DIRE STRAITS
MARK KNOPFLER
THE NOTTING HILLBILLIES
FILM MUSIC
MAJOR COLLABORATIONS
VARIOUS (NON) ALBUM TRACKS

 

 

DIRE STRAITS

Dire Straits (1978)

Down to the waterline  

Communiqué (1979)


 

Once upon a time in the west
Water of love News
Setting me up Where do you think you're going?
Six blade knife Communiqué
Southbound again Lady writer
Sultans of swing Angel of mercy
In the gallery Portobello belle
Wild west end Single handed sailor
Lions Follow me home

B-side

Eastbound train  

 

Making Movies (1980)





 

Tunnel of love  


Love over gold (1982)


 

Telegraph road
Romeo and Juliet Private investigations
Skateaway Industrial disease
Expresso love Love over gold
Hand in hand It never rains
Solid rock

B-side

Posters, badges, stickers, T-shirts
Les boys

  

Extendedanceplay (1983)


 

Twisting by the pool  

Alchemy (1984) - disc 1


 

Once upon a time in the west
Two young lovers Expresso love
If I had you Romeo and Juliet
Posters, badges, stickers, T-shirts Love over gold
  Private investigations
  Sultans of swing
   
   
   
   

  

Alchemy (1984) - disc 2


 

Two young lovers  

Brothers in arms (1985)


 

So far away
Tunnel of love Money for nothing
Telegraph road Walk of life
Solid rock Your latest trick
Going home Why worry
  Ride across the river
  The man's too strong
  One world
  Brothers in arms
   

  


Money for nothing (1988)


 

 

 

Sultans of swing  

On every street (1991)



 

Calling Elvis
Down to the waterline On every street
Portobello belle (live) When it comes to you
Twisting by the pool Fade to black
Romeo and Juliet The bug
Where do you think you're going? You and your friend
Walk of life Heavy fuel
Private investigations Iron hand
Telegraph road Ticket to heaven
Money for nothing My parties
Tunnel of love Planet of New Orleans
Brothers in arms How long
 

B-sides

Millionaire blues
  Kingdom come

  

On the night (1993)

Calling Elvis  

Live at the BBC (1995)

 

 

Down to the waterline
Walk of life Six blade knife
Heavy fuel Water of love
Romeo and Juliet Wild west end
Private investigations Sultans of swing
Your latest trick Lions
On every street What's the matter baby?
You and your friend Tunnel of love
Money for nothing  
Brothers in arms  

Bonus tracks

The bug  
Solid rock  
Wild theme  

  


Sultans of swing -
 The very best of Dire Straits
(1998)

 

Disc 1

 

 

Sultans of swing  


Sultans of swing -
 The very best of Dire Straits
(1998)

 

Disc 2 (live)

 

 

Calling Elvis
Lady writer Walk of life
Romeo and Juliet Last exit to Brooklyn
Tunnel of love Romeo and Juliet
Private investigations Sultans of swing
Twisting by the pool Brothers in arms
Love over gold (live) Money for nothing
So far away  
Money for nothing  
Brothers in arms  
Walk of life  
Calling Elvis  
Heavy fuel  
On every street  
Your latest trick (live)  
Wild theme (live)  

  

Private investigations -
 The best of Dire Straits
& Mark Knopfler
(2005)

Disc 1

Telegraph road  

Private investigations -
 The best of Dire Straits
& Mark Knopfler
(2005)

Disc 2

Calling Elvis
Sultans of swing On every street
Love over gold Going home
Romeo and Juliet Darling pretty
Tunnel of love The long road
Private investigations Why aye man
So far away Sailing to Philadelphia
Money for nothing What it is
Brothers in arms The trawlerman's song
Walk of life Boom, like that
Your latest trick All the roadrunning

 

The studio albums 1978-1991
(2020)

 

Dire Straits (1978)      
Communiqué (1979)  
Making movies (1980)  
Love over gold (1982)  
Brothers in arms (1985)  
On every street (1991)    

▲ TOP





MARK KNOPFLER

Golden heart (1996)

 

 

Darling pretty  

Sailing to Philadelphia (2000)

 

 

What it is
Imelda Sailing to Philadelphia
Golden heart Who's your baby now
No can do Baloney again
Vic and Ray The last laugh
Don't you get it Silvertown blues
A night in summer long ago El macho
Cannibals Prairie wedding
I'm the fool Wanderlust
Je suis désolé Speedway at Nazareth
Rüdiger Junkie doll
Nobody's got the gun Sands of Nevada
Done with Bonaparte One more matinee
Are we in trouble now Do America

B-sides

Gravy train

B-sides

The long highway
My claim to faim Let's see you
Tall order baby Camerado
What have I got to do?  

 


The ragpicker's dream (2002)


 

Why aye man  

Shangri-La (2004)





 

5.15 a.m.
Devil baby Boom, like that
Hill farmer's blues Sucker row
A place where we used to live The trawlerman's song
Quality shoe Back to Tupelo
Fare thee well Northumberland Our shangri-la
Marbletown Everybody pays
You don't know you're born Song for Sonny Liston
Coyote Whoop de doo
The ragpicker's dream Postcards from Paraguay
Daddy's gone to Knoxville All that matters
Old pigweed Stand up guy

B-side

Small potatoes Donegan's gone
Don't crash the ambulance

B-side

Summer of love

 

One take radio sessions (2005)

The trawlerman's song  


The trawlerman's song EP (2005)


 

The trawlerman's song
Back to Tupelo Back to Tupelo
Song for Sonny Liston Song for Sonny Liston
Rüdiger Boom, like that
Boom, like that Donegan's gone
Everybody pays Stand up guy
Donegan's gone  
Stand up guy  

 

Kill to get crimson (2007)





 

 

True love will never fade  

Get lucky (2009)

Border reiver
The scaffolder's wife Hard shoulder
The fizzy and the still You can’t beat the house
Heart full of holes Before gas and tv
We can get wild Monteleone
Secondary Waltz Cleaning my gun
Punish the monkey The car was the one
Let it all go Remembrance Day
Behind with the rent Get lucky
The fish and the bird So far from the Clyde
Madame Geveva's Piper to the end
In the sky

Bonus tracks

Pulling down the ride
  Home boy
  Good as gold
  Early bird
  Time in the sun

 

Privateering (2012)

Disc 1

Redbud tree  

Privateering (2012)

Disc 2

Kingdom of gold
Haul away Got to have something
Don't forget your hat Radio City serenade
Privateering I used to could
Miss you blues Gator blood
Corned beef city Bluebird
Go, love Dream of the drowned submariner
Hot or what Blood and water
Yon two crows Today is okay
Seattle After the beanstalk

 

Privateering (2012)

Bonus tracks (studio)

Occupation blues  



Privateering (2012)

Bonus tracks (live)

 

Why aye man
River of grog Cleaning my gun
Follow the ribbon Corned beef city
Your perfect song Sailing to Philadelphia
  Hill farmer's blues

 

Tracker (2015)

 

 

Laughs and jokes and
     drinks and smokes
 



Tracker (2015)

Bonus tracks (studio)

 

 

.38 Special
Basil My heart has never changed
River towns Terminal of tribute to
Skydiver Heart of oak
Mighty man Time will end all sorrow
Broken bones Oklahoma Ponies
Long cool girl Hot dog
Lights of Taormina  
Silver Eagle
Beryl
  Wherever I go

 

Down the road wherever (2018)

 

 

 

 

Trapper man  



Down the road wherever (2018)

Bonus tracks (studio)

 

 

 

 

Every heart in the room 
Back on the dance floor Rear view mirror
Nobody’s child Don't suck me in
Just a boy away from home Sky and water
When you leave Pale imitation
Good on you son Back in the day (withdrawn, released in 2022)
My bacon roll  
Nobody does that
Drovers’ road
One song at a time
  Floating away 
  Slow learner
  Heavy up
  Matchstick man

 

The studio albums 1996-2007
(2021)

Golden heart (1996)  



The studio albums 2009-2018
(2022)

 

Get lucky (2009)
Sailing to Philadelphia (2000) Privateering (2012)
The ragpicker's dream (2002) Tracker (2015)
Shangri-la (2004) Down the road wherever (2018)
Kill to get crimson (2007) Back in the day (bonus tracks)

Including two new tracks: Back in the day and Precious voice from heaven
Gravy train (bonus with B-sides)

 

One deep river (2024)

 

 

Two pairs of hands  



One deep river (2024)

Bonus tracks (studio)

 

 

The living end
Ahead of the game Fat chance dupree
Smart money Along a foreign coast
Scavengers yard What I'm gonna need
Black tie jobs Nothing but rain
Tunnel 13 Dolly shop man
Janine Your leading man
Watch me gone Wrong 'un
Sweeter than the rain Chess
Before my train comes  
  This one's not going to end well
One deep river

 

The boy (2024)

 

Mr Solomons said      
The boy  
All comers  
Bad day for a knife thrower  
   
   

   ▲ TOP




THE NOTTING HILLBILLIES

Missing... presumed having
a good time (1990)

Railroad worksong      
Bewildered  
Your own sweet way  
Run me down  
One way gal  
Blues stay away from me  
Will you miss me  
Please baby  
Weapon of prayer  
That's where I belong  
Feel like going home  

B-side

Lonesome wind blues  

▲ TOP




FILM MUSIC

Local Hero (1983)

 

 

 

The rocks and the water  


Cal (1984)









 

Irish boy
Wild theme The road
Freeway flyer Waiting for her
Boomtown (variation Louis' favourite) Irish love
The way it always starts A secret place / where will you go
The rocks and the thunder Father and son
The Ceilidh and the Northern lights Meeting under the trees
The mist covered mountains Potato picking
The Ceilidh: Louis' favourite/Billy's tune In a secret place
Whistle theme Fear and hatred
Smooching Love and guilt
Stargazer The long road
The rocks and the thunder  
Going home - theme of the local hero  

 

Comfort and Joy (1984)

 

Comfort  

The princess bride (1987)



 

Once upon a time... Storybook love
Joy I will never love again
A fistful of ice cream Florin dance
  Morning ride
  The friends' song
  The cliffs of insanity
  The swordfight
  Guide my sword
  The fireswamp and the rodents of unusual size
  Revenge
  A happy ending
  Storybook love

 

Last exit to Brooklyn (1989)











 

Last exit to Brooklyn  

Screenplaying (1993)











 

Irish boy
Victims Irish love
Think fast Father and son
A love idea Potato picking
Tralala The long road
Riot A love idea
The reckoning Victims
As low as it gets Finale - Last exit to Brooklyn
Finale - Last exit to Brooklyn Once upon a time... Storybook love
  Morning ride
  The friend's song
  Guide my sword
  A happy ending
  Wild theme
  Boomtown (variation Louis' favourite)
  The mist covered mountains
  Smooching
  Going home - theme of the local hero

 

Metroland (1998)






 

Metroland theme (instrumental)  

Wag the dog (1998)






 

Wag the dog
Annick  Working on it
Tous les Garçons et les Filles  In the heartland
Brats An American hero
Blues Clair Just instinct
Down day Stretching it out
A walk in Paris Drooling national
She's gone We're going to war
Minor swing  
Peaches  
Sultans of swing  
So you win again  
Alison  
Metroland  

 

A short at glory (2001)






 

Sons of Scotland  

Altamira (2016)






 

Altamira  
Hard cases Maria
He's the man Dream of the bison
Training By the grave
The new laird Onward
Say too much Marcelino's despair
Four in a row Farewell to the bison
All that I have in the world This is science
Sons of Scotland - quiet theme Glory of the cave
It's over Farewell to Altamira
Wild mountain thyme

▲ TOP




MAJOR COLLABORATIONS

Neck and neck (1990)


 

 

Poor boy blues  


All the roadrunning (2006)

 

 

Beachcombing
Sweet dreams I dug up a diamond
There'll be some changes made This is us
Just one time Red staggerwing
So soft, your goodbye  Rollin' on
Yakety axe Love and happiness
Tears Right now
Tahitian skies Donkey town
I'll see you in my dreams Belle starr
The next time I'm in town Beyond my wildest dreams
  All the roadrunning
  If this is goodbye

▲ TOP




VARIOUS (NON ALBUM) TRACKS

Various tracks that did not make
 it on any official Dire Straits or
Mark Knopfler album but which
are written and/or sung by
Mark Knopfler

Bonfire night  
I never met a one like you
I think I live you too much
In my car
It's been a while
Mademoiselle will decide
Making movies
Me and my friends / Move it away
No wonder he's confused
Overnight sensation
Playtime Deluxe
Private dancer
Pyroman
Real girl
Spanish Jack
Sucker for punishment
Suicide towers
Summer's coming my way
The oldest surfer on the beach
Two skinny kids
When I'm on my own
When it's over
You don't want to get you one of those
Various tracks written by other
artists but sung by
Mark Knopfler
Blue moon of Kentucky
I always get lucky with you
Let's play house
Lost on the river
Nadine
Not one bad thought
On raglan road
Pockets
Restless farewell
Rock 'n roll Ruby
The boxer
The highwayman
The Lily of the west
Waterbound
What a wonderful world
You win again
Written and sung by David Knopfler played with Dire Straits Bernadette
Sacred loving

▲ TOP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  DOWN TO THE WATERLINE

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Sweet surrender on the quayside
You remember we used to run and hide
In the shadow of the cargoes I take you one time
And we're counting all the numbers down to the waterline

Well, near misses on the dogleap stairways
French kisses in the darkened doorways
A foghorn blowing out wild and cold
A policeman shines a light upon my shoulder

Up comes a coaster fast and silent in the night
Over my shoulder all you can see are the pilot lights
No money in our jackets and our jeans are torn
Your hands are cold but your lips are warm

She can see him on the jetty where they used to go
She can feel him in the places where the sailors go
When she's walking by the river and the railway line
She can still hear him whisper
Let's go down to the waterline
Come on


▲ TOP




  EASTBOUND TRAIN

(released on the B-side of the single 'Sultans of swing', written by Mark Knopfler)

It was New Cross Station, I was going on home
Saw you get your ticket, standing on your own
Here come the train about 02:44
I couldn't get a smoker, you took another car

Yeah, the end of the line, we both had to change
And you're standing right behind me
I'm a feeling kinda strange
We got to Mile End Road, my heart skipped a beat
Standing right behind me, I'm a shakin' in my seat
3-4 minutes and the train comes through
I'm ridin' on the Central, I'm a-lookin' at you

Woman on the eastbound train
Sometimes I wanna see you again

Now I couldn't read a paper, you couldn't read a book
Kept on taking me another look
You got off the train, you never looked behind
I tried, but I can't get you out of my mind

Woman on the eastbound train
Sometimes I wanna see you again

Well I got one more thing I wanna say before I go
If you get the message on the radio
You can write a letter, get in touch with me
Leave your number with the company, yeah

Woman on the eastbound train
Sometimes I wanna see you again


Woman on the eastbound train
Sometimes I wanna see you again


▲ TOP



  IN THE GALLERY

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Harry made a bareback rider proud and free upon a horse
And a fine coalminer for the NBC that was
A fallen angel and Jesus on the cross
A skating ballerina you should have seen her do the skater's waltz

Some people have got to paint and draw
Harry had to work in clay and stone
Like the waves coming to the shore
It was in his blood and in his bones
He was ignored by all the trendy boys in London yes and in Leeds
He might as well have been making toys or strings of beads
He could not be, no he couldn't be in the gallery
No, no in the gallery

And then you get an artist says he doesn't want to paint at all
He takes an empty canvas and sticks it on the wall
The birds of a feather all the phonies and all of the fakes
While the dealers they get together
And they decide who gets the breaks
And who's going to be, yeah who's going to be in the gallery
Oh yeah in the gallery

No lies he wouldn't compromise
No junk no string
And all the lies are subsidise
That just don't mean a thing
I've got to say he passed away in obscurity
And now all the vultures are coming down from the tree
So he's going to be, yeah he's going to be in the galle-galle-galle-gallery
Yeah, in the gallery
Harry made a bareback rider, made a bareback rider

▲ TOP



  LIONS

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Red sun go down way over dirty town
Starling are sweeping around crazy shoals
Yes and a girl is there high heeling across the square
Wind blows around in her hair and the flags upon the poles
Waiting in the crowd to cross at the light
She looks around to find a face she can like

Church bell clinging on just a trying to get a crowd for Evensong
Nobody cares to depend upon the chime it plays
They're all in the station praying for trains
Congregation late again
It's getting darker all the time these flagpole days
Drunk old soldier he gives her a fright
He's a crazy lion howling for a fight

Strap hanging gunshot sound
Doors slamming on the overground
Starlings are tough but the lions are made of stone
Her evening paper is horror torn
But there's hope later for Capricorns
Her lucky stars give her just enough to get her home
Then she's reading about a swing to the right
But she's thinking about a stranger in the night
I'm thinking about the lions, think about the lions
What happened to the lions tonight, tonight, tonight
Thinking 'bout the lions
Thinking 'bout the lions


▲ TOP



  SETTING ME UP

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

You say I'm the greatest bound for glory
Well the word is out and I learned
I got the latest side of the story
You're pulling out before you get burned

Well your hands are squeezing me down to the bone
I never saw you breaking no law
Stands to reason I've got to leave you alone
What you taking me for

You're setting me up to put me down
You're just making me out to be your clown
You're setting me up now to put me down
You better give it up, yeah give it up
Quit your messing around

You think I care about your reaction
You think I don't understand
All you wanted was a piece of the action
Now you talk about another man

You're setting me up to put me down
You're just making me out to be your clown
You're setting me up now to put me down
You better give it up, give it up
Quit your messing around

Yeah, yeah
 


▲ TOP



  SIX BLADE KNIFE

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Your six blade knife can do anything for you
Anything you want it to
One blade for breaking my heart
One blade for tearing me apart
Your six blade knife do anything for you

You can take away my mind like you take away the top of a tin
When you come up from behind and lay it down cold on my skin
Took a stone from my soul when I was lame
Just so you could make me tame
Yeah six blade knife - you take away the top of a tin

I'd like to be free of it babe I don't want it no more
I'd like to be free of it now hmm, I don't want it no more

Everybody got a knife it can be just what they want it to be
A needle a wife or something that you just can't see

Six blade knife - you know it keeps you strong
Yes and it'll do me wrong
Your six blade knife do anything for you
Do anything, anything for you
Anything

▲ TOP



  SOUTHBOUND AGAIN

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Southbound again I don't know if I'm going or leaving home
Southbound again I don't know if I'm going or leaving home
Boy got to be moving
Seems like the boy is bound to roam

Every single time I roll across the rolling River Tyne
Every single time I roll across the rolling River Tyne
I get the same old feeling
Every time I'm moving down the line

Southbound again last night I felt like crying
Southbound again last night I felt like crying
Right now I'm sick of living
But I'm going to keep on trying, keep on trying

 

Note:

In the official CD booklet, an extra verse is printed, which comes after the first verse of the lyrics above:

Southbound again got no money I've got no place to go
That woman's with her lover boy
Never want to see her face no more

This is actually not released on the record, but can be heard om some early Dire Straits live performances.


▲ TOP



  SULTANS OF SWING

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

You get a shiver in the dark
It's raining in the park but meantime
South of the river you stop and you hold everything
A band is blowing Dixie double four time
You feel alright when you hear that music ring

Well now you step inside but you don't see too many faces
Coming in out of the rain to hear the jazz go down
Competition in other places
Ah but the horns they're blowing that sound
Way on downsouth way on downsouth London town

You check out Guitar George he knows all the chords
Mind he's strictly rhythm he doesn't want to make it cry or sing
Yes and an old guitar is all he can afford
When he gets up under the lights to play his thing

And Harry doesn't mind if he doesn't make the scene
He's got a daytime job he's doing alright
He can play honky tonk just like anything
Saving it up for Friday night
With the Sultans with the Sultans of Swing

And a crowd of young boys they're fooling around in the corner
Drunk and dressed in their best brown baggies and their platform soles
They don't give a damn about any trumpet playing band
It ain't what they call rock and roll
And the Sultans, yeah the Sultans played Creole, Creole

And then the man he steps right up to the microphone
And says at last just as the time bell rings
'Goodnight now it's time to go home'
And he makes it fast with one more thing
'We are the Sultans, we are the Sultans of Swing'

▲ TOP



  WATER OF LOVE

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

High and dry in the long hot day
Lost and lonely every way
Got the flats all around me sky up above
Yes I need a little water of love

I've been too long lonely and my heart feels pain
Crying out for some soothing rain
I believe I have taken enough
Yes I need a little water of love

Water of love deep in the ground
But there ain't no water here to be found
Some day baby when the river runs free
It's gonna carry that water of love to me

There's a bird up in a tree sitting up high
Up high, up high
Just a-waiting for me to die
If I don't get some water soon
I'll be dead and gone in the afternoon

Water of love deep in the ground
But there ain't no water here to be found
Some day baby when the river runs free
It's gonna carry that water of love to me

Once I had a woman I could call my own
Once I had a woman now my woman she gone
Once there was a river now there's a stone
You know it's evil when you're living alone

Water of love deep in the ground
But there ain't no water here to be found
Some day baby when the river runs free
It's gonna carry that water of love to me
Carry that

Water of love deep in the ground
But there ain't no water here to be found
Some day baby when the river runs free
It's gonna carry that water of love to me

▲ TOP



  WILD WEST END

(released on 'Dire Straits', written by Mark Knopfler)

Stepping out to Angellucci's for my coffee beans
Checking out the movies and the magazines
Waitress she watches me crossing from the Barocco Bar
I'm getting a pickup for my steel guitar
I saw you walking out Shaftesbury Avenue
Excuse me talking I wanna marry you
This is the seventh heaven street to me
Don't you seem so proud
You're just another angel in the crowd

And I'm walking in the wild west end
Walking in the wild west end
Walking with your wild best friend

Now my conductress on the number nineteen
She was a honey
Pink toenails and hands all dirty with money
Greasy, greasy, greasy hair easy smile
She made me feel nineteen for a while
And I went down to Chinatown
In the backroom it's a man's world
All the money go down
Duck inside the doorway gotta duck to eat
Just ain't no way
You and me we can't beat

Walking in the wild west end
Walking in the wild west end
Walking with your wild best friend

Now a gogo dancing girl yes I saw her
The deejay he say here's Mandy for ya
I feel alright
To see her do that stuff
She's dancing high I move on by
The close ups can get rough

When you're walking in the wild west end
Walking, walking
Walking in the wild west end
Walking, walking
Walking with your wild best friend
Walking, walking

▲ TOP



  ANGEL OF MERCY

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well there's a Peter Pan moon, shepherd's delight
I got the dragon at noon, yes and I won the fight
Now I want my reward in heaven tonight, just like you promised
Angel of mercy you'll come to no harm
Angel of mercy, there's no need for alarm
The knight in his armour wants a night in your arms
You now he's honest

Angel of mercy, angel delight, give me my reward in heaven tonight
And if I give up my sword, won't you give me the right
Sweet angel

Well now it's too late for talkin', we can talk later on
Let the saxophone play us till the chorus of dawn
And I need is a little oblivion, you don't need protection
Well now here comes the moonlight down on your bed
Angel of mercy let your heart rule your head
I don't want your money, I want you instead
Don't need rejection yeah

Angel of mercy, angel delight, give me my reward in heaven tonight
And if I give up my sword, won't you give me the right
Angel of mercy, give me heaven tonight
Well, if you cross your heart
And spit and swear upon the grave of your mother
You gotta get into it, you gotta tell me that I'm more than a lover

Yeah angel of mercy, angel delight
A-give me my reward in heaven tonight
And if I give up my sword, won't you give me the right
Angel of mercy, give me heaven tonight

Yeah angel of mercy, angel delight
A-give me my reward in heaven tonight
And if I give up my sword, won't you give me the right
Angel of mercy, give me heaven tonight

Yeah angel of mercy, angel delight
A-give me my reward in heaven tonight
And if I give up my sword, won't you give me the right
Angel of mercy, give me heaven tonight

▲ TOP



  COMMUNIQUÉ

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

They wanna get a statement for Jesus' sake
It's like a talking to the wall
He's incommunicado
No comment to make
He's saying nothing at all

Yeah but in the communique you know he's gonna come clean
Think what he say
Say what he means
Maybe on a Monday he got something to say

Communication
Communique
Communique

Maybe he could talk about the tricks of the trade
Maybe he could talk about himself
Maybe he could talk about the money that he made
Maybe he be saying something else

But in the communique you know he's gonna come clean
Think what he say
Say what he means
Maybe on a Monday he got something to say

Communication
Communique
Communique

Well now the rumours are flying
Speculation rife
They say that he's been trying someone else's wife
Somebody at the airport
Somebody on the phone
Says he's at the station and he's coming home alone
Then we get the story
The serious piece
And a photograph a taken in the hall
And you don't have to worry with the previous release
Right now he's saying nothing at all

But in the communique you know he's gonna come clean
Think what he say
Say what he means
Maybe on a Monday he'll have something to say

Communication
Communique
Communique

Communication

▲ TOP



  FOLLOW ME HOME

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Oh well the sun go down
Celebration in the town tonight
All day long
They been slaughtering upon the stone
Share out the meat
Yeah, you really like to eat
Come on woman, come follow me home

Well the priest he cries
Virgin ascending to the skies tonight
All day long
I have passed my time alone
And when the church bell rung
I stayed out on the tower
In a dying sun
Now come on woman, come follow me home

Well I don't need no priest
But I love all of the people
Yes I share the feast
So drink up my wine
Yes and the song in my bones
I know the way
I can see by the moonlight
Clear as the day
Now come on woman, come follow me home

▲ TOP



  LADY WRITER

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Lady Writer on the t.v.
Talk about the Virgin Mary
Reminded me of you
Expectations left to come up to yeah

Lady writer on the t.v.
Yeah, she had another quality
The way you used to look
And I know you never read a book

Just the way that her hair fell down around her face
Then I recall my fall from grace
Another time, another place

Lady writer on the t.v.
She had all the brains and the beauty
The picture does not fit
You talked to me when you felt like it.

Just the way that her hair fell down around her face
Then I recall my fall from grace
Another time, another place

Yes and your rich old man
You know he'd call her a dead ringer
You got the same command
Plus your mother was a jazz singer

Just the way that her hair fell down around her face
Then I recall my fall from grace
Oh yeah, another time, another place

Lady writer on the t.v.
She knew all about a history
You couldn't hardly write your name
I think I want you just the same as the

Lady writer on the t.v.
Talking about the Virgin Mary
Yeah you know I'm talking about you and me
And the lady writer on the t.v.
Lady writer on the t.v.
Talking about the Virgin Mary
Yeah you know I'm talking about you and me
And the lady writer on the t.v.

