Dire Straits

Martyrs of Swing. This album feels so circular, slowly meandering through the songs and never getting to the point. It's as if Bob Dylan's 70's backing band got a free weekend in the studio and they just "jammed it out". Talented group, but they need some direction (which is hilarious, considering they're one of the best selling bands of their time). The music of Dire Straits just does not translate well, and has all of the hallmarks of guitar-driven dad rock that has become the butt of so many jokes. Fav Track: Wild West End

I have always loved Sultans of Swing but this was the first time I'd really thought about why. Dire Straits has a way of making the guitar interact with the vocals that is really unique.

Nothing gets me in the mood for a corporate day at Twickenham like the Sultans of Swing (Low Sweet Chariot). Essential listening while getting ready for the game. Boot cut jeans, loafers, TM Lewin checked shirt (button cuff, it is the weekend), corporate branded fleece (its XL but doesn't fit too badly and I didn't declare it to Compliance and their gift register!). Then off to the game with the "lads" from work. They leave after the game but I stick around with some new mates I met in the Orange Tree. 20 pints (I'm paying)of the black stuff later. Wake up on my sofa in the middle of the night covered in take away to the crushing realisation the wife has left, taken the kids and I live in a flat about a pub. Will have to watch Top Gear reruns on Dave to lift the spirits!

Shit slaps

The album that our Amsterdam Air BnB host left in his record player

Driven by Mark Knopfler's spare, tasteful guitar lines and his husky warbling, the album is a set of bluesy rockers. Knopfler also shows an inclination toward Dylanesque imagery, which enhances the smoky, low-key atmosphere of the album. While a few of the songs fall flat, the album is remarkably accomplished for a debut, and Dire Straits had difficulty surpassing it throughout their career.

Sultans of Swing was the best song, they should have written some more like that! Three stars, which means it’s better than American Idiot and Dark Side of the Moon.

Pretty drunk while listening but I think this is a favorite. Sultans of swing but 1hr long

Wow. Silky smooth riffs and bitchin' solos abound. Can't believe this is a debut album. I think In The Gallery may be the weakest effort here, but every other track is gold. Sexy, groovy mix of sparse rock and roll mixed with country, folk, and blues. My knowledge of Dire Straits was Money for Nothing. This is at least 500x better than that.

Melodically muted, rhythmically stunted. They’re a guitar band, I get it. But then why aren’t the guitars more interesting?

One of the best debut albums, the best guitar solo ever (though I prefer the live Alchemy version), and a great album that's always been there for me

Stellar debut album. I am an old.

THIS ALBUM HAS GROOVE FOR DAYS

Great first album to start 1001.

Sehr gut. Schöne Songs.

Sultans of Swing is fantastic and the rest are good.

Knopf let is a smashing guitar player, but this slick mid-tempo rock just didn’t touch my soul.

Serenely shredding Guitar guides you through the blues With effortless cool

Love Mark knopfler

What if "Country", but actually good. Update: Ok, I've had this album on repeat for about 10 times...

Sometimes it's hard to believe how good a debut album can be. Absolute classic, a great listen almost any time.

GOAT

Honestly I dig this a lot more than I anticipated. Some really fantastic guitar playing and the vocals are catchy and bluesy. I'd definitely listen again.

Fantastic guitar solos!!!

I’d heard this before, but this time round only Waterline, Water of Love and Sultans were familiar, which makes sense as they’re the keepers. The rest washes past comfortably: they were a tight little band at this stage, and I have a thing for Knopfler’s voice, which makes me a common sort of fetishist. Dylan looms in several of the tracks, no bad thing in itself, but not flattering to the band either. Knopfler had not yet embraced his brown tone nor that flavour of Nordic fatalism I sniff out in BIA. I’ll mention once more that as a kid he shared an office with Basil Bunting - isn’t that something?

I really enjoy Mark Knopfler's guitar playing, and even more so his production talents (Aztec Camera's "Knife" is so great). Another reviewer astutely describes this record as if Dylan's '70s backing band made a solo album (see "Slow Train Coming" and "Infidels" for the nexus of these two ideas, both really good if advanced-level Bob). Oddly sedate for a debut album, this passes the time pleasantly. Obviously, "Sultans" is welcome anytime, the rest are a bit indistinguishable from each other.

A bit bland, but okay.

Brilliant.

Clean, like the genre Would listen to it outside of this

It one of the best albums with an acoustic guitar that I listened to with a very captivating voice.

