Love Over Gold [Original recording reissued] [Original recording remastered]

"Telegraph Road" is followed by the sinister "Private Investigations," reminiscent of Alan Parsons's interpretation of the Poe classic "Tales of Mystery and Imagination" (listen to that steady beat underneath the instrumental part and tell me you don't hear the "Tell Tale Heart"), and as daring and elaborate in its composition as "Telegraph Road." Both pieces are made possible by the advent of Alan Clark and his skills as a pianist; and yet, here as there it is Knopfler's guitar play that takes front and center stage. Next is the wicked "Industrial Disease," followed by the album's title track, and last, "It Never Rains," Knopfler's bow to Bob Dylan, rendered in an interpretation so true to life that you inadvertently feel yourself transported back by a decade or more and expect him switch into "The Times They Are A-Changin'" any second. One may wonder why the record, given its mostly gloomy and cynical mood, was not named for one of the two equally stunning and dark first tracks. Perhaps, however, the answer lies in the title song's last verse: "It takes love over gold and mind over matter to do what you do that you must, when the things that you hold can fall and be shattered or run through your fingers like dust."

The album's cover rightly (although somewhat unnecessarily) describes "Love Over Gold" as "one of Dire Straits' most ambitiously conceived projects to date" and points out that it "reflects almost a year's worth of meticulous attention." Short of his film music (which he was not to start writing until a year later, with "Local Hero"), this album was the closest yet that Knopfler has come to classical composition; not just in the record's first two masterpieces but right down to little details like the xylophone air underneath the title track. It was a hard act to follow, even for a Mark Knopfler; and his virtually only choice was to take his music into other, and more diverse directions ("Brothers in Arms"). Listening to the remastered CD version of "Love Over Gold," you almost forget that unlike its mega-selling successor this recording was not "made for CD;" which in itself speaks volumes to the quality of the sound engineering and production and, more importantly, to the indeed "meticulous attention" given to every single instrumental and human voice of every single track on the album. In all of its 41+ minutes, and although it does not reflect as wide a range of musical styles as Knopfler’s later work, "Love Over Gold" is one of the most complex pieces of recording he ever produced. It may have taken the release of "Brothers in Arms" to propel Dire Straits to worldwide fame forever. But it is impossible to listen to "Love Over Gold" and not recognize the unique talent of a man who, having found an initial foothold in the musical scene through the success of his band's first three albums, here made it clear once and for all just how much more the world had yet to expect from him.

A lot of things have been said about Eighties music. Before you believe any of them, listen to Love over Gold. This is Dire Straits' masterpiece album, which makes the achievement of a follow-up album in the form of Brothers in Arms all the more significant. And, as we know, that was truly an act that couldn't be followed. Where did they go? You can almost hear a prophecy of their fate in the soul-stirring monster that is Telegraph Road.

For maximum emotional impact, best consumed with something nostalgic from the era, perhaps Halo Jones.

Knopfler had started to experiment more by this time. The lyrics are excellent and every song tells a story. By now they had a permanent keyboard player and a new guitarist in the line up as well as Knopfler, John Illsley and drummer Pick Withers. The almost 15 minute long 'Telegraph Road' is a superb track from beginning to end. The instrumentals are lengthy but they never tire. The sinister 'Private Investigations' was the hit single which nearly made it to number one (kept off by Survivor). It became a favourite at their concerts. 'Industrial Disease' is a fine song as well; the dark theme of industrial strife in a town is dealt with in a humourous way, perhaps satirical even. The title track never sounded better than on here in its original studio form, and features an excellent instrumental with Knopfler on acoustic guitar. The last track 'It Never Rains', is dark in tone again, perhaps angry even. It starts off quietly then really takes off half way through. Produced by Mark Knopfler.

'Love Over Gold' is a classic album, easily the best of Dire Straits' early work, and is actually better than the subsequent live album. The remastered version enhances the quality of the tracks and out of all their back catalogue this one and 'Brothers In Arms' easily come on top and are a must-have for any serious music listener.