▲ TOP



  NEWS

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

He sticks to his guns
He take the road as it comes
It take the shine off his shoes
He says it's a shame
You know it may be a game
Ah but I won't play to lose

He's burning the grass
He take up a glass
He swallow it neat
He crosses the floor
He open the door
He take a sniff of the street

And she tell him that he's crazy
She's a-saying hey baby
I'm your wife
Yeah she tell him that he's crazy
For gambling a-with his life

But he climbs on his horse
You know he feel no remorse
He just kicks it alive
His motor is fine
He take it over the line
Until he's ready to dive

And she tell him that he's crazy
Yes she's saying listen baby
I'm your wife
Yeah she's tell him that he's crazy
For gambling with his life

He sticks to his guns
He take the road as it comes
It take the shine off his shoes
He says it's a shame
You know it may be a game
Ah but I won't play to lose

He sticks to his guns
He take the road as it comes
It take the shine off his shoes
He's too fast to stop
He take it over the top
He make a line in the news

▲ TOP



  ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Some people get a cheap laugh breaking up the speed limit
Scaring the pedestrians for a minute
Crossing up the progress driving on the grass
Leaving just enough room to pass
Sunday driver never took a test
Oh yeah, once upon a time in the west

Yes it's no use saying that you don't know nothing
It's still gonna get you if you don't do something
Sitting on a fence that's a dangerous course
You could even catch a bullet from the peace-keeping force
Even the hero gets a bullet in the chest
Oh yeah, once upon a time in the west

Mother Mary your children are slaughtered
Some of you mothers ought to lock up your daughters
Who's protecting the innocenti
Heap big trouble in the land of plenty
Tell me how we're gonna do what's best
You guess once upon a time in the west

Oh yeah, once upon a time in the west
Oh yeah, once upon a time in the west
Oh yeah, once upon a time in the west

Once upon a time in the west
Once upon a time in the west

▲ TOP



  PORTOBELLO BELLE

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Bella donna's on the highstreet
Her breasts upon the off beat
And the stalls are just the side shows
Victoriana's old clothes
And yes her jeans are tight now
She gotta travel light now
She's gotta tear up all her roots now
She got a turn up for the boots now

Yeah she thinks she's tough
She ain't no English rose
But the blind singer
He's seen enough and he knows
Yes and he do a song
About a long gone Irish girl
Ah but I got one for you Portobello Belle

She sees a man upon his back there
Escaping from a sack there
And bella donna lingers
Her gloves they got no fingers
Yeah, the blind man singing Irish
He get his money in a tin dish
Just a corner serenader
Upon a time he could have made her, made her

Yeah, she thinks she's tough
She ain't no English rose
Ah, but the blind singer
He's seen enough and he knows
Yes and do a song
About a long gone Irish girl
Ah but I got one for you Portobello Belle

Yes and the barrow boys are hawking
And the parakeet is squawking
Upon a truck there is a rhino
She get the crying of the wino
And then she hear the reggae rumble
Bella donna's in the jungle
But she is no garden flower
There is no distress in the tower

Oh, bella donna walks
Bella donna taking a stroll
But she don't care about your window box
Or your button hole
Yes and she sing a song about a long gone Irish girl
Ah but I got one for you Portobello Belle

Portobello Belle

▲ TOP



  SINGLE-HANDED SAILOR

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Two in the morning dry dock town
The river rolls away in the night
Little gypsy moth she's all tied down
She quiver in the wind down the light

Yeah and a sailing ship just held down in chains
From the lazy days of sail
She's just a lying there in silent pain
He lean on the tourist rail

A mother and her baby and the college of war
In the concrete graves
You never wanna fight against the river law
Nobody rules the waves
Yeah and on a night when the lazy wind is a wailing
Around the Cutty Sark
The single handed sailor goes sailing
Sailing away in the dark

He's upon the bridge on the self same night
The mariner of dry dock land
Two in the morning but there's one green light
And a man on a barge of sand

She's a gonna slip away below him
Away from the things he's done
But he just shouts "hey man what you call this thing"
He could have said "Pride of London"
On a night when the lazy wind is a wailing
Around the Cutty Sark
Yeah the single handed sailor goes sailing
Sailing away in the dark

▲ TOP



  WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?

(released on 'Communiqué', written by Mark Knopfler)

Where d'ya think you're going
Don't you know it's dark outside
Where d'ya think you're going
Don't you care about my pride
Where d'ya think you're going
I think a you don't know
You got no way of knowing
There's really no place you can go

I understand your changes
A-long before you reach the door
I know where you think you're going
I know what you came here for
And now I'm sick of joking
You know I like you to be free
A-where d'ya think ya going
I think you better go with me girl

You say there is no reason
But you still find cause to doubt me
If you ain't with me girl
You're gonna be without me, yeah

Where d'ya think you're going
Don't you know it's dark outside
Where d'ya think you're going
I wish I didn't care about my pride
And now I'm sick of joking
You know I like you to be free
A-where d'ya think you're going
I think you'd better go with me girl

Come on

▲ TOP
 

 

  TUNNEL OF LOVE

(released on 'Making movies', written Mark Knopfler)

Getting crazy on the waltzers but it's the life that I choose
Yeah sing about the sixblade sing about the switchback and a torture tattoo
And I been riding on a ghost train where the cars they scream and slam
And I don't know where I'll be tonight but I'd always tell you where I am

In a screaming ring of faces I seen her standing in the light
She had a ticket for the races yeah just like me she was a victim of the night
I put my hand upon the lever said let it rock and let it roll
I had the one arm bandit fever there was an arrow through my heart and my soul

And the big wheel keep on turning neon burning up above
And I'm just high on the world
Come on and take a low ride with me girl
On the tunnel of love, yeah love, love

It's just the danger when you're riding at your own risk
She said you are the perfect stranger she said baby let's keep it like this
It's just a cakewalk twisting baby step right up and say
Hey mister give me two give me two now 'cos any two can play

And the big wheel keep on turning neon burning up above
And I'm just high on the world
Come on and take a low ride with me girl
On the tunnel of love, ooh love, love

Well it's been money for muscle another whirligig
Money for muscle and a another girl I dig
Another hustle just to, just to make it big
And rockaway rockaway, ooh rockaway rockaway

And girl it looks so pretty to me like it always did
Oh like the Spanish City to me when we were kids
Yeah girl it looks so pretty to me just like it always did
Oh like the Spanish City to me when we were kids
Ola, check it out

She took off a silver locket she said remember me by this
She put her hand in my pocket I got a keepsake and a kiss
And in the roar of the dust and diesel I stood and watched her walk away
I could have caught up with her easy enough but something must have made me stay

And the big wheel keep on turning neon burning up above
And I'm just high on this world
Come on and take a low ride with me girl
On the tunnel of love, yeah love, love
On the tunnel of love, ooh lov
e, love

▲ TOP



  ROMEO AND JULIET

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

A lovestruck Romeo sings a streetsuss serenade
Laying everybody low with a lovesong that he made
Finds the streetlight steps out of the shade
Says something like you and me babe how about it?

Juliet says hey it's Romeo you nearly gimme a heart attack
He's underneath the window she's singing hey la my boyfriend's back
You shouldn't come around here singing up at people like that
Anyway what you gonna do about it?

Juliet the dice was loaded from the start
And I bet and you exploded in my heart
And I forget I forget the movie song
When you gonna realise it was just that the time was wrong Juliet?

Come up on different streets they both were streets of shame
Both dirty both mean yes and the dream was just the same
And I dreamed your dream for you and now your dream is real
How can you look at me as if I was just another one of your deals?

When you can fall for chains of silver you can fall for chains of gold
You can fall for pretty strangers and the promises they hold
You promised me everything you promised me thick and thin yeah
Now you just say oh Romeo yeah you know I used to have a scene with him

Juliet when we made love you used to cry
You said I love you like the stars above I'll love you till I die
There's a place for us you know the movie song
When you gonna realise it was just that the time was wrong Juliet?

I can't do the talk like they talk on tv
And I can't do a love song like the way it's meant to be
I can't do everything but I'd do anything for you
I can't do anything except be in love with you

And all I do is miss you and the way we used to be
All I do is keep the beat and bad company
All I do is kiss you through the bars of a rhyme
Juliet I'd do the stars with you any time

Juliet when we made love you used to cry
You said I love you like the stars above I'll love you till I die
And there's a place for us you know the movie song
When you gonna realise it was just that the time was wrong Juliet?

And a lovestruck romeo sings a streetsuss serenade
Laying everybody low with a lovesong that he made
Finds a convenient streetlight steps out of the shade
Says something like you and me babe how about it?

You and me babe how about it?

▲ TOP



  SKATEAWAY

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

I seen a girl on a one way corridor
Stealing down a wrong way street
For all the world like an urban toreador
She had wheels on on her feet
Well the cars do the usual dances
Same old cruise and the kerbside crawl
But the rollergirl she's taking chances
They just love to see her take them all

No fears alone at night she's sailing through the crowd
In her ears the phones are tight and the music's playing loud

Hallelujah here she comes queen rollerball
Enchante what can I say don't care at all
You know she used to have to wait around
She used to be the lonely one
But now that she can skate around town
She's the only, only one

No fears alone at night she's sailing through the crowd
In her ears the phones are tight and the music's playing loud

She gets rock n roll a rock n roll station
And a rock n roll dream
She's making movies on location
She don't know what it means
But the music make her wanna be the story
And the story was whatever was the song what it was
Rollergirl don't worry
D.J. play the movies all night long, all night long

She tortures taxi drivers just for fun
She like to read their lips
Says toro toro taxi see ya tomorrow my son
I swear she let a big truck graze her hip
She got her own world in the city
You can't intrude on her no, no no
She got her own world in the city
'Cos the city's been so rude to her

No fears alone at night she's sailing through the crowd
In her ears the phones are tight and the music's playing loud

She gets rock n roll a rock n roll station
And a rock n roll dream
She's making movies on location
She don't know what it means
But the music make her wanna be the story
And the story was whatever was the song what it was
Rollergirl don't worry
D.J. play the movies all night long, all night long


Come slippin' and a slidin'
Yeah life's a rollerball
Slippin' and a slidin'
Skateaway that's all
Skateaway

Shala shalay hey hey skateaway
Now shala skalay hey hey
She's singing shala shalay hey hey skateaway
Oh shala shalay

▲ TOP



  EXPRESSO LOVE

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

She gets the sun in the daytime
Perfume in the dusk
And she comes out in the night time
With the honeysuckle musk
Because she smells just like a rose
And she tastes just like a peach
She got me walking where the wildlife goes
I'd do anything to reach her

And she was made in heaven
Heaven's in the world
Oh she was made in heaven
Heaven's in the world
Is this just expresso love
You know I'm crazy for the girl
Just crazy for the girl

She call me just to talk
She's my lover she's a friend of mine
She says hey mister you wanna take a walk
In the wild west end sometime
And I get trouble with my breathing
When she says boys don't know anything
But I know what I want
Yes I want everything

'Cos she was made in heaven
And heaven's in the world
Oh she was made in heaven
Yes heaven's in the world
Is this just expresso love
You see I'm crazy for the girl
Just crazy for the girl

Well you know I feel so good 'cos I feel so good
And I feel so good 'cos it feels so right
I was made to go with my girl
Just like a saxophone was made to go with the night

And she can raise one eyebrow
Put her hand on my hip
And I close one eye now
Sweat on her lip
Oh and I surrender to the fever
And I surrender to the will of the night
She love me so tender I got to believe her
Love? Huh, expresso love's alright

'Cos she was made in heaven
And heaven's in the world
Oh she was made in heaven
Heaven's in the world
Is this expresso love
You know I'm crazy for the girl
Just crazy for that girl

No I don't want no sugar in it
No thank you very, very, very much
All wired up on it, all fired up on it
Expresso touch
Hey maestro expresso now
Hey maestro she says expresso now
It's just another one just like the other one
Is this another one just like the other one
Hey maestro expresso now


▲ TOP



  HAND IN HAND

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

The sky is crying the streets are full of tears
Rain come down wash away my fears
And all this writing on the wall
Oh I can read between the lines
Rain come down forgive this dirty town
Rain come down and give this dirty town
A drink of water, a drink of wine

If I been hard on you I never chose to be
I never wanted no one else
I tried my best to be somebody you'd be close to
Hand in hand like lovers are supposed to

As you'd sleep I'd think my heart would break in two
I'd kiss your cheek I'd stop myself from waking you
But in the dark you'd speak my name
You'd say baby what's wrong?
Oh here I am baby I'm coming back for more
I'm like a wave that's got to roll into the shore
Yes and if my love's in vain how come my love is so strong?

If I been hard on you I never chose to be
I never wanted no one else
I tried my best to be somebody you'd be close to
Hand in hand like lovers are supposed to, supposed to do

Now you and me go parallel together and apart
And you keep your perfect distance and it's tearing at my heart
Did you never feel the distance
Did you never tried to cross no line
'Cos it's another dirty river and another dirty scar
And I don't know who's kissing and I don't know where you are
So far from home, don't you think of me sometime

If I been hard on you I never chose to be
I never wanted no one else
I tried my best to be somebody you'd be close to
Hand in hand like lovers are supposed to

If I been hard on you I never chose to be
I never wanted no one else
I tried my best to be somebody you'd be close to
Hand in hand like lovers are supposed to

Well the sky is crying see the streets are full of tears
Rain coming down to wash away my fears
And all this writing on the wall
Oh I can read between the lines

▲ TOP



  SOLID ROCK

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well now take a look at that
I made a castle in the sand
Saying this is where it's at you know
Couldn't understand now
If I realised that the chances were slim
How come I'm so surprised when the tide rolled in yeah

I'm gonna live on solid rock
I'm gonna live on solid rock
I wanna give I don't wanna be blocked
I'm gonna live on solid rock

Well I'm sick of potential
I'm sick of vanity now
I'm sticking to essential reality now
I don't know what's worse
Try to make a silk purse
Living an illusion living in confusion

I'm gonna live on solid rock
I wanna live on solid rock
I'm gonna live I don't wanna be blocked
I'm gonna live on solid rock

You know a house of cards
Was never built for shock
You could blow it down in any kind of weather
Now you take two solid rocks two solid blocks
You know they're gonna stick
Yeah they're gonna stick together

Yeah because the heart that you break
That's the one that you rely on
The bed that you make
That's the one you gotta lie on
When you point your finger 'cos your plan fell through
You got three more fingers pointing back at you yeah

I wanna live on solid rock
I'm gonna live on solid rock
I wanna give I don't wanna be blocked
I'm gonna live on solid rock

Rock, rock solid rock
Rock, rock solid rock
I wanna give I don't wanna be blocked
I'm gonna live on solid rock
Rock, rock solid rock
Rock, rock solid rock

I wanna give I don't wanna be blocked
I'm gonna live on solid solid solid solid rock
Solid rock Solid rock

▲ TOP



  LES BOYS

(released on 'Making movies', written by Mark Knopfler)

Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay
They're not afraid now
Disco bar in Germany
Les boys are glad to be
Upon parade now

Les boys got leather straps
Les boys got SS caps
But they got no gun now
Get dressed up get a little risque
Got to do a little s & m these days
It's all in fun now

Les boys come on again
For the high class whores
And the businessmen
Who drive in their Mercedes Benz
To a disco bar in old Munchen

Well now, they get the jokes that the D.J. makes
They get nervous and they make mistakes
They're bad for business
Some tourist take a photograph
Les boys don't get one laugh
He says they're useless

Les boys come on again
For the high class whores
And the businessmen
Who drive in their Mercedes Benz
To a disco bar in old Munchen

Late at night when they've gone away
Les boys dream of Jean Genet
High heel shoes and a black beret
And the posters on the wall that say
Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay

Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay
Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay
Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay

Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay
Les boys do cabaret
Les boys are glad to be gay
Les boys do cabaret
Les boys do cabaret

▲ TOP



  TELEGRAPH ROAD

(released on 'Love over gold', written by Mark Knopfler)

A long time ago came a man on a track
Walking thirty miles with a sack on his back
And he put down his load where he thought it was the best
He made a home in the wilderness
He built a cabin and a winter store
And he ploughed up the ground by the cold lake shore
And the other travellers came walking down the track
And they never went further no they never went back
Then came the churches then came the schools
Then came the lawyers then came the rules
Then came the trains and the trucks with their loads
And the dirty old track was the telegraph road

Yeah, then came the mines then came the ore
Then there was the hard times then there was a war
Telegraph sang a song about the world outside
Telegraph road got so deep and so wide
Like a rolling river. . .

And my radio says tonight it's gonna freeze
People driving home from the factories
There's six lanes of traffic
Three lanes moving slow. . .

I used to like to go to work but they shut it down
I've got a right to go to work but there's no work here to be found
Yes and they say we're gonna have to pay what's owed
We're gonna have to reap from some seed that's been sowed
And the birds up on the wires and the telegraph poles
They can always fly away from this rain and this cold
You can here them singing out their telegraph code
All the way down the telegraph road

Well I'd sooner forget but I remember those nights
Yeah life was just a bet on a race between the lights
You had your head on my shoulder you had your hand in my hair
Now you act a little colder like you don't seem to care...
But just believe in me baby and I'll take you away
From out of this darkness and into the day
From these rivers of headlights these rivers of rain
From the anger that lives on the streets with these names
'Cos I've run every red light on memory lane
I've seen desperation explode into flames
And I don't want to see it again. . .

From all of these signs saying sorry but we're closed
All the way down the telegraph road

▲ TOP



  PRIVATE INVESTIGATIONS

(released on 'Love over gold', written by Mark Knopfler)

It's a mystery to me the game commences
For the usual fee plus expenses
Confidential information it's in a diary
This is my investigation - it's not a public inquiry

I go checking out the reports digging up the dirt
You get to meet all sorts in this line of work
Treachery and treason there's always an excuse for it
And when I find the reason I still can't get used to it

And what have you got at the end of the day?
What have you got to take away?
A bottle of whisky and a new set of lies
Blinds on the window and a pain behind the eyes

Scarred for life no compensation
Private investigations

▲ TOP



  INDUSTRIAL DISEASE

(released on 'Love over gold', written by Mark Knopfler)

Now warning lights are flashing down at Quality Control
Somebody threw a spanner and they threw him in the hole
There's rumors in the loading bay and anger in the town
Somebody blew the wistle and the walls came down
There's a meeting in the boardroom they're trying to trace the smell
There's a leaking in the washroom there's a sneak in personnel
Somewhere in the corridors someone was heard to sneeze
'Goodness me could this be Industrial Disease ?'

The caretaker was crucified for sleeping at his post
They're refusing to be pacified it's him they blame the most
The watchdog's got rabies the foreman's got the fleas
And everyone's concerned about Industrial Disease
There's panic on the switchboard tongues are ties in knots
Some come out in sympathy some come out in spots
Some blame the management some the employees
And everybody knows it's the Industrial Disease

Yeah now the work force is disgusted downs tools and walks
Innocence is injured experience just talks
Everyone seeks damages and everyone agrees
That these are 'classic symtoms of a monetary squeeze'
On ITV and BBC they talk about the curse
Philosophy is useless theology is worse
History boils over there's an economics freeze
Sociologists invent words that mean 'Industrial Disease'

Doctor Parkinson declared 'I'm not surprised to see you here
You've got smokers cough from smoking brewer's droop from drinking beer
I don't know how you came to get the Bette Davis knees
But worst of all young man you've got Industrial Disease'
He wrote me a prescription he said 'you are depressed
But I'm glad you came to see me to get this off your chest
Come back and see me later - next patient please
Send in another victim of Industrial Disease'
Ha, ha
Ha, send him in

I go down to Speaker's Corner I'm thunderstruck
They got free speech, tourists, police in trucks
Two men say they're Jesus one of them must be wrong
There's a protest singer he's singing a protest song - he says
'They wanna have a war to keep their factories
They wanna have a war to keep us on our knees
They wanna have a war to stop us buying Japanese
They wanna have a war to stop Industrial Disease
They're pointing out the enemy to keep you deaf and blind
They wanna sap your energy incarcerate your mind
They give you Rule Brittania, gassy beer, page three
Two weeks in Espana and Sunday striptease'


Meanwhile the first Jesus says 'I'd cure it soon
Abolish monday mornings and friday afternoons'
The other one's out on hunger strike he's dying by degrees
How come Jesus gets Industrial Disease
I'm off, I'm sick

▲ TOP



  LOVE OVER GOLD

(released on 'Love over gold', written by Mark Knopfler)

You walk out on the high wire
You're a dancer on thin ice
You pay no heed to the danger
And less to advice
Your footsteps are forbidden
But with knowledge of your sin
You throw your love to all the strangers
And caution to the wind

And you go dancing through doorways
Just to see what you will find
Leaving nothing to interfere
With the crazy balance of your mind
And when you finally reappear
At the place where you came in
You've thrown your love to all the strangers
And caution to the wind

It takes love over gold
And mind over matter
To do what you do that you must
When the things that you hold
Can fall and be shattered
Or run through your fingers like dust

▲ TOP



  IT NEVER RAINS

(released on 'Love over gold', written by Mark Knopfler)

I hear the Seven Deadly Sins
And the Terrible Twins came to call on you
The bigger they are babe
The harder they fall on you
And you you're always the same you persevere
On the same old pleasure ground
Oh and it never rains around here
It just comes pouring down

You had no more volunteers
So you got profiteers for to help you out
Well with friends like that babe
Good friends you had to do without
And now they've taken the chains and the gears
From off your merry-go-round
Oh and it never rains around here
It just comes pouring down

Now, and your new Romeo
Was just a gigolo when he let you down
See the faster they are babe
The faster they get out of town
Leaving make up stains and the tears
Of a clown
Yes and it never rains around here
It just comes pouring down

Oh you were just a roller coaster memory
I don't know why I was even passing through
I saw you making a date with Destiny
When he came around here asking after you
In the shadow of the Wheel Of Fortune
You're busy trying to clear your name
You say 'I may be guilty yeah that may be true
But I'd be lying if I said I was to blame
See we could have been major contenders
We never got no money no breaks'
You've got a list of all the major offenders
You got a list of all their major mistakes
And he's just standing in the shadow
Yes and you smile that come-on smile
Oh I can still hear you say as clear as the day
'I'd like to make it worth your while'

Ah but it's a sad reminder
When your organ grinder has to come to you for rent
And all you've got to give him
Is the use of your side-show tent
Yes and that's all that remains of the years
Spent doing the rounds
And it never rains around here
Well it just comes pouring down

Now you know what they say about beggars babe
You can't complain about the rules
You know what they say about beggars babe
You know who's the first to blame his tools
You never gave a damn about who you pick up
And leave laying bleeding on the ground
You screw people over on your way up
Because you thought that you were never coming down
And he takes you out in Vaudeville Valley
With his hand up smothering your screams
And he screws you down in Tin Pan Alley
In the city of a billion dreams

▲ TOP



  TWISTING BY THE POOL

(released on '
Extendedanceplay' EP, written by Mark Knopfler)

We're going on a holiday now
Gonna take a villa, a small chalet
On the Costa del Magnifico
Where the cost of living is so low
Yeah, we're gonna be so neat
Dance to the Eurobeat
Yeah, we're gonna be so cool
Twisting by the, twisting by the, by the pool
Twisting by the pool

Sitting in a small cafe now
Swing, swing, swinging to the cabaret
You wanna see a movie, take in a show now
Meet new people at the disco
Yeah, we're gonna be so neat
Dance to the Eurobeat
Yeah we're gonna be so cool
Twisting by the, by the pool
Twisting by the pool
Twisting by the, yeah twisting, twisting by the pool

And we can still get information
Reading all about inflation
And you're ever gonna be out of reach
There's a call box on the beach
A-one, a-two, a-one, a-two, three...
Alright

Twisting by the pool
I'm a twisting fool
You got me twisting by the pool
Yeah twisting, twisting by the pool

Mmm, you gonna look so cute
Sunglasses and a bathing suit
Be the baby of my dreams
Like the ladies in the magazines
Yeah, we're gonna be so neat
Dance to the Eurobeat
Oh yeah, we're gonna be so cool
Twisting by the, twisting by the, by the pool
Twisting by the pool
I'm a twisting fool
Just twisting, yeah twisting
Twisting by the pool
We're gonna do the twist, twist

I'm a twisting fool, you got me twisting by the pool
Ohooh twisting, twisting by the pool get on

I'm a twisting fool, you got me twisting by the pool
Ohooh twisting, twisting by the pool

I'm a twisting fool
You got me twisting by the pool
Yeah twisting, twisting by the pool

Come on twisting by the pool
Twisting by the pool
I'm a twisting fool
Just twisting, ohooh twisting, twisting by the pool

▲ TOP



  TWO YOUNG LOVERS

(released on '
Extendedanceplay' EP, written by Mark Knopfler)

It was the last day of summer
It was the first of a new romance
He walked into her on a corner
And she said "I don't dance"
He said 'Baby let me teach you"
And she said "OK when?"
He said "How can I reach you baby
I'd really like to see you again"

He picked her up on a Friday night
He took her for a bite to eat
His heart was a-beating and his hands were shaking
And she thought he was sweet
And he stood on her shoes on the dancefloor
When they were doing it cheek to cheek
And he walked here home and he kissed her
And he was walking on air all week

Well they couldn't stand to be apart
They couldn't leave one another alone
Her mama used to say 'It's getting late, sweetheart
It's time that the boy went home"
And upstairs papa kissed mama
And she give him a sweet caress
And said "Here's to the two young lovers
Let's wish them every happiness"

It was the last day of summer
They came a-walking home hand in hand
They went and her told her mama
And showed him a wedding band
Mama cried and poured the wine
Papa just said "God bless -
Now here's to the two young lovers
Let's wish them every happiness

▲ TOP



  IF I HAD YOU

(released on '
Extendedanceplay' EP, written by Mark Knopfler)

Oooh, if I had you
Yeah the things that I could do
Honey if I had you

Now I could sing like an angel, fly just like a bird
Sing you the best lovesong you ever heard
I could be a poët like Mohammed Ali
Float like a butterfly, sting just like a, just like a bee

Hmm baby, if I had you
Ah the things that I could do
If I had you

Now I'd go get your name tattooed on my chest
Well it'd just say " my baby, my baby - she's the best "
I could be your Superman, you could be my Loïs Lane
I could be your Tarzan, you could be my sweet Jane
If you wanted to

Hmm if I had you
Ah the things that I could do
If I had you

One more time
Oh if I had you, if I only had you
Yeah the things that I could do
Oh boy if I had you

So come on dance with me baby, don't let me go
Yeah dance with me baby, don't let me go

Baby don't let me, don't let me, don't let me go, oh no
Don't let me, don't let me, don't let me go, don't let me go now

Come on dance with me baby, don't let me go
Yeah dance with me baby, don't let me go

Baby don't let me, baby don't let me go, oh no
Don't let me go, baby don't let me go
Don't let me go now, don't wanna go now

Baby don't let me, baby don't let me go
Baby don't let me, oh baby don't let me go
Baby don't let me go now
Come on

▲ TOP



  BADGES, POSTERS, STICKERS, T-SHIRTS

(first released on the B-side of the single '
Private investigations', written by Mark Knopfler)

Yeah
Me and my mate, we think you're great
There's some we like, and some we hate
I know him, I've seen him on the adverts
Got any badges, posters, stickers or t-shirts?

It were bloody great last time you come
I thought my head was stuck in bassdrum
It were bloody loud, my bloody head hurts
Got any badges, posters, stickers or t-shirts?

Yeah, so how did you get a start in showbiz?
My mate is as good on drums as he is
My mate thinks I'm bloody cracked
Will you sign my jacket on the back?

Are them badges made of plastic?
I think they're great, just fantastic
I'm unemployed, he's still at school
He gets annoyed 'cos I'm such a fool
You don't have sweat a lot up there
Haven't you got showers in here
It were bloody great, my bloody head hurts
Got any badges, posters, stickers or t-shirts?

Yeah, me and my mate like AC/DC
Hot and sweaty, loud and greasy
My mam says we're a pair of perverts
Got any badges, posters, stickers or t-shirts?

Come on mister...

Well we hitch-hiked here, it were pourin' rain
Now we've missed the flamin' train

Hey...
Can I have one of them lagers?
Mmmmm
Thanks very much
Great
Can he have one?

A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three, four...

