Dexys Midnight Runners - the name consistently spelled without an apostroph… Read Full Bio ↴Dexys Midnight Runners - the name consistently spelled without an apostrophe - were a British post-punk and Northern Soul band who achieved their major success in the early to mid 1980s. The word Dexys in this case, comes from a colloquialism of dextroamphetamine, a type of amphetamine diet pill that was a popular 'upper' drug with England's Northern Soul scene in the 1960s.

Founded in 1978 by former singer of the Killjoys, Kevin Rowland, and guitarist Kevin "Al" Archer, in Birmingham (United Kingdom), the band was unique in that musically, they seemed best suited to the budding Mod/Skinhead Revival scene in the United Kingdom, but in many ways, especially fashion, they came off as rather hard to 'sell' to any particular scene. Musically, they've always been a sort of "soul-fusion."

An early single, "Geno" (written as an ode to American Northern Soul singer, Geno Washington), was immensely popular, despite being repeatedly bad-mouthed by the NME. In fact, "Geno" remains their biggest-selling single in the UK, thanks in part to at least one re-issue.

The following album, Searching for the Young Soul Rebels (1980), was an interesting punk and soul fusion, and despite (or perhaps because of) decidedly mixed reviews by the press, it was extremely well-received by the public.

Their second album, Too Rye Aye (1982), had a decidedly different sound, thanks largely to an immense line-up change, most notable for the fact that the horn section of ...Young Soul Rebels had been replaced by "the Emerald Express," the band's Celtic folk section (featuring violinist Helen O'Hara). The sound was still obviously soul influenced, at the very least, but this time it was Celtic soul. The album's first UK single was even titled "Celtic Soul Brothers."

Too-Rye-Aye was the most popular Dexys album Stateside, in fact it was the only one to break US charts, (though the album itself was only a modest to intermediate success in the US). This is largely because the US a-side single for "Come On Eileen" was debatably too popular (the single has been re-issued at least once in the UK; despite this, "Geno" was still their biggest-selling UK single). Undoubtedly the most "pop radio"-oriented song of the entire Dexys Midnight Runners catalogue.

A third album, Don't Stand Me Down was released in 1985 ending a three year silence from the band. It featured a noticeably different line-up. The ever-experimental Rowland abandoned the Too-Rye-Ay Celtic Soul/New Wave formula in favor of a more laidback Van Morrison conversational album. The previous album was a "Big Band" sound when compared to the new one (though, amusingly, the number of guest musicians featured on Don't Stand Me Down, plus the credited band members, seemed to outnumber all previous members of Dexys combined, including ex-Dexys who had recorded only song before leaving).

Don't Stand Me Down was well-received by critics though universally ignored by the music-buying public due in large part to Rowland stubbornly refusing to release any song from the album as a single, until considerably "late" after its release, as well as confusing listeners who may have been expecting a sequel to Too-Rye-Ay's Dance Pop. Sales of the album were sparse and it was considered a failure by the label. In the 20-plus years since it's original release it has come to be viewed by many as Rowland's magnum opus.

After Rowland's first solo endeavor in 1988, Dexys was briefly reformed in 1993, by Rowland with Big Jim Patterson, though this endeavor resulted in little, if anything more than a television performance.

In 2003, the career retrospective album ('don't call it a "greatest hits" collection'), Let's Make This Precious was released, featuring two new tracks, "Manhood" and "My Life In England, Part One." The new tracks were touted as singles and received regular radio play in the UK, though never commercially released outside the album.

Rowland officially announced in June 2005 that Dexys were back in the studio, recording and seeking a new contract. The current line-up includes Rowland Mick Talbot (former member of Merton Parkas and Hammond player for Paul Weller).

In the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, notably, Dexys Midnight Runners are the only band to have all of their albums listed, and with a full page review for each album (understandably, most albums only get a half-page review). All three albums received glowing reviews, save Too-Rye-Aye, wherein it was noted "[[i]Too-Rye-Aye] is the worst of the three Dexys albums; but if this is the worst album in your collection, pat yourself on the back."

