With the cancellation of the ‘Too-Rye-Ay As It Should Have Sounded’ tour, tonight’s show is almost 11 years to the day of Dexys’ last show at Brighton Dome – read our review of that show here.
This tour marks the live debut of their new album, ‘The Feminine Divine’, with this being performed in full in the first half. The band enter in darkness and when the lights go up the sweet soul sound of ‘The One That Loves You’ sees Kevin Rowland singing to violinist Claudia Chopek, playing the role of The Goddess, accompanied by some play fighting and dodgy amateur dramatics with bandmate Sean Read. After this ‘punchy’ start, keyboard player Mike Timothy speaks for many in the audience when he asks “what was that all about?”
The whole album is Rowland’s take on his own attitude to women in the past and the effects of toxic masculinity and this is evident in the confessional tone of ‘It’s Alright Kevin (Manhood 2023)’. The opening has more than a nod to Tammi Terrell’s classic ‘All I Do Is Think About You’ and there’s a recurring plinky piano riff that could be from a mid-80s Madness song. Chopek’s fiddle playing keeps it firmly in the Dexys mould as Rowland’s unmistakable voice is allowed to soar.
There’s a joyful Northern Soul stomp on ‘I’m Going To Get Free’ with trombone and sax blasting out as Rowland places himself centre stage. There is also some questionable dad-dancing from sax and keys player Sean Read. A recorded squelchy bass introduces ‘My Goddess Is’ and is joined by a sleazy synth to make a sound somewhere between early Soft Cell and The Tom Tom Club.
The highlight of the first set is ‘My Submission’ with Rowland singing tenderly over Mike Timothy’s gentle piano solo. His vibrato voice is vulnerable and rises to a clean falsetto as the stage is bathed in sunset lighting. There’s a mid-song monologue, which of course is pulled off with complete sincerity, but the simplicity of piano, violin and that voice is absolutely stunning.
The first half ends with Chopek’s Goddess character preparing for a night out as Rowland serenades her before they dance together to Alistair Whyte’s muted trombone.
The second half of the show is mostly comprised of songs from ‘Too Rye Ay’ and begins with Rowland singing ‘Soon’ upstairs in the circle, spotlit while the stage remains dark. He continues singing as he makes his way down to the stage and segues into ‘Plan B’ which sounds as though it could easily have been on their first album with its powerful brass stabs.
We’re now in classic Dexys territory as Rowland marches across the stage, arms swinging. The ‘Plan B’ chants lead into ‘I’ll Show You’ with every band member firing on all cylinders. The violin leads on ‘All In All’ as family photos appear on the back screen with Rowland talking and singing through this waltz.
A solo trombone introduces ‘Until I Believe in My Soul’ with blue lighting a perfect fit for this piece of blue-eyed soul. The Midlands Muscle Shoals sounds suddenly erupt into a frenzied jazz section but return to the root of the song with Hammond organ, brass blasts and gospel harmonies. It’s back to a 4/4 stomper with ‘Free’ from their last album of originals, ‘One Day I’m Going To Soar’, and some comic banter between Rowland and Read that sees Kevin shout “bollocks” and storm off stage.
There’d been a few fans dancing in the second half, but when the set closer ‘Come On Eileen’ begins everyone takes to their feet. Live, the song transcends the ‘wedding do’ status it undeniably holds and sounds fresh as the audience sings along.
The band has left the stage but chants of ‘Geno’ fill the room. They return and Rowland says how much this means to him coming from a Brighton audience. This classic 1980 homage to Geno Washington gave us goose pimples and is a reminder of how new this and the first 2-Tone singles sounded to a young teen’s ears, raised on a diet of one chord wonders. Rowland, arms swinging, marches on the spot as images of Dexys in their prime appear.
‘Jackie Wilson Said’ gets a huge cheer and an even bigger one when a picture of darts player Jocky Wilson flashes up – a brilliant touch. The show ends at the beginning with a rare performance of ‘Tell Me When My Light Turns Green’, the very first Dexys song. There was an inevitable feel of nostalgia to the evening but, like punk rock, like The Specials, this is music that leaves an indelible mark on people and stays with them forever. Kevin Rowland has never toed the line and remains a vital presence on the UK music scene. Long may he continue.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Tuesday 19th September 2023
Photos by Francesca Moore