Sehr bueno, chillig

This a really solid LP. The variety of soft rock, folk, and country - while keeping the atmosphere as tight as it is - is very impressive. I’m also addicted to a lot of the guitar licks and riffs throughout. These guys seemed to have everything figured out for a debut album.

not an instant favorite or anything but honestly for being such a staple of "dad rock", there is something that is Still rly refreshing and bold about this band...sultans of swing is a funny anecdote made into something resembling a statement of meta-defiance in the face of what the expected face of rock music Was and Is. honestly this could prob come out near-unaltered today and get a fantano 7/10 or something. slick and quiet but also incredibly direct, its all in the licks. very cozy music tbh...instantly digestible in its musical information and just in general dedicated to not Overwhelming u. the solos especially are hugely likable. if u turn up the Complexity and Snark sliders i think thats how u get steely dan...also a great band, but a different itch then this, and tbh one i might be in the mood for slightly less often

Great first album. Torn between 4 and 5. Going to add this to my library even though I'm giving it 4.

This feels awfully modern and well-produced, I was surprised to find it's their debut album.

melow tunes. nice vocals. didn't really listen closely to lyrics some upbeat twangy beats. clean sound. i liked this album; mostly the melow low pace tracks.

It's just middle of the road music? I understand this is good guitar work, it just seems competent? like he's so good he doesn't have to try? It's just so boring background music to me.

Oh god, Dire Straits platen. Daar had ik mij nog niet helemaal op ingesteld. Maar daar komen er ook nog heel wat van langs de komende tijd natuurlijk. Tja en wat moet je er dan van vinden. Wat mij opvalt is dat dit debuutalbum nog niet zo sophisticated klinkt. Het klinkt nog wat rootsier, wat meer Americana en is wat swingerder en aanstekelijker (southbound again) dan die lange uitgesponnen gitaarplaten die zouden volgen. De sound is herkenbaar Dire Straits, maar nog zonder het pretentieuze gedoe. En Sultans of Swing is natuurlijk een banger. 7/10 Highlights Southbound Again Sultans of Swing

Swingin'.

Just regular standard period music...

Music that seems to have been made for middle-aged dads with boring, corporate jobs to have a beer and say "they don't make 'em like they used to anymore" to. Despite it being utterly uninventive and frankly kind of dull, they pull it off pretty well I suppose. Down to the Waterline and Sultans of Swing are the real saving graces here.

I can see why they are so acclaimed

4 excellent songs in Water of Love, Setting me up, Sultans of Swing, and Wild West End. Lions is pretty good too and the rest is good enough

I see Dire Straits - i give it 5

Not a bad song on the album. Highlighted for me by "Down to the Waterline" and of course "Sultans of Swing". Outstanding debut.

While seemingly following a bluesy base line, there’s lots of musical layering and lyrical creativity. It has an originality which was somewhat missing from the rock music scene in the ‘70’s and early 80’s.

COMPLETELY BRILLIANT - FROM THE SECOND THAT IT WAS RELEASED!

Some kind of wonderful. Still my favorite Dire Straits album.

For me Dire Straits is always a pleasure to listen to

Gorgeous album, I see no flaws. I thoroughly enjoyed every track both old and 'new'. For me Dire Straits has such a specific, identifiable sound, you instantly know it's them - but they somehow created a different sound for almost every song. And these guys have never been a go to group for me, although I have always appreciated them - now I'm changing my mind : ) Walking in the Wild West End I didn't know it and now I can't stop listening to it

Unbelievable album and my first introduction to Dire Straits. From that first guitar riff I knew this album was special. Favorite Song: Sultans of Swing HM: Wild West End

Incredible production and recording. Good mix of mellow and some upbeat. An ethereal atmospheric quality that is unique to Dire Straits and some other British rock artists. Mark Knopfler solo guitar work is unique and stands out. Definitely listen to again. Great album from beginning to end.

REAALL funky. Loved the vibe. The classic Dire Straits guitar sounds elevates the groove of the songs. My suprising fave was "Setting Me Up". Never added so many songs to my favourites at once. Would even buy as a vinyl since the sound quality was great.

Such a distinct sound. To me this is a great album.

Dang, this is pretty good!

real bangers

Reminded me of why I love Rock so damn much. This album surprised me to say the least. I mean I knew that I liked the Dire Straits, but I had never sat through this album in particular before. Every song fucks. Gonna have to go pick this one up at the record store tomorrow...

Good album. I only knew a few songs from it, but the rest that were new to me were great to listen to!

The original Dire Straits album is iconic just for Sultans of Swing alone. A song easily ranking in possibly top 50 hits of all time. The melding of the bass with the guitar is Dire Straits is all about and their inaugural album easily shows this off.

Nothing convinces me that Mark's guitar wasn't a member and leader of this band. This bad little girl did the solos, provided the rhythm and even shared the vocals with Mark. The licks on Down On The Waterline are a perfect foreshadowing of what will come later on in the album. A sequence of spectacular jams that leads to the masterpiece Sultans Of Swing, which is very similar to classical music in the way it induces the listener to pay attention to the smallest details of the song. Especially this bad little girl who made her name in the history of rock n roll in the two solos of this song. Anyway, a hell of a debut album!

