Dexys (known as Dexys Midnight Runners from 1978 to 2011) are an English pop rock band from Birmingham, with soul influences, who achieved major commercial success in the early to mid- 1980s. They are best known in the UK for their songs "Geno", "Come On Eileen", both of which reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, and "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)", which reached No. 5. They achieved five other UK Top 20 singles, while "Come On Eileen" also topped the US Billboard Hot 100. With extensive airplay on MTV, they are associated with the Second British Invasion.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Dexys went through numerous personnel changes over the course of three albums and 13 singles, with only singer/songwriter/co-founder Kevin Rowland remaining in the band through all of the transitions and only Rowland and "Big" Jim Paterson (trombone) appearing on all the albums. By 1985, the band consisted only of Rowland and long-standing members Helen O'Hara (violin) and Billy Adams (guitar). The band broke up in 1987 and Rowland became a solo artist. After two failed restart attempts, Dexys was reformed by Rowland in 2003 with new members, as well as a few returning members from the band's original lineup (known as Dexys Mark I). Dexys released their fourth album in 2012 and a fifth followed in 2016.
