I expected, given the reviews.

Some of the songs were twice as long as they needed to be and I got a bit bored.

The vocals on this were great, at points if it felt like an intimate conversation.

I really thought I would hate this album but was pleasantly surprised. The Werewolves of London ripoff One of Those Things was upbeat and fun. Reminisce Pt 2 was a spoken word John Cale influenced song that drew me in. It’s an odd album that leaves a listener confused but satisfied.

Surprisingly fresh, I always perceived DMR as a one hit wonder until today.. I think I have to correct that.

I'm not sure what this was exactly. But it's certainly not an absolute must-hear and I can easily understand why it bombed at the time of release. That said, I can also see why people might really enjoy it. There are definitely some interesting aspects to this one. On the whole it falls flat though. Pretty pompous as well.

Why are the songs so long huhhhhhhhhhhh. It was okay but nothing special. Won’t be coming back to this for sure. 2/5

Why is this album on this list? It has nothing. It is from a "one hit wonder band". Everything on this album is simply boring and bad. I'm sure the band had fun recording the album but if you every band which has fun recording its album on this list you will end up with ten or hundred thousands of albums. Simply terrible.

Never really liked the band. Average album.

Why is this here? How do they have not 1 but multiple albums on the list? I can see the one with 'Come on Aileen' being here but this? I don't really want to give it 2 stars but I listened to the whole thing

"Sign one up for Celtic soul – anytime, anywhere. Still, this isn't perfect. One’s never been of the “shut up and play/sing” mindset (okay, sometimes) but KR talks too much and on too many cuts. The commentary doesn’t feel of any meta importance, if that’s the intent. “This Is What She Likes” and ""Listen to This"" are great, swinging smoothly and with balance, as does the whole record. While it does have some Wilsonesque moments, it's very much a push to liken this to Pet Sounds. Rounding up because one loves the Irish for their way-punching-above-their-weight cultural contributions.

Frenetic Melodic and fun

Pop, I guess? Horns, piano, strings, and the normal drums/guitar with vocals.

Don't like Dexys.

This was fun! Just a little short.

This doesn't have the feverish energy of their debut, but this is a solid set of songs, and you can't go wrong with THAT voice. Kevin Rowland can do little wrong in my book, and whilst not my favourite Dexys set, it's still a great album, and This Is What She's Like stands up against any of their other tunes.

I love it when Kev goes off on one - which he does frequently on Don't Stand Me Down. English upper classes, thick and ignorant, etc. Tell It Like It Is. The idea of a band on a mianstream label being allowed to release a twelve minute bitter soul work out sounds bonkers now. Maybe tbhat was the downfall? Some albums deserve to fail. It doesn't mean that they aren't musical masterpieces.

Not a good effort

Wanted to like it. A lot of pretentious dgaf decisions like allowing some guy to talk over almost every track… bit of a head scratcher.

Irish R&B. Whoda thunk it?

Terrible vocals, disjointed song structure, absolutely no flow to the album at all....not really what I'd call essential listening... There is no reason why Dexy's Midnight Runners need 3 albums on this list. Too-Rye-Ay deserved a spot, but this shit?!? The last fleeting noises of a band on the brink of collapse?!? Robert Dimnery has lost his marbles. They were only included because they're British.... Favorite songs: One of Those Things Least favorite songs: the whole album... 1/5

There is an unreal and confusing amount of just talking over the music. It was like an infuriating concert experience where the people next to you just talked over the music the entire time. Except they intentionally recorded it that way?

Lot of talking going on here and its the kind of talking you can’t ‘sing’ along with so what’s the point? Pity because a lot of the underlying soft melodies are quite nice. That said there is also too much of what I associate Dexy’s with. That is the bloody foot stomping and clapping along to dance numbers at wedding evening do’s. Geno and Eileen have put me through hell and are my nemesis no matter what fucking Jackie Wilson says. 1/5 4/6/25

I really enjoyed the music part but there was a lot of talking that took something away from it.

