Brothers in Arms

YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYEYESYESYESYESYESYEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What would you do if i said

W o r s t D i r e S t r a i t s a l b u m???

But still amazing.

NEED TO HEAR RATING: NEED TO HEAR

Best song: Money For Nothing
Worst song: One World
Underrated: Why Worry

Déjà écouté avant.

Top : Brothers in Arms
Flop : Why Worry

I think I’m at a 10.

I haven’t felt that relaxed by an album in a long, long time. It’s just an excellent set of tracks, really, all loosely linked by the inability to connect with each other, whether it’s a lover, the rockstars on your TV, the buskers in the subway, the city slickers, or the soldiers. It’s no wonder the most serene track on the album is the only one with such a potent connection, being “Why Worry”. It feels like Mark Knopfler is begging the world to finally come together as brothers in arms, even if he knows it’s pretty damn close to impossible. 41 years later, and I’m not sure we’ve made that much progress.

That said, this album feels like it’s certainly endured the test of time. The feeling of repetition & the length of the tracks do feel a little weighty at first, but by the end of the full 55 minutes here, I got really used to it. It helps that most of the extended soundscapes here have something really appealing to them, whether it’s the guitar riffs on “Money for Nothing”, the synth lead on “Walk of Life”, the beautiful sax work on “Your Latest Trick”, the serenity of “Why Worry”, the nighttime sounds at the end of “Ride Across the River”, or the organ/guitar mix that closes out “Brothers in Arms” & subsequently, the whole album.

Knopfler’s vocals & lyrics here, which I never really touched on when we got the self-titled album **962 days ago**, feel like a constant mix of Dylan, Cohen & Springsteen. It’s an interesting mix that he manages to leverage well. It’s melodic enough to keep cohesion, it’s just rambly enough to stay captivating, and it’s just dry enough to contrast nicely against some of the higher energy instrumentals here. “Walk of Life” might be the best example of all 3, but to me, he really evoked Dylan on “The Man's Too Strong”. Hell, I didn’t really touch on THAT much when we got the self-titled album, probably because I just hadn’t digested enough music to get it. Maybe I need to go back & relisten to it.

There are obviously a few things that I could critique; it gets a little cheesy at points (I look mostly at “One World”), the blatant use of the F-slur on “Money for Nothing” can’t be ignored, and there are occasionally moments where the length & repeated lyrics did get me just a bit antsy. I can’t help it, sorry. That said, they truly didn’t bother me by the end of it. This album relishes in that patience, feeling like a mixture of Sting’s solo work (he fits like a glove on “Money for Nothing”, by the way), & Donald Fagen’s work on “The Nightfly”, with a more socially aware lean throughout. Much like The Nightfly, for my listening experience, I didn’t really care about any ‘flaws’ in the moment that much. I cared enough to notice them, sure, but they didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the album while I was listening to it. Hell, listening to it now as backing music while I’m writing this out, I find myself just as locked in, even without headphones guiding me along.

Overall, I think it’s a great, great album. I can’t find anything overly wrong with it (again, not excusing that F-slur at all), and it’s a delightful listen to my ears. It gets maybe a touch flowery at times, but I’d say it’s a pretty digestible album, and when it’s combined with stuff that’s as easy to listen to as this is, it’s just a delight. I’m very glad it’s on the list, and I’ll probably run this back a few times over the coming days. I think it’s a 10.

There was a time when I considered "Brothers in Arms" to be a masterpiece of 1980s mainstream rock and Dire Straits’ best album. I wouldn’t stand by either of those statements today. At the time of its release, Dire Straits were arguably the biggest band in the business (alongside U2). Except that the actual band had fallen apart. Of the original quartet, only Mark Knopfler and his faithful Sancho Panza, John Illsley on bass, remained. The outstanding drummer Pick Withers had left after "Love Over Gold" and been replaced by the run-of-the-mill 1980s rock drummer Terry Williams. Rhythm guitarist David Knopfler had already left after just two albums. The band’s sound had gradually shifted from the blues and folk of their early albums to stadium-friendly rock-pop. Simple, catchy tunes like the daft “Walk of Life” – which had always been the fly in the ointment of the Straits’ albums – became key singles. Admittedly, the album still contained more introspective tracks such as “Ride Across the River”, “The Man’s Too Strong” and the title track “Brothers in Arms”, but overall the album remains unbalanced; from today’s perspective, it’s covered in a thick layer of that typical ’80s patina. So no, it’s not the band’s best album (that would probably be their debut or “Love Over Gold”), but the album and the accompanying tour certainly secured Knopfler a decent pension. An even weaker Dire Straits album was yet to be released – “On Every Street” – after which Knopfler disbanded the group and devoted himself to his solo career, which veered less and less towards commercialism and, ultimately, away from the sound of Dire Straits.

moni for nothin

Surprised me. Didn't realise how many great tunes are on this album and it's not my type of music in general. 4/5.