▲ TOP



  SO FAR AWAY

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler)

Here I am again in this mean old town
And you're so far away from me
And where are you when the sun goes down
You're so far away from me

So far away from me
So far I just can't see
So far away from me
You're so far away from me, alright

I'm tired of being in love and being all alone
When you're so far away from me
I'm tired of making out on the telephone
'Cos you're so far away from me

You're so far away from me
So far I just can't see
So far away from me
You're so far away from me, alright

And I get so tired when I have to explain
When you're so far away from me
See you've been in the sun and I've been in the rain
And you're so far away from me

You're so far away from me
So far I just can't see
So far away from me
You're so far away from me
Check it out

So far away from me
So far away from me
Oh you're so far away from me
Yeah you're so far away from me, so far away from me
And you're so far away from me

So far away from me
So far away from me
You're so far away now, so far away from me
So far away
So far away from me
Yeah, so far away from me

Alright
You're so far away from me

▲ TOP



  MONEY FOR NOTHING

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler and Sting)

Huh, now look at them yo yo's that's the way you do it
You play the guitar on the MTV
That ain't workin' that's the way you do it
Money for nothin' and chicks for free
Now that ain't workin' that's the way you do it
Lemme tell ya them guys ain't dumb
Maybe get a blister on your little finger
Maybe get a blister on your thumb

We gotta install microwave ovens
Custom kitchen deliveries
We gotta move these refrigerators
We gotta move these colour TV's

See the little faggot with the earring and the makeup
Yeah buddy that's his own hair
That little faggot got his own jet airplane
That little faggot he's a millionaire

We gotta install microwave ovens
Custom kitchen deliveries
We gotta move these refrigerators
We gotta move these colour TV's

Oegamoenga, huh

Gotta install microwave ovens
Custom kitchen deliveries
We gotta move these refrigerators
We gotta move these colour TV's
Look a-here, look

I shoulda learned to play the guitar
I shoulda learned to play them drums
Look at that mama, she got it stickin' in the camera
Man we could have some fun
And he's up there, what's that? Hawaiian noises?
You're bangin' on the bongoes like a chimpanzee
Oh, that ain't workin' that's the way you do it
Get your money for nothin' get your chicks for free

We gotta install microwave ovens
Custom kitchen deliveries
We gotta move these refrigerators
We gotta move these colour TV's, Lord

Listen here
Now that ain't workin' that's the way you do it
You play the guitar on the MTV
That ain't workin' that's the way you do it
Money for nothin' and your chicks for free

Money for nothin' and chicks for free
Money for nothin' and chicks for free
Money for nothin' and chicks for free

Money for nothin' and chicks for free
Money money money for nothin' and chicks for free
Money for nothin' and chicks for free

What's that?

Look at that, look at that

Ah, money for nothin'
Easy easy money, easy easy chicks for free
Easy easy money for nothin'

That ain't workin'

▲ TOP



  WALK OF LIFE

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written Mark Knopfler)

Here comes Johnny singing oldies, goldies
Be Bop A Lula, baby what I say
Here comes Johnny singing I gotta woman
Down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay
He got the action, he got the motion
Oh yeah the boy can play
Dedication devotion
Turning all the night time into the day

He do the song about the sweet lovin' woman
He do the song about the knife
He do the walk, he do the walk of life
Yeah he do the walk of life

Here comes Johnny and he'll tell you the story
Hand me down my walkin' shoes
Here comes Johnny with the power and the glory
Backbeat the talkin' blues
He got the action, he got the motion
Oh yeah the boy can play
Dedication devotion
Turning all the night time into the day

He do the song about the sweet lovin' woman
He do the song about the knife
Then he do the walk, do the walk of life
Yeah he do the walk of life

Here comes Johnny singing oldies, goldies
Be Bop A Lula, baby what I say
Here comes Johnny singing I gotta woman
Down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay
He got the action, he got the motion
Oh yeah the boy can play
Dedication devotion
Turning all the night time into the day

And after all the violence and double talk
There's just a song in all the trouble and the strife
You do the walk, yeah you do the walk of life
Hmm, you do the walk of life

▲ TOP



  YOUR LATEST TRICK

(released on 'Brothers in arms' , written by Mark Knopfler)

All the late night bargains have been struck
Between the satin beaus and their belles
Prehistoric garbage trucks
Have the city to themselves
Echoes roars dinosaurs
They're all doing the monster mash
And most of the taxis, most of the whores
Are only taking calls for cash

Mmm, I don't know how it happened
It all took place so quick
But all I can do is hand it to you
And your latest trick

Well now my door was standing open
Security was laid back and lax
But it was only my heart got broken
You must have had a pass key made out of wax
You played robbery with insolence
And I played the blues in twelve bars down Lover's Lane
And you never did have the intelligence to use
The twelve keys hanging off my chain

Mmm, I don't know how it happened
It all took place so quick
But all I can do is hand it to you
And your latest trick

Now it's past last call for alcohol
Past recall has been here and gone
The landlord he finally paid us all
The satin jazzmen have put away their horns
And we're standing outside of this wonderland
Looking so bereaved and so bereft
Like a Bowery bum when he finally understands
The bottle's empty and there's nothing left

Mmm, I don't know how it happened
It was faster than the eye could flick
But all I can do is hand it to you
And your latest trick

▲ TOP



  WHY WORRY

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler)

Baby I see this world has made you sad
Some people can be bad
The things they do, the things they say
But baby I'll wipe away those bitter tears
I'll chase away those restless fears
That turn your blue skies into grey

Why worry, there should be laughter after pain
There should be sunshine after rain
These things have always been the same
So why worry now, why worry now

Baby when I get down I turn to you
And you make sense of what I do
I know it isn't hard to say
But baby just when this world seems mean and cold
Our love comes shining red and gold
And all the rest is by the way

Why worry, there should be laughter after pain
There should be sunshine after rain
These things have always been the same
So why worry now, why worry now

▲ TOP



  RIDE ACROSS THE RIVER

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler)

I'm a soldier of freedom in the army of man
We are the chosen, we're the partisan alright
Well the cause it is noble and the cause it is just
We are ready to pay with our lives if we must

Gonna ride across the river deep and wide
Ride across the river to the other side

I'm a soldier of fortune, I'm a dog of war yeah
And we don't give a damn who the killing is for
It's the same old story with a different name
Death or glory, it's the killing game

Gonna ride across the river deep and wide
Ride across the river to the other side

Oh nothing gonna stop them as the day follows the night
Right becomes wrong and the left becomes the right
And they sing as they march with their flags unfurled
Today in the mountains, tomorrow the world

Gonna ride across the river deep and wide
Ride across the river to the other side

Gonna ride across the river deep and wide
Ride across the river to the other side

▲ TOP



  THE MAN'S TOO STRONG

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler)

I'm just an ageing drummer boy
And in the wars I used to play
And I've called the tune
To many a torture session
Now they say I am a war criminal
And I'm fading away
Father please hear my confession

I have legalised robbery
Called it belief
I have run with the money
I have it hid like a thief
I have re written history
With my armies and my crooks
Invented memories
I did burn all the books
And I can still hear his laughter
And I can still hear his song
The man's too big
The man's too strong

Well I have tried to be meek
And I have tried to be mild
But I spat like a woman
And sulked like a child
I have lived behind walls
That have made me alone
Striven for peace
Which I never have known
And I can still hear his laughter
And I can still hear his song
The man's too big
The man's too strong

Well the sun rose on the courtyard
And they all did hear him say
'You always were a Judas
But I got you anyway
You may have got your silver
But I swear upon my life
Your sister gave me diamonds
And I gave them to your wife'
Oh father please help me
For I have done wrong
The man's too big
The man's too strong

▲ TOP



  ONE WORLD

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written Mark Knopfler)

Can't get no sleeves for my records
Can't get no laces for my shoes
Can't get no fancy notes
On my blue guitar
I can't get no antidote for blues
Oh yeah blues

Can't find the reasons for your actions
Or I don't much like the reasoning you use
Somehow your motives are impure
Or somehow I can't find the cure
Can't find no antidote for blues
Oh yeah blues

They say it's mostly vanity
That writes the plays we act
They tell me that's what everybody knows
There's no such thing as sanity
And that's the sanest fact
That's the way the story goes
Oh yeah, oh yeah blues

Can't get no remedy on my TV
There's nothing but the same old news
They can't find a way to be
One world in harmony
Can't get no antidote for blues
Oh yeah blues
Blues, oh yeah blues
Alright

▲ TOP



  BROTHERS IN ARMS

(released on 'Brothers in arms', written by Mark Knopfler)

These mist covered mountains
Are a home now for me
But my home is the lowlands
And always will be
Some day you'll return to
Your valleys and your farms
And you'll no longer burn
To be brothers in arms

Through these fields of destruction
Baptisms of fire
I've watched all your suffering
As the battles raged higher
And though they did hurt me so bad
In the fear and alarm
You did not desert me
My brothers in arms

There's so many different worlds
So many different suns
And we have just one world
But we live in different ones

Now the sun's gone to hell
And the moon's riding high
Let me bid you farewell
Every man has to die
But it's written in the starlight
And every line on your palm
We're fools to make war
On our brothers in arms

▲ TOP



  CALLING ELVIS

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

Calling Elvis - is anybody home
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone
Did he leave the building
Or can he come to the phone
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone

Well tell him I was calling just to wish him well
Let me leave my number - heartbreak hotel
Oh love me tender - baby don't be cruel
Return to sender - treat me like a fool

Calling Elvis - is anybody home
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone
Did he leave the building
Can he come to the phone
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone

Why don't you go get him - I'm his biggest fan
You gotta tell him - he's still the man
Long distance baby - so far from home
Don't you think maybe you could put him on

Well tell him I was calling just to wish him well
Let me leave my number - heartbreak hotel
Oh love me tender - baby don't be cruel
Return to sender - treat me like a fool

Calling Elvis - is anybody home
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone
Did he leave the building
Can he come to the phone
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone

Calling Elvis - is anybody home
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone
Did he leave the building
Can he come to the phone
Calling Elvis - I'm here all alone
Alright

▲ TOP



  ON EVERY STREET

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

There's gotta be a record of you someplace
You gotta be on somebody's books
The lowdown a picture of your face
Your injured looks
The sacred and profane
The pleasure and the pain
Somewhere your fingerprints remain concrete
And it's your face I'm looking for on every street

A ladykiller regulation tattoo
Silver spurs on his heels
Says what can I tell you, as I'm standing next to you
She threw herself under my wheels
Oh it's a dangerous road
And a hazerdous load
And the fireworks over liberty explode in the heat
And it's your face I'm looking for on every street

A three chord symphony crashes into space
The moon is hanging upside down
I don't know why it is I'm still on the case
It's a ravenous town
And you still refuse to be traced
Seems to me such a waste
And every victory has a taste that's bittersweet
And it's your face I'm looking for on every street
Yeah it's your face I'm looking for on every street

▲ TOP



  WHEN IT COMES TO YOU

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

If we can't get along we oughtta be apart
And I'm wondering where'd you get that cold, cold heart
Set me free sign my release
I'm tired of being the villain of the piece

You been givin' me a bad time
Tell me what'd I do
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you
Sayin' things that you didn't have to
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you

You only get one life this I know
I wanna get my licks in now before I go
The fire of love is dead and cold
I gotta satisfy the hunger in my soul

You been givin' me a bad time
Tell me what'd I do
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you
Sayin' things that you didn't have to
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you

If we can't get along we oughtta be apart
And I'm wondering where'd you get that cold, cold heart
Set me free sign my release
I'm tired of being the villain of the piece

You been givin' me a bad time
Tell me what'd I do
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you
Sayin' things that you didn't have to
How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you

How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you

How come I always get a hard time
Honey when it comes to you

▲ TOP



  FADE TO BLACK

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well I wonder where you are tonight
You're probably on the rampage somewhere
You have been known to take delight
In gettin' in somebody's hair
And you, you always had the knack
Fade to black

I bet you already made a pass
I see a darkened room somewhere
You run your finger round the rim of his glass
You run your fingers through his hair
They scratch across his back
Fade to black

Well maybe it's all for the best
But I wish I'd never been lassooed
Maybe it's some kind of test
But I wish I'd never been tattooed
Or been to hell and back
Fade to black

▲ TOP



  THE BUG

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well it's a strange old game you learn it slow
One step forward and it's back to go
You're standing on the throttle
You're standing on the breaks
In the groove 'til you make a mistake

Sometimes you're the windshield
Sometimes you're the bug
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're a fool in love
Sometimes you're the louisville slugger baby
Sometimes you're the ball
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're going to lose it all, groovin'

You gotta know happy you gotta know glad
Because you're gonna know lonely
And you're gonna know bad
When you're rippin' and a ridin' and you're coming on strong
You start slippin' and a slidin' and it all goes wrong because

Sometimes you're the windshield
Sometimes you're the bug
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're a fool in love
Ssometimes you're the louisville slugger baby
Sometimes you're the ball
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're going to lose it all, groovin'

And again groovin'
Breakdown

One day you got the glory
Then you got none
One day you're a diamond
And then you're a stone
Everything can change
In the blink of an eye
So let the good times roll
Before we say goodbye

Sometimes you're the windshield
Sometimes you're the bug yeah
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're a fool in love
Sometimes you're the louisville slugger baby
Sometimes you're the ball
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're going to lose it all

Sometimes you're the windshield
Sometimes you're the bug
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're a fool in love
Sometimes you're the louisville slugger baby
Sometimes you're the ball
Sometimes it all comes together baby
Sometimes you're going to lose it all, groovin'

Do the bug
Do the bug

The bug

▲ TOP



  YOU AND YOUR FRIEND

(released on 'On every street' , written by Mark Knopfler)

Will you and your friend come around
Are you and your friend gonna get on down
Will you and your friend come around
Or are you and your friend gonna let me down

If you talk to one another
I'm a hungry man
Let me know one way or the other
So I can make my plans

Will you and your friend come around
Or are you and your friend gonna get on down
Will you and your friend come around
Or are you and your friend gonna get on down

I relive the situation
Still see it in in my mind
You got my imagination
Working overtime
Baby, baby

▲ TOP



  HEAVY FUEL

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

Last time I was sober, man I felt bad
Worst hangover that I ever had
It took six hamburgers and scotch all night
Nicotine for breakfast just to put me right
'Cos if you wanna run cool
If you wanna run cool
If you wanna run cool, you got to run
On heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel

My life makes perfect sense
Lust and food and violence
Sex and money are my major kicks
Get me in a fight I like the dirty tricks
'Cos if you wanna run cool
If you wanna run cool
Yes if you wanna run cool, you got to run
On heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel

My chick loves a man who's strong
The things she'll do to turn me on
I love the babes, don't get me wrong
Hey, that's why I wrote this song
Yeah

I don't care if my liver is hanging by a thread
Don't care if my doctor says I ought to be dead
When my ugly big car won't climb this hill
I'll write a suicide note on a hundred dollar bill
'Cos if you wanna run cool
If you wanna run cool
Yes if you wanna run cool, you got to run
On heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel

Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Yeah

Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel
Heavy, heavy fuel

▲ TOP



  IRON HAND

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

With all the clarity of dream
The sky so blue, the grass so green
The rank and file and the navy blue
The deep and strong, the straight and true

The blue line they got the given sign
The belts and boots march forward in time
The wood and leather the club and shield
Swept like a wave across the battlefield

Now with all the clarity of dream
The blood so red, the grass so green
The gleam of spur on chestnut flank
The cavalry did burst upon the ranks

Oh the iron will and the iron hand
In england's green and pleasant land
No music for the shameful scene
That night they said it had even shocked the queen

Well alas we've seen it all before
Knights in armour, days of yore
The same old fears and the same old crimes
We haven't changed since ancient times

▲ TOP



  TICKET TO HEAVEN

(released on 'On every street', written Mark Knopfler)

I can see what you're looking to find
In the smile on my face
In my peace of mind
In my state of grace
I send what I can
To the man from the ministry
He's a part of heaven's plan
And he talks to me

Now I send what I can to the man
With the diamond ring
He's a part of heaven's plan
Yeah and he sure can sing
Now it's all I can afford
But the lord has sent me eternity
It's to save the little children
In a poor country

I got my ticket to heaven
And everlasting life
I got a ride all the way to paradise
I got my ticket to heaven
And everlasting life
All the way to paradise

Now there's nothing left for luxuries
Nothing left to pay my heating bill
But the good lord will provide
I know he will
So send what you can
To the man with the diamond ring
They're tuning in across the land
To hear him sing

I got my ticket to heaven
And everlasting life
I got a ride all the way to paradise
I got my ticket to heaven
And everlasting life
All the way to paradise
All the way to paradise

▲ TOP



  MY PARTIES

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well this is my back yard my back gate
I hate to start my parties late
Here's the party cart ain't that great?
That ain't the best part baby just wait
That's a genuine weathervane it moves with the breeze
Portable hammock honey who needs trees
It's casual entertaining we aim to please
At my parties, alright aahah

Check out the shingles it's brand new
Excuse me while I mingle hi, how are you
Hey everybody let me give you a toast
This one's for me the host with the most

It's getting a trifle colder step inside my home
That's a brass toilet tissue holder with its own telephone
That's a musical doorbell it don't ring, I ain't kiddin'
It plays america the beautiful and tie a yellow ribbon

Boy, this punch is a trip it's o.k. in my book
Here, take a sip maybe a little heavy on the fruit
Ah, here comes the dip you may kiss the cook
Let me show you honey it's easy look
You take a fork and you spike 'em say, did you try these?
So glad you like 'em the secret's in the cheese
It's casual entertaining we aim to please
At my parties, alright aahah
Yeah at my parties, alright aahah

Now don't talk to me about the polar bear
Don't talk to me about the ozone layer
Ain't so much of anything these days, even the air
They're running out of rhinos what do I care?
Let's hear it for the dolphin let's hear it for the trees
Ain't running out of nothin' in my deep freeze
It's casual entertaining we aim to please
At my parties, alright aahah
Do what you please

At my parties, alright aahah
Yeah at my parties, alright aahah
You do what you please
Oh yeah at my parties, alright aahah
Oh yes at my parties
Yeah I told you like that

Hmm, that's nice

At my parties, alright aahah
Yeah at my parties, alright aahah

Oh yeah at my parties, alright aahah
You do what you please
At my parties, alright aahah

▲ TOP



  PLANET OF NEW ORLEANS

(released on 'On every street', written Mark Knopfler)

Standin' on the corner
Of toulouse and dauphine
Waitin' on marie ondine
I'm tryin' to place a tune
Under a louisiana moonbeam
On the planet of New Orleans

In a bar they call the saturn
And in her eyes of green
And somethin' that she said in a dream
Inside of my suit I got my mojo root
And a true love figurine
For the planet of New Orleans

New Orleans
With other life upon it
And everythin' that's shakin' in between
If you should ever land upon it
You better know what's on it
The planet of New Orleans

Now I'm tryin' to find my way
Through the rain and the steam
I'm lookin' straight ahead through the screen
And then I heard her say
Somethin' in the limousine
'Bout taking a ride across the planet of New Orleans

If she was an ace
And I was just a jack
And the cards were never seen
We could have been the king and the queen
But she took me back to her courtyard
Where magnolia perfume screams
Behind the gates and the granite
Of the planet of New Orleans

New Orleans
With other life upon it
And everythin' that's shakin' in between
If you should ever land upon it
Well, you better know what's on it
The planet of New Orleans
With other life upon it
And everythin' that's shakin' in between
If you should ever land upon it
Well, you better know what's on it
The planet of New Orleans

Planet of New Orleans

▲ TOP



  HOW LONG

(released on 'On every street', written by Mark Knopfler)

How long, how long baby
How long has it been
How long you gonna keep me wondering
How long before you see
Stallin' me was wrong - how long

How long, how long you gonna keep
Slappin' my hands away
How long you gonna keep my love at bay
How long before you're sure
My love is strong - how long

How long, how long you gonna keep
Tellin' me you like me fine
How long until I'm gonna make you mine
How long before you wake up
And find your good man gone - how long
Gone, how long
Gone, how long

▲ TOP



  MILLIONAIRE BLUES

(released on the B-side of the single 'Calling Elvis', written by Mark Knopfler)

I woke up this morning
My jacuzzi wouldn't work
Then the butler quit on me, man
Can you believe it - jerk
Must've been my artistic temperament he couldn't take
How come nobody wants to give me a break
I got the blues right there - mean and low
I'm as low as the heels of my alligator shoes
You should know how it feels
To have these millionaire blues, millionaire blues

Well I found one of my bathrooms
And I, I made it to the sink
I called one of my managers up
And I poured myself a drink
Oh, I swear I'd kill that little weasel if I could
Checked myself in the mirror
My hair was looking good, but
I had the blues right there mean, mean, and mean and low
I'm as low as the heels of my alligator shoes
You should know how it feels
To have these millionaire blues, millionaire blues

Get down

Well so much for breakfast - I couldn't face lunch
I thought I'd raise my spirits
With a champagne brunch
I take the Lamborghini
The flunkey parks the car
Can you believe it man, this other monkey
Won't let me in the bar
I said - don't you know who I am, man -
And he says - no -
No! Can you believe it?
I'm as low as the heels of these alligator shoes
You should know how it feels
To have these millionaire blues, millionaire blues
To have these millionaire blues, millionaire blues

That's bad, that's bad that's bad
So hard, it's hard sometimes for a boy

I like that, that's good
Get down

You're making a very big mistake, man
Oh yeah, you'll never work in this town again
Alright

▲ TOP



  KINGDOM COME

(released on the B-side of the single 'Heavy fuel', written by Mark Knopfler)

I'll tell you what
They don't mess with me, I'm a wild man, son
I've got me my very own anti tank gun
I got a jack rabbit with it, guess he was a mean one
Yeah, I've always been a sportsman

Now, there weren't much left when I got to them
Them big old shells didn't just go through him
Just lumps and fur, and that was it
Guess you could say he sure took a hit, alright

Yeah, you want to see my fire power, see my collection
Cause that's my thing, man, perfection
Now, I'm talking power in the barrel of a gun
I blow anything I want to kingdom come

Ba ba boom
Ba ba ba ba bomb
And I blow anything I want to kingdom come

Now, all you got to do is squeeze on the trigger
And a little bitty human get a hole lot bigger
Cause there's a time for talking and a time to shoot them down
And this Mama Jama don't pussy foot around, alright

Yeah, let them laugh, let them see we're strange
Me and my buddies on the rifle range
But you won't be laughing when it hits the fan
You're going to want to be a survivor, man

Yeah, you got to see my fire power, see my collection
Cause that's my thing, man, perfection
Now, I'm talking power in the barrel of a gun
I blow anything I want to kingdom come

Ba ba boom
Ba ba ba ba bomb
And I blow anything I want to kingdom come

Ba ba boom
I say we ought to drop the bomb
Yes, and I blow anything I want to kingdom come

I blow anything I want to kingdom come
I blow anything I want to kingdom come
I blow anything I want to kingdom come

▲ TOP



  WHAT'S THE MATTER BABY?

(released on 'Live at the BBC' , written by David Knopfler and Mark Knopfler)

There's a shadow hanging over the valley
Total eclipse of the moon
Closing up the gates of the city
The wind plays a wild tune
Don't you put the lock upon the window
Don't you put the bar on the door
Don't you cry for the rain in the sky
You've seen a storm before

Yeah now what's the matter with you baby
Baby what's the matter now
What's the matter
You're running in the shadows
Everytime you hear the wild wind howl
Come on tell me, what's the matter with you baby
Baby what's the matter now
What's the matter
You're running in shadows
Everytime you hear the wild wind howl

Well lightning gonna strike at midnight
Thunder gonna shake the ground
Don't you flinch, don't give an inch
Just a-let the flood come now
Come on tell me, what's the matter with you baby
Baby what's the matter now
Tell me what's the matter
You're running in the shadows
Everytime you hear the wild wind howl

Come on tell me, what's the matter with you baby
Baby what's the matter now
What's the matter
You're running in the shadows
Everytime you hear the wild wind howl

▲ TOP



  DARLING PRETTY

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

It's time to come away, my darling pretty
It's time to come away on the changing tide
Time to come away, darling pretty
And I need you darling by my side

Heal me with a smile, darling pretty
Heal me with a smile and a heart of gold
Carry me awhile, my darling pretty
Heal my aching heart and soul

Just like a castaway
Lost upon an endless sea
I saw you far away
Come to rescue me

Cast away the chains, darling pretty
Cast away the chains away behind
Take away my pain, my darling pretty
And the chains that once were yours and mine

There will come a day, darling pretty
There will come a day when hearts can fly
Love will find a way, my darling pretty
Find a heaven for you and I
Love will find a way, my darling pretty
Find a heaven for you and I

▲ TOP



  IMELDA

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

She's going shopping shopping for shoes
She wants them in magenta and Caribbean blue
Platinum and buttercup lilac and black
They fill a bucket up and laugh behind her back
Imelda baby Imelda baby what to do
All the poor people saying that they gotta quit paying for you

In New York and Paris on the Champs Elysée
They see her coming from a long long way
Yeah they clap their hands together when they get her in the store
She's gonna wanna get more more more and more and more
Imelda baby Imelda baby what to do
All the poor people saying that they gotta quit paying for you

Everyone's gone Jackie O
She was a regular here
We thought Madame would like to know
We've got the blood red rouge right here

Now we've got all of Madame's requisites and all in Madame's size
Madame's taste is truly exquisite she must accessorise
Yeah the belts are alligator the bags are kangaroo
Enchanté may I say the jade was made for you
Imelda baby Imelda baby what to do
All the poor people saying that they gotta quit paying for you
Yeah all the poor people saying they gotta quit paying for you

Imelda baby Imelda baby what to do
All the poor people saying that they gotta quit paying for you
All the poor people saying that they gotta quit paying for you
Yeah

▲ TOP



  GOLDEN HEART

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

She was swinging by the bangles in a main street store
A while before we met
The most dangerous angles that you ever saw
She spied her amulet
And she took a loop of leather for around her neck
And that was then the start
The most dangerous lady on her quarter deck
She found her golden heart
You found your golden heart

Then we swirled around each other and the thread was spun
To some Arcadian band
I would stop it from swinging like a pendulum
Just to hold time in my hand
And you shot me with a cannonball of history
And long forgotten art
I'd be turning it over as our words ran free
I'd hold your golden heart
I'd hold your golden heart

Nothing in the world prepared me for your heart, your heart
Nothing in the world that I love more your heart, your heart
Your golden heart

Your golden heart
Your golden heart
Your golden heart
Golden heart, golden heart

And every time I'm thinking of you from a distant shore
And all the time I sleep
I will have a reminder that my baby wore
A part of you to keep
And I'll send you all my promises across the sea
And while we are apart
I will carry the wonder that you gave to me
I'll wear your golden heart
I'll wear your golden heart

Nothing in the world prepared me for your heart, your heart
Nothing in the world that I love more your heart, your heart
Your golden heart

Your golden heart
Your golden heart
Your golden heart
Golden heart, golden heart

Golden heart, your golden heart
Your golden heart

▲ TOP



  NO CAN DO

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

Skint in a material world
I did a warehouse stint for Southsea Girl
It was Hong Kong clothes for cash
Everybody got treated worse than trash
Punch the card in the company clock
Load the trolleys and the company trucks
And around and around the whole day through
And you couldn't sit down when there was nothing to do

Well they had beaten up people from every land
Fools like me trying to be in bands
A little French girl so good to me
But I couldn't love her back so lonely
A backpacker travelling through
A lumberjack with the travelling blues
We had worn out shoes and worn out cuffs
And big ideas that were never big enough

He said the man wants you go wash his car
Hey you I'm talking to you
I said me, not me uh uh
No can do

No can can do no can
No can can do no can

Now some were grown up unlike me
And were dealing with reality
I was spittin' sulkin' smokin' shirkin'
While a lady from Jamaica was singing and working
I had everyone but me to blame
And every day was just the same
Well nobody ever said it was a righteous world
But if they did they never said it at Southsea Girl

He said the man wants you go wash his car
Hey you I'm talking to you
I said me, not me uh uh
No can do

No can can do no can
No can can do no can

Well I've made my bed on people's floors
Opened up and closed some doors
Dreamed that if my dreams came true
Then I wouldn't do what I didn't want to
Walking through the gates to the outside
To dream some dreams that never died
And I walked the streets of London town
Looking for place to put my head down

