Sound Clips   
Track 1 - Hot Nights
Track 2 - Somebody's Hero
Track 3 - Water
Track 4 - Mama Teach
Track 5 - Only Game In Town
Track 6 - Run With The Wind
Track 7 - Struggles With The Heart
Track 8 - The Last Standing Man
Track 9 - Little Heartbreaker
Track 10 - Finding You Tonight
Track 11 - Over In A Minute
Track 12 - This Voice
Track 13 - Methods Of A Modern Man

Click one of the above tracks download the mp3 sound clip.




 
 
Dakota The Last Standing Man
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Jerry G. Hludzik and Bill Kelly met in the early seventies when Kelly led a band called "The Buoys". The band, from Scranton, PA actually scored a hit in 1971 with a song called "Timothy". Hludzik joined the band soon after the hit and they scored another hit in the song "Give up your guns", a song with a long instrumental passage which was later used as an introduction to the news long after the release of the single. The tune scored a hit again in 1980 when re-issued in Holland.

In 1978 long-time friend Mike Stahl, who was mixer for the band Chicago, brought Hludzik and Kelly's music to the attention of then Chicago drummer Danny Seraphine. The impressed Seraphine produced an album in the same year, under the name "The Jerry/Kelly Band". This was on the Epic label and has since become a collector's item.

However, the record company wanted a rockier sounding name for the next album and the name "Dakota" was put forward by studio drummer John Robinson. Kelly and Hludzik were none too keen at first but the record company loved it and so the name stuck.

The first Dakota album appeared in 1980 on Columbia records. The album created a couple of hits, more notably "If it takes all night" which shot to number one in many American cities. The band never reached their full potential due to record company politics and it was to be another four years until the release of the MCA classic "Runaway". This 1984 AOR monster was an awesome effort ad included an all star cast including Steve Porcaro (Toto), guitarist Richie Zito, saxophonist Ernie Watts and rhythm guitarist Paul Jackson (Michael Jackson's "Thriller"). Kelly and Hludzik both sang lead vocals and played lead guitar alternately, in order to meet the demands of each song.

The next ten years proved difficult ones for the two men and they pretty much had a rough time working together. The 1996 album “Mr Lucky” on Escape Music was a long time coming for Dakota fans, but the duo sounded just as good as ever. The “third” Dakota member Rick Manwiller had a lot of input to this record and the charm of the band was never questioned, the songs simply stronger than ever. It seems that the relationship of Kelly and Hludzik has now fallen apart, but with Manwiller still in the frame the “last standing man” and the heart of Dakota, namely Jerry G. Hludzik has continued the Dakota name in best possible way. The songs are more positive, more beautifully executed and can only be Dakota. In the opening song “Hot Nights” Jerry says it all : “What a long crazy road it’s been, but I’ve had my fun”. Then just wait for the music, “The Last Standing Man” is a new era for Dakota.