Delighted to see a few votes for Mark Knopfler, who I always turn to offer quality music. I do wonder if anyone else finds his stuff to be a little Prozaic sometimes. He can sing a sad or happy song with absolutely no emotional inflection, the only clue is the words he uses, a sad guitar here and there. It's an interesting hands -off technique which leaves the listener to decide for themselves whether the subject merits an emotional investment. I say this in contrast to much of the music I was accustomed which, I realized in my late 20's seemed to try and over-stimulate to either over-reflection or all out partying, but always with some emotional drive.
The 90's were a real dry period for me (I still hate (HATE!) everything about grunge, and how it ended my generations party), my 80's music usually being party rock and the occasional rock ballad. When I saw that Mark had a new album out (Golden Heart) I bought it right away hoping to see a return to the sound I was more familiar with. I was frankly pretty disappointed upon first hearing it. But, I would find myself listening to it anyway because I found it relaxed me. Then I began to really like the instrumental attributes of the album, the more I listened through the years, the more amazed I became with the orchestral skill it took to put it all together. Golden Heart is still my favorite, and I think still his best work, my favorite: Done with Bonaparte.
Kill to get Crimson is a fine album also, my favorite there being "Heart Full Of Holes" and "Let It All Go". Shangri-La has many good songs like "Postcards From Paraguay" and "The Trawlermans Song". I can't think of any of his works that lack in recording quality, they all seem pretty good, if it's your cup of tea.
Has anyone heard his last song on Shangri-La (a unusually fun song from him), "Don't Crash The Ambulance"? Who do you think he is talking about? I always thought it was George Bush SR./JR..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tswu4a7Ztt8