Every song was good. Would listen again 100%

One of my favourite albums

AND THE SULTANS PLAY CREOLE

Perfection

SO GOOD!! SUCH A VIBE

Einfach weltklasse!!!

One of my favorites. New sound worth repeated listening

Smooth blues rock with some silky guitar work. Just listening to this makes me want to learn to play fingerstyle. What an amazing debut album!

This album is comfort food, where comfort food is Thai scallops in citrus ginger sauce prepared by a Michelin chef. A great album with that unique Knopfler sound that's still fresh and relevant 45+ years later. Incredible talent.

Perfect guitar

Fantastic

I didn’t know much by dire straits and I was pleasantly surprised listen and relaxing and feeling funky

Oh yaaaaaa. Only knew sultans of swing, but enjoyed the whole album.

Noice

Brilliant! Well written, great production, very enjoyable

This one flew right on by. Favorite track: "Sultans of Swing."

This is a great album. They created a unique sound that is timeless and was hugely popular when they debuted. Even the lesser known album cuts are a joy to listen to. I particularly love the way the album starts with a hint of mystery. But you then immediately discover that this music is built on top notch guitar playing. Waterline, Water of Love, Setting Me Up; the album cranks 3 hit songs right off the top and Sultans, an all timer, is still in the wings. 4.6

Perfect.

Mentions of newcastle make me feel very nostalgic

This debut album from Dire Straits will always be their best. I love the minimalist, straightforward roots rock and pub rock approach of this album. It’s rock in its purest form. The laid-back vibe, combined with Mark Knopfler’s fingerpicking guitar style, creates a crisp, clean, and refined sound that’s hard to beat.

Perfection.

Outfuckingstanding

"Dire" implies something urgent, desperate, grievously troublesome, or of a nature that invokes fear or suffering. A "strait" is a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water. I've listened to this album literally hundreds of times in my life. Not once have I ever felt any indication of "dire" *anything*. In fact, this has been one of my favorite albums over the years. I come back to it every now and then, and the only memory I can find that contains even a tiny hint of danger or trouble was when I was sitting on the hood of my car in front of a cliff (for the view, NOT for any other reason!), calmly listening to "six blade knife". I guess the mention of a knife, especially one with so many blades, could be anxiety inducing for some, but not me. I *might* have driven on a bridge over a "strait" when I was filling my world with sound from this album, but I doubt it. I guess maybe my point is, the only way "dire" or "straits" could apply to this is that if you don't love this album after even one listening, you'll be in dire straits for the rest of your life by not recognizing top shelf music, destined to wallow in the greasy, foul mud of pop music, or even worse, country/western. So "strait-en" up and love this. Or else.

Man have I underappreciated Dire Straits.

Love Sultans of Swing Seconded: Down to the Waterline Wild West End Lions

Mark Knopfler’s noodling and talk-singing will always make me happy

Chill. Vibey. Feel like I could get high and have the best day of my life listening to this.

Really loved this album, actually. Every track is fire

This album is fantastic. It has rock, blues, honky took…Mark Knopfler is astounding good at playing what best serves the song. He doesn’t overplay and allows space in a song. Even though he could definitely show off, these songs don’t call for flashy riffs. Sultans of Swing gives a glimpse at just how good he is. Definitely an album everyone should be exposed to at some point.

Someone once asked me why I like Dire Straits and my answer was that in my opinion all the parts, the vocals, the rhythm, the lead, the melody and the lyrics just all seem to work together. The most mundane premise for a song becomes vibrant and interesting in their hand. I broke out the vinyl to listen to this one.

A very very solid album :)

This is one of my favorite albums ever. I could listen to Knopfler all day.

Great album!!

One of the greatest debut albums of all time. Every song is great. Knopfler is an exceptional guitarist. Happy to have listened to this one again.

This debut album from Dire Straits will always be their best. I love the minimalist, straightforward roots rock and pub rock approach of this album. It’s rock in its purest form. The laid-back vibe, combined with Mark Knopfler’s fingerpicking guitar style, creates a crisp, clean, and refined sound that’s hard to beat.

COULD BE A 5 ********* but I think it needs a relisten

What an absolute vibe

damn this shit fire thank you dire straits, people in 78’ sucked yet you gifted them this masterpiece. Mark Knopfler not only sings himself but makes the guitar sing as well, era tocar la guitarra no hacerla cantar !!! fire bass as well shoutout John Illsley smooth, like a leg that’s just been shaved. no sharp edges which is weird because Knopfler’s raspy singing could go with much heavier stuff. if it were a colour it’d be baby blue and gold. unproblematic, if you actively dislike it you’re fucking weird. 4,6/5 (could’ve had more variety of melodies, but literally that’s me reaching because it’s great nonetheless)

preferably al fesco on vacay

Classic, unique unmistakable style.