They stole their master tapes and held EMI to ransom. They stopped talking to the press and instead took out full-page ads to put their “manifesto” across. They pretty much redefined the notion of musicians as angry young men. Dexys could have quickly descended into caricature, had they not then released the first 24-carat classic album of the 80s.
Just how much of …Young Soul Rebels was a genuinely orchestrated masterplan by Kevin Rowland and his second-in- command Al Archer hardly seems to matter today; its blend of post-punk ferocity and bygone soul struck a match under pop music and arguably reignited other wordy and worldly artists (Weller, Costello). That the public took them to their hearts so completely is surprising – there have been few chart-toppers as off-the-wall and buck-trending as Geno.
The big draw of this latest reissue is the 21-track bonus disc, collecting all the non-album singles and B-sides, plus radio sessions and a clutch of previously unreleased demos, foremost among which is a gritty cover of Sam & Dave’s Hold On! I’m Coming. Tidy additions to an essential album, which any self-respecting music fan should already own. If not, you need search no more.
