Kevin Rowland: Beyond Come On Eileen

Kevin Rowland: Beyond Come On Eileen

From a shifting childhood split between Wolverhampton, rural Ireland and London, to fronting one of the most distinctive and uncompromising bands of the 1980s, Kevin Rowland’s life has been defined by defiance, vision and resilience. In this in-depth conversation with James O’Brien, the Dexys Midnight Runners frontman reflects on the lasting impact of a father’s harsh words, the struggle to find his place in the world, and the burning drive to prove himself through music and style.

Rowland speaks candidly about the creation and evolution of Dexys- from their soulful beginnings and fiercely protected aesthetic, to the extraordinary success of Come On Eileen and the pressures that came with it. He recalls the relentless control he exerted to protect his artistic vision, the personal cost of that intensity, and the creative compromises he would later come to regret.

The conversation also explores his battle with addiction, the turning point that led to his recovery in 1993, and the revelations that followed as he began to confront the past he had long avoided. Now, with three decades of sobriety behind him, Kevin talks about continuing music on his own terms, embracing new ideas, and learning to be kinder to himself.

Honest, unflinching and unexpectedly uplifting, this episode offers a rare glimpse into the man behind Dexys, the making of a global hit, and the life that came after.

Find out more about Kevin Rowland’s memoir Bless Me Father here

Episoder(317)

Brian May

Brian May

For 20 years, Queen guitarist and astrophysicist, Brian May had been too busy to realise that he didn’t belong to a record label. Then at the height of lockdown he decided to reissue his 1992 solo alb...

9 Sep 202153min

Jolyon Maugham

Jolyon Maugham

After leading a series of successful challenges to the Brexit process, Jolyon Maugham QC was thrust into the limelight and depicted by right-wing Brexiteers as an out of touch, elitist, Remainer. But ...

2 Sep 20211h

Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz

Aged 10 and deeply unhappy, Anthony Horowitz OBE realised that he was a writer. Since then he has been difficult to pin down. His diverse oeuvre ranges from Midsomer Murders and Foyle’s War, to the be...

12 Aug 202150min

John Amaechi

John Amaechi

When John Amaechi OBE was a boy, his white grandfather would lean out of the car window to shout racist abuse at other drivers whilst he sat in the back. He went on to become the first British NBA sta...

5 Aug 20211h 1min

Joe Lycett

Joe Lycett

Joe Lycett, the comedian formerly known as Hugo Boss has no discernable backstory of trauma to speak of. He has ‘a tendency to do just enough’ and is frustrated with himself when he accepts the offer ...

29 Jul 202158min

Lucy Kellaway

Lucy Kellaway

Having separated from her husband, Lucy Kellaway quit her full-time, high-status job as a journalist at the Financial Times to become a trainee teacher at a secondary school. In Re-educated, Lucy show...

23 Jul 202155min

Sarah Gilbert and Catherine Green

Sarah Gilbert and Catherine Green

Before the World Health Organisation declared the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 a pandemic, scientists Professor Sarah Gilbert and Dr Catherine Green had already started developing a vaccine against the viru...

16 Jul 202151min

Mary Portas

Mary Portas

Mary Portas made her name transforming the luxury retailer, Harvey Nichols into a destination. But as the high street crumbles, and as the earth continues to buckle under the pressure of consumerism, ...

9 Jul 202158min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
aftenpodden-usa
konspirasjonspodden
popradet
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
wolfgang-wee-uncut
alt-fortalt
grenselos
fladseth
frokostshowet-pa-p5
min-barneoppdragelse
rss-dannet-uten-piano
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
rss-frekvens-med-anine-olsen
synnve-og-vanessa
opptur-med-annette-og-ingeborg