Antidote for Blues – an appreciation of Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms

Over popular music’s long history, there have been certain albums that stick out. They are an elite group, and they have certain unique qualities that somehow set them apart from the rest. Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles. Band On the Run by Wings. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd. Graceland by Paul Simon. These albums were all colossally successful and hugely iconic, each in their own unique way. Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms is one such example.

When talking about Brothers in Arms, Mark Knopfler has often said that when setting about recording it, he gave little thought towards how successful the album might be. He was just ‘recording another album’. Indeed, this was the middle of the 1980s. The charts were dominated by one-hit-wonder synth-pop acts and guitar orientated roots/rock music was hardly trendy at that time. Throughout their career, Dire Straits never tried to appeal to commercial trends. And yet, as the National Style ‘O’ unwittingly depicts on the front cover, the appeal of the band skyrocketed and they became arguably the biggest band in the world with the release of Brothers in Arms. It only goes to show that if you have good songs, you needn’t try to get in with the crowd – the songs will speak for themselves.

At least some of the success of Brothers in Arms can, of course, be attributed to the advent of the Compact Disc. The general soundscape of the album itself resulted partly from an entirely digital production, and it therefore naturally leant itself to the pristine sound quality of the new CDs. Ironically, Knopfler has reverted to a more analogue-based production into his solo career, the merits of which are obvious when his solo efforts are compared to Brothers in Arms. But digital recording was the natural direction to take at that time, and is an important part of what makes the album what it is.

The album opens with lead single ‘So Far Away’, a lament on the difficulties of a long-distance relationship. I have always felt that hearing those opening chords at the start of the album is akin to taking your first sip of a refreshing drink on a hot Summer’s day. Perhaps it’s just the comfort of familiarity. In spite of its subject matter, the song is actually rather upbeat, not to mention incredibly catchy. ‘Money for Nothing’, famously inspired by a delivery driver making comments on the MTV channel being shown on television screens in an electrical appliance store, features the sound of an overdriven Gibson Les Paul – not a sound Dire Straits fans had been accustomed to up to this point. After Terry Williams’ big drum solo, one of the most iconic guitar riffs in rock cuts in. Also subtly borrowing a snippet of melody from The Police’s ‘Don’t Stand So Close to Me’ sung by Sting himself, who guested on backing vocals, the song went on to become one of band’s most widely recognised hits worldwide, as did the light-hearted ‘Walk of Life’.

It is ironic that one of the world’s finest guitarists should write a song featuring such a strong and memorable saxophone hook, but this is exactly what Mark Knopfler did on ‘Your Latest Trick’, supplementing it with echoey guitar fills that compliment the imagery of its lyrics brilliantly. The gentle ‘Why Worry’ provides a more heartwarming moment and is a relatively simple composition, yet wonderfully effective. ‘The Man’s Too Strong’ is a lesson to any aspiring songwriter on how to finish a song. The combination of the instrumentation and the chord sequence in the outro of this song is, quite simply, perfect.

Another of the most well-known and iconic recordings on the album is title track ‘Brothers in Arms’. It is one of those songs that has come to mean a great deal to many listeners in a multitude of ways. It is also a song that may wash over you at first, but grows on you with repeated listening until you finally realise just how profound the song really is. Written from the point of view of a soldier in the last throes of his life, that guitar solo on which it fades out is a poignant note on which to end the album.

Throughout its nine tracks, Brothers in Arms has a distinctly atmospheric sound and a feel and mood all of its own. You might often hear Mark Knopfler, the self-deprecating gentleman that he is, putting its success purely down to its release coinciding with the advent of the CD and the fact that two of its singles were massive hits in the US. But whilst these things were certainly a factor, you only have to listen to the album to realise how genuinely special it is.

For all its successes, Brothers in Arms is not an album that you would seriously consider recording in the same way today. Its production was very much of its time and it would seem out of place if it was to be released now. And yet, paradoxically, it still sounds just as fresh as it ever did. It is difficult to put one’s finger on the precise reasoning for this, but the sheer brilliance of its songs, written by a master songsmith who continues to write music of an outstanding quality to this day, must be a factor – even looking through the prism of 1980s production values. Now thirty-five years since it was originally released in May 1985, Brothers in Arms retains its character. It is unique. Iconic. A masterpiece. And it will always remain so. To quote the lyric from one of its songs, ‘One World’, it is every bit that elusive “antidote for blues” for those of us who still appreciate such good, well-crafted music.

The 20th Anniversary edition of Brothers in Arms released in 2005.