Glembart poprock fra 80’erne

Felt like the songs go on for multiple minutes too long, and of the seven, a few hardly qualify as actual songs too. Pretty forgettable all-in-all. 4/10

Not great

As far as I'm concerned, this band is a one hit wonder. I don't see the need to include this on the list. Pointless.

Ik dacht dat Dexys Midnight Runners een one-hit wonder was, maar blijkbaar zijn ze drie keer vertegenwoordigd in deze lijst. Je zou je vragen kunnen stellen bij het feit dat Weezer 0 albums heeft in deze lijst, maar dan zou ik nogal in herhaling vallen. Anyway, deze was nogal veel gepraat vond ik. En vooral weinig zang. Soms werkt dat, meestal niet. Niet voor mij dus. Dan nog liever Come On Eileen grijsdraaien. 2.2

Didn’t enjoy it.

Roxy musicesque but less interesting

I’m very disappointed. I had high hopes for this… it’s too pretentious. There are glimpses of gold hidden in some of the songs, but definitely not enough to make it worth my while Stop speaking over the music

Much better then I thought it would be.

In which some pretty compelling instrumentation is let down by a horrible vocal approach, nonsensical song structures, and a sprawling lack of focus

This seems like the type of album I would like more if I spent more time with it. 3.5* rounding down because aside from The Waltz there wasn’t much to hook me into that second listen.

Some good moments, but too much talking/whispering. I don’t know what to think of using “Werewolves of London” instrumental for “One of Those Things.”

Mildly to moderately annoying vocals. The rest of it was fine, but nothing stood out for me. 2.5*, rounding down.

Eh this is just very mid. I feel like this will probably get removed to make room for a better album in a next edition. 2/5

this is what she‘s like isch mega verwirrend, werum rededs und räusperet sich etc hahaha und denn wirds plötzlich en normale pop song? und nacher plötzlich mega klassisch anmutendi akkörd und mehrstimmigkeit. und sonen lange song. so weird xD chum allerdings nöd drus öb das chli frauefeindlich isch will s lied so isch wie sie und ständig redet und stimmigsschwankige het und nie zum punkt chunnt oder isches eifach lustig wills di ganz zit drum gaht wie si isch aber er nie wükli verzellt wie si isch imne 11 minütige lied? und au bide politische message vo one of those things bini mer nöd ganz sicher: er verglicht uf de akkörd vo all summer long (sweet home alabama) lieder im radio wo alli gliich töned mit sozialiste wo iri meinig üssered und all gliich töned.. ich schwanke zwüsched 2 und 3, bi mer nöd sicher wasi söll denke, will ich nöd weiss, wie die songs z verstah sind, potentiell politisch problematisch, aber vlt au eifach witzig. generell hani s album bim erste lose uf e witzigi und gueti art weird gfunde. sini stimm isch mer chli zu nasal und vode musig chönnt ich nöd säge, dass si mir gfallt, sondern meh dasis no unterhaltsam gfunde han zum lose, will i mim verständnis vill ironie i de songs drinsteckt. aber s het schono kuuli harmonie drin. und sehr vill verschiedeni idee, teilwiis fasch zvill i eim song (z.b. this is what she‘s like), aber ich glaub si macheds absichtlich. wasi au hilarious gfunde han, dasi regelmässig am afang vom song lüüter gstellt han und igendwenn chunnt sehr plötzlich bumm en wechsel zu lüüter, bi jedes mal chli verschrocke.

Somehow this is another Dexys album that is not Too Rye Ay. The exaggerated nature of Kevin Rowland just isn't as effective on this one - the vocals sound a little forced. Too much reminiscing on reminisce.

Glad i listened to this properly . 3.5, might be more.

Even more white people orchestra music like that of evin costello if you get what I mean. Not bad per se, but very boring

This album is a fascinating mess. Don’t Stand Me Down sounds like a band so determined to make something Important that they forgot to make it enjoyable. The tracks are long, talky, and oddly theatrical—Kevin Rowland often seems more interested in rambling monologues than in actually singing. You’re not so much listening to songs as sitting in on slightly awkward rehearsals for a musical no one agreed to write. There are flashes of charm—lovely instrumentation here, a nice melody buried there—but they’re stretched to breaking point over bloated arrangements and an exhausting sense of self-importance. It’s not unlistenable, but it feels like hard work for what should be soul-infused pop. A brave failure, perhaps, but still a failure.

