Last month, I decided to take a deep dive into the music of Mark Knopfler, who I first knew as the frontman for Dire Straits. Knopfler’s blues collar-pub vibe always appealed to me. But listening to more songs and albums showed me the extent to which he spans and synthesizes genres—rock, southern rock, bluegrass, folk, singer-songwriter.
Knopfler is also quite a lyricist and story-teller. He might be best known for the working man’s ballad, “Money for Nothing.” The gritty guitar opening, basic back beat, and refrain of “I want my MTV” made this song iconic. But the lyrics might be the unsung heros…well, OK, sung heros…let’s just say “hidden gems” of this song. With some well-chosen details, Knopfler paints a portrait of furniture / appliance delivery guys looking through the window of a music video at a life they’ll never have.
“Baloney Again” is another favorite. It tells the story of a traveling evangelist. The long-suffering of the minister and his family comes out as the speaker talks about carrying the love of Jesus “down a long dirt road,” parking the car under a tree, and using “shoulders for pillows.” Knopfler captures the alienation of being a stranger to every town and to the changing times through snatches like, “Look on ahead, don’t stare around,” and, “Twenty two years we’ve sung the Word…Now the young folk want to praise the Lord with guitar, bass, and drums.”
Knopfler also touches on alienation due to class or perhaps race as the minister reflects, “We don’t sleep in no white hotel bed…We don’t eat in no white restaurants,” and through the refrain that they’re eating “baloney again.”
The chorus brings some encouragement in a major key as the minister remembers, “The Lord is my shepherd, He leadeth me in pastures green. He gave us this day, our daily bread and gasoline.” But the music always falls back into minor and rolls along with the throb of resignation. This swing from faith to struggle gives “Baloney Again” the effect of a modern psalm (to say nothing of the quote from Psalm 23).
Take a few minutes to listen to the song and also check out the lyrics. Knopfler provides a touching portrait. Writers can also learn a thing or two from his impressionist story-telling.
A Wandering Minstrel 