He said the man wants you go wash his car
Hey you I'm talking to you
I said me, not me uh uh
No can do

No can can do no can
No can can do no can

▲ TOP



  VIC AND RAY

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

A dirty motor with London plates
Sitting in the gutter outside your silent gates
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray

Come to daddy baby, what is it worth
Come to daddy, the scum of the crying earth
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray

Laughing at each other's pain
They run the heater in the morning rain
This'll pay the rent around the world
Wanna buy a picture of a girl

Christmas morning, there they are
Two rent boys wishing on a shining star
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray
Vic and Ray, Vic and Ray

▲ TOP



  DON'T YOU GET IT

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car
Don't you get it I don't want to buy it
Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car
Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car

Cause I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride

Now don't you get it I don't want to dream your dream
Don't you get it I don't want to dream it
Don't you get it I don't want to dream your dream
Don't you get it I don't want to dream your dream

Cause I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride

Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car
Don't you get it I don't want to buy it
Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car
Don't you get it I don't want to buy your car

Cause I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
I gotta be a free man to ride
I gotta be a free man to run
Cause I gotta be a free man to ride

▲ TOP



  A NIGHT IN SUMMER LONG AGO

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

My lady may I have this dance
Forgive a knight who knows no shame
My lady may I have this dance
And lady may I know your name
You danced upon a soldier's arm
And I felt the blade of love so keen
And when you smiled you did me harm
And I was drawn to you, my queen

Now these boots may take me where they will
Though they may never shine like his
There is no knight I would not kill
To have my lady's hand to kiss
Yes and they did take me through the hall
To leave me not one breath from you
And they fell silent one and all
And you could see my heart was true
Alright

Then I did lead you from the hall
And we did ride upon the hill
Away beyond the city wall
And sure you are my lady still
A night in summer long ago
The stars were falling from the sky
And still, my heart, I have to know
Why do you love me, lady, why?
Alright

▲ TOP



  CANNIBALS

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well he's daddy's little boy he plays with his toys
He holds on to his daddy's hand
His daddy says sonny you're a big strong boy
You're gonna be a big strong man
And they go play catch they go play ball
They go take a walk along the sand
Big strong daddy and a big strong boy
Living in a big strong land

Daddy is he a goodie or a baddie
Daddy can I have a dinosaur
Once upon a time there were cannibals
Now there are no cannibals any more
Yeah

Way down in Louisiana there's a hurricane coming
The little boy climbs the stairs
And all along the levee all the people come running
And the little boy saying his prayers
And a sleepy little laddie smiles up at his daddy
And he's asking for his G.I.Joe
And daddy tucks him in with a kiss upon the chin
And says my little one I love you so

Daddy is he a goodie or a baddie
Leave a light outside the door
Once upon a time there were cannibals
Now there are no cannibals any more
Yeah

Lay down your head now don't get out bed
Don't you let bedbugs bite
It's time to go to sleep now not another peep
And I'll see you in the morning light
And then the radio was playing and the weatherman was saying
The hurricane had blown away
And daddy's little boy was jumping up for joy
And he was singing at the break of day

Daddy is he a goodie or a baddie
Daddy can I be a warrior
Once upon a time there were cannibals
Now there are no cannibals any more

Yeah, daddy is he a goodie or a baddie
Daddy why do people go to war
Once upon a time there were cannibals
Now there are no cannibals any more

Yeah, yeah

▲ TOP



  I'M THE FOOL

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

I never thought I'd be the one
To be the raging bull
There'd always be a smoking gun
Who'd up and lose his cool
I never thought I'd have to say
I'm sorry, my love, because
I'm the fool I never
Fool I never thought I was

I left my dreams with broken strings
It's time I learnt to talk
Stop falling over things
Teach myself to walk
I'm not a Superman
Or Mr. Wonderful, because
I'm the fool I never
Fool I never thought I was

I'm the know it all
Trying to mend his broken heart
But I don't know who to call
And I don't know where to start

Now if you should lose your faith in me
I don't know where I'd run
I hope you'll always let me be
Your only one
Am I your one true love
Or am I too late for your applause
I'm the fool I never
Fool I never thought I was
Darling, I'm the fool I never
Fool I never thought I was

▲ TOP



  JE SUIS DÉSOLÉ

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

We are leaving, leaving
Leaving on the tide
Come and stand beside me love
The water is so wide
You can hear the sailors calling
At the dawning of the day
Yesterday is falling, love
And je suis désolé, je suis désolé

Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça
Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça

I am turning, turning
From a land that I loved well
Look ahead my darling one
Across the rolling swell
And you can hear the seagulls crying
As we're slipping out of the bay
Yesterday is dying, love
And je suis désolé, je suis désolé

Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça
Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça

We are sailing, sailing
For a land that's proud and free
I had no more endurance
For what had become of me
And I will do that which I must do, love
And now we're under way
All that I can say to you
Is je suis désolé

Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça
Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça

Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça
Je suis désolé, mais je n'ai pas le choix
Je suis désolé, mais la vie me demande ça

▲ TOP



  RÜDIGER

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

Rüdiger stands in the rain and the snow
Collector of autographs
Names upon photographs
Faces of people who everone knows

Rüdiger lives in a place on his own
Briefcase and spectacles
Strange and respectable
He knows the meaning of being alone

Oooh, Rüdiger
Rüdiger
Rüdi, ooh Rüdiger

Rüdiger works as a clerk in the town
Music or politics
Rüdiger gets his kicks
He gets information then he comes around

Oooh, Rüdiger
Rüdiger
Rüdi, ooh Rüdiger

Rüdiger waits in the hall in Berlin
He waits there all night
Security's tight
They know who he is but they don't let him in

Rüdiger waits in the dark by the stair
His fingers are shaking
His feet they are aching
But your name's in the paper so Rüdiger's there

Oooh, Rüdiger
Rüdiger
Rüdi, ooh Rüdiger

Rüdiger
Rüdiger
Rüdi, ooh Rüdiger

▲ TOP



  NOBODY'S GOT THE GUN

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

Nobody's got the gun
Nobody's trying to get the drop on anyone
Nobody's standing out on Main Street
With the sun blazing down
Saying "There's only room for one of us
in this here town"
Nobody's got to be the number one
Nobody's got to be the number one
Nobody's got to be the number one
Nobody's got the gun
Nobody's got the gun

She may not understand
And she may want you eating from her hand
If she's got you in a corner
And you can smell the smoke and flame
You reach for revolver
To do the same
You'll blow your love away forever, number one
You'll blow your love away forever, number one
You'll blow your love away forever, number one
Nobody's got the gun
Nobody's got the gun

You may think love is hard enough
You may never get to rehearse
And you can do without this stuff
Making everything worse

She's just the same as you
She needs your love just like you want her to
You can't go playing poker
With a pistol in your sleeve
You can't make somebody love you
By threatening to leave
If you want a love forever, number one
If you want a love forever, number one
If you want a love forever, number one
Nobody's got the gun
Nobody's got the gun

Yeah, if you want a love forever, number one
If you want a love forever, number one
If you want a love forever, number one
Nobody's got the gun
Nobody's got the gun

▲ TOP



  DONE WITH BONAPARTE

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

We've paid in hell since Moscow burned
As Cossacks tear us piece by piece
Our dead are strewn a hundred leagues
Though death would be a sweet release
And our grande armée is dressed in rags
A frozen starving begger band
Like rats we steal each other's scraps
Fall fighting hand to hand

Save my soul from evil, Lord
And heal this soldier's heart
I'll trust in Thee to keep me, Lord
I'm done with Bonaparte

What dreams he made for us to dream
Spanish skies, Egyptian sands
The world was ours, we marched upon
Our little corporal's command
And I lost an eye at Austerlitz
The sabre slash yet gives me pain
My one true love awaits me still
The flower of the aquitaine

Save my soul from evil, Lord
And heal this soldier's heart
I'll trust in Thee to keep me, Lord
I'm done with Bonaparte

I pray for her who prays for me
A safe return to my belle France
We prayed these wars would end all wars
In war we know is no romance
And I pray our child will never see
A little corporal again
Point toward a foreign shore
Captivate the hearts of men

Save my soul from evil, Lord
And heal this soldier's heart
I'll trust in Thee to keep me, Lord
I'm done with Bonaparte

▲ TOP



  ARE WE IN TROUBLE NOW

(released on 'Golden Heart', written by Mark Knopfler)

It wasn't just the music
It wasn't just the wine
Some other kind of magic
Was sending shivers up my spine
Then I was falling
And I fell for you, and how
Darling, are we trouble now

They say we're grown up
But we've been searching all this time
I wouldn't own up
Never would admit to flying blind
But in the darkness
We found each other anyhow
Darling, are we in trouble now

When we'd talk it over
Love was a cry from a distant shore
Then we found each other
And all that we'd been searching for

And I'm done denying
I guess by now you know
I'm through with trying
Can't bring myself to let you go
And all of these feelings
We said we never would allow
Darling, are we in trouble now
Darling, are we in trouble now

▲ TOP



  GRAVY TRAIN

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'Darling pretty' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)


Well they fly past the ghettos and the factories
Riding on the gravy train
All of the places that they really ought to be
Riding on the gravy train
Past the coal mines black and scarred
The slaughterhouses and the loading yards
On the gravy train, on the gravy train

There's the lucky little mothers in the luxury cars
Riding on the gravy train
Never thank each other or their lucky stars
Riding on the gravy train
What's worse than ingratitude
Worse than a piss poor attitude
On the gravy train, on the gravy train

Ah the ganger-uppers and the hangers-on
Riding on the gravy train
Champagne suppers with the daggers all drawn
Riding on the gravy train
Some act tough, some act rude
Some bit of fluff complains about the food
You want to see a body getting really crude
Get on the gravy train, gravy train

Well the golden goose is clattering down the track
And they're gonna be riding in an old caboose
Coming back

There's the soldiers of fashion on the hit parade
Ridin' on the gravy train
Tongue lashing with the bitch brigade
Riding on the gravy train
A freeloader licks my boot
Tells me how he digs my suit
You got lucky son, don't get cute
Get on the gravy train

▲ TOP



  MY CLAIM TO FAME

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'Darling pretty' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Well he's a big star now
But I've been a fan of his for years
The way he sings and plays guitar
Still brings me to tears
I wouldn't want to be a big deal
I wouldn't want to be a celebrity
I spent my life building ships of steel
That's all there ever was for me

I'd take a hammer to the sea valves
Punch out my name
And they sail the seas as free as the breeze
That's my claim to fame

He spends his life in the studio
Jet planes and big black cars
They play his records on the radio
In all of the clubs and in all of the bars
In my day he didn't have a choice
You had to take a trade
You had no money and you had no voice
That's the life I made

I'd take a hammer to the sea valves
Punch out my name
And they sail the seas as free as the breeze
That's my claim to fame
That's my claim to fame, boys
That's my claim to fame
To sail the seas as free as a breeze
And that's my claim to fame

La La La La La
La La La
La La La La La La La

Well a song can live forever and a day
An old ship goes to the breaker's yard
In a hundred years they're gonna hear him play
They won't remember me for working hard

Now they've all gone away, all the boys and the girls
The yard is a grave where the river runs through
We used to build the ships for the whole wide world
Now we couldn't if we wanted to

I'd take a hammer to the sea valves
Punch out my name
And they sail the seas as free as the breeze
That's my claim to fame
I'd take a hammer to the sea valves
Punch out my name
And they sail the seas as free as the breeze
That's my claim to fame


That's my claim to fame, boys
That's my claim to fame
They sail the seas as free as the breeze
That's my claim to fame

La La La La La
La La La
La La La La La-La

La La La La La
La La La
La La La La La-La

▲ TOP



  TALL ORDER BABY

(originally released on the B-side of single 'Cannibals' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Well gimme a little loving in the morning
I want a little loving while I say
But you want to get a loving in the evening
When I want to get some loving in the day
I tell her that I'm working in the morning
I tell her that I gotta get my rest
She tell me she's a working on her loving
And she tell me that my loving is the best

Well it's a tall order baby
And it's a tall order now
Well it's a tall order baby
But we gotta get our loving somehow, yeah

Well I don't want to go to sleep on you baby
I don't want to go to sleep on you now
But if I'm going to go to sleep on you baby
Well you're gonna do it any old how
Well, don't you turn your back on me darling
Don't you know I'd like to stay up and play
But if I turn my back on you darling
You're going to do it some other way

Well it's a tall order baby
And it's a tall order now
Well it's a tall order baby
But we gotta get our loving somehow
It's a tall order baby
Well it's a tall order now
Well it's a tall order baby
But we gotta get our loving somehow

Well, I don't want to go to sleep on you baby
I don't want to go to sleep on you now
But if I'm going to go to sleep on you baby
Well you're gonna do it any old how
Well, don't you turn your back on me darling
Don't you know I'd like to stay up and play
But if I turn my back on you darling
You're going to do it some other way

Well it's a tall order baby
It's a tall order now
Well it's a tall order baby
But we got to get our loving somehow
Well it's a tall order baby
And it's a tall order now
It's a tall order baby
But we gotta get our loving somehow

▲ TOP



  WHAT HAVE I GOT TO DO

(originally released on the B-side of single 'Cannibals' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Now if I was to sing for you
A song you never heard
And give to you my finest treasure
Would you look at what I bring to you
Turn without a word
Leave me at your gate
Keep me waiting at your pleasure

What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love
Maybe never
What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love forever

I'll beat a lion heart tattoo
I'll bring you pipes and drums
I'll bring you boots of burnished leather
I'll set to sea in ships for you
Brave a thousand runs
Ride a hurricane
Laugh at any stormy weather

What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love
Maybe never
What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love forever

You set no store by gems and gold
You scorn my weather chart
You're unconcerned with men's advances
I want you more a hundred-fold
When you lift my heart
I'll burn no other flame
Bear no one else's lances

What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love
Maybe never
What have I
What have I got
What have I got to do
To win your love forever

To win your love forever

▲ TOP



  WHAT IT IS

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler. The song was also released on a Mexican promo single which included an extra verse)

The drinking dens are spilling out
There's staggering in the square
There's lads and lasses falling about
And a crackling in the air
Down around the dungeon doors
The shelters in the queues
Everybody's looking for
Somebody's arms to fall into
And it's what it is
It's what it is now

There's frost on the graves and the monuments
But the taverns are warm in town
People curse the government
And shovel hot food down
The lights are out in city hall
The castle and the keep
The moon shines down upon it all
The legless and asleep

And it's cold on a tollgate
With the wagons creeping through
Cold on a tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And It's what it is
It's what it is now

The garrison sleeps and the citadel
With the ghosts and the ancient stones
High up on the parapet
A Scottish piper stands alone
And high on the wind
The highland drums begin to roll
And something from the past just comes
And stares into my soul

And it's cold on a tollgate
Where the Caledonian blues
Cold on a tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And It's what it is
It's what it is now
What it is
It's what it is now

There's a chink of light
There's a burning wick
There's a lantern in the tower
Wee Willie Winkie with a candlestick
Still writing songs in the wee wee hours
On Charlotte Street I take
A walking stick from my hotel
The ghost of Dirty Dick
Is still in search of Little Nell
And it's what it is
It's what it is now
Oh it's what it is
What it is now

▲ TOP



  SAILING TO PHILADELPHIA

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

I am Jeremiah Dixon
I am a Geordie boy
A glass of wine with you, sir
And the ladies I'll enjoy
All Durham and Northumberland
Is measured up by my own hand
It was my fate from birth
To make my mark upon the earth...

He calls me Charlie Mason
A stargazer am I
It seems that I was born
To chart the evening sky
They'd cut me out for baking bread
But I had other dreams instead
This baker's boy from the west country
Would join the Royal Society...

We are sailing to Philadelphia
A world away from the coaly Tyne
Sailing to Philadelphia
To draw the line
A Mason-Dixon Line

Now you're a good surveyor, Dixon
But I swear you'll make me mad
The West will kill us both
You gullible Geordie lad
You talk of liberty
How can America be free
A Geordie and a baker's boy
In the forests of the Iroquois...

Now hold your head up, Mason
See America lies there
The morning tide has raised
The capes of Delaware
Come up and feel the sun
A new morning has begun
Another day will make it clear
Why your stars should guide us here...

We are sailing to Philadelphia
A world away from the coaly Tyne
Sailing to Philadelphia
To draw the line
A Mason-Dixon Line

▲ TOP



  WHO'S YOUR BABY NOW

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

The rock you stood upon
Is broken up and gone
Hey baby, who's your baby now
On the slipway of your dream
Stands someone else's scheme
Hey baby, who's your baby now

Your baby now, baby now
Your baby now, your baby now

The ancient trade you ply
Ain't enough to get you by
Hey baby, who's your baby now
The yard is locked and closed
The old guard has been deposed
Hey baby, who's your baby now

Your baby now, baby now
Your baby now, your baby now

You always had to be the kind
To have to say what's on your mind
And hey, you really showed 'em how
You used to laugh about
How you used to dish it out
But hey, who's laughing now

'Cos the rock you stood upon
Is broken up and gone
Hey baby, who's your baby now
Yeh the rock you stood upon
Is broken up and gone
Hey baby, who's your baby now

▲ TOP



  BALONEY AGAIN

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

We don't eat in no white restaurant
We're eatin' in the car
Baloney again, baloney again
We don't sleep in no white hotel bed
We're sleepin' in the car, baloney again
You don't strut around in these country towns
You best stay in the car
Look on ahead don't stare around
You best stay where you are
You're a long way from home, boy
Don't push your luck too far
Baloney again

Twenty-two years we've sung the word
since nineteen thirty-one
Amen, I say amen
Now the young folk want to praise the Lord
With guitar, bass and drums, amen
Well I'll never get tired of Jesus
But it's been a heavy load
Carrying His precious love
Down a long dirt road
We're a long way from home
Just let's pay the man and go
Baloney again

The Lord is my shepherd
He leadeth me in pastures green
He gave us this day
Our daily bread and gasoline
Go under the willow
Park her up beside the stream
Shoulders for pillows
Lay down your head and dream
Shoulders for pillows
Lay down your head and dream
Your comments here

▲ TOP



  THE LAST LAUGH

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh my friend
Don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh at the end
Down in the gutter with the mad old soldiers
Down in the scuppers with the drunken sailors
Down in the gutter with the mad old soldiers
But the last laugh, baby is yours
And don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh going down

Games you thought you'd learned
You neither lost nor won
Dreams have crashed and burned
But you're still going on
Out on the highway with the road gang working
Up on the mountain with the cold wind blowing
Out on the highway with the road gang working
But the last laugh, baby is yours
And don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh going down

They had you crying but you came up smiling
They had you crawling and you came up flying
They had you crying and you came up smiling
And the last laugh, baby is yours
And don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh going down
Yeh don't you love the sound
Of the last laugh going down

▲ TOP



  DO AMERICA

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well I've been it every since I was a kid at school
Now they love me in Newcastle and in Liverpool
I'm as hard as a pistol I can do no wrong
I've been in Birmingham and Bristol to play my song

Take the 777 to the USA
Gonna party all night I'm gonna sleep all day
See New York City 'cos I've never been
New York City in a limousine

Gonna do America do do America
Do America do do America now

Take the 777 over to LA
Gonna party all night I'm gonna sleep all day
Wake up and drive around
Get the coolest girl in town

Do America do do America
Do America do do America now

Now the people go na na
Another people go ra ra
And all the people go ga ga when I
Do America do do America

Do America do do America
Do America do do America
Do America do do America now

Backstage passes for the food and booze
Sunglasses for my interviews
Statue of Liberty
Everybody looking at me

Do America do do America
Do America do do America now

▲ TOP



  SILVERTOWN BLUES

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

On Silvertown Way, the cranes stand high
Quiet and gray against the still of the sky
They won't quit and lay down though the action has died
They watch the new game in town on the Blackwall side

From the poisinous drains a vision appears
New circle of cranes, a new reason to be here
A big silver dome rising up into the dawn
Above the church and the homes were all the silver is gone

If I'd a bucket of gold, what would I do
I'd leave the story untold Silvertown blues
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown

A silver dawn steals over the docks
A truck with no weels up on cinderblocks
Men with no dreams around a fire in a drum
Scrap metal schemes are rusted over and done

If I'd a bucket of gold, silver would do
I'd leave the story untold Silvertown blues
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown

When you're standing on thin and dangerous ice
You can knock and walk in for citizens' advice
They'll tell you the where you can turn, where you can go
There's nothing they can tell me I don't already know

If I'd a bucket of gold, silver would do
I'd leave the story untold Silvertown blues
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown

From the Caning Town train I see a billboard high
There's a big silverplane raising up into the sky
And I can make out the words 'seven flights every day'
Says six of those birds are bound for JFK

If I'd a bucket of gold, silver would do
I'd leave the story untold Silvertown blues
And I'm going down in Silvertown
Down in Silverdown
Going down Silvertown
Down in Silverdown

▲ TOP



  EL MACHO

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Your date has gone home
Now you're left on your own sweet own
Your tough-talkin' friend
Split on you in the bitter end
And you look like a fine thing Jerry
Yeh you look like a fine thing Jerry

They say you're a star
That's what the boys all say you are
I don't see much TV
So you don't mean shit to me
But you look like a fine thing Jerry
Yeh you look like a fine thing Jerry

They got a name for people like you
Yeh they do
And they got a name for people like me too
El Macho, El Macho

Now they want you to sing
Don't get shy or anything
The boys are all here
Gonna buy you another beer
'Cos you look like a fine thing Jerry
Yeh you look like a fine thing Jerry
El Macho, El Macho

▲ TOP



  PRAIRIE WEDDING

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

We only knew each other by letter
I went to meet her off the train
When the smoke had cleared and the dust was still
She was standing there and speaking my name
I guarantee she looked like an angel
I couldn't think of what I should say
But when Adam saw Eve in the garden
I believe he felt the selfsame way

I handed her up on the wagon
And I loaded up her trunk behind
She was sitting up there with the gold in her hair
And I tried to get a hold of my mind

Do you think that you could love me Mary
Do you think we got a chance of a life
Do you think that you could love me Mary
Now you are to be my wife

We finally headed out of the station
And we drove up the home trail
And when we came on the farm she laid a hand on my arm
I thought my resolution would fail
And I froze as she stepped in the doorway
Stood there as still as could be
I said I know it ain't much, it needs a woman's touch
Lord she turned around and looked at me

Do you think that you could love me Mary
Do you think we got a chance of a life
Do you think that you could love me Mary
Now you are to be my wife

We had a prairie wedding
There was a preacher and a neighbor or two
I gave my golden thing a gold wedding ring
And the both of us said I do
When the sun's going down on the prairie
And the gold in her hair is aflame
I say do you really love me Mary
And I hold her and I whisper her name

Do you think that you could love me Mary
Do you think we got a chance of a life
Do you think that you could love me Mary
Now you are to be my wife

▲ TOP



  WANDERLUST

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Big black cloud
On a yellow plain
Sure enough it
Looks like rain
Packin' up all our
Faith and trust
Me and the wanderlust

Open window
Empty bed and chair
Who's that callin'
Ain't nobody there
I look behind me
And I see there's just
Me and the wanderlust

Dead of night
I had a dream
Sky was bright yes and the
Fields were green
I was down the road
In a cloud of dust
Me and the wanderlust

And I'm on the egde
Of an endless fall
Sure enough
He's come to call
Got to go now
Get on that bus
Me and the wanderlust

▲ TOP



  SPEEDWAY AT NAZARETH

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

After two thousand came two thousand and one
To be the new champions, we were there for to run
From springtime in Arizona, 'til the fall in Monterey
And the raceways were the battlefields and we fought 'em all the way

Was at Phoenix in the morning, I had a wake-up call
She went around without a warning put me in the wall
I drove Long Beach, California with three cracked vertebrae
And we went on to Indianapolis, Indiana in May

Well the Brickyard's there to crucify anyone who will not learn
I climbed a mountain to qualify I went flat throught the turns
But I was down in the might-have-beens and an old pal good as died
And I sat down in Gasoline Alley and I cried

Well we were in at the kill again on the Milwaukee Mile
And in June up in Michigan we were robbed at Belle Isle
Then it was on to Portland Oregon for the G.I. Joe
And I'd blown off almost everyone when I my motor let go

New England, Ontario we died in the dirt
Those walls from mid-Ohio to Toronto they hurt
So we came to Road America where we burned up at the lake
But at the speedway at Nazareth I made no mistake

▲ TOP



  JUNKIE DOLL

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Turnpike Lane, Turnpike Lane
You spiked my arm
But you missed the vein
Now it's all gone
But the scars remain
Junkie doll, I was stuck on you
My junkie doll

Turnham green, Turnham green
You took me high
As I've ever been
Now it's all gone
And now I'm clean
Junkie doll, I was stuck on you
My junkie doll

And a little bit of this'd get you up
And a little bit of that'd get you down
A little bit of this'd get you up
And a little bit of that'd get you down
And a little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down
A little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down

Turnpike Lane, Turnpike Lane
You took my heart
Pan American
Now rain or shine
It's all the same
Junkie doll, I was stuck on you
My junkie doll

And a little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down
A little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down
And a little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down
A little bit of this'd get you up
A little bit of that'd get you down

▲ TOP



  SANDS OF NEVADA

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

These tables are haunted
By the ghost of Las Vegas
Their chips were once mountains
But they came here to play
They could take me if they wanted
But I have nothing worth counting
And like the sands of Nevada
They go drifting away

Lady luck's still a mystery
With her head on my shoulder
And I dont know why
I still want her to dance
I guess that's all history
What it is is a I'm older
And I'm still a fool
For a one-way romance

Her dice were red rubies
They rolled and they tumbled
And I never saw time
Running out with my roll
And in the wasteland of cut glass
My dreams were crumbled
And I've paid with whatever
I had left for a soul

Now the dawn's broken even
On a empty horizon
No reason for folding
No reason to stay
It's too soon to be leaving
Too late for criticising
And the sands of Nevada
They go drifting away

▲ TOP



  ONE MORE MATINEE

(released on 'Sailing to Philadelphia', written by Mark Knopfler)

Here's one of the two of us
In 1954 don't laugh
I keep all of the pictures
Are you going to take a photograph
Here's something nice for you
A dear old thing came to a show
Last time here we did
An interview on local radio

Make yourself at home my darling
Come on in
Hand me down that jar love
Can I offer you a gin

We're proud to be the oldest
Ugly sisters in variety
There's not the glamour now you see
What happened to society
There's another light bulb gone
They don't all answer to the switch
I don't know how we carry on
And her she couldn't care the bitch

But in a while the old boys
In the band began to play
And in a while the houselights
And the curtains slide away

And something's going to happen
To make your whole life better
Your whole life better one day
Something's going to happen
To make your whole life better
Your whole life better one day

Now the landlady's all squared away
It's just a temporary deal
I'm afraid tonight it's take-away
You see there is no evening meal
Don't worry dear you shall go to the ball
I think the fairy said
These suitcases have seen it all
From under someone else's bed

You want to smile those tears away
Now don't you cry
You want to know what I say
I say never say die

'Cos something's going to happen
To make your whole life better
Your whole life better one day
Something's going to happen
To make your whole life better
Your whole life better one day

▲ TOP



  LET'S SEE YOU

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'What it is' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Tonight we pushed the boat out just a little too far for comfort
I'd thought I'd get my order in
Seeing as you asked and seeing as we're talking

You never had a way with words
So it's something of a drag to hear you
Like a wind up bird
Telling all and sundry how come nothing's good
How you are misunderstood

You never had a lot upstairs
So it is something of a drag to see you
A legend in your own armchair
Telling all and sundry how things ought to be
What's wrong with the industry

And then it all comes back to you
You wanna know what you should do

Shut up and deal
Let's see you do better
Shut up and deal,
Let's see you get it on
Shut up and deal
And put it all together
Let's see you do it all