There are some interesting musical moments in here but the vocals are godawful, and the songs are too long and slow to ramp up. There is also an inexplicable song that rags on popular music while ripping off (intentionally I assume) Werewolves of London — pretty rich to be throwing stones at Warren Zecon. Three stars mostly just for the strength of the last four minutes of That’s What She’s Like. Also, is the author doing a bit by including a Dexy’s Midnight Runners album that doesn’t include Come on Eileen.

Only one good song

I've only heard two songs from them before. What the hell was this album 1/5

not my catch can say... barely made it through the first two songs.

Feels like one those that'll grow on you if you listen a good couple of times, but that first time was a real slog.

I liked the Too Rye Ay album but did not care for this one. I did not care for the spoken word tracks (there are two!) and the music did not seem interesting enough to me, despite extensive use of non-standard rock instruments. Would not listen again.

Honestly the only song I think I've ever heard by this band is Come On Eileen which obviously is amazing. So this is going to be interesting. Musically, it's okay but I'm having a hard time with the vocals. Why does One Of Those Things sound like Sweet Home Alabama. I think the instrumentals were good on this album but I didn't like the vocals much and I didn't care for some of the like spoken word parts. I didn't love this record but I didn't hate it. Easy 3.

This was super fun. Definitely not what I expected. I really loved all of the different instruments. It reminded me of a ska album, but without the reggae. I really loved the heavy soul, blues and pop influences. The brass, the keys, the flowy bass lines were all really cool. Also, the random slide guitar in one of the songs? It was really fun and easy to groove with.

😴😴😴 Dang, this was boring. Definitely not my thing. Sorry, DMR. A rule of thumb I have for rating something 2 stars is if I’d change the station if this was playing on the radio and it was my first time hearing it. Yes, I’d absolutely change the station if this was playing.

Not bad, new wavers doing a Springsteeny thing in places. Not blown away but it passed the time nicely. Nicely the time did it pass for it was with-eth thine tuneage.

So, OK. I had to get past that this was the third Dexys Midnight Runners album this thing has made me listen to. But… On the 2nd song, I thought “Hey! I really like this!” And is sort of sat in that arena the entire time. A surprising 4.

Mielenkiintoinen yhdistelmä new wavea ja kantria. Tai tuo viulu sen kantrifiiliksen luo. Mut sopii hyvin. Luo tosi lämpimän ja hyvän fiiliksen. Kappaleet muutenkin vähän erikoisia rakenteeltaan ja aika pitkiä. En vaan ymmärrä miks new wavessa pitää olla aina tää sama laulutyyli. Parhaat: Knowledge of Beauty, This Is What She's Like, Listen To This

