Good one today. We are certainly in the same boat, having heard "Money for Nothin'" on MTV in the mid 80s. I finally got around to exploring early Dire Straits some time in the late 90s! Took a while.
Their early stuff is solid and very easy to listen to.
Romeo and Juliet and Solid Rock are my favorite Dire Straits songs. Both made their way onto numerous mixtapes post Money for Nothing so I could show others how solid this band was pre-MTV insanity.
In hindsight, it's wild for me to think this whole 'nother discography existed, and I had no idea. In 2024, I probably would've just Googled them and found out before the first song was over.
If you can’t shake the feeling you’ve seen the video for ‘Skateaway’ before I’ll vouch for you that you have. I too remember seeing it on MTV in the early days. “Toro, toro taxi”.
As good as ‘Brothers In Arms’ is, ‘Making Movies’ is easily my favorite Dire Straits album. Apart from Mark Knopfler’s guitar work, he wrote some brilliant lyrics on it as well. ‘Romeo & Juliet’, ‘Tunnel of Love’…I’m sure I’ll be playing this album now at some point today.
My favorite as well. I’d liked “Sultans” when I heard it on the radio in 1979, but this was their first LP that I bought. (And for the record, I always loathed Brothers.)
Love it. So when I lived in PDX (your fave) I saw Mark Knopfler open for Dylan! Dare I say it, Mark was fucking blowing it out of the park!!! (The same tour my dad saw a few days a part in MA, but Dawes opened, he was so bummed…)
Well said, Kevin. That's a great record, although I'll argue for Espresso Love over Solid Rock.
I'm a bit older and fell in love with "Sultans of Swing" when it was in heavy rotation on our local rock station. I could tell it was different, but as an eighth-grader, I couldn't identify what it was. I later realized that it -- along with some other stuff like early Pretender and Jackson Browne -- pointed me to the mix of rock and roots music that I came to love so much. I got Making Movies and Love Over Gold when they came out, and later circled back to Comminque.
Speaking of Jimmy Iovine, his conversation with Rick Rubin on Rick's Tetragrammaton podcast is one of the best about music I've ever heard. It's hilarious (and hilariously profane) at times, and Iovine's stories are incredible, from working on a James Brown record as a teen and on early John Lennon records with Phil Spector, to all of the massive records that made him a star. It's a must-listen.
I'm with Dusty - far and away, my favorite Dire Straits album. It's one of those flawless records and fits nicely into my third album theory (more on that some other time). "Skateaway" is just about as perfect a song as you can get, and you're 100% right about length. I had never considered that being part of the album's strength, but it absolutely is (length, but mostly, overexposure kill Brothers in Arms for me - aside from "The Man's Too Strong" - just about as powerful a song you can get). "Romeo and Juliet," mmmwwwaaa! Another perfect song.
Ahh, this album may be 40+ years old, but it STILL sounds solid and refreshing. I love this, Kevin; thanks for the reminder.
Got Dire Straits first album and "Making Movies" when they were first released. Skipped "Communiqué". Their first album is still my favorite, for nostalgic reasons, but Making Movies is also very solid. I would have to go with "Skateaway" as my favorite track. That's all.
Glad you singled this album out! I don't think I've ever listened to the whole thing! However, I've always like the song and video for Skateaway. It's an under appreciated gem of a tune. I will check out the rest of the album now!
Your first paragraph is everything to me. 👏👏👏. Myriad artists entered my world past the ‘early stuff’. Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Kiss, Scorpions, Judas Priest, to name a few.
Thank you, Bret!
Good one today. We are certainly in the same boat, having heard "Money for Nothin'" on MTV in the mid 80s. I finally got around to exploring early Dire Straits some time in the late 90s! Took a while.
Their early stuff is solid and very easy to listen to.
Better late than never, right? :)
Oh yes. Sometimes, late is even better, I think!
It's my favorite Dire Straits album. Thanks for sharing your review, Kevin.
You bet! I'm glad you liked it.
Romeo and Juliet and Solid Rock are my favorite Dire Straits songs. Both made their way onto numerous mixtapes post Money for Nothing so I could show others how solid this band was pre-MTV insanity.