You say, 'well, it's all right for him
I got more talent in my little finger
And what about that game she's in
How can she call herself a singer?
All the same, she knows how to play the game'

I know what it's leading to
You want to know what you should do

Shut up and deal
Let's see you do better
Shut up and deal,
Let's see you get it on
Shut up and deal
And put it all together
Let's see you
Let's see you
Let's see you do it all

Tonight we pushed the boat out just a little too far for comfort

▲ TOP



  CAMERADO

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'What it is' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Camerado
See that cloud across the sun
Ain't too many places left to run
There was a time when we'd go anywhere the wind would blow
Camerado

Camerado
They are fencing off the plains
And I hate to hear the wistle of the trains
The next thing you know they'll want your pistol and your tobacco
Camerado

Got a piece of forty-four on fire in my chest
Out here on the mesa I will rest
If you can hand me down that wiskey from my saddle roll
Camerado

Now the light is dying in the sky
But that ain't gotta bother you or I
Seen enough a dying, almost know all there is to know
Camerado

Now you had best light out and ride
There's pretty women on the other side
See in Sabinas, you'll be free as air in Mexico
Camerado

▲ TOP



  THE LONG HIGHWAY

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'What it is' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Heard a bell being tolled
Before the break of day
Heard my name being called
Down that long highway

Now you don't get long
You don't get long
You don't get long to stay
Kiss me once and I'll be gone
Down that long highway

Spirits call from way beyond
Lord, I may not disobey
Spare a thought for the vagabond
Down that long highway
Down that long highway
Down that long highway

▲ TOP



  SMALL POTATOES

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'Why aye man' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

You can hire and fire, wheel and deal
Run your streets with a fist of steel
But you're small potatoes
Strictly nickel and dime, nickel and dime
Small potatoes, small time

You can raise an army, own a town
Be the rent collector and come around
Yeah, but you're small potatoes
Strictly nickel and dime, nickel and dime
Small potatoes, small time

If you take your leave of reality
You have to believe your own publicity

You can get yourself and agent
Hire the Albert Hall
Make like Humpty Dumpty and look down on it all
But you're small potatoes
Strictly nickel and dime, nickel and dime
Small potatoes, small time

Out on the town for your charities
Hanging around with the VIPS

They say the Duke of York took his men
Marched them up a hill of beans and down again
He was small potatoes
Strictly nickel and dime, nickel and dime
Small potatoes, small potatoes
Small potatoes, small time

▲ TOP



  WHY AYE MAN

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

We had no way of staying afloat
We had to leave on the ferry boat
Economic refugees
On the run to Germany

We had the back of Maggie’s hand
Times were tough in Geordieland
We got wor tools and working gear
And humped it all from Newcastle to here

Why aye man, why aye, why aye man
Why aye man, why aye, why aye man

We're the nomad tribes, travelling boys
In the dust and dirt and the racket and the noise
Drills and hammers, diggers and picks
Mixing concrete, laying bricks
There's English, Irish, Scots, the lot
United Nation's what we've got
Brickies, chippies, every trade
German building, british-made

Why aye man, why aye, why aye man
Why aye man, why aye, why aye man

Nae more work on Maggie's farm
Hadaway down the autobahn
Mine's a portacabin bed
Or a bunk in a nissen hut instead

There's plenty deutschmarks here to earn
And German tarts are wunderschön
German beer is chemical-free
Germany's alreet with me
Sometimes I miss my river Tyne
But you're my pretty fraulein
Tonight we'll drink the old town dry
Keep wor spirit levels high

Why aye man, why aye, why aye man
Why aye man, why aye, why aye man

▲ TOP



  DEVIL BABY

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

The freaks'll stay together
They're a tight old crew
You look at them
And they look at you
I love the ballyhoo girl
But she don't care
It's hard to find love anywhere
Hard to find love anywhere

The professor is the talker
He's the talking man
And if he can't clean a midway
Nobody can
He'll get the tip on in
From the midway mud
You gotta have the sawdust in the blood
Gotta have the sawdust in the blood

See the pig-faced man and the monkey girl
Come see the big fat lady
'Gator slim with the alligator skin
Come see the devil baby

Springer is the talker
He's the talking man
He's got the whole studio
Eating out of his hand
You can be on too
With the nuts and the geeks
Call 1-800-IMA FREK
1-800-IMA FREK

Be the pig-faced man or the monkey girl
Come be the big fat lady
'Gator slim with the alligator skin
Come be the devil baby

▲ TOP



  HILL FARMER'S BLUES

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

I'm going into Tow Law
For what I need
Chain for the ripsaw
Killer for the weed
The dog's at the back door
Leave him be
Don't feed him Jack
And don't wait up for me

Going into Tow Law
To fuel my fire
Shells for the twelve
And razor wire
The dog's at the back door
Leave him be
Don't do Jack
And don't wait up for me

So bad so bad
So bad so bad

I'm going into Tow Law
To have my fun
Don't get me wrong
You were the only one
Behind my back Lord
You made a fool of me
Don't do Jack
And don't wait up for me

So bad so bad
So bad so bad

▲ TOP



  A PLACE WHERE WE USED TO LIVE

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

This empty kitchen's where
I'd while away the hours
Just next to my old chair
You'd usually have some flowers
The shelves of books
Even the picture hooks
Everything is gone
But my heart is hanging on

If this old neighbourhood
Survived us both alright
Don't know that it withstood
All the things that took our light
You on the stair
I can see you there
Everything is gone
But my heart is hanging on

Once there was a little girl
Used to wonder what she would be
Went out into the big wide world
Now she's just a memory
There used to be a little school here
Where I learned to write my name
But time has been a little cruel here
Time has no shame

It's just a place where
We used to live
It's just a place where
We used to live

Now in another town
You lead another life
And now upstairs and down
You're someone else's wife
Here in the dust
There's not a trace of us
Everything is gone
But my heart is hanging on

It's just a place where
We used to live
It's just a place where
We used to live

▲ TOP



  QUALITY SHOE

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

You got your toecaps reinforced with steel
Hard-wearing sole and heel
Make those tired feet feel like new
Take your pick, black or brown
Great for the country or the man in town
You're gonna need a quality shoe

You don't want no stand-by pair
'Cos these'll take the wear and tear
Made to take good care of you
For that trip by road or rail
For extra grip on those rocky trails
You're gonna need a quality shoe

Now they maybe ain't too hot for dancing
But I don't foresee too much of that
You ain't exactly gonna be prancing
Around in the moonlight
With a cane and a top hat

If you could use a change of pace
And be excused from the rat race
Just take a look at what's on view
Lace 'em up, walk around
I guarantee you can't wear 'em down
You're gonna need a quality shoe

Now I wish you sunny skies
And happiness wherever you may go
But you got to realise
There'll be wind, there'll be rain
And occasional snow

You're gonna want to smile in them
If you're gonna walk a mile in them
There'll be times when you'll be blue
To laugh at rainy days and then
Make your getaways in them
You're gonna need a quality shoe

You got your toecaps reinforced with steel
Hard-wearing sole and heel
Make those tired feet feel like new
Take your pick, black or brown
Great for the country or the man in town
You're gonna need a quality shoe

▲ TOP



  FARE TEE WELL NORTHUMBERLAND

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

Come drive me down to the central station
I hate to leave my river Tyne
For some dawn town that's God-forsaken
Fare thee well, Northumberland
Although I'll go where the lady takes me
She'll never tell what's in her hand
I do not know what fate awaits me
Fare thee well, Northumberland

My heart beats for my streets and alley
Longs to Dwell in the borderlands
The North-East shore and the river valleys
Fare thee well Northumberland
I may not stay, I'm bound for leaving
I'm bound to ramble and to roam
I only say my heart is grieving
I would not gamble on my coming home

Roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll

So drive me down to the central station
I hate to leave my river Tyne
For some dawn town that's God-forsaken
Goodbye old friend of mine
Although I'll go where the lady takes me
She'll never tell what's in her hand
I do not know what fate awaits me
Fare thee well, Northumberland

So roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll
Roll on, Geordie boy, roll

▲ TOP



  MARBLETOWN

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

Roll out here mister
If you need a little rest
Lay me down in Marbletown
A bone yard is the best

There was a bad bull on the railroad
Tried to pull me off this train
Lay me down in Marbletown
'Til the coast is clear again

I can hear them a-hollerin'
'We got a man down here
We got a man down'

I'm gonna flip me a cannonball
That won't stop for anyone
Lay me down in Marbletown
Wait 'til morning comes

I'm gonna roll out here in the tombstones
Wait here on my train
Lay me down in Marbletown
I hope that it don't rain

And I can still hear them hollerin'
'We got a man down here
We got a man down'

Roll out here mister
If you need a little rest
Lay me down in Marbletown
A bone yard is the best

▲ TOP



  YOU DON'T KNOW YOU'RE BORN

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

What do you know about the hammer and the spike
What do you know about the farm
You don't know
You don't know what it's like
Because you don't know
You don't know you're born

What do you know about the hammer and the chisel
You only know the kitchen and the warm
You don't know about the night shift whistle
Punching the clock to the horn
Because you don't know
You don't know you're born

You don't know
You don't know you're born
You don't know
You don't know you're born

What do you know about the hammer and the nails
Know about the thistles and the thorns
What do you know about the road and the rails
Your heart so weary and your hands all worn
Your hands so weary and your heart all torn
And you don't know
You don't know you're born

▲ TOP



  COYOTE

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

Look at me Coyote
Don't let a little road dust put you off
You can't judge a book
Well you know that stuff
There's a tear in my upholstery
And a hole in my shoe
But don't you just wish that you could
Make half of the speed I do
Speed I do, speed I do, speed I do

You can't catch me Coyote
Though there may be blood on the tracks
There may be some bridges burning
Behind our backs
But I got my laundry on the backseat
And an itinerary too
And don't you just wish that you could
Make half of the speed I do
Speed I do, speed I do, speed I do
Speed I do, speed I do, speed I do

Now I'm a speck on your horizon
Getting smaller fast
An ambush wouldn't be surprising
I hope it's better than your last

Once again the roadrunner
Leaves the coyote in the dirt
You've got another plan of action
But we all know it ain't never gonna work
It must be hard having dog dreams
That never come true
And don't you just wish that you could
Make half of the speed I do
Speed I do, speed I do, speed I do
Speed I do, speed I do, speed I do

▲ TOP



  THE RAGPICKER'S DREAM

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

When Jack Frost came for Christmas
With a brass monkey date
The rail-king and the scarecrow
Hopped a Florida freight
And they blew on their paper cups
And stared through the steam
Then they drank half a bottle
Of Ragpicker's Dream where

The whiskey keeps following
Cold pitchers of beer
Me and my associate
Like the clientele here get
The onions and the 'taters
Rib-eyes on the grill
Toothpicks and luckies
And a coffee refill as

The rail-king lay rocking
He was leaving the ground
Then he was flying like Santa Claus
Over the town where
He came to the window
Of a house by a stream
It was a family Christmas
In the Ragpicker's Dream there

Were kids at the table
All aglow in the light
Music in the wintertime
Sure carries at night there
Was turkey and gravy
Pie and ice cream
And gifts for each and everyone
In the Ragpicker's Dream where

The red-eye keeps tumbling
In our glasses of beer
Me and my associate
Like the service in here there's
A ten for your trouble
You have beautiful hair
Make the last one two doubles
It's a cold one out there where

The scarecrow and the rail-king
Have started to dance
But a nightstick and a billyclub
Won't give peace a chance here
I think they went thataways
Your song and dance team
Heading home for the holidays
With the Ragpicker's Dream on

His knees like a fighter
The rail-riding king
Like a sack of potatoes
Like a bull in the ring where
The scarecrow falls over
With a tear in the seam
Home for the rover
In the Ragpicker's Dream where

The red-eye keeps tumbling
Like tears in our beer
Me and my associate
Like the ambience here where
They cornered two castaways
In a white flashlight beam
Merry Christmas and happy days
In the Ragpicker's Dream

▲ TOP



  DADDY'S GONE TO KNOXVILLE

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

Oh, you're gonna miss your daddy when he's gone
When he's gone
Yeah, you're gonna miss your daddy when he's gone
When he's gone
Daddy's gone down that Gallatin road
The hen never laid and the corn never growed
Oh, you're gonna miss your daddy when he's gone

Oh, I'd rather have a dollar than a dime
Than a dime
Yeah, I'd rather have a dollar than a dime
Than a dime
Daddy's gone down that Crossville track
If he can't make a dollar then he ain't comin' back
Oh, I'd rather have a dollar than a dime

Oh, you'd better love your daddy while you can
While you can
Yeah, you'd better love your daddy while you can
While you can
Daddy's gone south on the Natchez trace
If he can't show the money then he don't show his face
Oh, you'd better love your daddy while you can

Oh, your daddy's gone to Knoxville now
Knoxville now
Yeah, your daddy's gone to Knoxville now
Knoxville now
Daddy's gone down that Knoxville road
The dog never barked and the cock never crowed
Oh, your daddy's gone to Knoxville now

▲ TOP



  OLD PIGWEED

(released on 'The ragpicker's dream', written by Mark Knopfler)

Everything was in there
That you'd want to see
Corned beef and onions
And true love
Turnips and tinned tomatoes
Parsnips and a few potatoes
A couple extra blessings
From above

Now this here mingle-mangle
Was my best one yet
A big old bad goulash
Worth waiting for
And I'm just about to dip my can
Taste some brotherhood of man
When I get a feeling
That there's a flaw

Who put old pigweed
In the mulligan
Was it you
Who put old pigweed
In the mulligan stew
I close my eyes
For just a minute
What do you do
Who put old pigweed
In the mulligan stew

You won't find self-improvement
Or philosophy
In a dumpster sitting by
The kitchen door
There's plenty leek and humble pie
Ain't too much ham on rye
Sometimes I wonder
What I'm looking for

But a spoonful of forgiveness
Goes a long, long way
And we all should do our best
To get along
Add a pinch of kindness crumbling
To your loving dumpling
Okra for thickening
When something's wrong

But who put old pigweed
In the mulligan
Was it you
Who put old pigweed
In the mulligan stew
I close my eyes
For just a minute
What do you do
Who put old pigweed
In the mulligan stew

▲ TOP




  5.15 A.M.

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

5.15 a.m.
Snow laying all around
A collier cycles home
From his night shift underground
Past the silent pub
Primary school, workingmens club
On the road from the pithead
The churchyard packed
With mining dead

Then beneath the bridge
He comes to a giant car
A shroud of snow upon the roof
A mark ten Jaguar
He thought the man was fast asleep
Silent, still and deep
Both dead and cold
Shot through
With bullet holes

The one armed bandit man
Came north to fill his boots
Came up from Cockneyland
E-type Jags and flashy suits
Put your money in
Pull the levers
Watch them spin
Cash cows in all the pubs
But he preferred the new nightclubs

Nineteen sixty-seven
Bandit men in birdcage heaven
La dolce vita, sixty-nine
All new to people of the Tyne

Who knows who did what
Somebody made a call
They said his hands
Were in the pot
That he'd been skimming hauls
He picks up the swag
They gaily gave away
Drives his giant Jag
Off to his big pay day

The bandit man
Came north to fill his boots
Came up from Cockneyland
E-type jags and flashy suits
The bandit man
Came up the great north road
Up to Geordieland
To mine
The mother lode

Seams blew up or cracked
Black diamonds came hard won
Generations toiled and hacked
For a pittance and black lung
Crushed by tub or stone
Together
And alone
How the young and old
Paid the price of coal

Eighteen sixty-seven
My angel's gone to heaven
He'll be happy there
Sunlight and sweet clean air

They gather round the glass
Tough hewers and crutters
Child trappers and putters
The little foals and half-marrows
Who pushed
And pulled the barrows
The hod boys
And the rolleywaymen
5.15 a.m.

▲ TOP



  BOOM, LIKE THAT

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

I'm going to San Bernardino
Ring-a-ding-ding
Milkshake mixers
That's my thing, now
These guys bought
A heap of my stuff
And I gotta see a good thing
Sure enough, now
Or my name's not Kroc
That's Kroc with a 'k'
Like 'crocodile'
But not spelled that way, yeah
It's dog eat dog
Rat eat rat
Kroc-style
Boom, like that

The folks line up
All down the street
And I´m seeing this girl
Devour her meat, now
And then I get it, wham
As clear as day
My pulse begins to hammer
And I hear a voice say:
These boys have
Got this down
Oughtta be a one of these
In every town
These boys have
Got the touch
It's clean as a whistle
And it don't cost much
Wham, bam
You don't wait long
Shake, fries
Patty, you're gone
And how about that
Friendly name?
Heck, every little thing
Oughtta stay the same
Or my name's not Kroc
That's Kroc with a 'k'
Like 'crocodile'
But not spelled that way, now
It's dog eat dog
Rat eat rat
Kroc-style
Boom, like that

You gentlemen
Ought to expand
You're going to need
A helping hand, now
So, gentlemen
Well, what about me?
We'll make a little
Business history, now
Or my name's not Kroc
Call me Ray
Like 'crocodile'
But not spelled that way, now
It's dog eat dog
Rat eat rat
Kroc-style
Boom, like that

Well we build it up
And I buy 'em out
But, man they made me
Grind it out, now
They open up a new place
Flipping meat
So I do, too
Right across the street
I got the name
I need the town
They sell up in the end
And it all shuts down
Sometimes you gotta
Be an s.o.b.
You wanna make a dream
Reality
Competition?
Send 'em south
If they're gonna drown
Put a hose in their mouth
Do not pass 'go'
Go straight to hell
I smell that
Meat hook smell
Or my name's not Kroc
That's Kroc with a 'k'
Like 'crocodile'
But not spelled that way, now
It's dog eat dog
Rat eat rat
Kroc-style
Boom, like that

▲ TOP



  SUCKER ROW

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

Somebody's gotta crack
A whip around here
Who's
Minding the store?
Shake it up
Sell some beer
What's your
Money maker for?
Pay day
We're packin' 'em in
Six-gun Annie
And Buffalo Jill
But who's to say
They'll be back again
For a refill?
Honey, you know the drill
Ain't no left turn
Down sleepy time street
You gotta be fast
But you gotta stay loose
Thinking
On your feet
Slick as grass
Through a goose
We gotta
Rationalise
The payroll
Is giving me chills
You and me's
Getting organised
It's kill or be killed
Honey, you know the drill

Well they can all look down
On sucker row
But they all forget
The tallest trees
From acorns grow
Though they ain't yet
I never look down
On a sucker stake
They all pay the bills
I never gave a sucker
An even break
And i never will

A beautiful vision
Keeps coming to me
I see
A miracle mile
Flying in
For free
Service
With a smile
High rollers
Fancy hotels
Big time singers
Topping the bill
You gotta have a feel
For the stuff that sells
Call it a skill
Honey, you know the drill
Somebody's gotta crack
A whip around here
Who's
Minding the store?
Shake it up
Sell some beer
Money walking
Through the door
Annie's arriving
At a dangerous age
Don't you
Go getting ill
Get another woman
Up in the cage
Who ain't over the hill
Honey, you know the drill

▲ TOP



  THE TRAWLERMAN'S SONG

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

We're taking on water
Diesel and stores
Laying up awhile
Before I'm back on board
They're patching her up
To go fishing again
They're welding her rudder
Scrubbing her keel
Scars on her belly
Need time to heal
In the dock
With the trawlermen

I know all the people
There's nobody new
Soon we'll be leaving
With the same old crew
On the green water
The tumbling sea
They ain't running
Like the good old days
Time's just slipping
Down the old slipways
In the dock
So dear to me

Dark is the night
I need a guiding light
To keep me
From foundering
On the rocks
My only prayer
Is just to see you there
At the end
Of my wandering
Back in the dock

I could use a layoff
Getting my strength back
But there's a loan to pay off
And a few skipjack
So it's a turnaround
Back in the southerly wind
Pirates coming in
To steal our gold
You can count yourself lucky
With a profit in the hold
In the dock
When we come in

Dark is the night
I need a guiding light
To keep me
From foundering
On the rocks
My only prayer
Is just to see you there
At the end
Of my wandering
Back in the dock

▲ TOP



  BACK TO TUPELO

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

Around the time of 'Clambake'
Movie number twenty-five
You and the lying Dutchman
Are still in overdrive
You're as strong as when you started
Mississippi in your soul
You can still be Marlon Brando
And the king of rock and roll

It isn't just the records
No, you must have Hollywood
The songs alone are not enough
That much is understood
You'll soon be back in Memphis
Maybe then you'll know what to do
The storylines they're giving you
Are just not ringing true

Oh, it's a ways to go
Back to Tupelo

When you're young and beautiful
Your dreams are all ideals
Later on it's not the same
Lord, everything is real
Sixteen hundred miles of highway
Roll back to the truth
And a song to give your mother
In your first recording booth

Around the time of 'Clambake'
That old dream's still rolling on
Sometimes there'll be the feeling
Things are going wrong
The morning star is fading
Lord, the Mississippi's cold
You can still be Marlon Brando
And the king of rock and roll

But it's a ways to go
Back to Tupelo

▲ TOP



  OUR SHANGRI-LA

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

It's the end of a perfect day
For surfer boys and girls
The sun's dropping down in the bay
And falling off the world

There's a diamond in the sky
Our evening star
In our shangri-la

Get that fire burning strong
Right here and right now
It's here and then it's gone
There's no secret, anyhow
We may never love again
To the music of guitars
In our shangri-la

Tonight your beauty burns
Into my memory
The wheel of heaven turns
Above us endlessly
This is all the heaven we've got
Right here where we are
In our shangri-la

This is all the heaven we've got
Right here where we are
In our shangri-la

▲ TOP



  EVERYBODY PAYS

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

I got shot off my horse
So what? I'm up again
And playing
In one of these
Big saloons on main
You can come up here
Take a look
Around these sinners' dens
You're only ever going to find
One or two real games
Nobody's driving
Me underground
Not yet anyway
But either on the strip
Or on the edge of town
Everybody pays
Everybody pays to play

Yeah, you ought to stay
Right where you are
In sawdust land
It's probably the
Safest place to be
With your
Greasy little pork pies
And your shoestring hands
It makes
No difference to me
All those directions
Which we never took
To go our different ways
Who went and wrote
The oldest story in the book?
Everybody pays
Everybody pays to play

Curl up inside
A boxcar dream
And disappear
With a couple
Low roller friends
You were never one
For trouble
So get out of here
I knew the game
Was dangerous back then
But nobody's breezing
Through these swinging doors
Just ups and walks away
Everybody has to leave
Some blood here on the floor
Everybody pays
Everybody pays to play

▲ TOP



  SONG FOR SONNY LISTON

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

So many mouths
To feed on the farm
Sonny was the second
To the last one born
His mamma ran away
And his daddy beat him bad
And he grew up wild
Good love he never had

He had a left
Like Henry's hammer
A right like Betty Bamalam
Rode with the muggers
In the dark and dread
And all them sluggers
Went down like lead

Well he hung with the hoods
He wouldn't stroke the fans
But he had dynamite
In both his hands
Boom bam
Like the slammer door
The bell and the can
And the bodies on the floor

Beware the bear's in town
Somebody's money says
The bear's going down
Yeah, the bear never smiles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles

The writers didn't like him
The fight game jocks
With his lowlife backers
And his hands like rocks
They didn't want to have
A bogey man
They didn't like him
And he didn't like them

Black Cadillac
Alligator boots
Money in the pockets
Of his sharkskin suits
Some say the bear
Took a flop
They couldn't believe it
When they saw him drop

He had a left
Like Henry's hammer
A right like Betty Bamalam
Rode with the muggers
In the dark and dread
And all them sluggers
Went down like lead

Joe Louis was his hero
He tried to be the same
But a criminal child
Wears a ball and chain
So the civil rights people
Didn't want him on the throne
And the hacks and the cops
Wouldn't leave him alone

Beware the bear's in town
Somebody's money says
The bear's going down
Yeah, the bear never smiles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles

At the foot of his bed
With his feet on the floor
There was dope in his veins
And a pistol on the drawer
There was no investigation
As such
He hated needles
But he knew too much

Criss-crossed
On his back
Scars from his daddy
Like slavery tracks
The second-last child
Was the second-last king
Never again was it the same
In the ring

He had a left
Like Henry's hammer
A right like Betty Bamalam
Rode with the muggers
In the dark and dread
And all them sluggers
Went down like lead

They never could be sure
About the day he was born
A motherless child
Set to working on the farm
And they never could be sure
About the day he died
The bear was the king
They cast aside

Beware the bear's in town
Somebody's money says
The bear's going down
Yeah, the bear never smiles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles
Sonny's going down
For miles and miles

▲ TOP



  WHOOP DE DOO

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

If I'm over the moon
It's because I'm over you
A day at a time
And I'm tickety-boo
I don't carry on
The way I used to
Whoop de doo
Whoop de doo

If I'm doing great
It's because when I get home
I don't go straight
To my answerphone
And the tears don't come
The way they used to
Whoop de doo
Whoop de doo

So many little things
Are so much better now
They were only the little things
Anyhow

If I'm over the moon
It's because that's what I am
Funny that once
I used to give a damn
And I'd do anything
In the whole wide world for you
Whoop de doo
Whoop de doo

Anything
Anything you'd want me to
Whoop de doo
Whoop de doo

▲ TOP



  POSTCARDS FROM PARAGUAY

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

One thing was leading to the next
I bit off more than I could chew
I had the power to sign the cheques
It wasn't difficult to do
I couldn't stay and face the music
So many reasons why
I won't be sending postcards
From Paraguay

I robbed a bank full of dinero
A great big mountain of dough
So it was goodbye companero
And cheerio
I couldn't stay and face the music
So many reasons why
I won't be sending postcards
From Paraguay

I never meant to be a cheater
But there was blood on the wall
I had to steal from Peter
To pay what i owed to Paul
I couldn't stay and face the music
So many reasons why
I won't be sending postcards
From Paraguay

▲ TOP



  ALL THAT MATTERS

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

My darling girl
My darling girl
You're all that matters
In this wicked world
All that matters
All that matters
My darling boy
My darling boy
All of my sunshine
And all of my joy
You're all that matters
All that matters

Well, I can't stop the pain
When it calls
I'm a man
And I can't stop the rain
When it falls, my darling
Who can?