There’s a meme that does the rounds occasionally, pulled from Family Guy. AFAIK (it’s a meme, who knows how far it’s drifted from its original context?) patriarch Peter explains The Godfather as “insisting upon itself” – a criticism that does a laudable job of sounding comically faux-intellectual while also sort of nailing it. Because yeah, you do want The Godfather to be self-serious. There’s little mirth to be extracted from the mafia (see: Mickey Blue Eyes) – so for the whole enterprise of The Godfather to even stand a chance of working, it has to insist upon itself (see: best director wins and nominations). With that in mind, it’s a bit of a shame that the Dexys of “Don’t stand me down” initially seem to be guilty of insisting upon themselves. Gone is the triumphant buoyancy of “Too Rye Ay” and its anthemic choruses; in its place a mopey-toned, albeit sonically sophisticated, collection of intriguing but ultimately unrewarding, overly esoteric musical essays. It’s a fruitless first listen – no one last wild waltz – but I steady myself, it’s only a first listen. Underwhelmed as I am, it’s an album I’ll return to. And return to. And return to. And return to. Five spins in and I’m comforted to find my favoured collection of wonderfully esoteric, sophisticated musical essays is still holding up. The pastiche elements, spoken word breakouts and musical quotations – some of them self-referential – add to the sense of this being a properly postmodernist, academic piece of work. Gloriously so, I come to conclude. But it is “work”; make no mistake, you have to bring a lot to this record before you start getting something out of it. For me, that’s not a point around which to be critical – I’m happy to put a couple of yards in my side to meet a band who’ve traversed entire landscapes to find themselves on the ground that they stand. But I can, equally, see how a listener might feel short-changed; not everyone can be expected to extend Dexys such grace, nor should they be. (I gather that Kevin Rowland’s efforts in promoting this album on its release wouldn’t have exactly helped manage anyone’s expectations around its contents, too.) Anyway, 8 minutes into “This is what she likes” the band rouses. It’s been a variable, captivating seven minutes previous – we’ve had a spoken word skit, a warbling vocal solo, some signature Celtic-rock-cum-blue-eyed-soul, a bit of piano, a couple of ruminations on poppy ostinatos, harmonies, tempo shifts … lots. Enough that you might be forgiven for thinking there’s not much more left to be done. And yet. For anyone who’s ever struggled to put into words a feeling, it’s familiar territory. There’s not a runway long enough – you’ll keep talking forever, whether mellifluously or tediously, if you need to. But by minute 11 we’re all there. We’re dancing, we’re smiling, we’re sharing something. It’s what she’s like. And it’s clearly, clearly Dexys’ masterpiece.

Not their strongest album. On the contrary, it shows a somewhat disconnected band, unable to live to the high standard it had set for itself.

i can see exactly why this album came to be considered an “overlooked classic” and it’s not unconnected from why i don’t like it, plus, god, that guy’s voice

Some wonderful songs probably a 9 but the great songs carry it

Not good. Why is this on here?

2.5

Overall: 1/10 This album is actually much worse than I expected. Kevin Rowland has an incredibly annoying voice, and I genuinely hate how often he just speaks over the music. Although I know there's bigger problems going on than this list, it still frustrates me that these guys have 3 albums in here. Fav Song: The Occasional Flicker Least Fav Song: This is What She's Like

A sub-par album from a band I had never heard of(for those wondering, they're the band responsible for "Come On Eileen", which isn't on this album). As I sadly listened to this album, I thought my YouTube album playlist accidentally went to a random playlist. I was thinking "Why is 'Werewolves Of London'" playing? And then I checked it, chuckled, and realized I had to at least give this album two stars. Favorite Track: "One Of Those Things".

What a fucking annoying voice. This is their second addition to the list and does not have the redeeming feature if their 'one hit wonder'.

‘They all sounded the saaaaaame’ - One Of Those Things by Dexys Midnight Runners Why is this on the list?! I will actually cry if I have to listen to another Dexys Midnight Runners album, and then right after I’ll die of boredom.

Heard before and heard for the second time a whole while ago. I don't really remember much about this one. Some songs are quite long. Funny, how the cover looks the exact opposite from Too Rye Aye. + One Of These Things + Reminisce - Pt. 2 + Listen To This

Meh

I did not like this.

i don’t know what i’ve just listened to 😅

neutral-tasting album with a couple interesting songs this is the third album by the deoxyribonucleic runners i have heard on this site. if your love for them is this pure and true, why don't you make it official and become Robert Dimery-Rowlands? i will clap at the ceremony, though it may be harder for me to follow along because i do not speak british.

Took a few listens to grow on me, notably because I was listening in my car the first few, and only passively. Really going to try focusing on listening on at least my speaker, but preferably headphones, from here (I have done so for nearly all so far, but first listen should be ideally - perhaps i'll revisit In Utero for this reason, give it another chance to not be terrible). On my first listen on the speaker I actually liked most of it, and added some to my likes too. So i'm unsure if it was just time or a better listening experience, but it grew on me. At first, I was finding this album quite... annoying. The lead male vocals, specifically, just... annoyed me. This was the same with My Bloody Valentine's Isn't Anything, too, but worse. I think it may just be me - I've always had a strong preference for female vocals. I also didn't like the quiet parts, the (painfully extended) dialogue and opening to the second track This Is What She's Like, specifically. Couldn't hear anything, is that intentional? I also found it hard to understand the lyrics, took me forever to realise it's "in time, in time" in that same song (at least I hope it is!), but I think that was exacerbated by car listening but was present in nearly every song. Not ideal. Really didn't think i'd give this more than a 2 at first, saved only by the very active and alive instrumentals, but i've changed my mind. I actually quite like it! I'd give it 3.5 if I could, can't quite justify a 4 at this point, but it's close.

