Dire Straits - Japanese SHM-SACD Collection (6x SACD, 1978-1985) [PS3 ISO + Hi-Res FLAC]

Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals and lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar and backing vocals), and Pick Withers (drums and percussion). They were active from 1977 to 1988 and again from 1991 to 1995. The band became one of the world's best-selling music artists, with album sales of over 100 million. This Japanese SHM-SACD collection features DSD Transfer from analogue master tapes.

Dire Straits' minimalist interpretation of pub rock had already crystallized by the time they released their eponymous debut. Driven by Mark Knopfler's spare, tasteful guitar lines and his husky warbling, the album is a set of bluesy rockers. And while the bar band mentality of pub-rock is at the core of Dire Straits – even the group's breakthrough single, "Sultans of Swing," offered a lament for a neglected pub rock band – their music is already beyond the simple boogies and shuffles of their forefathers, occasionally dipping into jazz and country. 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.

Tracklist:

01 - Down To The Waterline
02 - Water Of Love
03 - Setting Me Up
04 - Six Blade Knife
05 - Southbound Again
06 - Sultans Of Swing
07 - In The Gallery
08 - Wild West End
09 - Lions

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Hitoshi Takiguchi. (Universal Mastering Studios, Tokyo).


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 1,68 GB

Rushed out less than nine months after the surprise success of Dire Straits' self-titled debut album, the group's sophomore effort, Communiqué, seemed little more than a carbon copy of its predecessor with less compelling material. Mark Knopfler and co. had established a sound (derived largely from J.J. Cale) of laid-back shuffles and intricate, bluesy guitar playing, and Communiqué provided more examples of it. But there was no track as focused as "Sultans of Swing," even if "Lady Writer" (a lesser singles chart entry on both sides of the Atlantic) nearly duplicated its sound. As a result, Communiqué sold immediately to Dire Straits' established audience, but no more, and it did not fare as well critically as its predecessor or its follow-up.

Tracklist:

01 - Once Upon A Time In The West
02 - News
03 - Where Do You Think You're Going?
04 - Communique
05 - Lady Writer
06 - Angel Of Mercy
07 - Portobello Belle
08 - Single-Handed Sailor
09 - Follow Me Home

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Manabu Matsumura (Universal Mastering Studios, Tokyo).


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 1,7 GB

Without second guitarist David Knopfler, Dire Straits began to move away from its roots rock origins into a jazzier variation of country-rock and singer/songwriter folk-rock. Naturally, this means that Mark Knopfler's ambitions as a songwriter are growing, as the storytelling pretensions of Making Movies indicate. Fortunately, his skills are increasing, as the lovely "Romeo and Juliet," "Tunnel of Love," and "Skateaway" indicate. And Making Movies is helped by a new wave-tinged pop production, which actually helps Knopfler's jazzy inclinations take hold. The record runs out of steam toward the end, closing with the borderline offensive "Les Boys," but the remainder of Making Movies ranks among the band's finest work.

Tracklist:

01 - Tunnel Of Love
02 - Romeo And Juliet
03 - Skateaway
04 - Expresso Love
05 - Hand in Hand
06 - Solid Rock
07 - Les Boys

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Manabu Matsumura (Universal Mastering Studios, Tokyo).


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 1,54 GB

Adding a new rhythm guitarist, Dire Straits expands its sounds and ambitions on the sprawling Love Over Gold. In a sense, the album is their prog rock effort, containing only five songs, including the 14-minute opener "Telegraph Road." Since Mark Knopfler is a skilled, tasteful guitarist, he can sustain interest even throughout the languid stretches, but the long, atmospheric, instrumental passages aren't as effective as the group's tight blues-rock, leaving Love Over Gold only a fitfully engaging listen.

Tracklist:

01 - Telegraph Road
02 - Private Investigations
03 - Industrial Disease
04 - Love Over Gold
05 - It Never Rains

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Manabu Matsumura (Universal Mastering Studios, Tokyo).


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 1,66 GB

There is an interesting contrast on this 94-minute double-disc live album (recorded at London's Hammersmith Odeon in July 1983) between the music, much of which is slow and moody, with Mark Knopfler's muttered vocals and large helpings of his fingerpicking on what sounds like an amplified Spanish guitar, and the audience response. The arena-size crowd cheers wildly, and claps and sings along when given half a chance, as though each song were an up-tempo rocker. When they do have a song of even medium speed, such as "Sultans of Swing" or "Solid Rock," they are in ecstasy. That Dire Straits' introspective music loses much of its detail in a live setting matters less than that it gains presence and a sense of anticipation. Alan Clark's keyboards help to fill out the sound and give Knopfler's spare melodies a certain majesty, but Dire Straits remains an overgrown bar band with a Bob Dylan fixation, and that's exactly how the crowd likes it.

Tracklist:

01 - Once Upon A Time In The West
02 - Romeo And Juliet
03 - Expresso Love
04 - Private Investigations
05 - Sultans Of Swing
06 - Two Young Lovers
07 - Tunnel Of Love
08 - Telegraph Road
09 - Solid Rock
10 - Going Home : Theme From 'Local Hero'

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Manabu Matsumura (Universal Mastering Studios, Tokyo).


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 3,57 GB

Brothers in Arms brought the atmospheric, jazz-rock inclinations of Love Over Gold into a pop setting, resulting in a surprise international best-seller. Of course, the success of Brothers in Arms was helped considerably by the clever computer-animated video for "Money for Nothing," a sardonic attack on MTV. But what kept the record selling was Mark Knopfler's increased sense of pop songcraft – "Money for Nothing" had an indelible guitar riff, "Walk of Life" is a catchy up-tempo boogie variation on "Sultans of Swing," and the melodies of the bluesy "So Far Away" and the down-tempo, Everly Brothers-style "Why Worry" were wistful and lovely. Dire Straits had never been so concise or pop-oriented, and it wore well on them. Though they couldn't maintain that consistency through the rest of the album – only the jazzy "Your Latest Trick" and the flinty "Ride Across the River" make an impact – Brothers in Arms remains one of their most focused and accomplished albums, and in its succinct pop sense, it's distinctive within their catalog.

Tracklist:

01. So Far Away
02. Money For Nothing
03. Walk Of Life
04. Your Latest Trick
05. Why Worry?
06. Ride Across The River
07. The Man's Too Strong
08. One World
09. Brothers In Arms

DSD flat transferred from UK original analogue master tapes by Mick McKenna and Richard Whittaker at FX Copyroom, London, in 2014.
Edited in DSD by MasaruTakagi (SIProject) at Sunrise Studio, Tokyo in 2014.


Uncompressed SACD ISO size > 1,91 GB
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