Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler

Dire Straits was just emerging as a recognizable group while I was maturing and refining my taste in music. I was stationed in Germany, arriving shortly after my 18th birthday when I first heard their music. Their album was among the first music I bought for myself. Thirty years later, Mark Knopfler's latest work is at the top of my play list, and the last new CD I purchased. In between, they've carried me through good times and bad. Their Brothers in Arms concert, which I saw in 1985 in San Antonio, Texas, ranks atop my most favorite concert of all times. Dire Straits evolved and like a phoenix, Mark Knopfler emerged as a solo artist from the ashes of disbanding that group. Let's take a look at the ten best songs from Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler.

10. Wonderful Tonight: Strictly speaking, this is Eric Clapton's song. Apparently Clapton, Knopfler, and Elton John collaborated on a number of songs. You'll also hear some terrific duets with Mark and Emmylou Harris. But this particular song is just incredible! Clapton and Knopfler are members a short list of incredible guitarists. In this case, the result is a synergistic masterpiece. In sports, most athletes excel during highly competitive match-ups. Playing alongside one another somehow inspired these guitar heroes of mine. The vocal and instrumental aspects in this duet always give a me a distinct mental surge, lifting me from depression to wonder. I'd probably place this song higher on my list, save for the fact that it's actually an Eric Clapton ballad.

9. Telegraph Road: I love long songs like Pancho and Lefty (Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard) or American Pie (Don McClean;) however, they're certainly not the favorite of radio DJs. This song runs over 14 minutes, so it was played only very rarely, even in its day! Apparently the attention span of the average knuckle dragger is around 2:30 (minutes) for songs and less than 2 hours for a movie these days. I hear folks complain about songs and movies, and the criticism is solely the length of the project. This song captures a mood, and (coincidentally) centers around Telegraph Road, in the Detroit area of Michigan. I grew up on the east side suburbs of that city. Other than nearby Gratiot Avenue, Telegraph was the major nearby road of my childhood home turf. It's a wierd thing to be overseas and hear some guy from England singing about your Detroit memories. In the latter part of the song, the lyrics touch on unemployment. If anything, it's even more appropriate for Michiganders today than it was upon its release.

8. Secondary Waltz: A gem from Kopfler's most recent album, this song appealed from the very first time I heard it. A romantic theme, amusing innuendo, and an upbeat rhythm combine beautifully. Normally, I find the winter months quite depressing. This little ditty stands at the ready, motivating me at dinner time, perking up my coffee break, and always a comfortable friend when I'm in need.

7. Going Home: Theme of the Local Hero: We ordered this film from Netflix just to hear the music. After watching and enjoying the movie, I bought the album. It's a song Knopfler used (both during his Dire Straits years and as a solo artist) to send his listeners on their way home. Like so much of his music, it's very fitting and appropriate. I've found this particular song to be extremely soothing and relaxing. During my many moves, in college and the military, this song alway fit the bill. It's an instrumental, and I've always enjoyed it during informal dinners and quiet parties.

6. Walk of Life: Just about everyone associates this song with the ball park and the boys of summer. Even Dire Straits' popular MTV video features clips from various baseball blooper reels. It's perky, upbeat and guaranteed for a smile. If you watch the band when they're playing this song, they seem to perk up and energize with the music. I'm a big baseball fan anyhow, and I've always enjoyed the times when you hear it in the background, during the game. My favorite ball player was/is #17 Mark Grace, who played first base for the Cubs and Diamondbacks. Whenever I hear the song, Mark Grace comes to mind. Check out my links for the You Tube video.

5. The Scaffolder's Wife: This is from Mark Knopfler's recent album, Kill To Get Crimson. Released at the tail end of this past summer (Sept 17, 2007,) I actually pre-ordered it from Amazon and received it on the release date. During the first go-around, the aforementioned Secondary Waltz and True Love Will Never Fade (first up on the CD) were my favorites. Over time, it was the Scaffolder's Wife that got to me. When alone, I'll repeat the song ad nauseum. (Aren't CD players amazing!?) It's a thinking song, the lyrics painting a picture and inviting us to guess what lies beneath surface appearances.

4. Sultans of Swing: This is the first song I heard from Dire Straits. Believe it or not, I was actually in London at the time! I've always associated the band with London, and this particular arrangement distinctly recalls two particular vacations. I journeyed from my old Army Post in Erlangen Germany, through Belgium one time and France the other, took the ferry across the English Channel, and spent almost a week in London. British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was showing a concert with Meatloaf (Two out of Three Ain't Bad) and at some point we heard this song. I bought both albums immediately, and went on to purchase them on cassette tape and CD. The music of Dire Straits is distinctive, and when I heard Sultans of Swing, I knew I'd found the group of my dreams. They were (and remain) a unique and interesting band, boasting an unusual sound. I didn't know it was the beginning of a 30 year (so far) relationship, but then what 19 year old girl is thinking about what she'll be listening to as her 50th birthday approaches?

3. Money for Nothing: Unless you've only just landed from the outer nebula, you've heard this song. I firmly believe that it made MTV as much as the newly launched music channel popularized the song and put Dire Straits in that top tier of music legends. I was lucky enough to attend the band's San Antonio performance in the early summer of 1985, just before leaving for my first Air Force assignment in Italy. We had great seats in the balcony, with an incredible view of the band. The acoustics in that small theater were amazing. It was the perfect setting for Dire Straits. This song seemed to bridge the gap between my entrenched preference for late 60's/early 70's rock and the more synthesized songs of the 1980's. I noticed that the guys older than me as well as those younger enjoyed this particular song and the associated video. It was the cornerstone of many memorable parties and get-togethers in my Air Force days and beyond.

2. Brothers in Arms: The title song for the album, it's not as well known as my #3 submission. Well, if we all liked the same thing, everyone would have married your grandfather. Familiarity breeds contempt and maybe we just saw the Money for Nothing video too often. But I still listen to Brothers in Arms over and over again, and it never fails to please. There's a flute solo during the intro that sends chills up my spine. Seeing it in person, before most people really appreciated the band makes this song doubly special. The fog machines at a relatively small concert arena in San Antonio set an especially appropriate mood for its haunting melody and lyrics. My Air Force buddies and I were getting ready to part ways, so the words of this song fit our mood. After nearly a year of schooling, we were all heading off toward our different assignments. That "band of brothers" idea remained strong throughout our technical training school, and nearly every one of us owned the album by the end of the course.

1. Why Worry: I almost placed this song second, when I realized that it's MY list. I'm confident that pretty much everyone reading this will disagree with my number one choice of song. Why Worry might even be called relatively obscure. It's part of the infamous Dire Straits Brothers in Arms album, but you'll only find a couple submissions on You Tube. The song epitomizes what Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits do best, evoking a quiet longing and optimistic mood. The lyrics tell a story, and the music is simply lovely. Mark Knopfler seems to be singing the song to a particular individual. Of course in my own mind, that person was always me. He points to the end of the rainbow that is the joy of every sad and rainy day. I owe the band (and the man) a huge debt of gratitude for their gift: optimism and beauty. I love this song, Mark Knopfler, and Dire Straits more in 2008 than ever before. Why Worry is part of the reason I am so devoted to the band and the man.

So if you can, take the time to read a bit about Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler. You just have to plug their name into the search engine at You Tube and there's enough music to keep busy until the weekend! If you haven't ordered Kill to Get Crimson, give it a whirl! Like a fine wine, Mark Knopfler gets better with age. I only hope the same is true with me. I consider myself lucky to have found them so early in their career and my life. Thanks to Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler for an enduring record of great music and fond memories.