My darling girl
My darling girl
You're all that matters
In this wicked world
All that matters
All that matters
My darling friend
My darling friend
All we've got going
Is love in the end
It's all that matters
All that matters

▲ TOP



  STAND UP GUY

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

Brew the coffee in a bucket
Double straight man and banjo
If you don't got the snake oil
Buster, you don't got a show
Who puts the doh-re-me
In our pockets
Keeps the party going on?
It's the man
Who sells the potions
I'm just one who plays the songs
Now they generally buys
The bigger size
They usually rub it in
I drank it once, it tasted
Like grease and paraffin
It's mostly alcohol, okay
You can't deny it's strong
We was going through the motions
'Til the doctor came along

There stands the bottle
Ladies and gentlemen
All these bottles
Don't have to tell you, friends
These days miracles
Don't come falling from the sky
Raise your glasses to the doctor
To a stand up guy

When the monkeyshine is flying
And he's promising the cure
He says the French
For your lovesick blues
La maladie d'amour
He gets the chumps all laughing
But he gets a few to buy
Here's to beefsteak
When you're hungry
And whiskey when you're dry
Now the band'll blow their moolah
Like sailors gone ashore
Now we're going to West Helena
To gamble, drink and whore
Let's you and me
All make whoopee
Here's mud in your eye
Here's to all the gals you ever want
And heaven when you die

There stands the bottle
Ladies and gentlemen
All these bottles
Don't have to tell you, friends
These days miracles
Don't come falling from the sky
Raise your glasses to the doctor
To a stand up guy

There's a big cheese with a cigar
Been sizing up the show
He wants to get the doctor
Pitching on the radio
I will make a switch to guitar
But the rules all still apply
They want to trust somebody
Yeah, they want a stand up guy

There stands the bottle
Here's to absent friends
All these bottles
Dead soldiers in the end
These days miracles
Don't come falling from the sky
Raise your glasses to the doctor
To a stand up guy
To the doctor
A stand up guy
Donegan's gone

▲ TOP



  DONEGAN’S GONE

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

Donegan's gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Play that big grand coulee dam
Nobody loves like an Irishman
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone

Donegan's gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Lord, I'm just a rolling stone
Rock my soul i wanna go home
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone

Donegan's gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Stackalee and a gamblin' man
Rock my soul in the bosom of abraham
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone

Donegan's gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone
Time just goes on rolling by
Lord, I feel like i could cry
Gone, Lonnie Donegan
Donegan's gone

▲ TOP



  DON'T CRASH THE AMBULANCE

(released on 'Shangri-La', written by Mark Knopfler)

Don't often open up
This floor
Since I handed in my gun
What all these
Keys are for
Now my tour of duty's done
You got to know
The switches
Now you got your turn
Watch and learn, junior
Watch and learn
Now you will get
Your trouble spots
Here's one from
Down voodoo way
Bragged he had me
By the you-know-whats
Very funny, you don't say
The big enchilada
Stealing elections
Had to go down there
Trash collection
Got his cojones
On my desk in there
Made into a souvenir
Set of cufflinks, nice pair
The rest of him's
Someplace up here
Sometimes you got to
Put a shoulder to the door
Not so fast, junior
Listen to your pa
Here, son
I'm handing over to you
Don't crash the ambulance
Whatever you do
What we have here's
A dung hole place
Thought it was fly shit
On the map
Fat bastard, ugly face
And the personal crap
You can't move the barriers
You can't mess
With oil and gas
Had to go down there

Stick a couple
Aircraft carriers
In his ass
Fancy dress
Medals chest
It's all in here
For all the gigs
Gas mask
Bullet-proof vest
All the usual rigs
There'll be things they missed
They didn't mention
You've even
Got a whistle in there
For attracting attention
Well, I think you're gonna
Be okay, son
You've had the tour, I guess
These two buttons
By the way
This one I hope
You never press
Some holy fool, just watch
Who's not like you or me
That one's the whole
Shooting match
Right there
It's the whole shitaree
We don't forget
Who put us here, jack
That's page one
We talk soft
But carry a big stick
And pack the biggest gun
We don't like accidents
Major or minor
You don't want yourself
An incident
Don't ever invade China
Here, son
I'm handing over to you
Don't crash the ambulance
Here, son
I'm handing over to you
Don't crash the ambulance
Whatever you do

▲ TOP

 

  SUMMER OF LOVE

(originally released on the B-side of the single 'Boom, like that' and in October 2021 released again in the 11LP & 6CD box set, written by Mark Knopfler)

Daddy says I'll never get the roadster
What does he know
I just can't make it here in squaresville, daddy-O
Pretty on the inside and the out
She's the ride I'm wild about
The only one I'm dreaming of
Summer of love

Daddy says I'll never get the roadster
What does he know
We drive to where the sky is wide
And the moon is low
When I shut her down the night feels cool
I tell her she's beautiful
A million stars all swarm above
Summer of love
Whoa, summer of love

Summer days hot and dry
Hot as firecrackers on the fourth of July
Summer nights passing slow
Gas her up Daddy I'm ready to go

Daddy says I'll never get the roadster
What does he know
We drive to where the sky is wide
And the moon is low
When I shut her down the night feels cool
I tell her she's beautiful
A million stars all swarm above
Summer of love
Whoa, summer of love
Yeah, summer of love
Hmm, summer of love

▲ TOP



  TRUE LOVE WILL NEVER FADE

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade

I wonder if there’s no forever
- no walking hand in hand
down a yellow brick road
to never-never land
These days I get to where I’m going
- make it there eventually
follow the trail of breadcrumbs
to where I’m meant to be
to where I’m meant to be

I don’t know what brought you to me
that was up to you
There’s so many come to see me
who want their own tattoo
I fixed a needle in the holder
laid my hand upon your spine
and there upon your shoulder
I drew the picture as your sign

When I think about us
I see the picture that we made
the picture to remind us
true love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade

I work the rowdies and day-trippers
Now and then I think of you
Any which way we’re all shuffling
forward in the queue
They’d like to move my operation
They’d like to get me off the pier
And I dream I’m on a steamer
pulling out of here

When I think about us
I see the picture that we made
the picture to remind us
true love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade
True love will never fade

▲ TOP



  THE SCAFFOLDER´S WIFE

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

The scaffolder’s wife
driving out of the yard
with a face that’s as hard
as a scaffolder’s bar -
when she goes into town
she might take the top down
on the car

The quick little steps
in the stiletto boots
and the hair with the roots
She comes in as a rule
to get the nails done
and the tan for the sun
when the kids are in school

Don’t begrudge her the Merc
it’s been nothing but work
and a hard life
Losing her looks
over company books
- the scaffolder’s wife

In the wicked old days
when they went it alone
kept the company going
on a wing and a prayer
They don’t pay what they owe
when they have the cash flow
- they don’t care

Don’t begrudge her the Merc
it’s been nothing but work
and a hard life
Losing her looks
over company books
- the scaffolder’s wife

▲ TOP



  THE FIZZY AND THE STILL

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

Sunday morning, here we are
The boy’s come home
not quite the movie star

He’s been in Hollywood
The boy’s come home
The boy’s done good

He says she asked too high a price
neglecting to declare
what sits between them there on ice,
chilled, with the fizzy and the still:
he tried but didn’t make it there

‘It’s not for me
It’s not for me’

Sunday papers, here we are
The boy’s come home
The boy’s come home

▲ TOP



  HEART FULL OF HOLES

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

You can tell me your troubles
I’ll listen for free
My regulars trust me, it seems
You can come and see Uncle
to get through the week
leave your pledges with me to redeem
Some folk sell their bodies
for ten bob a go
Politicians go pawning their souls
Which doesn’t make me
look too bad, don’t you know
me, with my heart full of holes
All my yesterdays broken
a watch with no face
all battered and old
Bits of the movement
all over the place
and a heart full of holes
A heart full of holes
A heart full of holes

Brass knuckles and banjos
are out on the town
at the knees-up
in Teddy Boys’ Row
The gold block and tackle
tells the time upside down
Rock n’ roll - well, I don’t know
Dead people’s wedding gifts
walk out the door
A clarinet squeals to be free
Accordions hop
from the shelves to the floor -
start playing their polkas to me

There’s a ringing of bells
a dunderhead’s curse
Fingers are pointing at you
And you take work in hell
and be glad it’s not worse
and you get to the back of the queue
Handcuffs and hunting knives
clang on the bars
Air pistols shoot out the lights
I’ve a whole Wailing Wall
of electric guitars
could shatter the windows
down Brick Lane tonight

If one of us dies, love
I think I’ll retire
see my boys and my beautiful girls
A Garden of Eden
no gates or barbed wire
who knows, maybe gates made of pearls
Well, if we go to heaven
and some say we don’t
but if there’s a reckoning day
please God, I’ll see you
and maybe I won’t
I’ve a bag packed to go either way

Redeeming your pledge, dear
I’ll keep it for you
It’s not going to go anywhere
But your soul, your soul
that is not what I do
There’s not a lot I can do there
I remember the officer’s watch
in my hand:
‘Repair it or die’ I was told
It’s a wonder to me -
I still don’t understand
why I ever survived to be old
with a heart full of holes
A heart full of holes
A heart full of holes

▲ TOP



  WE CAN GET WILD

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

We’re old enough for leaving home
the old joanna and the old trombone
It’s all going on
I’m growing my sideboards long
And you and me
can be who we want to be
Listen now, right here
It’s going to be a beautiful year

They’re calling it the teenage scene
and I have a dream
Don’t know if I’ll be a star
but I’m going to play guitar
I’ve seen this rocking cat
Oh, I want to be just like that
Listen now, right here
It’s going to be a beautiful year

Hey, look at you, baby
Tell your daddy you’re no child
Hey, look at you, baby
We can get wild

We’ll be on our own
Billy Fury on the gramophone
Take you to the pictures and a dance
Me in my drainpipe pants
Check the mirror and the old DA
And you can play in a day
Listen now, right here
It’s going to be a beautiful year

Hey, look at you, baby
Tell your daddy you’re no child
Hey, look at you, baby
We can get wild

▲ TOP



  SECONDARY WALTZ

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

The school Christmas party is coming
We ain’t doing rugby no more
MacIntyre’s teaching us waltzing
out on the gymnasium floor
out on the gymnasium floor
MacIntyre’s out of the army
You’ll be slippered if you get it wrong
And MacIntyre’s din
booms loud in the gym
and we’ve only got our little shorts on
We’ve only got our little shorts on

And it’s one, two, three, two, two -
we’re all a disgrace
MacIntyre tore us apart
And we danced with ourselves
when he yelled ‘Find a space!’
waltzing with fear in our hearts
waltzing with fear in our hearts

Comes the day of the final manoeuvres
All of our heads are awhirl
It’s getting much closer to D-day
This time we’re going to do it with girls
This time we’re going to do it with girls
In the arena the ladies were waiting
a 12 year-old partner to guide
Some matches were fixed
the rest of us mixed
and a fat girl got left at the side
A fat girl got left at the side

And it’s one, two, three, two, two -
we’re all a disgrace
MacIntyre tore us apart
And we danced with ourselves
when we’d all found a space
waltzing with fear in our hearts
waltzing with fear in our hearts

When you come to my fights
and I’m under the lights
and you see that my footwork is false
don’t count me out
at the start of the bout
I’m just doing the Secondary Waltz
doing the Secondary Waltz

▲ TOP



  PUNISH THE MONKEY

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

They’re driving long nails into coffins
You’ve been having sleepless nights
You’ve gone as quiet as a church mouse
and checking on your rights
The boss has hung you out to dry
And it looks as though
they’ll punish the monkey
and let the organ grinder go

You’ve been talking to a lawyer
Are you going to to pretend
that you and your employer
are still the best of friends?
Somebody’s going to take the fall
There’s your quid pro quo
They’ll punish the monkey
and let the organ grinder go

Here comes a policeman
He won’t be sidetracked
He’s asking about a smoking gun
He’s after the facts

It’s a quiet life from here on in
You’ve dropped your poison cup
The telephone is ringing
But you’re not picking up
Time’s up, Sir Lord Flunkey
And everybody knows
they’ll punish the monkey
and let the organ grinder go

▲ TOP



  LET IT ALL GO

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

When it’s pop goes the weasel
let go of the easel
You don’t want
this rickety rackety life
It’s seat of the trousers
It’s all sink or swim, son
I’d kill to get crimson
on this palette knife
And I’d steal in a minute
I’m up to here in it
You here behaving
as though I’m a saint
Get a job with a pension
Don’t ever mention
you once had a craving
for the brushes and paint

So go, forget it, let it all go
let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Let it all go

A hack writer judges
my swipes and my smudges
he doesn’t like pictures
with blotches and blots
The drawing room tea set
wants horses, sunsets
sweet nothings -
the seaside with yachts
Here’s the end of the thirties
no time for arties
over in Poland
a right old to-do
So go join the navy
the air force or the army
They’ll all be enrolling
young fellows like you

So go, forget it, let it all go
let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Let it all go

These are not my decisions
flaming visions
ringing expressions
the clamouring voice
It’s volcanic desire
the unquenchable fire
It isn’t a question
of having the choice
Anyway, now I’m old
but if you won’t be told
if you’ve been created
to answer the call
all passion and lust
is going to end in the dust
but you’ll hang on some
government gallery wall

You must go, forget it
let it all go, let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Go, forget it
let it all go, let it all go
Go, forget it, let it all go
Let it all go

▲ TOP



  BEHIND WITH THE RENT

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

This didn’t used to be me, old boy
This isn’t what I’d want
pulling old night fighters
in a restaurant
There’s smoke and flames behind me
where the self-respect all went
and I’m behind, behind
with the rent

I’ve been stitched up like a kipper, old son
but I won’t be again
Hell hath no fury
Oh, I’m like a lot of men
Now I’m stalking this old Doris
with lascivious intent
and I’m behind, behind
with the rent

Just a little duck and dive
and a bit of wheel and deal
She’ll remind me I’m alive
She’ll remind me I still feel
Just a little shelling out
for a bit of you-know-what
I know this is all about
something that I never got

Well this crumpet’s past it’s sell-by-date
but they all would qualify
They’re going to be lonely
and be happy to comply
She knows that I’m a chancer
coming on like a gent
but I’m behind, behind
with the rent
Yes, I’m behind, behind
with the rent

▲ TOP



  THE FISH AND THE BIRD

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

When I gave my heart
to a tinker boy
he said a fish could love a swallow
And I will go with my travelling man
Wherever he goes I will follow

He will mend
your pots and pans
Your kitchen knives he’ll take and sharpen
Then I’ll be gone with my travelling man
and never more your doorway darken

The fish and the bird
who fall in love
will find no place to build a home in
The fish and the bird who fall in love
are bound forever to go roaming

▲ TOP



  MADAME GENEVA´S

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

I’m a maker of ballads right pretty
I write them right here in the street
You can buy them all over the city
yours for a penny a sheet
I’m a word pecker out of the printers

I’ll write up a scene on a counter
- confessions and sins in the main, boys
confessions and sins in the main

Then you’ll find me in Madame Geneva’s
keeping the demons at bay
There’s nothing like gin for drowning them in
but they’ll always be back on a hanging day

They come rattling over the cobbles
they sit on their coffins of black
Some are struck dumb, some gabble
top-heavy on brandy or sack
The pews are all full of fine fellows
and the hawker has set up her shop
As they’re turning them off at the gallows
she’ll be selling right under the drop, boys
selling right under the drop

Then you’ll find me in Madame Geneva’s
keeping the demons at bay
There’s nothing like gin for drowning them in
but they’ll always be back on a hanging day

▲ TOP



  IN THE SKY

(released on 'Kill to get crimson', written by Mark Knopfler)

Are you home from the sea, my soul balladeer
You’ve been away roaming far away from here
weathered a storm, your heart unafraid
crossed every ocean in the boat that you made

Been blowing your horn, scaring the spooks
No crotchets or quavers in your books
Gone sailing all night, straight in the vein
like a bird on his own flight in his domain in the sky

Running in on the tide with the first of the stars
the moon on the water and the sound of guitars
Glide into the homing as the night falls
to tie up in the haven by the old harbour wall

And the hard-bitten stranger as deaf as a post
who stands at the fire where a poet’s dreams roast
He can’t know the story, he can’t feel the pain
and all of the glory falls around him like rain in the sky

You’re a light in the dark, a beacon of hope
and strong as a sea boat, strong as a rope
And the vagabond wind, whispers over the bay
and the songs and the laughter, are carried away in the sky

▲ TOP



  BORDER REIVER

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

Southern bound from Glasgow town
she’s shining in the sun
my Scotstoun lassie
on a border run
We’re whistling down the hillsides
and tearing up the climbs
I’m just a thiever stealing time
in the Border Reiver

Three hundred thousand on the clock
and plenty more to go
Crash box and lever
- she needs the heel and toe
She’s not too cold in winter
but she cooks me in the heat
I’m a six-foot driver but you can’t adjust the seat
in the Border Reiver

‘Sure as the Sunrise’
that’s what they say about the Albion
‘Sure as the Sunrise’, that’s what they say
about the Albion and she’s an Albion
She’s an Albion

The Ministry don’t worry me
my paperwork’s alright
They can’t touch me
I got my sleep last night
It’s knocking out a living wage
in 1969
I’m just a thiever stealing time
in the Border Reiver

‘Sure as the Sunrise’
that’s what they say about the Albion
‘Sure as the Sunrise’, that’s what they say
about the Albion and she’s an Albion
She’s an Albion

▲ TOP



  HARD SHOULDER

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

I’ve got latches for windows, handles for doors
Grinders and scrapers and sanders for floors
Rake for the gravel, chains for the snow
Always got the shovel - you never know
I never thought you’d go

Man’s broken down
Man’s broken down on the slip road
Got a slipped load
And it’s a hard shoulder to cry on

Hacksaws and hammers, brushes and mop
Then I’ve got the ladders up on the top
If something needs doing, I always say
You want it done the proper way
I need you to stay

Man’s broken down
Man’s broken down on the slip road
Got a slipped load
And it’s a hard shoulder to cry on

Give me a minute we’ll be going again
Sound as a pound, right as rain
- right as rain
And it’s a hard shoulder to cry on
- to cry on

▲ TOP



  YOU CAN'T BEAT THE HOUSE

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

You can’t fool a fooler
I can tell
when a john got jazzed
by a jezebel
You can’t beat the house
You can’t beat the house
Tell the man somebody
You can’t beat the house

When these horn dogs
get lucky with dough
they’ll blow it on the roosters
and the girls of Smokey Row
You can’t beat the house
You can’t beat the house
Now tell the man somebody
You can’t beat the house

You want to buy you a dance
don’t buy it in here
It’s all skin games and jelly roll
red-eye and beer
They’re all as mean as rat snakes
all got knives in their boots
Even the piano player, man,
he don’t care who he shoots

See that little homewrecker
in the backroom
She’ll pick your pocket
with her pet raccoon
You can’t beat the house
You can’t beat the house
Tell the man, somebody
You can’t beat the house

▲ TOP



  BEFORE GAS AND TV

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

Before gas and TV
before people had cars
we’d sit round the fires
pass around a guitar
remembering songs
When my daddy was home
he’d play along
on the spoons and a comb

We’d go with the flow
When the weather was fine
sometimes we’d go
collecting scrap iron
Then we’d sit round the fires
pass a bottle of wine
and the tales of the road
since time out of mind

If heaven’s like this
well, that’s okay with me
where the living is fine
and living is free
If heaven’s like this
well, then here’s where I’ll be
on the edge of the field
on the edge of the world
before gas and TV

▲ TOP



  MONTELEONE

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

The chisels are calling
It’s time to make sawdust
Steely reminders of things left to do
Monteleone, a mandolin’s waiting for you

My finger planes working
Gentle persuasion
I bend to the wood and I coax it to sing
Monteleone, your new one and only will ring
Monteleone, your new one and only will ring

The rain on the window, the snow on the gravel
the seasons go by to the songs in the wood
Too quick or too careless it all could unravel
It so easily could

The chisels are calling
It’s back for an encore
Back to the shavings that cover the floor
Monteleone, they’re calling for more
Monteleone, they’re calling for more

▲ TOP



  CLEANING MY GUN

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

I keep a weather eye on the horizon, my back to the wall
I like to know who’s coming through the door, that’s all
It’s the old army training kicking in
I’m not complaining, it’s the world we live in

Blarney and Malarkey, they’re a devious firm
They’ll take you to the cleaners or let you burn
The help is breaking dishes in the kitchen - thanks a lot
We hired the worst dishwasher this place ever got
Come in below the radar, they want to spoil our fun
In the meantime I’m cleaning my gun

Remember it got so cold ice froze up the tank
We lit a fire beneath her just so she would crank
I keep a weather eye on the horizon, tap the stormglass now and then
I’ve got a case of Old Damnation for when you get here, my friend
We can have ourselves a party before they come
In the meantime I’m cleaning my gun

We had women and a mirror ball, we had a dee jay
used to eat pretty much all that came his way
Ever since the goons came in and took apart the place
I keep a tyre iron in the corner, just in case

I gave you a magic bullet on a little chain
to keep you safe from the chilly winds and out of the rain
We’re gonna might need bullets should we get stuck
Any which way, we’re going to need a little luck
You can still get gas in Heaven, and a drink in Kingdom Come
In the meantime I’m cleaning my gun

▲ TOP



  THE CAR WAS THE ONE

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

In summer ‘63 I was staying alive
hanging at the races, hoping to drive
When they were done with the weekend and loading the cars
I couldn’t get a pass so I went to the bar

I'm up in the corner nursing a beer
who should come laughing and joking in here
but Bobby Brown, the winner of the sports car race
with some friends and a girl, man, she lit up the place

Bobby was a wild boy - one summer
he knocked down a motel wall with a hammer
He'd do anything - one night for a bet
he raced through the cornfields in a Corvette

I thought it's got to be a thrill to be like that
with the beautiful girl and be king of the track
But the truth is when all was said and done
it was his Cobra I wanted - the car was the one
It was his Cobra I wanted - the car was the one
The car was the one - the car was the one

▲ TOP



  REMEMBRANCE DAY

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

On your maypole green
see the winding morris men
Angry Alfie, Bill and Ken
waving hankies, sticks and boots
- all the earth and roots

Standing at the crease
the batsman takes a look around
The boys are fielding on home ground
The steeple sharp against the blue
- when I think of you

Sam and Andy, Jack and John
Charlie, Martin, Jamie, Ron
Harry, Stephen, Will and Don
Matthew, Michael - on and on

We will remember them
remember them, remember them
We will remember them
remember them, remember them

Time has slipped away
The summer sky to autumn yields
A haze of smoke across the fields
Let’s up and fight another round
and walk the stubbled ground

When November brings
the poppies on Remembrance Day
when the vicar comes to say
‘May God bless them, every one
Lest we forget our sons’

We will remember them
remember them, remember them
We will remember them
remember them, remember them

▲ TOP



  GET LUCKY

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

I’m better with my muscles
than I am with my mouth
I’ll work the fairgrounds in the summer
or go pick fruit down south
And when I feel them chilly winds
where the weather goes I’ll follow
Pack up my travelling things
go with the swallows
And I might get lucky now and then - you win some
I might get lucky now and then - you win some

I wake up every morning
keep an eye on what I spent
Got to think about eating
got to think about paying the rent
I always think it’s funny -
gets me every time
The one about happiness and money -
tell it to the bread line
But you might get lucky now and then - you win some
You might get lucky now and then - yeah, you win some

Now I’m rambling through this meadow
happy as a man can be
Think I’ll just lay me down
under this old tree
On and on we go
through this old world a’ shuffling
If you’ve got a truffle dog
you can go truffling
And you might get lucky now and then - you win some
You might get lucky now and then - yeah, you win some

▲ TOP



  SO FAR FROM THE CLYDE

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

They had a last supper
the day of the beaching
She’s a dead ship sailing
- skeleton crew
The galley is empty
the stove pots are cooling
with what’s left of a stew

Her time is approaching
The captain moves over
The hangman steps in
to do what he’s paid for
With the wind and the tide
she goes proud ahead steaming
and he drives her hard into the shore

so far from the Clyde
together we’d ride
we did ride

As if to a wave
from her bows to her rudder
bravely she rises
to meet with the land
Under their feet
they all feel her keel shudder
A shallow sea washes their hands

Later the captain
shakes hands with the hangman
and climbs slowly down
to the oily wet ground
Goes bowed to the car
that has come here to take him
through the graveyard and back to the town

so far from the Clyde
together we’d ride
we did ride

They pull out her cables
and hack off her hatches
Too poor to be wasteful
with pity or time
They swarm on her carcass
with torches and axes
Like a whale on the bloody shoreline

Stripped of her pillars
her stays and her stanchions
When there’s only her bones
on the wet, poisoned land
steel ropes will drag her
with winches and engines
‘til there’s only a stain on the sand

so far from the Clyde
together we’d ride
we did ride
so far from the Clyde
together we’d ride
we did ride

▲ TOP



  PIPER TO THE END

(released on 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler)

When I leave this world behind me
to another I will go
And if there are no pipes in heaven
I’ll be going down below
If friends in time be severed
someday we will meet again
I’ll return to leave you never
be a piper to the end

This has been a day to die for
Now the day is almost done
Up above, a quiet seabird
turns to face the setting sun
Now the evening dove is calling
and all the hills are burning red
And before the night comes falling
clouds are lined with golden thread

We watched the fires together
shared our quarters for a while
walked the dusty roads together
came so many miles

This has been a day to die on
Now the day is almost done
Here the pipes will lay beside me
silent with the battle drum
If friends in time be severed
someday we will meet again
I’ll return to leave you never
be a piper to the end

▲ TOP



  EARLY BIRD

(released as an i-Tunes bonus track from 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

Got no books in my house
Got no time for those
No room in my closets
Closets full of clothes
Garage full of wheels, babe
Boathouse full of boat
The lifestyle ideal, babe
That’s what gets my vote

All the villa’s on the hillsides
Got to have a view of the sea
The villas of the empire
Way back in history
They had slaves for the galleys and the kitchens
The gardens and the vines
Slaves for the beautiful people
Bring water, food and wine

A slave to tie your bib
Another one to carry it
So now dig my crib
And dig my chariot

Dig my crib and my long black Cadillac
Coming for to carry me home
Dig my crib and my long black Cadillac
Coming for to carry me home

England calls me vulgar
I’d call myself refined
Goodbye, old England
Simon’s off to sunny climes
Look who’s doing it now, babe
Look who’s doing it now
Look who’s doing it now, babe
Look who’s doing it now

Always was an early bird
With something on the side
Better buy this, better buy that
Hey, better let that baby ride
Out here every day is hot
And I’m talking to my man
Working this, working that
Working on my master plan

A slave to tie your bib
Another one to carry it
So now dig my crib
And dig my chariot

Dig my crib and my long black Cadillac
Coming for to carry me home
Dig my crib and my long black Cadillac
Coming for to carry me home

Now here's the hot tub, here's the gym
Here's the pool that I swum in
Up the stairs my footprints led
Into the bedroom, to my bed
Up the stairs my footprints led
To where I laid my buzzing head
To sleep the long sleep of the dead
I’m and early bird, that’s what I said

▲ TOP



  PULLING DOWN THE RIDE

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe Limited Edition Box Set from 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

I’ve been under the motor, she’s losing oil,
Been running, on lies and alcohol
I’m gone, boys I’m gone
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride

I ain’t standing you no more rounds
No more stuffing your pockets with pounds
I’m gone, boys I’m gone
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride

Well, fixed the fuses,now the brakes won’t budge
It’s late, I’m tired, and I’m as sober as a judge
And I’m gone, boys I’m gone
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride

I’m tired of looking in the mirror
Seeing those cars behind
Yeah and all these towns
Are nothing but a hard old grind

Well, if you thought I’d never leave
I won’t worry and I won’t grieve
I’m gone, boys I’m gone
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride
Soon as we’re done pulling down the ride

▲ TOP



  HOME BOY

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe Limited Edition Box Set from 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

Oh, home boy
Not exactly on a roll here
Just growing old here
Home boy

Oh, home boy
You’ve not been catching many waves here
Not been catching many trains
Out of here
Home boy

Never one to wonder
Never one to dream
Happy with the game of darts and the team
Can’t tear yourself away
Even for a holiday
Home boy

And you know every bend in every road
That takes you back to town
It’s your homeground

Never one to wonder
Never one to dream
Happy with the game of darts and the team
Can’t tear yourself away
Even for a holiday
Home boy

Oh, home boy
Not exactly on a roll here
Just growing old here
Home boy
Home boy

▲ TOP



  GOOD AS GOLD

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe Limited Edition Box Set from 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

Beer and wine, waste of time - what have you got handy?
Got any whisky, got any gin? Have you got any brandy?
Beer and wine, waste of time - what have you got handy?
Got any whisky, got any gin? Have you got any brandy?
Don’t lock me out - don’t leave me in the cold
If you’ll only take me back, I’ll be good as gold

I met a man, name of Stan, had a dog called Cory
Lost my dough at Pompano but that’s another story
I don’t want no champagne fizz, I don’t want no shandy
Don’t want a Goodnight Kiss, it’s just sugar candy
Don’t lock me out - don’t leave me in the cold
If you’ll only take me back, I’ll be good as gold

Baby, I guarantee you're going to see the man you used to know
No more easy come for me - no more easy go

Beer and wine, waste of time - what have you got handy?
Got any whisky, got any gin? Have you got any brandy?
Beer and wine, waste of time - what have you got handy?
Got any whisky, got any gin? Have you got any brandy?
Don’t lock me out - don’t leave me in the cold
If you’ll only take me back, I’ll be good as gold
Baby, I'll be good as gold
Believe me, I'll be good as gold

▲ TOP



  TIME IN THE SUN

(released as an i-Tunes bonus track from 'Get lucky', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


Everybody wants their time in the sun
Time in the sun
You've got it now, your time in the sun
Time in the sun
Time in the sun
Time in the sun

Round here you don't get time in the sun
Time in the sun
You don't get the ball, you don't get to run
Time in the sun
Time in the sun
Time in the sun

Try, try, try - no cigar
Time in the sun
Pull over here - get out of the car
Time in the sun
Time in the sun
Time in the sun

▲ TOP



  THE WAY IT ALWAYS STARTS

(released on 'Local Hero' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler, vocals by Gerry Rafferty)

It gets so dark before the dawn
That's when it gets to me
Before the city symphony of taxi horns
That's the way it always starts
Sitting here and waiting on the beating of my heart

Last night I thought I heard my name
Well it was too dark to see, but it had to be
The voice was just the same
That's the way it always starts
Sitting here and waiting on the beating of my heart

So tell me why should it have to be this way
Why can't it be all right
Why can't I sleep at night?
Why should it have to be this way?
Why must there be this price to pay?

