Overview

In the early 1980s, the pop charts were dominated by musicians tarted up in Day-Glo colours, who fought it out for coverage on our TV screens and magazine pages. Dexys Midnight Runners did things differently. They were surly. They were serious. They were ambitious, but success had to come on their terms. They were a disciplined outfit, a gang with a defined purpose: to make music so pure that it couldn't fail to elicit a deep emotional response from anyone within earshot. And they managed it. This motley crew - in woolly hats and donkey jackets for their first coming; all dungarees and copious body hair for the second - gate-crashed the charts, scoring number-one hits around the globe. But being in Dexys wasn't all sunshine and roses. Many members came, many members went. Some returned unexpectedly as being part of this particular gang was a way of life; it was everything. Nige Tassell, author of the Penderyn Prize-shortlisted Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids? employs his skills of detection to go off in search of the dozens of members who - for however brief a period, and to whatever level of success - have been a part of Dexys Midnight Runners. These are the people who gave the band its sound, its soul, its substance. But whatever happened to them?

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9781785120596

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Reviews

'Nige Tassell is just the person for this momentous task.' -- Danny Baker 'The inside story of one of the greatest bands of them all. I devoured it!' -- Gary Crowley 'Terrific idea, wonderfully executed' -- Pete Paphides Rashomon meets Sherlock Holmes... this is one of the great musical detective stories. An incredible feat of journalism that's also a powerfully emotional story of human brilliance and creative madness. The story of Dexys is about more than one man and for the first time Nige Tassell unravels the knotty history of a great band.' -- David Quantick 'A tremendous job. So much warmth and understanding, not just for the music but for the people who make it. Extremely poignant' -- Giles Smith 'I can't recommend this book highly enough' -- Louder than War 'Hugely readable glimpse into the lives of those who made Dexys' * Mojo * 'A fantastic book.' -- Mark Ellen

'Nige Tassell is just the person for this momentous task.' -- Danny Baker

'Nige Tassell is just the person for this momentous task.' -- Danny Baker 'The inside story of one of the greatest bands of them all. I devoured it!' -- Gary Crowley 'Terrific idea, wonderfully executed' -- Pete Paphides 'A compelling, moving book about a childhood dream of the ultimate gang, who turned out to be quite the opposite.' * The Times * Rashomon meets Sherlock Holmes... this is one of the great musical detective stories. An incredible feat of journalism that's also a powerfully emotional story of human brilliance and creative madness. The story of Dexys is about more than one man and for the first time Nige Tassell unravels the knotty history of a great band.' -- David Quantick 'A tremendous job. So much warmth and understanding, not just for the music but for the people who make it. Extremely poignant' -- Giles Smith 'I can't recommend this book highly enough' -- Louder than War 'Hugely readable glimpse into the lives of those who made Dexys' * Mojo * 'A fantastic book.' -- Mark Ellen

'Nige Tassell is just the person for this momentous task.' -- Danny Baker 'The inside story of one of the greatest bands of them all. I devoured it!' -- Gary Crowley 'Terrific idea, wonderfully executed' -- Pete Paphides Rashomon meets Sherlock Holmes... this is one of the great musical detective stories. An incredible feat of journalism that's also a powerfully emotional story of human brilliance and creative madness. The story of Dexys is about more than one man and for the first time Nige Tassell unravels the knotty history of a great band.' -- David Quantick 'A tremendous job. So much warmth and understanding, not just for the music but for the people who make it. Extremely poignant' -- Giles Smith

Author Information

For the past twenty-five years, Nige Tassell has written about music, popular culture and sport for a range of titles, including the Word, the Guardian, The Sunday Times, the Independent, Q, Esquire, GQ, Rouleur, the New Statesman and the Blizzard. His last music book Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids? was published in 2022 to great acclaim. Searching for Dexys Midnight Runners will be Nige's tenth book.

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