I only know the obvious song from this group, so this is new to me. I don't know if it's the recording quality or just the performer, but I am finding the singing (and talking) very mumbly and difficult to understand. The album is fine, but not likely one I'll seek out again.

A lot more folky and americana than I ever would have expected from a 1985 release by a British pop-rock band. Didn't blow me away, but it was a nice listen. 3/5.

This album sounds familiar. It may just be british

On est en 1982, la planète entière se trémousse en salopette au son de "Come On Eileen". Un tube planétaire, un hold-up parfait qui transforme un groupe de soul-punks de Birmingham en superstars mondiales. Dexys Midnight Runners, mené par le charismatique et légèrement allumé Kevin Rowland, a le monde à ses pieds. L'album "Too-Rye-Ay" est une machine à hits, un mélange irrésistible de violons celtiques, de cuivres soul et d'énergie post-punk. La suite logique ? Simple, on prend la même formule, on la polit un peu, on sort deux ou trois singles qui sentent bon la bière et la fête de village, et on s'achète une villa aux Bahamas. Logique, n'est-ce pas ? Sauf que "logique" n'a jamais fait partie du vocabulaire de Kevin Rowland. Et c'est là que notre histoire commence, c'est là que l'on passe de la success-story à l'un des plus grands sabordages commerciaux de l'histoire du rock. Accrochez-vous, on plonge dans le maelstrom qu'est "Don't Stand Me Down", le disque qui a torpillé une carrière pour mieux entrer dans la légende. Après la tournée triomphale de "Too-Rye-Ay", Rowland, loin de savourer son succès, est en proie au doute. Il déteste l'image de joyeux luron en salopette qu'on lui a collée. Il sent que le succès l'a éloigné de son intégrité artistique. Pour lui, "Come On Eileen" est devenu une caricature, un monstre qui a dévoré son créateur. Il veut autre chose, il veut du vrai, du profond, du complexe. Il veut un album qui soit une conversation, une oeuvre totale, sans compromis. Et des compromis, il n'y en aura aucun, zéro, nada. L'enregistrement de "Don't Stand Me Down" devient une épopée. On parle de trois ans de travail, de sessions interminables, d'un budget qui explose, faisant de cet album l'un des plus chers de l'époque. Le banquier de Mercury Records a dû s'étouffer avec son canapé en voyant les notes de frais. Rowland est obsédé par le moindre détail. Il veut un son organique, live, mais avec une précision chirurgicale. Il veut des dialogues, des changements de ton, des structures alambiquées. Il ne veut plus de chansons, il veut des mouvements. Et surtout, dans un geste d'une pureté artistique suicidaire, il prend deux décisions qui scelleront le destin de l'album avant même sa sortie. Premièrement : pas de single. Je répète, pour ceux du fond qui n'ont pas entendu : PAS DE SINGLE. En 1985, en pleine ère MTV, où le 45 tours est roi et où un album sans tube est un album mort-né, Rowland refuse de disséquer son oeuvre. Pour lui, c'est un tout indissociable, un doigt d'honneur cosmique à l'industrie du disque. Deuxièmement : pas de promo. Donc pas de photos de presse, pas d'interviews pour expliquer le concept, pas de passages télé. Rien. Le groupe adopte un look de cadres de Wall Street, cheveux gominés et costumes trois-pièces, à l'opposé total de leur image précédente. Le public n'y comprend rien, le silence radio est total. La maison de disques, dépitée, finit par sortir l'album en catastrophe, sans la moindre publicité, comme pour se débarrasser d'un colis encombrant. Le résultat ? Un bide monumental voir stratosphérique. Le genre de flop qui devient un cas d'école. Le public, qui attendait un nouveau "Come On Eileen", se retrouve face à un disque bavard, introspectif, exigeant. Les critiques, déconcertés par l'absence de singles et par