Begint sterk, Money For Nothing is een banger en Walk Of Life is erg gezellig. Halverwege begon de plaat me te vervelen, duurt allemaal net wat te lang voor het mooie.

I think Brothers in Arms is one of those albums that works particularly well when you’re not looking for something demanding. It has a relaxed, spacious quality that makes it very easy to put on in the background and simply let it wash over you. I found it atmospheric and surprisingly good for decompressing.
A lot of that comes from Mark Knopfler’s guitar playing. It’s restrained rather than flashy, with those clean, lingering notes that give the songs plenty of room to breathe. The production is also a big part of the experience: polished, spacious and distinctly 1980s, but without making the album feel overly busy.
The obvious highlights are “So Far Away,” “Your Latest Trick,” “Why Worry,” and especially “Brothers in Arms.” The latter has an almost cinematic melancholy to it. It’s slow and reflective without becoming overwhelmingly sad. “Your Latest Trick,” meanwhile, has that late-night, slightly dreamy quality that makes it particularly effective as a stress-relief track.
There are moments when the album’s polished production and relatively gentle pace can make it feel a little too smooth, and some of the songs don’t hit as strongly as the best ones. But I think that actually contributes to its usefulness as a relaxed listening experience. It doesn’t constantly demand your attention.
What I particularly liked is that Brothers in Arms feels calm without being bland. There’s enough emotion, atmosphere and musicianship underneath the surface to reward actually listening, but you can also put it on after a long day and not have to work for the experience.
Overall: a beautifully produced, atmospheric album with a mellow, reflective character. Not necessarily something I'd reach for when I want excitement or intensity, but for unwinding, driving at night, or simply clearing your head, it works remarkably well.

My mom's favourite band. After listening, my opinion of my mom has changed. This is a snoozefest

Gosh, love Dire Straits but have always disliked this album, yep, one of the world’s best-selling albums of all time. Mainly because of Walk of Life, which I could always see being done by a bad busker. I also am of the opinion, often challenged, that although Money For Nothing is a sardonic message on capitalism, they must have known that the refrain I Want my MTV would have got them huge airplay, on MTV. Not having listened in years I went in with some trepidation only to remember that it is in fact an incredible album. From the The Man’s too strong to Brothers in Arms, each song is anthemic but Knopfler’s vocals are so quiet and gentle the impact is far greater than if he was screaming about the travesty of war.

I think it faded with age but Mark Knopfler always seemed so arrogant and smug in the 80s. The big hit is quite a petty little caricature of working men. Other than that it's all a bit antiseptic and dull.

A fantastic album with really great genre crossing. Mark is a guitar genius. I was hoping for more doodo doo. Doot dot doo (doo do)

I like Money For Nothing, and knew a few of the others but it's just at ok level.

Like catnip to babyboomers. Heard this album so often that every song is ingrained into my memory. Half nostalgia, half just enjoyable but generic music. There's some excellent playing on here, I especially like Money for Nothing and The man's too strong. Mark Knopfler knew how to write good songs and just stacked the entire album with them. Doesn't really get boring, even if it's somewhat generic 80's Rock at the end of the day.

Resulta que cuando los viejos dan tanto por culo con un disco, A VECES tienen razón. Es muy ambiental, es muy chulo, tiene Walk on Life, se siente un verano en un resort decadente que no se si era la idea pero a mi me vale.

Some hits, some misses. But the hits definitely make up for the misses

So Dad, so 80s. Starts off cheesy but bearable but ends up sounding like B movie score cut scene music from that era.

I like how they kinda sound like a different band on every track, but the downside is I don't always like what they're doing. It's a really strong 3

Never been a big Dire Straits fan. Now, I'll admit "Money For Nothing" is a fantastic track. Also, "Walk of Life" is catchy as hell. I don't really vibe with anything else, though. Rest of the album is a bit of a soft-rock snoozefest.

If a band of talented musicians took a bunch of quaaludes while listening to Pink Floyd and then decided to start recording, this is the result. The first couple of songs are upbeat because the drugs take time to start up, but when they kick in, boy can you feel it.