A seeming eternity went by before Mark Knopfler started making actual albums again. Golden Heart follows from where he left off with the last Dire Straits album, mixing country and Celtic folk with what had become adult-contemporary rock.Soundwise, it might as well be a Dire Straits album. “Darling Pretty” opens with a slow rendition of what could be a traditional melody, before the big drums kick in to make it heavier. The title track and “A Night In Summer Long Ago” are particularly lovely. “Vic And Ray” and particularly the portrait of the obsessive fan “Rudiger” indulge his knack for distinctive character. “I’m The Fool”, “Nobody’s Got The Gun” and “Are We In Trouble Now” revive the sound of classic ‘70s country. “Je Suis Desole” puts a neat twist on a Cajun rhythm, and the French touch of the accordion colors “Done With Bonaparte”.
In fact, there are a lot of nice sounds here, but as the above examples show, there’s just too much of it, so that any sense of variety disappears. “No Can Do” burps along with a raspy vocal and a mix of dobro and electric, but sounds too much like “Don’t You Get It” two tracks later. “Cannibals” is another rewrite of “Walk Of Life”, as if we needed one. “Imelda” seems an odd reference point a full decade after the end of the Marcos regime, but at least the guitar’s tasty.
At 70 minutes, Golden Heart is mostly too long. With a little editing, it had the potential to be excellent. Instead, it works as pleasant musical wallpaper, soothing to those seeking the familiar Knopfler sound. And if he was writing again, maybe he wouldn’t be so keen to fill a CD to capacity just because he could.
Mark Knopfler Golden Heart (1996)—3
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