Now all the streets are dark and bare
Oh, if you can live in this town
And stick around, you can live anywhere
That's the way it always starts
Sitting here and waiting on the beating of my heart

▲ TOP



  STORYBOOK LOVE

(released on 'The Princess Bride' soundtrack, written and sung by Willy DeVille)

Come my love I'll tell you a tale
Of a boy and girl and their love story
And how he loved her oh so much
And all the charms she did possess
Now this did happen once upon a time
When things were not so complex
How he worshipped the ground she walked
And when he looked in her eyes he became obsessed

My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
It's as real as the feelings I feel

This love was stronger than the powers so dark
A prince could have within his keeping
His spells to weave and steal a heart
Within her breast but only sleeping

My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
It's as real as the feelings I feel

Now he said, "Don't you know I love you oh so much
And lay my heart at the foot of your dress?"
She said, "Don't you know that these storybook loves
Always have a happy ending?"
Then he swooped her up just like in the books
And on his stallion they rode away

My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
My love is like a storybook story
But it's as real as the feelings I feel
It's as real as the feelings I feel

▲ TOP

 

  METROLAND

(released on 'Metroland' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler)

Yearning, we were yearning
Green light blinding on the rail
Burning, we were burning
And the line unwinding to the Holy Grail
To the future gleaming on a blue horizon
And a golden girl on golden sand
Dreaming, fantasizing
In another world from Metroland
I've danced in rain and I've been Django
And I've got laid
I've been a rolling stone
I've been Verlaine
And I've been Rimbaud
Not afraid to walk alone
And now I take my midnight ramble
Do I fold or play what's in my hand
What's at stake and what's the gamble
Do I stay in Metroland

Dreams, yesterday's laughter
Ghosts and lovers come back to play
But dreams have a morning after
And run for cover
In the light of day
I got something real, worth holding on to
I can belong to and understand
I've made my deal
I will go on to
Make my peace with Metroland

▲ TOP



  WAG THE DOG

(released on 'Wag the dog' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler)

Now you can do the watusi
You can do it if you try
Any puppy Dog or pussy
Can do the jerk or do the fly
Now you can do the wooly bully
But can you pull the wooly wooly
Can you wag, can you wag the dog
You got the shimmy and the hustle
It's all the rage downtown
Yeh, you don't have to have the muscle
To get into the mess around
'cos you can do the wooly bully
But can you pull the wooly wooly
Can you wag, can you wag the dog

So make him sit, make him stay
Come to heel, go to play
Roll him over, lie still
Make him go kill, attaboy
Wag that dog, baby

You have had the duck and mashed potato
Funky chicken on a roll
Move on up a little later
To the monkey and the stroll
Now you can do the wooly bully
But can you pull the wooly wooly
Can you wag, can you wag the dog

Now go bow, bow wow wow
Now go woof, woof woof woof
Yeh, that's right, wag the dog

The locomotion boogaloo
The hully gully and the limbo too
Wag that dog

Yeh, hitchhike for me baby
Now we're barefootin'
The funky funky penguin

That's the bug, and that's the frug
Yeh, but can you wag
Wag the dog, can you wag the dog
Wag the dog, can you wag the dog


▲ TOP




  HE'S THE MAN

(released on 'A shot at glory' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler)

What he got
The others have not
He's the man
I said what he got
The others have not
He's the man

Has to be done
To be number one
When the ? is down
He'll turn it around
'cause first there's the best
And then there's the rest
And he's the man

He's the man
He's the man
He's the man

He's the man
He's the man
He's the man

What he got
The others have not
He's the man
I said what he got
The others have not
And he's the man

Has to be done
To be number one
When the ? is down
He'll turn it around
'cause first there's the best
And then there's the rest
And he's the man

He's the man
He's the man
He's the man

He's the man
He's the man
He's the man

First there's the best
And then there's the rest
And he's the man
First there's the best
And then there's the rest
He's the man

Yeah
He's the man

▲ TOP



  SAY TOO MUCH

(released on 'A shot at glory' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler)

You better kiss me baby
Before you say too much
You better kiss me baby
Before you say too much

Say too much
Say too much
Say too much
Say too much

▲ TOP



  ALL THAT I HAVE IN THE WORLD

(released on 'A shot at glory' soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler)

Don't leave me don't leave me
I'm begging of you
My prescious, my only sweet girl
Don't leave me don't leave me
I'll die if you do
And you're all that I have in the world
You're all that I have in the world

I care not for treasures of silver and gold
I care not for diamonds and pearls
Love may not be measured or traded or sold
And you're all that I have in the world
You're all that I have in the world

Not a word of a warning would you give to me
My prescious, my only sweet girl
You'd leave me in the morning
And I'll be calling for you
And you're all that I have have in the world
You're all that I have in the world

▲ TOP



  RAILROAD WORKSONG

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', traditional arrangement The Notting Hillbillies)

Working on a railroad for a dollar a day
Working on a railroad for a dollar a day
Working on a railroad good buddy for a dollar a day
Gotta get my money gotta get my pay

Take this hammer take it to the captain
Take this hammer take it to the captain
Take this hammer good buddy take it to the captain
Tell him I'm gone tell him I'm gone

If he asks you was I running
If he asks you was I running
If he asks you good buddy was I running
Tell him I was flying tell him I was flying

If he asks you was I laughing
If he asks you was I laughing
If he asks you good buddy was I laughing
Tell him I was crying tell him I was crying

This old hammer rings like silver
This old hammer rings like silver
This old hammer good buddy rings like silver
Shine like gold good buddy and it shine like gold

Working on a railroad for a dollar a day
Working on a railroad for a dollar a day
Working on a railroad good buddy for a dollar a day
Gotta get my money gotta get my pay
Gotta get my money gotta get my pay
Gotta get my money gotta get my pay

▲ TOP



  BEWILDERED

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by Whitcup / Powell)

Bewildered
Lost in a dream of you
Where is the love that I once knew
Why did we part?
Bewildered
I'm helpless without you dear
Wishing your heart could hear
What's in my heart

Why must I have theses sleepless nights
And endless days
But love, you took my soul
Without a thought
I'm in the dark

Bewildered
I need your guiding hand
I will never understand
Why did you leave me bewildered

Why must I have theses sleepless nights
And endless days
But love, you took my soul
Without a thought
I'm in the dark

Bewildered
I need your guiding hand
I will never understand
How could you leave me bewildered

▲ TOP



  YOUR OWN SWEET WAY

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by Mark Knopfler)

There is nothing I can do
Nothing I can say
You'll do what you want to
You'll go your own sweet way
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way

Now I can talk to you serious
I can talk to you nice
But when it comes to love
You won't take good advice
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way

It doesn't matter what I say
What I do or what I think
You can lead a horse to water
You can't make him drink
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way
You'll go your own sweet
Your own sweet way

▲ TOP



  RUN ME DOWN

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', traditional arrangement The Notting Hillbillies)

You gotta run me down you gotta run me down
If you want to contact me you gotta run me down

I got work to do I'm the busiest man in town
If you want to contact me you gotta run me down

When I gets my dough I'm kinda hard to find
If you want me to pay your bills you gotta run me down

Now the rooster he crowed an them old hens looked around
Said if you want to make love you gotta run me down

When I had my money you used to follow me around
Now I have got broke you gotta run me down

▲ TOP



  ONE WAY GAL

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', traditional arrangement The Notting Hillbillies)

One thing I like about this gal of mine
One thing I like about this gal of mine
One thing I like about this gal of mine
She treats me right and loves me all the time

Sometimes I'm broke and blue as I can be
Sometimes I'm broke and blue as I can be
Sometimes I'm broke and blue as I can be
But still my baby she looks after me

She walked in the rain till her feet got soaking wet
She walked in the rain till her feet got soaking wet
She walked in the rain till her feet got soaking wet
And this she said to every man she met

Mister change a dollar - gimme a lousy dime
Mister change a dollar - gimme a lousy dime
Mister change a dollar - gimme a lousy dime
So I can feed that hungry man of mine

That gal of mine she's one way all the time
That gal of mine she's one way all the time
That gal of mine she's one way all the time
She takes the blues away and satisfies my mind

▲ TOP



  BLUES STAY AWAY FROM ME

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by Alton Delmore / R. Delmore / Wayne Raney / Henry Glover)

Blues stay away from me
Blues why don't you let me be
Don't know why
You keep on haunting me

Love was never meant for me
True love was never meant for me
Seems somehow
We never can agree

Life is full of misery
Dreams are like a memory
Bringing back
Your love that used to be

Tears so many I can't see
Years don't mean a thing to me
Time goes by
And I still can't be free

▲ TOP



  WILL YOU MISS ME

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by
Steve Phillips)

Will you miss me, will you miss me
Will you miss me, will you miss me
Will you miss me, miss me when I'm gone

Did you ever dream lucky, wake up cold in hand
Do you look at the stars in the heavens above
Do you sleep on the pillow where my head used to lay
While the moonbeams flicker 'cross your window pane
I'm on my way from here, don't know where I'm going

I'm rolling, rolling down that road
I'm rolling, rolling down that road
Just dreaming about the days of long ago

When darkness falls across the land
There's a shadow cast in the heart of a man
Though the flame of desire burns bright as a star
I hear a cry on the wind like a voice from afar
I'm a stranger here don't know where I'm going

I'm rolling, rolling down that road
I'm rolling, rolling down that road
Just dreaming about the days of long ago

Will you miss me, will you miss me
Will you miss me, will you miss me
Will you miss me, miss me when I'm gone

▲ TOP



  PLEASE BABY

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', traditional arrangement The Notting Hillbillies)

Please baby - please please baby
Won't you come back to your daddy one more time

Please baby - please please baby
When I get my money I will give you my last dime

When you left me babe, you left me feeling so blue
You know that I didn't love no-one but you
Please baby - please please baby
Won't you come back to your daddy one more time

I'm so blue baby, I'm, I'm so blue baby
I can't sleep at night
I can't hardly talk from crying
You know baby, you, you know baby
You always forever on my mind
Since you've been gone I can't sleep at night
Why don't you take my meals I can't eat a bite
Please baby, please please baby
Won't you come back to your daddy one more time

When you left me babe you left me feeling so blue
You know that I didn't love no-one but you
Please baby - please please baby
Won't you come back to your daddy one more time

▲ TOP



  WEAPON OF PRAYER

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by I. Louvin / C. Louvin)

In that land across the sea there's a job for you and me
Though our presence there may not be found
We must stay standing there on the battle lines and pray
We must never lay our weapons down

We don't have to be a soldier in a uniform
To be of service over there
While the boys so bravely stand with the weapons made by hand
Let us trust and use the weapon of prayer

Many thousands miles away someone shed there blood today
With a heart so true and brave they're gone
To a war that's yours and mine let us join the battle line
With a weapon that will save our home

We don't have to be a soldier in a uniform
To be of service over there
While the boys so bravely stand with the weapons made by hand
Let us trust and use the weapon of prayer

And when the planes and tanks and guns have done all that they can do
And the mighty bombs have rained and failed
Still the helpful hand above, on the weapon made of love
And against him none on earth prevail

▲ TOP



  THAT'S WHERE I BELONG

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by Brendan Croker)

Show me a place where I don't have to worry
And that's where I belong
Show me a place where I don't have to hurry
And that's where I belong
Give me the time, so I can change my mind
Where it don't matter if I'm wrong
Show me a place where I don't have to worry
And that's where I belong

▲ TOP



  FEEL LIKE GOING HOME

(released on 'Missing... presumed having a good time', written by Charlie Rich)

Lord I feel like going home
I tried and I failed and I'm tired and weary
Everything I ever done was wrong
And I feel like going home

Lord I tried to see it through
But it was too much for me
And now I'm coming home to you
And I feel like going home

Cloudy skies are rolling in
And not a friend around to help me
From all the places I have been
And I feel like going home

Lord I feel like going home
I tried and I failed and I'm tired and weary
Everything I ever done was wrong
And I feel like going home

▲ TOP



  LONESOME WIND BLUES

(released on the B-side of the single 'Feel like going home', written by Wayne Raney)

I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
I know my love is gone too
I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
'cause I'm blue, lonesome blue

She's gone so far, that's why I'm leaving
left me here alone among the trees
And all that I have left is just a memory
And it always haunts me with a breeze

I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
I know my love is gone too
I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
'cause I'm blue, lonesome blue

I leave today to try to find my darlin'
I don't know where on earth she can be
I know that I can never live without her
Each night in dreams her face is all I see

I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
I know my love has gone too
I hear the wind blowin' through the lonesome pines
That's why I'm blue, lonesome blue

▲ TOP



  POOR BOY BLUES

(released on 'Neck and neck', written by P. Kennerley)

Do I want you? Yes I do
Do I need you? Baby you know it's true
But I ain't got nothin' that you can use
So I'm sittin' on my own here, with these poor boy blues

One day, baby, you will see
You're gonna give all your love to me
I'm the one, babe, that you're gonna choose
But in the meantime, I got these poor boy blues

Pick it son, pick it nice

Things won't always be the same
Someday soon, everything will change
You'll tell your mama her baby's got good news
But until then, well, I got these poor boy blues
But until then, well, I got these poor boy blues

▲ TOP



  THERE'LL BE SOME CHANGES MADE

(released on 'Neck and neck', written by Billy Higgins and Benton Overstreet)

There'll be a change in the weather and a change in the scene
How is that?
I'm gonna start wearin' leather and change my routine
I'll wear dark glasses maybe a toupee
I'll get down and boogie and become risque
I'll start wearin' make-up like Jackson and Prince
You'll see me ridin' in my Mercedes Benz
Nobody wants you when you just play guitar
There'll be some changes made tomorrow
There'll be some changes made

Y'know Chet, you're never gonna get to play that rock & roll
Why is that?
You're kinda country, a little bit old
That hurts
But your money for nothin' and your chicks for free
Well, them groupie girls ain't what they're cracked up to be
Well not all of them anyway

Well I'd really like to find out for myself, don't you know
I've had a kind of quiet life down here on music row
Oh I know
Well uh... like a man, what do you think?
Man, I don't know
I really think that I can make the grade
Daddy-o Daddy-o
There'll be some changes made

I think I was sharp there
Just play one - just play
Yeah
You've played before
Watch it, watch it
Stand back boy

Well I'd really like... to find out for myself,
Don't you know. 'Cause
Like I said I've had a sheltered life
Down here on music row
I don't believe so
Well what... what do you think, Mark?
I dunno
I really think that I can make the grade
There'll be some changes made

Now listen to this I'm gonna play some rock and roll
There'll be some changes made... Yeah
There'll be some changes made
Now let's all play
Anybody hurt?

I learned this at... at summer Bible school
Well, I never could trust a saint
I'm only a part-time saint
Pretty good but you're no Mark Knopfler

What about that one there?
Not all that bad
I like that
I like that
Don't make me look bad now, don't make me look bad
Respect for your elders
There'll be some changes made

▲ TOP



  JUST ONE TIME

(released on 'Neck and Neck', written by Don Gibson)

If I could see you just one time
Oh how it'd ease my troubled mind
If I could hold you just one time
And then pretend that you're still mine

Oh, how I miss you so
Oh I need you so
I'd give this heart of mine
If I could see you just one time

Lips that used to thrill me so
They now thrill someone else I know
Gone is the love that once was mine
Wish I could see you just one time

Oh, how I miss you so
Oh I need you so
I'd give this heart of mine
If I could see you just one time

Wish I could relive just one time
Turn back the pages and there I'd find
That same old love that once was mine
Wish I could see you just one time

Oh, how I miss you so
Oh I need you so
I'd give this heart of mine
If I could see you just one time

Wish I could see you just one time
Wish I could see you just one time

▲ TOP



  YAKETY AXE

(released on 'Neck and neck', written by M. Travis)

Poverty stricken but still I'm a-stickin' to the things I know to be facts
One day it's feathers and the next day chicken while I'm pickin' my yakety axe
Ev'rybody says that I never will get far, keepin' out of work by pickin' this guitar
Livin' on a shoe-string, puttin' off things like a shave and a hair cut

Money don't matter as long as I scatter a little bit of happiness around
If people keep a grinnin' I figure I'm a winnin' my good old yakety sound
City folks go around turnin' up their noses and countin' their greenbacks and smellin' their roses
But I wouldn't trade my yakety axe, even for a T-bone

I'm confessin' I never took a lesson, all my notes are a matter of guessin'
Hopin' they'll come out in some kinda of manner that'll make the yakety sound
So if you're in the mood and your feet start tappin'
And you feel laid back and your hands start clappin'
Then I'll have done what I wanted to from way back
You're diggin' my yakety axe

Now, a pick

▲ TOP



  THE NEXT TIME I'M IN TOWN

(released on 'Neck and neck', written by Mark Knopfler)

Now it's been somethin' seein' you again
In this time we've had to spend
You've been so good to be around
I thank you for that special thrill
Keep me going on until
The next time I'm in town

Though I won't be back here for a while
Or hear your laughter, see you smile
And I'll remember what went down
I can't tell you how or when
But I'll be seeing you again
The next time I'm in town

Now the places and the faces range
'cross the bridge of time and change
Once again I'm homeward bound
There's one thing I promise you
And that's another rendezvous
The next time I'm in town

Now it's been something seeing you again
And in this time we've had to spend
You've been so good to be around
And I thank you for that special thrill
Keep me goin' on until
The next time I'm in town

It's been something seeing you again
And in this time we've had to spend
You've been so good to be around
And I thank you for that special thrill
Keep me goin' on until
The next time I'm in town

It's been something seeing you again
And in this time we've had to spend
You've been so good to be around
And I thank you for that special thrill
Keep me goin' on until
The next time I'm in town

'Til the next time I'm in town
'Til the next time I'm in town

▲ TOP



  BEACHCOMBING

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

They say there's wreckage washing up
All along the coast
No-one seems to know too much
Or who got hit the most
Nothing has been spoken
There's not a lot to see
But something has been broken
That's how it feels to me

We had a harmony
I never meant to spoil
Now it's lying in the water
Like a slick of oil
The tide is running out to sea
Under a darkening sky
The night is falling down on me
And I'm thinking that I should

Head on home
Been gone to long
Leave my roaming
Beachcombing

Little wild kitten out hunting
To see what he can get
You're in a big city now
That won't stop growing yet
The sun is going down smoking
A flaming testament
Something has been broken
And it feels permanent

Little seabird flying
He know where he wants to go
Guess I ought to pack my stuff
And do the thing I know
I turn around and head on back
Along the old sea wall
I felt something give and crack
And know I'm sorry that's all

Head on home
Been gone to long
Leave my roaming
Beachcombing

▲ TOP



  I DUG UP A DIAMOND

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

I dug up a diamond
Rare and fine
I dug up a diamond
In a deep dark mine
If only I could cling to
My beautiful find
I dug up a diamond
In a deep dark mine

My gem is special
Beyond all worth
As strong as any metal
Or a stone in the earth
Sharp as any razor
Or a blade you can buy
Bright as any laser
Or any star in the sky

Maybe once in a lifetime
You'll hold one in your hand
Once in a lifetime
In this land
Where the journey ends
In a worthless claim
Time and again
In the mining game

I dug up a diamond
Rare and fine
I dug up a diamond
In a deep dark mine
Down in the darkness
In the dirt and the grime
I dug up a diamond
In a deep dark mine

▲ TOP



  THIS IS US

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

This is us down at the Mardi gras
This is us in your daddy's car
You and the missing link
Yeah, I'd had a little too much to drink, now
Too long in the sun
Having too much fun
You and me and our memories
This is us

Rocking at the barbecue
Yeah, when we said I do
Hand jiving on the ballroom floor
You in that wedding coat you wore
And you in that amazing dress
I was stoned on love, I guess
You and me we were meant to be
This is us

This is us on our honeymoon
In our hotel room
Sitting by the wishing well
Checking out of the love motel
Making plans for the sunshine state
Waiting at the terminal gate
You and me making history
This is us

And our baby boy
With our pride and joy
You at the Sunday game
Standing next to what's his name
On our anniversary
With the family
You and me and our memories
This is us

▲ TOP



  RED STAGGERWING

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

If I was a staggerwing plane
A staggerwing painted red
I'd fly over to your house, baby
Buzz you in your bed
If I was a taperwing
A taperwing painted blue
I'd be barrel-rolling over you
You're gonna need a rider anyhow
Let me be your rider now

If I was a maserati
A red 300s
I'd ride around to your house, baby
Give you a driving test
If I was a mustang racer
White with a stripe of blue
You could ride me, baby
Whenever you wanted to
You're gonna need a rider anyhow
Let me be your rider now

If I was a fender guitar
A fender painted red
You could play me, darlin'
Until your fingers bled
If I was one of them gibsons
Like a '58 or '9
You could plug me in
And play me any time
You're gonna need a rider anyhow
Let me be your rider now

If I was a motorcycle
A Vincent red rapide
I'd ride around to your house, baby
Get you up to speed
If I was a short track racer
I'd be an Indian
You could ride me around
And ride me around again
You're gonna need a rider anyhow
Let me be your rider now
You're gonna need a rider anyhow
Let me be your rider now

▲ TOP



  ROLLIN' ON

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

Been kicking sawdust
In these clothes
For a blue moon
And a red nose
The boys'll put 'em up
And tear 'em down
We'll wash away
The dirt
Just a glass a day
Ain't gonna hurt
Pretty soon we'll move on
Out of town

We pass them by
Across the plains
We don't even try
To catch the names
It's supper time and their kids
Are home from school
They draw the shades
On their shops
While we go a' checking
Trough the props
And putting on the paint
To play the fool

Then we're rollin' on
Rollin' on
Feeling better
Than we did last night
Rollin' on, rollin' on
It's hard sometimes
Pretty much it's alright

I'll go soft shoe
When it rains
I'll go shuffle trough
The aches and pains
Mr. Young at heart
That's what I try to be
They all laugh
And cry
They get to feeling better
And that Is why
If it was good for you
Truly it was good for me

Then we're rollin' on
Rollin' on
Feeling better
Than we did last night
Rollin' on, rollin' on
It's hard sometimes
Pretty much it's alright

▲ TOP



  LOVE AND HAPPINESS

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Emmylou Harris and Kimmie Rhodes)

Here's a wishing well
Here's a penny for
Any tough it is
That makes you smile
Every diamond dream
Everything that brings
Love and happiness
To your life

Here's a rabbit's foot
Take it when you go
So you'll always know
You're safe from harm
Wear you ruby shoes
When you're far away
So you'll always stay
Home in your heart

You will always have the lucky star
That shines because of what you are
Even in the deepest dark
Because your aim is true
And if I could only have one wish
Darling, then it would be this
Love and happiness for you

Here's a spinning wheel
Use it once you've learned
There's a way to turn
The straw to gold
Here's a rosary
Count on every bead
With a prayer to keep
The hope you hold

You will always have the lucky star
That shines because of what you are
Even in the deepest dark
Because your aim is true
And if I could only have one wish
Darling, then it would be this
Love and happiness for you
And if I could only have one wish
Darling, then it would be this
Love and happiness for you

▲ TOP



  RIGHT NOW

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

Miles between us here we are
Side by side in a stranded car
Right now, baby right now
And it's to dark to see
Anyhow so where are we
Right now, baby right now
You could say we're both come down
To a place called lonesome town
When did you lose a hold on me
Anyhow and where are we
Right now, baby right now

We stood up and said 'I 'do
Vowed to see each other through
Right now, baby right now
I'm looking down this road tonight
And I don't see a light
Right now, baby right now
If we're so clever tell me how
We're waiting for the wrecker now
Let's forget what used to be
Anyhow and where are we
Right now, baby right now

▲ TOP



  DONKEY TOWN

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

I've been around in donkey town
Too long, baby, too long
Checking out of donkey town
So long, so long, so long

Her pretty eyes are pretty still
But Jim's got a kind of a squint, yeah
I dug my last check from out of the mine
Now I feel like I've done my stint
Jim got an army pension
When he walked from the military court
Nobody ever mention
The medical report

She does little things for me
She likes to get the both of us high, yeah
She says I'm a tender-hearted man
Prince charming, yeah, sure, I'm the guy
He likes the wrecker's dogs on chains
And smoke from the company fires
Diesel oil and the trucks and cranes
And the smell of burning tires

But I've been around in donkey town
Too long, baby, too long
Checking out of donkey town
So long, so long, so long

There's a purple heart in a silver tin
And a gray .45 in a drawer
Most of time you can drink with him
But some of time he's just sore
On days when she says she can't think straight
Or she feels like she's getting the jumps
She'll go shoot off her .38
At cans on the donkey town dump

It was Friday late and she crossed those legs
She told me flat out she would, yeah
If I could pull up my trailer pegs
We could get away together for good
I sure wish her the best of luck
She's going to need it, thinking of Jim
I don't like to leave her stuck
But she's near as bad as him

But I've been around in donkey town
Too long, baby, too long
Checking out of donkey town
So long, so long, so long
Checking out of donkey town
So long, so long, so long

▲ TOP



  BELLE STARR

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Emmylou Harris)

My mamma and my daddy
Told me love is a two-way street
But lately baby, you've been finding
New ways of dragging your feet
Se come on, make your best shot you don't have to take the blame
I'll be your Belle Starr
You can be my Jesse James

There's lonely people everywhere
From Abilene to Arkansas
The way they run for cover
You'd think love was against the law
Well I don't need a pistol, baby
You don't have to rob a train
You can be me Belle Starr
And I can be your Jesse James

I know you've done some hard time
Baby, and you've got your doubts
When you feel surrounded
And it's looking like there's now way out
I'll come riding to your rescue
All you gotta do is call my name
I'll be your Belle Starr
You can be my Jesse James

I don't like a genius, baby
There ain't no big mystery
You can't play it safe
And still go down in history
So saddle up the horses
'cos we're headed for the hall of fame
I'll be your Belle Starr
You can be my Jesse James
I'll be your Belle Starr
You could be my Jesse James

▲ TOP



  BEYOND MY WILDEST DREAMS

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

I didn't ask for as much
As maybe I ought've
But I'm staying in touch
With the one I love
And I can see in the dials
And in these headlight beams
Beyond my wildest
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
I've been with you
I've been with you

These are the big payloads
Hammer down on the floor
These are the restless roads
Every one a war
But in the flashing lines
I see a love supreme
Beyond my wildest
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
I've been with you
I've been with you

They promised me some good home time
And some layover pay
The agent he's a friend of mine
Says it's due my way

I'd drive a thousand miles
Haul a trailer of tears
Just to see you smile
And as the dawn appears
At the edge of the night
There's still a light that gleams
Beyond my wildest
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
Beyond my wildest dreams
I've been with you
I've been with you

▲ TOP



  ALL THE ROADRUNNING

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)

A million miles our vagabond wheels
Clocked up beneath the clouds
They're counting down to show time
When we do it for real with the crowds
Air miles are owing but they don't come for free
And they don't give you any for pain
But if it's all for nothing
All the roadrunning has been in vain

The rim shots come down like cannon fire
And thunder off the wall
There's a man in every corner
And each one is giving his all
But this is my piper and this is my drum
So you never will hear me complain
And if it's all for nothing
All the roadrunning has been in vain

All the roadrunning
All the roadrunning

Well if you're inclined to go up on the wall
It can only be fast and high
And those who don't like the danger soon
Find something different to try
And when there is only a ring in your ears
And en echo down memory lane
Then if it's all for nothing
All the roadrunning has been in vain

All the roadrunning
All the roadrunning

The show's packing up, I sit and watch
The carnival leaving town
And there's no pretending that I'm not a fool
For riding around and around
Like the pictures you keep of your old wall of death
You showed me one time on a plane
But if it's all for nothing
All the roadrunning has been in vain

I've a million miles of vagabond sky
Clocked up above the clouds
And I'm still your man for the roaming
For as long as there's roaming allowed
There'll be a rider and there'll be a wall
As long as the dreamer remains
And if it's all for nothing
All the roadrunning has been in vain

All the roadrunning
All the roadrunning

▲ TOP



  IF THIS IS GOODBYE

(released on 'All the roadrunning', written by Mark Knopfler)
 
My famous last words
Are laying around in tatters
Sounding absurd
Whatever I try
But I love you
And that's all that really matters
If this is goodbye
If this is goodbye

Your bright shining sun
Would light up the way before me
You were the one
Made me feel I could fly
And I love you
Whatever is waiting for me
If this is goodbye
If this is goodbye

Who knows how long we've got
Or what we're made out of
Who knows if there's a plan or not
There is our love
I know there is our love

My famous last words
Could never tell the story
Spinning unheard
In the dark of the sky
But I love you
And this is our glory
If this is goodbye
If this is goodbye

▲ TOP



  I THINK I LOVE YOU TOO MUCH

(released on 'Hell to pay' by Jeff Healey, written by Mark Knopfler. Mark Knopfler also performed this song live himself with The Notting Hillbillies and Dire Straits)

Yes I'm not alone baby, you sit right there
How come I get the feeling, you can vanish into the air
I love you more than anybody loves you
Yes I'm an easy touch
Baby, baby I think I love you too much

If I picked you up, you slip right away
If I locked you up, you find a way to make me pay
You're gonna hurt me more than anybody baby
Yes I'm an easy touch
Baby, baby I think I love you too much

Guess I'm gonna get you what you want
Yeah cause I'm so in you
You don't even give an inch to me baby
Though I've been given you a mile or two

Yes I'm not alone baby, you sit right there
How come I get the feeling, you can vanish into the air
I love you more than anyboby loves you
Yes I'm an easy touch
Baby, baby I think I love you too much

I said baby, baby I think I love you too much
Baby, baby I think I love you too much
Yeah, I love you too much

▲ TOP



  MAKING MOVIES

(never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

Making movies on location
In the heat of the sun
It's a groovy occupation
For everyone, everyone, everyone
Action, action, making movies - take one

All the world for nothing
Down to the corner, down to the waterline
You tell 'em once, you tell 'em twice that you wanna write
Making movies
(...)
Oh yeah! You know I'm okay
(...)

