Question from an old DS fan

[Pottel]

Welcome, Chris!
I belong to the portion of fans here who prefer MK's solo career to his DS period. His solo albums are full of gems. Regarding his later albums, Get Lucky seems to be a fan favourite, with Border Reiver, So Far From The Clyde, Piper To The End, etc. Privateering is one my personal favourites but it doesn't seem to be very consensual, with many of us criticizing for the excessive use of Blues. Tracker is a very good album with beautiful  melodies and lyrics. This album could be best described with a quote I read here a few days ago by another member as "a granddad sitting comfortably in his couch and playing songs on his acoustic". On Down The Road Wherever, he expanded his sound and gave snippets of jazz and funky stuff with the addittion of trumpet and the like. I believe it was well received and many fans rate it quite high in their rankings.

Give them a listen and see for yourself. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Thanks - I will grab these others over time. Keen not to get too much at the same time for fear of burnout. So far I think that KTGC seems like the weakest of the albums I have got, hence me wondering if his output had deteriorated. But I like the descriptions of the others.

Chris

welcome chris.
and yes, i would agree that KTGC is his weakest, ever. I for one NEVER play it, and i DO play all the rest.

What about Heart Full Of Holes? I remember this song made me cry and still do. "It's a wonder to me, I still don't understand, why I ever survived to be old with a heart full of holes?", I mean, wow! What about Madame Geneva's, an amazing ballad? In The Sky is an astonishingly beautiful waltz, flawlessly recorded and arranged. True Love Will Never Fade, an ultimate strumming song with a beautiful guitar solo, another waltz Scaffolder's Wife, melodic and catchy, The Fizzy And The Still is also a good number with a cool chorus. I get that it's your personal taste, but songs on that album are great. I guess it can be perceived as a weak album because it's the first album made completely in the new studio, so he went full experiment mode. To me, after Kill To Get Crimson all Mark's albums had this distinctive "British Grove Studios" sound, and he got it with this album.

let's agree to disagree.

[Pottel]

I love all of MKs solo albums, but, obviously, some are better than others.    My favourites have been "Tracker" and "Shangri-la" and "Ragpicker's Dream", but "Kill To Get Crimson" has been further down the list, not because I didn't like it - I did, but there were others I liked better - until quite recently when I gave it a few extra listens and now for some reason I absolutely love it!    There are no songs on it that I skip and now it is up there amongst my favourites.   Sometimes albums need time to sink in properly and I'm glad I gave this beautiful album the extra time it deserved.   When listening to both Tracker and KTGC I feel I'm embarking on a journey.

@Quizzaciously - You mentioned "5.15am" being like watching a movie and I entirely agree, but I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

@ Chris - Welcome to AMIT and I hope you will love all of MK's solo albums as much as I do! 

will give it another try.

[2manyguitars]

@Quizzaciously - You mentioned "5.15am" being like watching a movie and I entirely agree, but I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

Superval. Your last sentence sums it up perfectly.

If you liked DS for its rock bombast and aspiring musical virtuosity then you'll be a little disappointed with marks solo output. If however you loved DS for the songs, the stories, and the way MK and band entwined those stories with music then you'll find numerous gems on his solo albums.....

[mschaap]

To me MK solo albums are really about songs/songwriting while is his DS albums the songs sometimes are more like vehicles for outstanding guitar playing. In both cases Mark excells at what he is/was trying to do, but it’s just in a different direction.
Another thing, about KTGC, I think it’s one of his finest abums. It’s may not be spectacular or catchy on a casual listen but if you really dig into it you find sublime songwriting, beautiful melodies, perfect production/sound brought with an understated subtleness and immense class. It’s an album that is coherent, has many deeper layers and just never wears off or tires imho.

[quizzaciously]

To me MK solo albums are really about songs/songwriting while is his DS albums the songs sometimes are more like vehicles for outstanding guitar playing. In both cases Mark excells at what he is/was trying to do, but it’s just in a different direction.
Another thing, about KTGC, I think it’s one of his finest abums. It’s may not be spectacular or catchy on a casual listen but if you really dig into it you find sublime songwriting, beautiful melodies, perfect production/sound brought with an understated subtleness and immense class. It’s an album that is coherent, has many deeper layers and just never wears off or tires imho.

Yes, I'm surprised some people straight up said that Kill To Get Crimson album filled with bad songs. Because it's filled with great guitar playing (often with a pick!) and waltzes, which Mark mastered composing. Think songs like The Ragpicker's Dream, Kingdom Of Gold, that's all waltzes, and Kill To Get Crimson is filled with waltzes. In retrospective, though, the album holds up pretty well. Also, for me personally, it has a deep personal connection because I just went to college this album came out, it always brings me to the time when I was just 17. So Kill To Get Crimson and Get Lucky are very important albums for me, I love them with all my heart. Thank you, folks, you made me relisten to that album and made me love it even more

[Pottel]

I love all of MKs solo albums, but, obviously, some are better than others.    My favourites have been "Tracker" and "Shangri-la" and "Ragpicker's Dream", but "Kill To Get Crimson" has been further down the list, not because I didn't like it - I did, but there were others I liked better - until quite recently when I gave it a few extra listens and now for some reason I absolutely love it!    There are no songs on it that I skip and now it is up there amongst my favourites.   Sometimes albums need time to sink in properly and I'm glad I gave this beautiful album the extra time it deserved.   When listening to both Tracker and KTGC I feel I'm embarking on a journey.

@Quizzaciously - You mentioned "5.15am" being like watching a movie and I entirely agree, but I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

@ Chris - Welcome to AMIT and I hope you will love all of MK's solo albums as much as I do! 

will give it another try.

did so yesterday, and still underwhelmed. did like 3 or 4 songs, madame geneva being one of them.
then went on with the other albums, all of another quality imho..
now listening to tracker.great stuff!

[superval99]

I love all of MKs solo albums, but, obviously, some are better than others.    My favourites have been "Tracker" and "Shangri-la" and "Ragpicker's Dream", but "Kill To Get Crimson" has been further down the list, not because I didn't like it - I did, but there were others I liked better - until quite recently when I gave it a few extra listens and now for some reason I absolutely love it!    There are no songs on it that I skip and now it is up there amongst my favourites.   Sometimes albums need time to sink in properly and I'm glad I gave this beautiful album the extra time it deserved.   When listening to both Tracker and KTGC I feel I'm embarking on a journey.

@Quizzaciously - You mentioned "5.15am" being like watching a movie and I entirely agree, but I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

@ Chris - Welcome to AMIT and I hope you will love all of MK's solo albums as much as I do! 

will give it another try.

did so yesterday, and still underwhelmed. did like 3 or 4 songs, madame geneva being one of them.
then went on with the other albums, all of another quality imho..
now listening to tracker.great stuff!

I was reading some reviews of KTGC on Amazon UK recently and there were people who re-discovered the album after years of dismissing it and then found they loved it, so never give up. 

Glad you like Tracker so much, Pottel - it is still at the top of my list and I listen to it straight through, including all of the bonus songs.   

[KnopfleRick]

Welcome Chris! 
I am glad you finally discovered MKs solo music, you won`t be disappointed!
There are albums or songs you will like immediately, others will need some time until you have discovered the treasures of his work, but believe me each and every single one is worth being studied.
I`ve been listening to Mark since the DS era and never get tired of his music. The man is a genius!

[Stanko]

hi and welcome Chris!
I'm sure you love every song! (you only have not realised that yet )

I love each song differently because they are all unique.
If you find you don't like one perhaps you expected it to hit your yard? Give it another listen! (or write your own song that is going to root your patch of earth?  )

[Pottel]

you cannot seriously say you like EVERY song mk did right?

[wakeywakey]

you cannot seriously say you like EVERY song mk did right?

>any Knopfler, Floyd or Dylan will do....

[hunter]

In one way, KTGC is my least favorite MK album because it's the least MK-like album. Know what I mean? On the other hand, it stands out as something different in his catalog. It IS pretty low-key, but it's a good album overall and really perfect for those moments when a good, low-key album is called for

[hunter]

... I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

Listening to this very song right now. You're absolutely right. Gorgeous little tune, really. My favorite from the album I think is "Fizzy and the Still". Very sparse lyrics, and I'm still wondering what sat between them there on ice, chilled, with the fizzy and the still

The one song I can't abide, or think doesn't fit in musically, is Secondary Waltz. Same with All That Matters on Shangri-La.

[superval99]

... I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

Listening to this very song right now. You're absolutely right. Gorgeous little tune, really. My favorite from the album I think is "Fizzy and the Still". Very sparse lyrics, and I'm still wondering what sat between them there on ice, chilled, with the fizzy and the still

The one song I can't abide, or think doesn't fit in musically, is Secondary Waltz. Same with All That Matters on Shangri-La.

I think it's the unopened bottle of champagne, waiting to be opened to toast the boy's success - except it wasn't really a success, Hollywood wasn't for him.

[hunter]

... I would add "The Scaffolder's Wife", because when listening to that song I can actually see this woman teetering along on her stilletto boots, going to have her roots done!  MK is an expert at this kind of storytelling!

Listening to this very song right now. You're absolutely right. Gorgeous little tune, really. My favorite from the album I think is "Fizzy and the Still". Very sparse lyrics, and I'm still wondering what sat between them there on ice, chilled, with the fizzy and the still

The one song I can't abide, or think doesn't fit in musically, is Secondary Waltz. Same with All That Matters on Shangri-La.

I think it's the unopened bottle of champagne, waiting to be opened to toast the boy's success - except it wasn't really a success, Hollywood wasn't for him.

I just can't connect the dots to what goes before:
"He says she asked too high a price / Neglecting to declare / What sits between them there on ice"

I guess it's the "neglecting to declare" bit that confuses me.