l'hermétisme de l'ensemble, le descendent en flammes ou, pire, l'ignorent poliment. L'album est un fantôme et les concerts qui suivent se jouent devant des salles à moitié vides. Fin 1986, le groupe, épuisé et ruiné, jette l'éponge. Alors, trente ans plus tard, que reste-t-il de ce désastre annoncé ? Eh bien, il reste un disque absolument fascinant. Un classique culte, un "chef-d'oeuvre négligé" comme disent les connaisseurs. C'est un album qui demande un effort, qui s'apprivoise. Il faut accepter de se laisser porter par ces longues plages musicales, ces conversations impromptues qui ouvrent les morceaux ("The Occasional Flicker"), cette tension permanente entre la grandiloquence et l'intime. Oubliez les refrains faciles, ici, on est dans le flux de conscience. Rowland y expose ses doutes, sa vision du monde, sa quête d'authenticité. C'est un album sur la communication, ou plutôt sur son absence. La musique est riche, un mélange de soul celtique, de folk progressif, avec des arrangements d'une complexité folle. La section de cuivres est toujours là, mais elle sert un propos plus grave, moins festif. Les guitares de Billy Adams et les claviers de Vincent Crane (ex-Atomic Rooster, excusez du peu) tissent des paysages sonores denses et changeants. Ce disque est le testament d'un artiste qui a préféré se tuer commercialement plutôt que de se trahir. C'est l'anti-Too-Rye-Ay. C'est un acte de foi, un pari insensé qui a coûté sa carrière au groupe mais qui a sauvé son âme. Il y a une beauté tragique dans cet échec, une noblesse dans ce refus de plaire. Aujourd'hui, avec le recul, on ne peut qu'admirer l'audace et l'intégrité de la démarche. Est-ce que je l'écoute en boucle ? Non. Est-ce un album facile d'accès ? Certainement pas. C'est une oeuvre aride, parfois frustrante, qui peut sembler prétentieuse. Mais c'est un disque important, un de ceux qui vous rappellent que la musique peut aussi être un champ de bataille, un lieu de résistance contre le formatage et la facilité. C'est un disque qu'il faut entendre, ne serait-ce que pour comprendre ce que signifie le mot "intégrité" pour un artiste. Même si cette intégrité a un goût amer. Verdict : Pour l'ambition démesurée, pour le courage insensé, pour le suicide artistique le plus pur de la décennie. Ce n'est pas un album que l'on "aime" simplement, c'est un album que l'on respecte profondément. Un monument à la gloire des perdants magnifiques. Au final, ce sera un 3 sur 5. Un album à découvrir, à méditer, et à saluer bien bas.

I can see what Kevin was after here, but it’s all a bit off. And the bits of conversation are a real distraction.

From the artist page: "Don't Stand Me Down... confounded critics at the time... the band disbanded shortly after its release" Not surprised tbh, it's dogshit

How can something be so ambitious and so incredibly dull at the same time? It's like Rowland insists on the listener having a bad time, because while 'One of Those Things', 'The Waltz' and about 40% of 'This Is What She's Like' are solid, the album as a whole is almost unlistenable. Cut the yip-yap please!

Why, oh why, does it feel like Kevin Rowland just spends the majority of the album talking? It’s unbearable. One of the highlights of the album is the riff on “One Of Those Things” - and that is actually just Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves Of London”. Don’t Stand Me Down crumbles under its own ambitions and boring sound.

I just don't get it. This band feels like it's just a one-hit wonder right? But, this is the THIRD album of theirs that has come up on this list for me (so far). That seems so egregious and unnecessary. Totally overrepresented. It's not bad, but c'mon.

One Of Those Things is a great song. Rest ok 2/5

Where's Eileen when you need a come on? This one is a snoozer.