Mark Knopfler: Sailing To Philadelphia CD Track Listing

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Mark Knopfler Sailing To Philadelphia (2000)
Originally Released September 26, 2000\nCD+DVDA Edition Released \n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Mark Knopfler's second solo album might as well be called Dire Straits' eighth studio album, though Knopfler abandoned the group name with 1996's Golden Heart, dispensing with hefty sales in the process. (All six of Dire Straits' studio albums at least went gold and reached the Top 20 in the U.S., while Golden Heart didn't even make the top 100.) He may be happier now; from the lead-off track of Dire Straits' first album, "Sultans of Swing," he was celebrating small-time lives, and his biggest hit, "Money for Nothing," was a workingman's dismissal of a rock star. There was never much doubt that the fame and lifestyle coincident with platinum sales made him uncomfortable, and discontinuing the "Dire Straits" billing was a means of walking away from all that. It also allowed him to indulge his love for various musical genres more, and that process continues on Sailing to Philadelphia. True, Knopfler's basic approach remains the same; as a guitarist, he is still enamored of the minor-key fingerpicking style of J.J. Cale, and as a singer/songwriter, he remains enthralled with Bob Dylan. But in one song after another on this album, you get the feeling that he started out playing some familiar song in a specific genre and eventually extrapolated upon it enough to call it an original. "Who's Your Baby Now" seems drawn from the repertoire of the Everly Brothers as filtered through the Beatles of the Rubber Soul period; "Do America" could have begun life as a simple Bo Diddley riff; "Speedway at Nazareth" recalls the Appalachian style of the Carter Family; and "Junkie Doll" calls to mind Howlin' Wolf, especially "Sitting on Top of the World." (Lead-off track "What It Is," meanwhile, sounds like nothing so much as a classic Dire Straits song on the order of "Sultans of Swing.") Knopfler has grafted his own lyrical concerns to these songs, employing recurring references to life on the road (or on the sea or in the air, as the case may be) -- "Sailing to Philadelphia," "Baloney Again," "Do America," "Wanderlust" -- playing up the lives of humbled people, especially musicians ("Baloney Again" is about a traveling gospel group, circa 1953) and putting down powerful people, especially rock stars ("Do America" is about a British rocker on his way across the Atlantic, while "El Macho" mocks a star alone in a bar). There are also story songs on such wide-ranging subjects as the mapmakers Mason and Dixon ("Sailing to Philadelphia"), racecar driving ("Speedway at Nazareth"), an arranged marriage in the Old West ("Prairie Wedding"), and opposition to the building of London's Millennium Dome ("Silvertown Blues"), but the themes of travel and the dichotomy between the rich and famous (what Knopfler is) and the poor and powerless (those he identifies with) predominate. Working with a two-guitars, two-keyboards, bass, and drums band (the old Dire Straits lineup), Knopfler brings in a variety of sympathetic guests, notably James Taylor, who plays Mason to Knopfler's Dixon in "Sailing to Philadelphia," Van Morrison, and Squeeze leaders Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford. These guest stars provide pleasant contrast to Knopfler's modest vocal talents, but they never steal the spotlight from the leader. (Well, okay, Morrison does.) His ability to hold his own is some indication that, however self-effacing he may be, he remains a star. [In 2005 Sailing to Philadelphia was reissued with a bonus DVD that featured "behind the scenes" footage" as well as interviews with Knopfler and his band.] -- William Ruhlmann\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\npolished, thought-out song-stories, July 6, 2006 \nBy Flight Risk (The Gypsy Moth) "Exiled Yankee" (usa)\n\nI've come to the conclusion that the reviewers who pick at Mark Knopfler's songs don't take the time to investigate why he wrote them to begin with. "Do America" is not my favourite song, but on reading his basis for its conception, I had a greater respect for it. (No help here folks - do your own homework.) I gave the album 5 stars out of respect for an artist who puts his all into his work and fiddles with everything until he gets it exactly the way he wants. That said,some of my favourite music of all time is on "Sailing to Philadelphia". I have played the title track to death - my opinion, Mark Knopfler's most beautiful composition to date, and it made me go out and find Pynchon's book on Mason and Dixon which inspired the song. The cadences and lyricism of the piece are unsurpassed in anything he's done before or since. I am continually charmed