Effective period / Period of releases: 1980 - 2015

Members: Bill Kelly (2), Jerry G. Hludzik, Rick Manwiller, Eli Hludzik, Jon Lorance, Jeff Mitchell (4)

Dakota is an AOR/hard rock band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, USA, that was born from the dissolution of The Buoys and formed under the name of Jerry-Kelly in 1978. The band changed its name to Dakota in 1979.

The band consisted of vocalists/guitarists Jerry Hludzik and Billy Kelly, along with Lou Cossa and Jeff Mitchell (keyboards), Bill McMale (bass) and John Robinson (drums). During the 1990s and 2000s original member Jerry Hludzik continued to record a number of records under the Dakota name. In 2014, original members Jerry Hludzik and Bill Kelly reunited and teamed up with Jon Lorance and Eli Hludzik to record a new Dakota album titled "Long Road Home", released in 2015.