Let's talk about Mark Knopfler's latest LP, One Deep River!
Mark Knopfler is One Deep River of music. At 74 years old, and with about 50 years of music behind him, the new songs just keep flowing, it seems, from a fathomless source.
His latest solo album sounds a lot like the one that came before it. And the one that came before that. And quite honestly, that works for me!
The bottom line is, there is no musician quite as consistent in the quality of his craftsmanship as Knopfler has been since retiring Dire Straits in the mid-90's. He just keeps delivering great songs with great guitar playing, and while they do seem to be getting a little bit quieter with every new release, that's just fine, because each song on this album feels a little bit like a sunrise or a sunset from a distinctive locale, a moment fit for a prolonged and peaceful pause, an opportunity for deeper listening in a shallow and hurried world.
I enjoyed every one of these songs, but my favorites are "Ahead of the Game", "Janine", and "Before My Train Comes". All feel fit for a road trip to nowhere in particular, an extended float down the river of life. Knopfler's as lyrically sharp as ever, telling low-key stories as he makes the guitar sing like only he can.
While I do feel increasingly worried that every new LP may be his last, I don't get the sense that Knopfler is that concerned with his mortality. In fact, he seems to think he's got the best job in the world, and to be honest, he just might, and in my opinion, he's earned it. While I hear there won't be any tour to support One Deep River, I can live with that. Having seen him in 2019 at the Ryman in Nashville, I don't expect him to top that experience at this point. While I wouldn't be mad if we got a high quality livestream from British Grove, I know the toll that extensive touring can take, and I'd rather see Mark living a long and happy life for many more years than lose him untimely for the sake of one more tour.
In other words, this Mark-man wishes Knopfler would live forever, and keep churning out high quality music for years to come. While most legacy artists his age only seem to make music for the sake of a big cash grab, Knopfler is the real thing, a true musician, determined to keep the balls in the air and stay just ahead of the game.
To sum it up: One Deep River is another Mark Knopfler album, and that's one of the best assessments I can give to any artists' work!
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A final note: the CD copy I picked up comes with a 5 song bonus CD, and that's on top of the 4 extra songs that came with the vinyl box set. Couple that with the 4 songs just released for Record Store Day, and we're talking about a whole other album's worth of material left over here.
Mark, I'm all for it! Please keep giving us music until your train comes, but one request: an archival series would be great! I know you've released a lot of the b-sides and such over the last few years, but it would be amazing to have every last note easily available to your fans one of these days.
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