Chords for Inductee Insights: Dire Straits

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[C] _ _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
[C] _ _ _ _ [Eb] _ _ [G] _ _
_ [Gm] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
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_ _ _ The Dire Straits were one of the few rock bands to break out in an era dominated by
punk and disco.
[G] _ _ _ _ [Gm] _
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_ [G] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Introspective lyrics with out-of-this-world guitar and drum sounds made [Bb] them one of the
most [C] original rock [G] bands of the 80s.
_ _ _ _ Led by lead singer and guitarist [Gb] Mark Knopfler's [B] stinging, uniquely [A] melodic and clean-edged
guitar, [E] Dire Straits stood in direct contrast to the punk rock [B] enveloping London at the time.
_ _ [A] _ _ _ _
[E] _ _ _ _ In 1976 we were living on [B] homemade soup, beer [A] and cigarettes.
A lot of cigarettes.
_ [E] _ And like all bands starting out, _ [Gb] we played [B] where we could.
Pubs, clubs, _ anywhere in fact that would have us.
_ [Bb] _
That's always difficult, but we had to compete with the punk explosion in London, [N] some of
you might remember that.
_ Several times we were met with confusion by an audience that was [Bm] expecting something very
different from a [A] band with a name like Dire [E] Straits, can you imagine? _ _ _ _ _
[B] Knopfler's guitar sound was influenced by [A] the acoustic blues of Lead Belly, [E] the precision
licks of James Burton, and the [Gb] finger-picking [B] technique of Chet Atkins.
_ His [A] songwriting and lyrical delivery [E] is at times reminiscent of Bob Dylan.
So far [A] I've only been [B] smiling _
_ Maybe [A] about 74, I [E] think maybe somewhere around there I realized that I was just using [B] the
pick less and [E] less and I could do more things with my fingers so even like something heavy,
you're really [B] going heavy with a pick, you'd be [E] _ _ doing this thing.
[A] _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
I don't know, it's okay, but with your fingers you can even do it. _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Dm] _
_ _ _ _ Formed in 1977, the founding lineup included Mark Knopfler, his younger brother and rhythm
guitarist David, _ John Ilsley on the bass, and drummer Pick Withers.
You get a shiver in the [C] dark, it's a [Bb] raining in the [A] park, me and you
Their common touch was [C] evident in their [D] first hit single from 1978, Saltans [Bb] of Swing.
[A] _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ [F] _ _
A man is throwing, they say, double [C] ball time
Their debut was a slow burner, _ [Bb] inching into the lower end of the British charts.
But [D] by the end of the year, Saltans of Swing [Bb] had carved its own niche [C] on the radio.
With the [Bb] saltans, _ _ [C] _
_ with the _ [Dm] saltans of swing
_ [Bb] _ _ _ _ [A] In 1980, [D] the band released [C] Making Movies.
[G]
Rock and roll, _ in a rock and [Bm] roll [Em] state, _ in a rock and roll state
_ _ [C] The album included fan favorites [Am]
Tunnel of Love, Skate [G] Away, and the hit song Romeo [F] and Juliet. _ _ _ _ _
[Dm] Which has since been covered by the [C] Indigo Girls, [F] The Killers, and Matt Nathanson.
_ [Dm] _ _ _
_ [Bb] _ _ _ [C] _ _ _
Fellow [Bb] rock hall inductee Roy Batan of the [F] E Street Band [Bb] was recruited to play keyboards on the album. _
[C] _ _ _ _ _ _ [G] _ _
_ _ _ The [F] ambitious Love Over Gold followed in [Bb] 1982.
[G] _ As the first album solely produced by Mark [Gm] Knopfler, _ songs like [Dm] Private _ Investigations and The 14 Minute Telegraph Road allowed the band a [C] free range of imagination.
_ _ _ [Am] _ Al and Clark joined the band for this album, becoming their [D] first official keyboard player.
[Dm] _ _ _ _ _ [G] _
_ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
As Rolling Stone magazine critic [Dm] David Frick put it,
In [C] a period where [G] most pop music is conceived purely as [D] product, Love Over Gold dares to put art before [Dm] airplay.
_ _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
_ [D] _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _
Keyboardist Guy [Dbm] Fletcher joined the [B] band in 1984, and [Abm] in 1985 [A] they released their [B] landmark album [E] Brothers in Arms.
_ _ _ The [A] album sold over 9 million records in the United States and [B] 30 million worldwide.
_ [Gb] _ _ [E] _ _ _
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_ _ _ It included some of the band's biggest hits, Walk of Life, So Far [G] Away, and Money for Nothing. _ _ _ _
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_ _ _ _ _ [Bb] _ _ [C] _
_ [G] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [F] _
[G] _ Money _ _ [Gm] for Nothing, _ arguably their most famous song, was released in 1985.
Their most recognizable song, thanks to a [C] groundbreaking music video [Gm] and a well-placed collaboration with Sting of the Police,
captured the MTV [D] cultural moment with a satirical [Eb] look at how the public perceives a [Bb] musician.
_ _ _ [Eb] _ _ _
_ _ [F] _ _ _ _ [Gm] _ _
[D] _ _ _ Brothers in [C] Arms would go on to win two Grammy [D] Awards.
_ _ When [A] you've got a combination [Eb] of things like the chemistry [Gb] and the [Eb] band and the songs that Mark brought to the [G] table, it's kind of [N] hard to get it wrong.
This is merely more about _ a group of people, [D] _ _ more than [Gb] one person.
_ It's a collective, _ [Abm] a brotherhood.
_ [E] _ _ _ _ [Gb] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Abm] _
_ _ _ [E] Dyer Straits set a [Dbm] standard of excellence and achievement [E] that continues to resonate, and their reputation has only grown through the years.
[Db] Their legacy lives strong in the [B] songwriting style of artists [Eb] like Cheryl Crow, _ [E] the guitar work of Alejandro [Dbm]
Escovedo,
[E] and the musicianship of [G] the Dave Matthews [Abm] Band, among many others.
[E] _ _ _ _ [Dbm] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Ab] _
_ _ _ [E] _ _ _ _ [Dbm]
In a decade where [E] flash and pyrotechnics reigned [Abm] supreme, Dyer Straits [E] remained considered, reflective [Dbm] and observational,
and never lost touch with the inspiration and creativity with which they [Abm] began. _ _
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_ _ _ Thank you! _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _ _