0336. Kevin Rowland & Dexys Midnight Runners
Too-Rye-Ay

Now this is the Dexys I was expecting the last time: soul-folk, Celtic, and quite good. It's the Runners' second album and already from the intro of Celtic Soul Brothers there's a good vibe to it. The horns in Plan B are kick-ass and of course we've all heard Come On Eileen with its catchy hook.

By this time, of course Kevin Rowland gargantuan ego had split up the Runners that recorded their first album (by way of imposing a "no talking to the press"-rule as well as deciding to release the most un-commercial track as the second single), so there was a brand new lineup along for the new album and new suits (or, well, not suits, but Irish farm-clothes).

Three years later they'd release Don’t Stand Me Down and make a total hogwash of it, but here they really were on top of things.