Love Over Gold [Remaster]

Performer: Dire Straits
Engineer: Neil Dorfsman
Producer: Mark Knopfler
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Dire Straits: Mark Knopfler (vocals, guitar); Hal Lindes (guitar); Alan Clark (keyboards); John Illsley (bass); Pick Withers (drums). Additional personnel: Mike Mainieri (vibraphone, marimba); Ed Walsh (programming). All tracks have been digitally remastered. Despite the fact that LOVE OVER GOLD contains only five songs, the powerful effect of these selections makes this Dire Straits' most underrated record. Building on the ambitious arrangements and more sophisticated story-songs that made up the prior MAKING MOVIES, Mark Knopfler audaciously composed "Telegraph Road," a near-15-minute cut that traces society's technological evolution. Although this kind of subject matter might sound ostensibly dry, Knopfler's crisp playing and warm raspy voice, combined with Alan Clark's gorgeous keyboard runs, makes for a sweeping experience. Elsewhere, Knopfler uses the satirical romp "Industrial Disease" to turn a lesson on international economics and bureaucratic red tape into an infectious shuffle. Rounding out this unusual pop album are the atmospheric piano-driven title track, the ominously film-noir-flavored "Private Investigations," and "It Never Rains," the story of a hard-luck lover that comes off with an optimistic air thanks to Clark's pulsing organ playing and Knopfler's robust delivery.

Q (7/96, p.141) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...looked more to Dylan and Springsteen than ever before, the broad canvas and atmospherics of an extended `Telegraph Road' balanced by the intimacy of `Private Investigations'--revelatory and sorrowful..."

The U.K.'s Dire Straits became one of the world's most popular rock bands the old-fashioned way, through songwriting and musicianship. When "Sultans of Swing" broke through on both sides of the Atlantic in 1979, the sound suggested Bob Dylan backed by J.J. Cale. It sure didn't sound like anything else on the radio. Mark Knopfler's gruff singing and exquisite guitar playing were critical to the group's sound. The next two records cemented Dire Straits' reputation and bolstered its popularity. 1985's BROTHERS IN ARMS became one of the biggest sellers of the decade. After the band dissolved, Knopfler (who had already done some well regarded soundtrack work) embarked on a solo career, opting for a more low-key approach.

Click Here for Shipping Options and Policies

Shipping or Dimension weight in pounds: 0.25