Interview on Virgin Radio Italy on 18/05/2025. Here is the translation from Italian.
Dire Straits, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the release of Brothers In Arms, have released a reissue available on single vinyl and in two deluxe editions: Box 5LP and Box 3CD. For the occasion, Dr. Feelgood interviewed the legendary Mark Knopfler (there is also an audio file) to learn all the secrets of an album that has rightfully entered rock history.
Mark, it has been 40 years since the release of Brothers in Arms, the fifth of the six albums released by Dire Straits. Today, after 40 long years, what are the most immediate memories you have of that period?
‘Unbelievable, 40 years? When you're having fun, time goes by fast! It seems like 40 minutes to me. That's the most incredible thing for me, is how fast time went by. I had a great time. I enjoyed everything, and I have nothing but happy memories. I really feel like the luckiest person in the world. The fact that people still get pleasure from our music means a lot to me. I am happy that for many people our music is still a part of their lives: for work, to celebrate and they use it on different occasions, be it births, weddings, even at funerals. People use our music for their lives and that is a wonderful thing for me."
As much as an artist focuses on the creative and production side of things, I imagine that the thinking in the various stages of the product's evolution also goes towards the response that the public will give to your work. What expectations did you have? Did you imagine it would achieve such a sales success?
‘Absolutely not. It was a very unusual combination of circumstances. We were playing a lot live, we were touring a lot, and I think the band's reputation live was good. People wanted to see us play, it was a good time. Then, when we made the record, our record company was Philips, at that time Phonogram Philips in Europe. They had invented the CD player and releasing the album as a CD made the difference: they played it in shops in Europe and the public heard what it sounded like. From there came a lot of hits in America. The first single was So Far Away. I remember it well. It entered the charts in America. Then Walk of Life was another hit, a big hit in America. And then Money for Nothing. I think when you have a hit record or album in the States it makes a big difference everywhere. It was already a hit all over Europe and in different places, but when Steve Barron's video came out, that also made a big difference: it reached the masses, which was unusual I think, it was a really incredible moment. It was like being in the eye of the storm’.
Your musical choices did not take into account trends and what was in vogue in 1977 when the band was born. Compared to what was heard then, it was a unique and original band. I think it was also a particular choice to open the album with So Far Away and release it as the first single. Beautiful but certainly less impactful than Money For Nothing or Walk of Life, don't you think?
' That's true. It was intentional. I thought it was a better way to connect with people. It was a less demanding way to introduce them to our work, in continuity with the path we were on. But nobody expected it to go that way. Nobody was ready for that kind of reach back then. I don't know if you remember the shows we did back then. They weren't small club shows, they were big events. It was quite unusual for me to do such big shows back then.’
Money For Nothing involved Sting. How did the collaboration come about? Are you still in touch after all these years?
'Oh, yes of course, we still keep in touch. We were recording Money for Nothing in Montserrat in the Antilles, at Air Studios. I said to the guys 'ah how I wish Sting was here, I'd love him to sing this part'. I had seen that The Police had done an advert for MTV that said 'I want my MTV'. I thought I could turn it into a tune like the one Sting had given to Don't Stand So Close To Me. We were old friends. It came to me because we had done a lot of concerts together. At the beginning we shared a tour where we played quite a few gigs together, we were very close. I said, 'I wish Sting was here' and someone said, 'Oh but Sting is here on holiday. He's here right now'. He was surfing with his family and we called him. He came into the studio and immediately started recording the song. And it was great of course, . So it worked out great. It was perfect. And there are many other things on this record that went like that, extraordinary coincidences.'
Walk of Life is a song that pleases on first listen, upbeat, danceable... is it true that producer Neil Dorfsman thought it was too light to be part of a busy album like Brother In Arms?
'That's right, Neil didn't want it. But I liked it. It has cajun influences, me and the band liked it. Poor old Neil, he was outvoted. And then it was a big hit in the States and everywhere. It's one of those songs that gets played a lot, by different people for different reasons. It's fantastic.'
I particularly love the music of the Everly Brothers. Can you tell us the story of Why Worry and your collaboration?
"I've always loved the Everly Brothers. And I think when I was writing Why Worry I really had the Everly Brothers and definitely Buddy Holly in mind. I was so happy to know that the Everlys were going to record the song. During an American TV special with Chet Atkins I was part of the band that accompanied him. The Everly Brothers were guests on that show. And to be in the band while the Everly Brothers sing your song is an incredible experience, I can assure you. I grew up listening to the Everly Brothers and they will never be equal to any other for me. I absolutely adored the Everly Brothers. And I think they influenced so many artists, obviously the Beatles and thousands of other artists. And so it was really, really exciting. I'm very grateful to have been a part of that show.'
I own all the Everly Brothers albums, believe me. You grew up listening to and playing rock and roll, country, blues and folk music, many years later you collaborated with Bob Dylan. Music in the past was much more used than it is today to fight wars. In some ways Brothers In Arms deals with this issue. There are terrible wars going on right now but you don't hear any new anti-war songs. What has changed?
'I don't know. I'm not an expert on the subject. I think the way music has changed a lot over the years, of course. But I think there have always been limits on what DJs could actually play and what radio stations could play. I think when Bob Dylan was writing anti-war songs, the audience was bigger and in some ways there was maybe a bit more freedom. I think now the decisions made by commercial radio stations are more corporate, committee-driven and all that. But I think Maurizio you know more about it'.
Brothers in Arms was one of the first albums produced with digital recording. I guess I was aware that I was experiencing an epochal change. Today, the world of music, recording, production and distribution is completely different from 1985. Do you miss those times?
'No no nostalgia. Neil Dorfman, the producer, is a formidable engineer and he wanted to progress in this field and explore it. So it was really his decision, he wanted to go ahead and record that way. And that's also part of the flavour of that particular album. And I really think he achieved extraordinary results recording in that medium. I think he, Neil, was trying to achieve something that he had never been able to do before, sonically. And in many ways he succeeded, but I don't think he changed the way he recorded, especially in the sense that the kind of records I grew up with, and the kind of records I make now, are still essentially analogue recordings. So yes, it was an interesting time. Everything came together at that time to make that record sound that way. It was just a series of fortunate circumstances for us. That no one could have predicted.'
This morning I made a post on my social media that said I was going to talk to you today, I invited followers to write questions that they would ask you. Most of them said to say thank you, a huge thank you for making their lives better.
"Oh, I couldn't ask for more, a big hug to them. I cherish my relationship with Italy and the Italian fans. It is a source of great pleasure and joy for me. See you soon'.