by his decisions to include other artists, also - and he is always spot-on with the performers he gets to help him. I was so pleased to get not one, but three of my favourite legends on one disc. Van Morrison was a nice surprise. My ultimate favourites, besides the one already mentioned, also stand up with everything else he's ever done - "Silvertown Blues" - a song I have a feeling holds a very personal place with him - speaks to everyone who has ever lived in a once-thriving, now-struggling-to-survive industrial jungle. I understood it - and empathized with it - completely. The first track, "What It Is", always makes me want to march somewhere - I try to play it in the car on my way to work to get me in the mood. "Speedway At Nazareth" - a close tie for absolute favourite - is rockin on the disc and completely mezmerizing in concert (if you're lucky enough to witness it). Another good cut, "El Macho" , is a wry slam on pretty boys and the television culture, although I haven't really determined to myself if it's about Jerry Seinfeld or somebody else. It sure feels like a tune written maybe after a long exhausting day on the road and a couple of scotches. Overall, where "Golden Heart" skipped all over the map in style and genre, this album feels more like a cohesive whole, very stylish and clean. I find I listen more to this disc at work than any of the other Knopfler solos. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nPop for grown-ups, September 4, 2005 \nBy Ian J. Blynn (Camp Hill, PA USA)\n\nMark Knopfler as a solo artist is, for me, a recently discovered pleasure. I happened upon Shangri-la entirely by accident after someone (my sister? thanks Karen) left it at my parents' house after a visit and my father happened to leave it on his disc player. My curiousity piqued, not having really listened to Knopfler since 'Sultans of Swing,' even though I play blues guitar, I took it home with me and on a two hour car trip played it continually. It really was a revelation. Intricate guitar work, strong melodies and (avoiding the usual downfall), lyrics as good as Dylan (the gold standard). A haunting, sinister song about Ray Kroc and the founding of McDonald's? You betcha. So. Looking for more, I got Sailing to Philadelphia, and discovered, among other things, that there was something heart-breaking and brave about the two surveyors from England who drew the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland known as the Mason-Dixon Line. Who knew? First class, memorable music. It's like reading William Faulkner for the first time. One can only marvel. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThis is a great album, but don't buy the US version, January 14, 2005 \nBy Jeremy Grigg (New York, NY, USA)\nI grew to really love this album during a period living in the UK, and just looked at the Amazon reviews for it out of a sense of nostalgia. I was alarmed to find that the US version has a song, "Do America", that every reviewer seems to despise and doesn't have the thoughtful and charming "One More Matinee". Having listened to the Amazon excerpt, "Do America" is every bit as vile as other reviewers have indicated, so I would strongly suggest that if you don't have this album and wish to buy it, get the Import version instead. Some kind soul has put a link to it in a suggestion on the main page and he's right. The track substitution makes this excellent work much, much tighter and more adult, which is what makes Mark Knopfler's best solo album so very precious. Don't miss out on the full experience, if you can. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nOn Every Street II?, October 1, 2003 \nBy O. Buxton "Olly Buxton" (Highgate, UK)\n\nIf On Every Street were a double album, this could be the second disc. Same formula - countrified, downbeat take on Dire Straits - and in the important spots, pretty much the same line up of musicians - Pedal Steel whizz Paul Franklin and keyboard man Guy Fletcher in particular loom large.\nThere are some things Mark Knopfler does increasingly well as he gets older, and other things he just gets worse and worse at.\n\nOn the credit side, his guitar technique - and the tastefulness with which he employs it - postively blossoms on every outing. \nFrom fairly one dimensional Richard Thompson impersonator back in 1976, Knopfler has prescribed an arc through Rock God via blues purity and Nashville flash he now heads ever more down the country/folk lane, and when in this mode, as he is on half the record, this is a fine outing. Over his 25 years in the business he's cultivated a superbly gravelly voice, too, and on the back half of this disc - most notably Prairie Wedding and Wanderlust - it all comes together in quite the Epihany.