Album Elimination Poll! - Round 1

[Knopflerfan]

Wonder if there is actually a tale to tell about the BIA cover?

[quizzaciously]

Wonder if there is actually a tale to tell about the BIA cover?

I think even Guy recalled this story on his forum. Nothing particularly amazing, they were hanging out around a pool in Montserrat while recording the album, and somebody, not even Mark, held this guitar in the sky and thought that it looks cool. They took the photo and the rest is history... I mean, there's zero meaning involved.

[KnopfleRick]

My answer is Brothers İn Arms. İt's not like a DS album to me. Good songs, yes but it's too digital...

Same here. Great songs for most of the record but it sounds too digital indeed. But we won't blame them : it was REALLY the sound of the 80s.

I don't get what's the problem with digital. I'd understand if the whole album was so 80s like "One World", but the album is the opposite of the typical 80s... At least in the main tracks, there are real drums, no gated reverbs, and typical synths, and while it's digital, digital is only a recording method. No? Or you HEAR that it's digital?

When I say "digital album", I imply that it really has the sound of the 80s, which was very "digital" or call it whatever you want but I'm sure you know what I mean, the drums sounding very "electronic" and those synths almost everywhere etc. It's not typical of the BIA record, it's typical of all the records of its time… including BIA. So for this reason, I still vote BIA, sorry guys.

Same reason why I picked BIA. I never liked the synthetic sound of the 80's. But I'm still fascinated by the cover of this beautiful guitar that flies in the sky.  There is something magical about it. 

[Stanko]

 

[Knopflerfan]

Wonder if there is actually a tale to tell about the BIA cover?

I think even Guy recalled this story on his forum. Nothing particularly amazing, they were hanging out around a pool in Montserrat while recording the album, and somebody, not even Mark, held this guitar in the sky and thought that it looks cool. They took the photo and the rest is history... I mean, there's zero meaning involved.

Maybe no meaning but it's an iconic album cover for sure!!

[Robson]

Wonder if there is actually a tale to tell about the BIA cover?

I think even Guy recalled this story on his forum. Nothing particularly amazing, they were hanging out around a pool in Montserrat while recording the album, and somebody, not even Mark, held this guitar in the sky and thought that it looks cool. They took the photo and the rest is history... I mean, there's zero meaning involved.

Maybe no meaning but it's an iconic album cover for sure!!

It's true.

[qjamesfloyd]

The Brothers In Arms album cover is a classic, for me, it's about making the cover memorable and recognizable, and that is certainly the case here, as much as the covers for Tubular Bells and The Darkside of The Moon. How it came about is not that important in the long run, often strange things that are not planned work out better anyway, the cover of Atom Heart Mother for example, they didn't ask the cow to pose, it was just luck. However, the Making Movies cover has to be the most bland cover ever, but.... it is recognizable!!!

[Knopflerfan]

The Brothers In Arms album cover is a classic, for me, it's about making the cover memorable and recognizable, and that is certainly the case here, as much as the covers for Tubular Bells and The Darkside of The Moon. How it came about is not that important in the long run, often strange things that are not planned work out better anyway, the cover of Atom Heart Mother for example, they didn't ask the cow to pose, it was just luck. However, the Making Movies cover has to be the most bland cover ever, but.... it is recognizable!!!

Making movies just doesn't cut it at all for me thus that was my first to be binned. Cover is bland and I guess the tracks are too. It just never did it for me...

[quizzaciously]

The Brothers In Arms album cover is a classic, for me, it's about making the cover memorable and recognizable, and that is certainly the case here, as much as the covers for Tubular Bells and The Darkside of The Moon. How it came about is not that important in the long run, often strange things that are not planned work out better anyway, the cover of Atom Heart Mother for example, they didn't ask the cow to pose, it was just luck. However, the Making Movies cover has to be the most bland cover ever, but.... it is recognizable!!!

