Making Movies (Original Recording Reissued, Original Recording Remastered)

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Dire Straits

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Although it produced no hit singles, "Making Movies" is beyond question Dire Straits' masterpiece. Mark Knopfler's ripping guitar forms the backdrop for seven beautiful, haunting, fiercely personal cuts. Every song perfectly captures a deep human emotion, from the bitter heartache of "Romeo And Juliet" to the angry defiance of "Solid Rock" to the steamy lustfulness of "Expresso Love". There are no weak songs, though the bouncy and playful "Les Boys", which ends the album, seems a bit out of place compared to the six deadly earnest songs that precede it.

Yes, the album owes a heavy debt of gratitude to Springsteen, with many cuts building on the Boss's signature guitar/organ/piano framework. But, Knopfler's vocal delivery and deft guitar work, plus the band's sparser and cleaner arrangements, never allow you to forget that you're listening to Dire Straits. Only "Tunnel Of Love", which sounds like a cross between "Thunder Road" and "Sandy" strays a little too far into Bruce's territory but for that the boys can be forgiven.

One tip: this album must be heard in its entirety to be fully appreciated. It will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotion, something that no greatest hits album can ever duplicate.

Dire Straits' (or more particularly, Mark Knopfler's) desire to make more cinematic music really blossomed on their third album, "Making Movies." The songs suddenly shifted from Bob Dylan territory over to Bruce Springsteen's world. As if to shore up that allusion, E-Streeter Roy Bittan contributed his keyboard skills and Springsteen production cohort Jimmy Iovine co-manned the boards with Knopfler. While this album serves as the bridge between the epics that appeared on "Love Over Gold" and the stylistic restlessness coming off the first two albums, it is also burdened by a second half comprised of weak material.

But if this was the old age of albums, you could have just ignored the flat side two and just allowed the three glorious compositions of side one to play over and over on your turntable. From the opening strains of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Carousel Waltz" that segue into "Tunnel Of Love," to the energetic description of the roller girl in "Skateaway," it was obvious that Knopfler's ambitions were keeping pace with his growth as a song writer. "Skateaway" could be one of the best songs ever written about the relationship between radio and a music lover;

"She gets rock and roll from a rock and roll station,

and a rock and roll dream.

She's making movies on location,

she don't know what it means.

But the music makes her want to be the story,

and the story was whatever was the song what it was.

Rollergirl, don't worry, the DJ plays the music

all night long."

"Skateaway" was a hit that got away in the years preceding "Money For Nothing." If you can linger on the brilliance of that song, "Tunnel Of Love" and "Romeo And Juliet," and ignore the pedestrian rock that adorns the second half (and a pox on the hideous "Les Boys"), then "Making Movies" will satisfy you. But if you're just looking for a casual listen to Dire Straits, there are other, better, albums to explore.