The Ragpicker's Dream

Knopfler’s last album, Sailing To Philadelphia quietly sold an impressive 3.5 million copies, due in no small part to his appealing duet with James Taylor on the title track. On his third solo album, the former Dire Straits guitarist continues in his quest for the musical connection between the Mississippi and the Tyne. Like Sailing... The Ragpicker’s Dream offers a selection of bluesy shuffles, laid-back ballads and Geordie-inspired folk tunes, loosely based on themes of emigration and the industrial decline of Newcastle.

Already familiar, the opening track and current single, ‘Why Aye Man’ (the theme song of the current series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet) features that other professional Geordie, Jimmy Nail on backing vocals. It’s a typically predictable Knopfler vehicle – all shuffling rhythms, clipped guitar lines and his low-key, barely-in-tune voice.

The rest rolls along in a similar vein, displaying plenty of overt musical references and influences. ‘Hill Farmers Blues’ for example is melodically very similar to ‘Sailing To Philadelphia’; the cocktail jazz of ‘A Place Where We Used To Live’ recalls Costello’s Bacharach collaboration on ‘This House Is Empty Now’, while ‘Quality Shoe’ is a direct descendent of Roger Miller’s ‘King Of The Road’. A pared-down traditional number, ‘Fare Thee Well Northumberland’ could be Nebraska-era Springsteen, and ‘Daddy’s Gone To Knoxville’ is uncannily similar to Knopfler’s previous busman’s holiday with the Notting Hillbillies. The up-beat ‘Coyote’ is the nearest thing to a full-blown Dire Straits number provided here.

The limited edition double CD pack features live versions of a handful of tracks including ‘Sailing To Philadelphia’ and ‘Brothers In Arms’ making this, all in all, a pretty satisfactory affair for Knopfler fans.