Making movies just doesn't cut it at all for me thus that was my first to be binned. Cover is bland and I guess the tracks are too. It just never did it for me...

After learning that Mark custom-ordered his Schecter guitars with Making Movies colors it seems pretty clear to me, that the cover is just an homage to Mark's favorite guitar colors. But that always has been a problem with abstract art for me, when the story is more interesting than the piece itself. You'll find it everywhere in art, avant-garde and stuff like this, the backstory is always more interesting than the piece itself. Like Andy Warhol's movie "Empire", like the Black Square, White Album, etc..Thankfully, Mark is not an abstract artist and had songs on the album too

[Knopflerfan]

The Brothers In Arms album cover is a classic, for me, it's about making the cover memorable and recognizable, and that is certainly the case here, as much as the covers for Tubular Bells and The Darkside of The Moon. How it came about is not that important in the long run, often strange things that are not planned work out better anyway, the cover of Atom Heart Mother for example, they didn't ask the cow to pose, it was just luck. However, the Making Movies cover has to be the most bland cover ever, but.... it is recognizable!!!

Making movies just doesn't cut it at all for me thus that was my first to be binned. Cover is bland and I guess the tracks are too. It just never did it for me...

After learning that Mark custom-ordered his Schecter guitars with Making Movies colors it seems pretty clear to me, that the cover is just an homage to Mark's favorite guitar colors. But that always has been a problem with abstract art for me, when the story is more interesting than the piece itself. You'll find it everywhere in art, avant-garde and stuff like this, the backstory is always more interesting than the piece itself. Like Andy Warhol's movie "Empire", like the Black Square, White Album, etc..Thankfully, Mark is not an abstract artist and had songs on the album too

Interesting info with regards the colours but it's still very bland to me!!!

[3Strats]

I'm confused- I just voted for OES  as my least favourite album based on the tracks,  but a lot of the discussion is about the abum covers.   
 

BIA is IMO the most iconic DS album cover & Making Movies the least interesting, but that doesn't affect what I think of the songs on those albums.
Both albums contain some of my favorite tracks.

[dustyvalentino]

I'm confused- I just voted for OES  as my least favourite album based on the tracks,  but a lot of the discussion is about the abum covers.   
 

BIA is IMO the most iconic DS album cover & Making Movies the least interesting, but that doesn't affect what I think of the songs on those albums.
Both albums contain some of my favorite tracks.

All discussion is welcome here.

[quizzaciously]

I'm confused- I just voted for OES  as my least favourite album based on the tracks,  but a lot of the discussion is about the abum covers.   
 

BIA is IMO the most iconic DS album cover & Making Movies the least interesting, but that doesn't affect what I think of the songs on those albums.
Both albums contain some of my favorite tracks.

All discussion is welcome here.

The album has a lot of parts to it. It has the cover, it has a name (usually named after the title track, a pretty lazy tradition if you ask me), it has songs. And there's also a back cover, packaging, songs order, recording method, arrangements. So a lot of things to discuss in the album! The cover picture just seems to be the easiest to discuss because it's so prominent. I must say it's much harder to find a good cover picture than a good song.

[JF]

Wonder if there is actually a tale to tell about the BIA cover?

from Guy :

The photo was taken by Deborah Feingold. She was asked someone to hold the guitar by the head while she took a picture of it.
The people in the studio were a bit circumspect. And then a few days later when she presented the pictorial composition with the sky in the background, everyone found it magnificent.


also :
the back cover is painting effects by Thomas Steyer,


I put this info in my chronicle of the album :

https://textes-blog-rock-n-roll.fr/la-guitare-national-steel-de-mark-knopfler/#Rendue_celebre_par_la_pochette_de_Brothers_in_arms

[rmarques821]

For me it was between Communique and Making Movies. I rarely listen to Communique, but I got to say that songs like Single Handed Sailor, Where Do You Think You're Going, News, are legendary. I've never really enjoyed Making Movies too much, with the exception of the first two songs, of course.