My Life in England Part 1
Dexys Midnight Runners Lyrics

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I thought they said neat when the schoolkids called me mate,
I went home and told my mum after my first date,
I hadn't long arrived from Ireland, the boy Kevinine,
Generations before Wolverhampton hadn't seen,
We talked of America, the music and the life,
Peter was the leader, he taught me how to fight,
My life in England,
I can remember St Theresa's social where "Kevin Barry" rang out,

My mum whispered to me "Kevin, In England that song is not allowed"
I felt awake but at the same time romantic, cut off and misty eyed,
Their faces are so pained and melancoly, with smoke clouds on the side.
My Life in England,
Later in London, ten year old Kevinine,
I wondered how things might have been if they'd stayed,
The scruffy kids and the faces that I knew,
Cos accents like mine, in Harrow there were few,
I learned to talk more cockney but thought about the Wolves,

The sound of wolverhampton, it's toughness and "the doug",
My Life In England

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "My Life in England Part 1" by Dexys Midnight Runners tell a story of a young Irish boy named Kevinine who moves to England and struggles to adapt to the new surroundings. He is called "mate" by schoolkids, which he thinks is a compliment until he learns that it's just a common term used in England. He goes on a date and excitedly tells his mum about it, but she warns him that some things are not allowed in England, such as the Irish patriotic song "Kevin Barry".

Kevinine's life in England is dominated by the cultural differences between Ireland and England, and by the sense of being an outsider. He finds refuge in music and bonds with Peter, who teaches him how to fight. The song evokes a sense of nostalgia and longing, both for Ireland and for a sense of belonging in England. The lyrics are poignant and reflect the challenges faced by many immigrants as they try to assimilate in a new country.

Line by Line Meaning

I thought they said neat when the schoolkids called me mate,
When schoolkids in England called me 'mate', I thought they were saying 'neat' and told my mom about it after my first date.

I went home and told my mum after my first date,
After my first date in England, I told my mom about the schoolkids and their way of speaking.

I hadn't long arrived from Ireland, the boy Kevinine,
As a recent arrival from Ireland, I was known as 'Kevinine'.

Generations before Wolverhampton hadn't seen,
My generation was the first in Wolverhampton to experience accents like mine.

We talked of America, the music and the life,
My friends and I discussed America, its music and lifestyle.

Peter was the leader, he taught me how to fight,
Peter was the leader of our group and taught me how to defend myself in Wolverhampton.

My life in England,
My experiences as an immigrant in England.

I can remember St Theresa's social where 'Kevin Barry' rang out,
I recall a social event at St Theresa's where they played the song 'Kevin Barry'.

My mum whispered to me 'Kevin, In England that song is not allowed'
My mom told me that the song 'Kevin Barry' was not allowed in England.

I felt awake but at the same time romantic, cut off and misty eyed,
Hearing 'Kevin Barry' made me feel nostalgic and emotional, yet aware of the reality of my life in England.

Their faces are so pained and melancoly, with smoke clouds on the side.
The people around me had sad expressions and were surrounded by smoke clouds.

Later in London, ten year old Kevinine,
When I was ten years old, still known as 'Kevinine', I moved to London.

I wondered how things might have been if they'd stayed,
I often thought about how different things would be if my family had stayed in Ireland.

The scruffy kids and the faces that I knew,
I missed the familiar faces of the 'scruffy kids' I knew in Wolverhampton.

Cos accents like mine, in Harrow there were few,
In Harrow, where I moved to, there were few people who spoke with my accent.

I learned to talk more cockney but thought about the Wolves,
To fit in better, I learned to speak more like a Londoner, but I still thought about my old home in Wolverhampton.

The sound of Wolverhampton, it's toughness and 'the doug',
I remembered the sounds of Wolverhampton and its tough reputation, including 'the doug' (the local dialect).

My Life In England
Overall, this song is about an Irish immigrant's experiences and feelings as a young person living in England.

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

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