In hindsight, it's wild for me to think this whole 'nother discography existed, and I had no idea. In 2024, I probably would've just Googled them and found out before the first song was over.
Hi Kevin. Love this album!
If you can’t shake the feeling you’ve seen the video for ‘Skateaway’ before I’ll vouch for you that you have. I too remember seeing it on MTV in the early days. “Toro, toro taxi”.
As good as ‘Brothers In Arms’ is, ‘Making Movies’ is easily my favorite Dire Straits album. Apart from Mark Knopfler’s guitar work, he wrote some brilliant lyrics on it as well. ‘Romeo & Juliet’, ‘Tunnel of Love’…I’m sure I’ll be playing this album now at some point today.
Yes, I remember seeing the Skateaway video quite frequently on MTV. JJ Jackson was a fan of the video and its rollerskating star.
Thank you! I happy to hear I wasn't imagining things.
My favorite as well. I’d liked “Sultans” when I heard it on the radio in 1979, but this was their first LP that I bought. (And for the record, I always loathed Brothers.)
Love it. So when I lived in PDX (your fave) I saw Mark Knopfler open for Dylan! Dare I say it, Mark was fucking blowing it out of the park!!! (The same tour my dad saw a few days a part in MA, but Dawes opened, he was so bummed…)
Nice! Where was this at?
Sorry, but your dad kinda got a raw deal. :)
Oh yea, he will never let this go, lol. I was at The Rose Garden. :)
Well said, Kevin. That's a great record, although I'll argue for Espresso Love over Solid Rock.
I'm a bit older and fell in love with "Sultans of Swing" when it was in heavy rotation on our local rock station. I could tell it was different, but as an eighth-grader, I couldn't identify what it was. I later realized that it -- along with some other stuff like early Pretender and Jackson Browne -- pointed me to the mix of rock and roots music that I came to love so much. I got Making Movies and Love Over Gold when they came out, and later circled back to Comminque.
Speaking of Jimmy Iovine, his conversation with Rick Rubin on Rick's Tetragrammaton podcast is one of the best about music I've ever heard. It's hilarious (and hilariously profane) at times, and Iovine's stories are incredible, from working on a James Brown record as a teen and on early John Lennon records with Phil Spector, to all of the massive records that made him a star. It's a must-listen.
I'll look up the podcast based on your recommendation. Thanks.
Thanks for the rec.! I'll see if I can find it.
I'm with Dusty - far and away, my favorite Dire Straits album. It's one of those flawless records and fits nicely into my third album theory (more on that some other time). "Skateaway" is just about as perfect a song as you can get, and you're 100% right about length. I had never considered that being part of the album's strength, but it absolutely is (length, but mostly, overexposure kill Brothers in Arms for me - aside from "The Man's Too Strong" - just about as powerful a song you can get). "Romeo and Juliet," mmmwwwaaa! Another perfect song.
Ahh, this album may be 40+ years old, but it STILL sounds solid and refreshing. I love this, Kevin; thanks for the reminder.
"See you tomorrow my son."
Of course! I'm glad you liked it.
Yes, indeed, a very good album. In my opinion not a bad song on it. Love Over Gold is a winner album too.
Got Dire Straits first album and "Making Movies" when they were first released. Skipped "Communiqué". Their first album is still my favorite, for nostalgic reasons, but Making Movies is also very solid. I would have to go with "Skateaway" as my favorite track. That's all.
I love it!
Romeo and Juliet is far and away my favourite Dire Straits track. Seeing The Killers cover it in Paris was a highlight of that set too!
Glad you singled this album out! I don't think I've ever listened to the whole thing! However, I've always like the song and video for Skateaway. It's an under appreciated gem of a tune. I will check out the rest of the album now!
Really nice songs in this album. I love this version of Romeo And Juliet:
https://open.spotify.com/intl-es/track/6xLh2Oq3RCGSLvAHsxdvjQ?si=a4cac1091f5b4fb2
I discovered Dire Straits about the same time and via the same song! TIL 😀
I wonder how many of us were in that same camp? Gotta be a bunch of us, I'd think.
Your first paragraph is everything to me. 👏👏👏. Myriad artists entered my world past the ‘early stuff’. Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Kiss, Scorpions, Judas Priest, to name a few.