\n\nOn the negative side, he doesn't seem to be able to shake his propensity for duff lyrics with arcane subject matter and silly up tempo pop-rock songs. Even in the first Dire Straits LP Knopfler felt compelled to sing (amongst other things, admittedly) about predatory art dealers, and here he corals James Taylor to help him sing about the Mason Dixon Line. It's just not very rock 'n' roll.\n\nKnopfler really can't rock out - and as a 50 something, nor should he; he should leave the growing old disgracefully to those who have earned the privilege, like Mr. Richards - and in Do America he proves that he's only getting worse at it. On Brothers in Arms it was the passable Money For Nothing; On Every Street had the somewhat wry Heavy Fuel; Golden Heart the fairly silly Imelda; Do America is thoroughly forgettable. Worse than forgettable, actually, because it interrupts the mood of studied cool that the album otherwise sets up.\n\nFinal analysis: The hard core fans will love it, the mainstream record buying public will, as usual, ignore it, and enough cafes and brasserie restaurants will pick it up to guarantee Mark can afford a new scooter to replace the one he was recently knocked off. Everyone wins. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA new gem in the esoteric portfolio of racer music, November 27, 2002 \nReviewer: A music fan\n\nWithout reiterating the accolades of other reviewers, let me add that the cut "Speedway in Nazereth" is a rare treat for us hardcore auto racing fans. The narrater is not a NASCAR driver, as others have surmised. He is describing a year on the Champ Car circuit, the so-called "CART" series. These are open wheel Indy-type cars, running mostly on road courses, not ovals. It is the connoisseur's form of racing, and an unusual choice for Mark given that as a Brit you'd expect him to chronicle Formulae One. It is a treat because the writer really knows the sport, it is full of oblique insider references (Portland Speedway's race sponser is a local army surplus giant: GI Joe) that speak to the race fan. But we've come to expect this from Knopfler: he has an integrity other artists don't. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nFuture Classic, July 17, 2001 \nBy Benjamin Pendleton (APO, AE United States)\n\nI still remember the first time I heard 'Sultans of Swing' on the radio back in 1978. Wow! Mark Knopfler's unique guitar style - folksy blues with a British twist - struck a powerful chord, so to speak, not only with me, but with the entire post-disco music scene which was desperate for something fresh and intelligent. Knopfler delivered then, and unlike many of his contemporaries, has continued to deliver for the past 2+ decades. And unlike many other rock greats whose music tends to wane as they grow older, Knopfler's music only seems to get better. 'Sailing to Philadelphia' is perhaps his best work ever.\nContinuing his apparent love affair (or is it veiled derision) for everything American, Knopfler has written 13 powerful songs that cover the musical gamut both in style and lyric. From the melodious and lyrical title song about American frontiersmen James Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, to the haunting and poignant closing songs 'Silvertown Blues' and 'Sands of Nevada', Knopfler has outdone himself in range, mood and feeling covered by this landmark release. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nHow horibble! This CD makes you listen more than once., May 24, 2001 \nBy "donskotus" (Fredericton, New Brunswick Canada)\nKnopfler has committed the ultimate sin against his dogged and single-minded Dire Straits fans, he didn't fall to self parody. For the first time since Love Over Gold, Knopfler is freed from the constraints of his last album. On Every Street was an unispired outing trying to distance itself from Brothers in Arms, while the outstanding Goldenheart still seemed to be fighting against the ghost of music past. Sailing to Philadelphia is an inspired effort with textured lyrics (not merely clever or 'tongue in cheek') and some brilliant if somewhat understated guitar work. Speedway at Nazareth alone is worth the purchase price of the album, and shows off some of Knopfler's best musical layering since his brilliant soundtrack to the motion picture Cal. There are a few wasted tracks on this disc (most notably Do America - nice riff, no point) and thus the 4 star rating. But when this album hits, it hits big. Relax, listen to it a couple of times and quit whining that it's not Brothers in Arms. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGreat on its own terms, October 3, 2000 \nBy Sam Greenblatt (Johannesburg, South Africa)\n\nFor those who venerated Mark Knopfler in the 80s and later, anything less than absolute perfection will be bound to disappoint. Its tempting to scour each track on "Sailing to Philadelphia" for a musical or lyrical throwback to the mystery muse of "Romeo and Juliet", "Love over Gold" or "Your Latest Trick", or to wait breathlessly for a life-changing 24 bars, like the first solo on "Telegraph Road", that reduced us to tears back in 1982. But this is a more measured Knopfler, who has charted a course from pioneering epic songs ("Tunnel of Love", "On Every Street") to country vignettes via broad cinematic brushstrokes. Yet this trend has been obvious since Dire Straits began to flounder, and was in alarming evidence on "Golden Heart", despite the riveting beauty of a handful of tracks on that album. After a musical journey like he has forged, who could have thought that MK's greatest influence would turn out to be Chet Atkins? Still, there is a lot to be thankful for here, with brilliantly articulated guitar-work (of course), trademark gravel-voice (oh so close to the microphone) and the elevated company of James Taylor. The guitar mastery is more on display than on the last album, but perhaps in an age where this is less likely to affect our heartstrings. The best bet is to avoid nostalgia at all costs and to accept Knopfler for the incisive, literate songwriter he is today. Those hoping to discover a new soundtrack to the next few years of their lives may wind up feeling like an extra in one of those recent movies to which Knopfler contributed. \n\n\nHalf.com Details \nContributing artists: Gillian Welch, James Taylor, Van Morrison \nProducer: Chuck Ainlay, Mark Knopfler \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel includes: Mark Knopfler (vocals, guitar); James Taylor, Van Morrison, Gillian Welch, Glenn Tilbrook, Chris Difford, Chris Rodriguez, Tim Davis (vocals); Richard Bennett (guitar); Paul Franklin (lap steel, pedal steel); Mike Henderson (mandolin); Aubrey Haynie (violin); Jim HOrn (tenor & baritone saxophone); Wayne Jackson (trumpet); Mike Haynes (flugelhorn); Jim Cox (piano, keyboards); Guy Fletcher (keyboards, background vocals); Frank Ricotti (marimba); Glenn Worf (bass); Chad Cromwell (drums); Danny Cummings (percussion).\nHaving crafted such a singular sound for himself both in Dire Straits and as a respected film composer, it's gratifying to hear that Mark Knopfler's consummate musicianship has only gotten better on what is only his second solo album in a career that began in the mid- '70s. For SAILING TO PHILADELPHIA, Knopfler once again looks to America for inspiration, starting with the stirring title track that draws from Thomas Pynchon's fictionalized account of English adventurers/surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon and which finds James Taylor playing Mason to Knopfler's Dixon. Other numbers benefiting from this American muse are the ethereal "Sands of Nevada," the Farfisa-driven "Do America" and the low-key "Prairie Wedding" (featuring alt country stalwarts Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, who also appear on the chugging "Speedway At Nazareth").\nElsewhere, Knopfler entertains a host of famous friends throughout a slew of tasty tracks. Van Morrison duets on the laid-back "The Last Laugh" while Squeeze's Chris Difford and Glen Tilbrook add harmonies to the nostalgic twang of "Silvertown." The most impressive cameo comes from famed bluegrass fiddler Aubrey Haynie whose playing fuses with Knopfler's fat guitar tone to transform the crackling "What It Is" into the quintessential Dire Straits song.\n\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nBob Dylan once said he liked Dire Straits because they sounded like one person. There was a certain single-mindedness to the Seventies band's sophisticated take on pub rock. In the Eighties, Dire Straits became even more of a one-man show -- singer-songwriter-producer and guitar god Mark Knopfler. So what's the difference between a Mark Knopfler album and a Dire Straits album? Arguably, not much besides bassist John Illsley and a few million sales. Like so much of Steely Dan's recent comeback, Knopfler's new album, Sailing to Philadelphia, is a welcome flashback. The first single, "What It Is," has the epic sound of "Sultans of Swing" and "Tunnel of Love," while the sly "Do America" -- one of many tracks that reflect the Brit Knopfler's interest in Americana -- is lively fun in the "Twisting by the Pool" tradition. Knopfler duets with James Taylor on the title track, which deftly explores the relationship between Mason and Dixon; Van Morrison trades lines on the soulful "The Last Laugh." With Sailing to Philadelphia, Knopfler has taken a break from the rootsy side projects and soundtrack work that have occupied him for the last seventeen years, and has evoked some of the grandeur of prime Dire Straits. (RS 852 -- Oct 3, 2000) -- DAVID WILD
This rock cd contains 13 tracks and runs 60min 34sec.
Freedb: ae0e300d
Buy: from Amazon.com

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