Brothers in Arms [Remaster] - Dire Straits (CD 2000)

When Dire Straits first hit the scene in the late 70's, the reaction from their native England was lukewarm, so it caused a little surprise when the debut album was raved about, first in parts of continental Europe, then in Australia and finally in the USA.

By this, Dire Straits' fifth album, England had long since caught up with the rest of the world and Brothers in Arms went on to perform the amazing feat of being the highest selling album in England in BOTH 1984 and 1985.

I am ashamed to admit that it took me until the release of this album to discover Dire Straits, although I can be partially excused due to the fact that I was only 12 years old at the time of it's release.

Brother's in Arms is as close to flawless as an album could possibly be. You drift from the melancholy "So far away", to the ever popular "Money for Nothing", to "Walk of Life" a fast paced song with one of the catchiest tunes I have ever heard in my life and the song which was destined to become the second major hit from the album in Australia.
Later in the album the mood settles down a little with some wonderful sax work in "Your Latest Trick" - Amazing skill at getting absolutely everything and then some is one of the traits which always set Dire Straits and Mark Knophler apart from other bands of the day. The rest of the album is similarly brilliant but I will leave you to discover that for yourself!

Brothers in Arms did not enjoy the worldwide success it did without reason. If you are over the age of 25 and under the age of 70 you should be ashamed if it is not part of your collection as it is a true masterpiece.