Oh yeah!
You kind of watch them for the sideline in the sea
If you know what I mean
(...)
Oh yeah!
You tell 'em once, you tell 'em twice you wanna go
Making movies
(...)
Oh yeah! If you know what I mean
(...)

Oh yeah!
Want some action, making movies
hold it, hold it
take a break, take a break
(...)
It's a tricky operation

▲ TOP



  NO WONDER HE'S CONFUSED

(demo recording from 1994-1995 for 'Golden heart', never offcially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

Well, he's got to be assertive
But never dominate
But he has got to be receptive
He understand he must relay
And if you get too much protection
You feel your freedom is abused
Well he's everything you're looking for, baby
No wonder he's confused

He can thrill you like a stranger
He can fill your fantasy
He want an element of danger
But you want security
Your love is thrill and dedication
He is good at keeping you amused
Well he's everything you're looking for, baby
No wonder he's confused

Take a little understanding
When you love each other so
You got the right to be demanding
But how is he supposed to know
Well, sometime you want a rebel
Sometime you want a steady hand
You play the handsome devil
Play the boy, play the man
And if you take the wrong direction
Is he going to be accused
He is not everything you're looking for
No wonder he is confused

Yeah, he is not everything you're looking for
No wonder he is confused

▲ TOP



  PRIVATE DANCER

(released on 'Private dancer' by Tina Turner, written by Mark Knopfler and originally planned to be on the 'Love over gold' album)

Well the men come in these places
And the men are all the same
You don't look at their faces
And you don't ask their name
You don't think of them as human
You don't think of them at all
You keep your mind on the money
Keeping your eyes on the wall

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

I want to make a million Dollars
I want to live out by the sea
Have a husband and some children
Yeah I guess I want a family
All the men come in these places
And the men are all the same
You don't look at their faces
And you don't ask their names

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

Deutchmarks or Dollars
American Express will do nicely – thank you
Let me loosen up your collar
Tell me do you want to see me do the Shimmy again

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

Well the men come in these places
And the men are all the same
You don't look at their faces
And you don't ask their name
You don't think of them as human
You don't think of them at all
You keep your mind on the money
Keeping your eyes on the wall

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
I'll do what you want me to do
I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money
And any old music will do

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money

I'm your private dancer
A dancer for money

Just a private dancer
A dancer for money

▲ TOP



  THE LILY OF THE WEST

(released on 'The long black veil' by The Chieftains, written by Paddy Moloney, Paul Brady and Mark Knopfler, sung by Mark Knopfler)

When first I came to Ireland
Some pleasure for to find
It's there I spied a damsel fair
Most pleasin' to my mind
Her rosy cheeks and sparklin' eyes
Like arrows pierced my breast
And they called her lovely Molly O'
The Lily of the West

One day as I was walkin'
Down by a shady grove
I spied a lord of high degree
Conversin' with my love
She sang a song delightfully
While I was sore oppressed
Sayin' I bid adieu to Molly O'
The Lily of the West

I stepped up with my rapier
And my dagger in my hand
And I dragged him from my false love
And boldly bid him stand
But being mad with desperation
I swore I'd pierce his breast
I was then deceived by Molly O'
The Lily of the West

I then did stand my trial
And boldly I did plea
The flaw was in my indictment found
And that soon had me free
That beauty bright I did adore
The judge did her address
"Now go you faithless Molly O'
The Lily of the West"

Now that I've gained my liberty
A roving I will go
I'll ramble through ol' Ireland
and travel Scotland o'er
Though she thought to swear my life away
She still disturbs my rest
I still must style her, Molly O'
The Lily of the West

▲ TOP



  REAL GIRL

(only played live during the early Dire Straits days, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

I want no suckers, head fuckers, bad luckers
Dream buyers, good flyers just lyers
Back biters, up fighters, brighters too
I want a real girl just like you
A real girl just like you

Don't give me no actresses, 'n distresses, 'n strangenesses
Men owners, hard loaners
I just want nocar
Smooth operators just ain't gonna do
I want a real girl, just like you
A real girl just like you

Don't give me no pseuders, prooders, funny fooders
They're just looking for takers, man rapers
don't like selfers, on the shelfers
Don't give a damn. Oh no
I want a real girl, just like you
A real girl just like you

Star gazers, chasers of passing phases
Three weekers, soul seekers, freakers
Speeders, bleeders
Feel only I wanna real girl, just like you
A real girl just like you

Tell her, tell her ...
Only want to have a shelter when things go wrong
Romancer, good dancer
Ice breaker. ..... Love maker

Don't give me no suckers, head fuckers, bad luckers
dream buyers, half lives, just alives
Back biters, uptighters
Happens to...
I want a real girl , just like you
A real girl just like you

▲ TOP

 

  IN MY CAR

(only played live during the early Dire Straits days, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

See the world complaining
See my world go by
Well it's dissappearing
The world is changing fast
It's a blank career
But I don't have to care
Nobody there...

In my car running down the street
In my car but they carry me
In my car yeah in my car is me...

Hit the evening news now, I'm on my radio
Then I have confuse now
I have the stereo
I see a trouble spot
But I don't have a stop
Let it talk...

In my car...

What my car is to me
Till when I don't look back now
You know it ain't so lately go
My car is back
The traffic light is blinking
Left the stop light I go for a wheels
And there is no thinking now
I'm driving wheel
But I don't have to feel
Made out of steel

In my car...

▲ TOP



  SUCKER FOR PUNISHMENT

(never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler. You can see Mark reading these lyrics in the BBC Arena documentary)

I see you in the alley
I see you in the hall
Rolling back like a bowling ball
So I picked you up and threw you on the floor
And all you say is do me some more
Your eye's black, your nose is bent
Have you been in an accident?
You gotta be a sucker for punishment

That's what you're
You like it ready
You like it rough
You're one of these people
You can never get enough
You're all punched in
You're all punched out
You're the one they're laughing about
You're just an embarassment
You must know it's time to go went
You gotta be a sucker for punishment

That's what you're
I wouldn't call you a fancy free
I wouldn't call you a frigid
It wouldn't be so bad for me
If you didn't pull me rigid
So only walk in the name of love
Straight into my box you'd love
You ring me up and say Hi!
You bring me down and I say Goodbye!
Now I'm not too intelligent
But it's you that I resent
Because you're just a sucker for punishment
That's what you are

▲ TOP



  BERNADETTE

(only played live during the early Dire Straits days, never officially released, written by David Knopfler)

Well Bernadette comes
And Bernadette goes
And Berny is changing the bedroom...
She´s nobody´s fool
And Berny get´s thrown out of school
Well she can´t leave alone
So she lives with a man...
To the Jersey land
And it´s a wasted life
And a waste of time
What´s going take to make
You change your mind
She married a fool who´s in love with himself
Don´t give a damn about anyone else...

▲ TOP



  ME AND MY FRIENDS

(only played live during the early Dire Straits days, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

There are actually two versions of this song.


ME AND MY FRIENDS (Polytechnic, Leeds, UK, 30th January 1978)

Me and my band put the music on to dance
Don't know the time of the day.
Oh, yeah, we'd be a pain in the neck
If we couldn't get down and - twist
'Cos it depends upon a [greater surround???]
Everything's going to get [??] [sound??]
Me and my band are putting it down, putting it down in the ground.

Taking it easy I can play that thing
Play it till I'm blue in the face
Just goes to show you need to play them strings
If you want to get a play
I really believe, you can be - come on - funky cooking, cooking I mean
Me and my band* are putting it down, putting it down in the ground

Me and my band put the music on to dance
Don't know the time of the day
Oh, yeah, we'd be a pain in the neck
If we couldn't get down and ----- "play" {said by a different voice....DK??}
'Cos it depends upon the [greatest surround???]
Everything going to get a bunk
Me and my band* are putting it down
putting it down in the ground

Me and my friends are putting it down
putting it down in the ground


* the band seems to sing "me and my friends" but Mark seems to say "me and
my band".


MOVE IT AWAY (Barbarellas, Birmingham, UK 4th July 1978)

Me and my band we can play the music
Don't care about no money or change
Don't get no chance to use it
So we got to get down and play
'Cos it's a band [??] gonna {??] our music
[Living???] we gonna get [????]
Me and my band we are gonna move it.
Move it away.

Gonna move it til [????????????]
Just goes to show I'm going to [?????] it
> ?????
> ?????
> ?????
> ???????
Me and my band we are gonna move it,
Move it away.

▲ TOP



  SUICIDE TOWERS

(never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

Sitting up there
In suicide towers
Days and days
Hours and hours
I´m getting outta here
I´m going outta the door
Ain´t going outta no window

▲ TOP



  TWO SKINNY KIDS

(only played live on 25th June 1998, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

The Everly Brothers are back in town my friend
Will they ever be, they may never be back again
First time around
They all loved their sound
They're back in town my friend

Their daddy took them to the county fair
Especially to see them from Tennessee
They were there
No money for the gate
He took them to the fence and he said to wait
He took them to the county fair

They saw two skinny kids with dusty shoes
Peeking through the fence, at the instruments, begging you
They'll die just to meet with you
Chet, you know they sing good too
Two skinny kids with dusty shoes

Gibson made them Everly guitars
Black as ebony
Bound in ivory
They make the stars
Songs from Dan and Lesley
And a little Bo Diddley
With them Everly guitars

Look where all the years have gone
Singing harmony, you were usually Phil and I was Don
That's how we used to play
Or was it rather the other way?
Look where all the years have gone

▲ TOP
 

 

  IT'S BEEN A WHILE

(only played live on 25th June 1998, unfinished song, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

▲ TOP
 



  ON RAGLAN ROAD

(released on 'The spirit of music', by Sult. Written by the Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh and sung by Mark Knopfler)

On raglan road on an autumn day
I met her first and knew
That her dark hair would weave a snare
That I might one day rue
I saw the danger yet I walked
Along the enchanted way
And I said, "let grief be a fallen leaf
At the dawning of the day."

On grafton street in November
We tripped lightly along the ledge
Of a deep ravine where can be seen
The worth of passions pledge
The queen of hearts still making tarts
And I not making hay
Oh, I loved too much by such, by such
Is happiness blown away

I gave her gifts of the mind
I gave her the secret sign that's known
To the artists who have known the true
Gods of sound and stone
And word and tint I did not stint
For I gave her poems to say
With her own name there and her own dark hair
Like clouds over fields of may

On a quiet street where old ghosts meet
I see her walking now
Away from me so hurriedly
My reason must allow
That I had ruled, not as I should
A creature made of clay
When the angel woos the clay
He'll lose his wings at the dawn of day

▲ TOP



  ROCK 'N ROLL RUBY

(released on the DVD 'Good Rockin' Tonight - The legacy of Sun Records', written by Johnny Cash and sung by Mark Knopfler)

Well I took my Ruby jukin'
On the out-skirts of town
She took her high heels off
And rolled her stockings down
She put a quarter in the jukebox
To get a little beat
Everybody started rockin'
All the rhythm in her feet

She's my rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
Rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
When Ruby starts a-rockin'
Boy it satisfies my soul

Now Ruby started rockin' 'bout one o'clock
And when she started rockin'
She just couldn't stop
She rocked on the tables
And rolled on the floor
And Everybody yelled: "Ruby rock some more!"

She's my rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
Rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
When Ruby starts a-rockin'
Boy it satisfies my soul

It was 'round about four
I thought she would stop
She looked at me and then
She looked at the clock
She said: "Wait a minute Daddy
Now don't get sour
All I want to do
Is rock a little bit more"

She's my rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
Rock'n'roll Ruby, rock'n'roll
When Ruby starts a-rockin'
Boy it satisfies my soul

Rock, rock, rock'n'roll
Rock, rock, rock'n'roll
Rock, rock, rock'n'roll
Rock, rock, rock'n'roll
When Ruby starts a-rockin'
Boy it satisfies my soul

▲ TOP




  NADINE

(Originally released on single by Chuck Berry in February 1964. Written by Chuck Berry, also played live by Dire Straits and The Notting Hillbillies sung by Mark Knopfler)


As I got on a city bus and found a vacant seat
I thought I saw my future bride walkin' up the street
I shouted to the driver, "Hey conductor, you must slow down
I think I see her, please let me off the bus."

Nadine, honey, is that you?
Oh, Nadine, honey, is that you?
Seem like every time I see you
Darlin' you got somethin' else to do

I saw her from the corner when she turned and doubled back
And started walkin toward a coffee-colored cadillac
I was pushin' through the crowd tryin' to get to where she's at
And I was campaign-shoutin' like a southern diplomat

Nadine, honey, is that you?
Oh, Nadine, honey, where are you?
Seems like every time I catch up witcha
You're up to somethin' new

Downtown searchin' for her, lookin' all around
Saw her gettin' in a yellow cab, headin' uptown
I caught a loaded taxi, paid up everybody's tab
Flipped a twenty-dollar bill an' told him, "Catch that yellow cab."

Nadine, honey, is that you?
Oh, Nadine, honey, is that you?
Seem like every time I catch up witcha
You're up to somethin' new

She moves around like a wayward summer breeze
"Go, driver, go, go'on, catch her for me please."
Movin' thru the traffic like a mounted cavalier
Leanin' out the taxi window tryin' to make her hear

Nadine, honey, is that you?
Oh, Nadine, honey, is that you?
Seem like every time I see you
Darlin' you up to somethin' new

▲ TOP



  MADEMOISELLE WILL DECIDE

(released on 'Small world, big band' from Jools Holland. The song is written and sung by Mark Knopfler)

Wait a minute now
The girl is thinking

Well, well will she wear that hat
Before she goes outside
Will she do this or that
And be satisfied
Who can tell
Mademoiselle will decide

Come on down the midway
Baby do you wanna ride
Is it gonna be the rollercoaster
Or the slippery slide
Who can tell
Mademoiselle will decide

Whatever you want baby
Whatever you wanna do
Whatever you want baby
You know Daddy's right here for you

Wait a minute now
The girl is thinking

She's got a divorce lawyer
Once she was a beautiful bride
She's got the house and the money
Will she want what she can't divide
Who can tell
Mademoiselle will decide

Well well, Mademoiselle
Well well, Mademoiselle
Well well, Mademoiselle
Well well, Mademoiselle
Who can tell
Mademoiselle will decide

▲ TOP

 

  PYROMAN

(only played live, never officially released, written by Mark Knopfler)

I'm here to talk about the state of desire
Only thing I think about is fuel for fire
You're only ruining me by calling me names
All you're doing is fighting the flames
Cos I'm a Pyroman I'll burn downtown I'm a Pyroman
Hose me down!

Sometimes I wonder if I'm ever gonna learn
The only thing im thinking about is something to burn
Any other witness means nothing to me
Don't give it up till I'm free and released
I'm a Pyroman I'll burn downtown I'm a Pyroman
Hose me down!

I'm a dog, I'm a dog, in these days
Walking down the street if anybody plays
It all burns for all that is worth it all burns
Well it's the greatest show on Earth
And I'm a Pyroman I'll burn downtown I'm a Pyroman
Hose me down!

Its my life blood mister
Speak and drink to me
I'll come and take it mister
From across the sea
Cos there is one thing mister
One thing I have learned
The rules go out the window when crude is concerned
Cos it's my secret/sacred? plan yeah
I'll burn downtown I'm a Pyroman
Hose me down! Hose me down !

▲ TOP



  LOST ON THE RIVER

(released on 'Timeless' from Hank WIlliams. The song is written by Hank Williams and sung by Mark Knopfler and Emmyou Harris)

Lost on the river, dark is the night
Just like the blind, praying for site
Drifting alone, heart filled with fright
I'm lost on the river the river of life

Once dear I thought I knew the way
That was before old sad yesterday
Words that you said cut like a knife
I'm lost on the river, the river of life

Out on this river where sorrow's free
Thinking of you how my heart pleads
Tomorrow you'll be another man's wife
I'm lost on the river, the river of life


▲ TOP



  LET'S PLAY HOUSE

(released on the DVD ´A Tribute to the King: By Scotty Moore & Friends'. The song is written by Arthur Gunter and sung by Mark Knopfler)

Oh, baby, baby, baby, baby baby
Baby, baby baby, b-b-b-b-b-b baby baby, baby
Baby baby baby
Come back, baby, I wanna play house with you

Well, you may go to college
You may go to school
You may have a pink Cadillac
But don't you be nobody's fool

Now baby
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby
I wanna play house with you

Now listen and I'll tell you baby
What I'm talking about
Come on back to me, little girl
So we can play some house

Now baby
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby
I wanna play house with you

Now this is one thing, baby
One thing you should know
Come on back and let's play a little house
And we can act like we did before
Well, baby
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby
I wanna play house with you

Now listen to me, baby
Try to understand
I'd rather see you dead, little girl
Than to be with another man
Now baby
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby, come
Come back, baby, I wanna play house with you

Well, baby baby baby
Baby baby baby b-b-b-b-b-b baby baby baby
Baby baby baby
Come back, baby, I wanna play house with you
Yeah, come back, baby, I wanna play house with you

▲ TOP



  BLUE MOON OF KENTUCKY

(released on the DVD ´A Tribute to the King: By Scotty Moore & Friends'. The song is written by Bill Monroe and sung by Mark Knopfler)

Blue moon, blue moon, blue moon
Keep on shining bright
Blue moon, keep on shining bright
You're gonna bring me back my baby tonight
Blue moon, keep on shining bright

I said blue moon of Kentucky
Keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue
Blue moon of Kentucky
Keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue

Well, it was on one moonlight night
Stars shining bright
Whispers on high

Love said good-bye

Blue moon of Kentucky
Keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue

It was on one moonlight night
Stars shining bright
Whispers on high

Love said good-bye

Blue moon of Kentucky
Just keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue

Well, it was on one moonlight night
Stars shining bright
Whispers on high

Love said good-bye

Blue moon of Kentucky
Just keep on shining
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue
Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue

▲ TOP

 

  YOU WIN AGAIN

(released on 'Moving out to the country' from Jools Holland. The song is written by Hank Williams and sung by Mark Knopfler)

The news is out all over town
That you've been seen out runnin' around
I guess that I should leave but then
I just can't go, baby you win again

This heart of mine could never see
What everybody knew but me
Just trusting you was my great sin
What can I do you, win again

This heart of mine could never see
What everybody knew but me
Just trusting you was my great sin
What can I do you, win again

What can I do you, win again

▲ TOP


  THE HIGHWAYMAN

(released on 'Just across the river' from Jimmy Webb. The song is written by Jimmy Webb and sung by Jimmy Webb and Mark Knopfler)

I was a highwayman
Along the coach roads I did ride
With sword and pistol by my side
Many a young maid lost her baubles to my trade
Many a soldier left his life blood on my blade
The bastards hung me in the spring of '25
But I am still alive

I was a sailor
I was born upon the tide
And with the sea I did abide
I sailed a schooner 'round the horn to Mexico
I went aloft to furl the mainsail in a blow
And when the yards gave way they said that I got killed
But I am living still

I was a dam builder
Across the river deep and wide
Where steel and water did collide
A place called Boulder on the wild Colorado
I slipped and fell into the wet concrete below
They buried me in that great tomb that knows no sound
But I am still around
Seems like it all goes around and around
Around and around and around and around and around

I'll fly a starship
Across the Universe divide
And when I reach the other side
I'll find a place to rest my spirit if I can
Perhaps I may become a songwriter again
Or I may simply be a single drop of rain
But something will remain

And I'll be back again
I'll be back again
Yes I will
We'll be all be back again
Yes we will
But we'll all be back again

▲ TOP


 

  OVERNIGHT SENSATION

(released on 'Break every rule' by Tina Turner, written by Mark Knopfler)

Well I guess I've been a long time
Working in the backline
I'm trying to make a song fit
When you know it never was mine
Two dollar high-heel shoes and a honky tonk dress
In the rhythm and the soul reviews I had a dream I guess

And I had to beat the stage fright
I had to cry all night
Trying to make a song fit
When you know it never was right
I said, "Girl, get up and get out of this mess"

You're gonna be an overnight sensation
Gonna be an overnight success

And all through the badlands
Rocking on the bandstands
It's so hard in the barbands
And when there's no one there who understands
And Lady Luck will pass you by and she will never say yes

You're gonna be an overnight sensation
You're gonna be an overnight
You're gonna be an overnight success

I used to be a sweet little rock'n'roll singer
Chasing after fortune and fame
I said, "What's your story? What's your payola?"
Me, I'm in the music game

Well I guess I've been a long time
Workin' in the backline
Tryin' to make a song fit
When you know it never was mine
What can I tell you, I made a break I guess

And now I'm an overnight sensation
I'm an over overnight
I'm an over overnight success

▲ TOP


 

  I ALWAYS GET LUCKY WITH YOU

(released on 'Burn your playhouse down' from George Jones. The song is written by Merle Haggard, Freddy Powers, Gary Church, and Tex Whitson,  and sung in duet by George Jones and Mark Knopfler)

I've had good luck, and bad luck
And no luck, it's true
But I always get lucky with you

I've been turned on, and turned down
When the bars close at two
But I always get lucky with you

I've keep strikes against me
Most all of the time
And when it's down to just a phone call
I'm minus a dime

There's been good days, and bad days
But when the day is through
I always get lucky with you
Oh, I always get lucky with you


I've keep two strikes against me
Most all of the time
And when it's down to just a phone call
I'm minus a dime

There's been good days, and bad days
But when the day is through
I always get lucky with you
Oh, I always get lucky with you.

I always get lucky with you...

▲ TOP
 

 

  WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD

(released on 'Impressions' from Chris Botti. Written for Louis Armstrong by George David Weiss and Bob Thiele, sung by Mark Knopfler)

 I see trees so green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world

I see skies so blue and clouds so white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
are also on the faces of people going by

I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you
I hear babies crying, I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than I'll ever know

And I think to myself what a wonderful world
 
The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
are also on the faces of people going by

I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you
I hear babies crying, I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than I'll ever know

And I think to myself what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world

▲ TOP
 


  RESTLESS FAREWELL

(released on the Amnesty International CD 'Chimes of freedom - the songs of Bob Dylan'. The song is written by Bob Dylan and sung by Mark Knopfler)

Oh all the money that in my whole life I did spend
Be it mine right or wrongfully
I let it slip gladly to my friends
To tie up the time most forcefully
But the bottles are done
We've killed each one
And the table's full and overflowed
And the corner sign
Says it's closing time
So I'll bid farewell and be down the road

Oh ev
'ry girl that ever I've touched
I did not do it harmfully
And ev'ry girl that even I've hurt
I did not do it knowin'ly
But to remain as friends we need the time
And make demands and stay behind
And since my feet are now fast
And point away from the past
I'll bid farewell and be down the line

Oh ev'ry foe that ever I faced
The cause was there before we came
And ev'ry cause that ever I fought
I fought it full without regret or shame
But the dark does die
As the curtain is drawn and somebody's eyes
Must meet the dawn
And if I see the day
I'd only have to stay
So I'll bid farewell in the night and be gone

Oh ev'ry thought that's strung a knot in my mind
I might go insane if it couldn't be sprung
But it's not to stand naked under unknowin' eyes
It's for myself and my friends my stories are sung
But the time ain't tall
Yet on time you depend and no word is possessed
By no special friend
And though the line is cut
It ain't quite the end
I'll just bid farewell till we meet again

Oh a false clock tries to tick out my time
To disgrace, distract, and bother me
And the dirt of gossip blows into my face
And the dust of rumors covers me
But if the arrow is straight
And the point is slick
It can pierce through dust no matter how thick
So I'll make my stand
And remain as I am
And bid farewell and not give a damn

▲ TOP

 

  NOT ONE BAD THOUGHT

(released on 'Uncovered' from Tony Joe White. The song is written by Tony Joe White and sung in duet with Mark Knopfler)

It was pretty this morning
Put some flowers in the ground
Sun was shining this morning
Planted flowers all around

Got my business out of the way
And all I want to do is not one bad thought
One bad thought

Oh, yeah

I got a mockingbird
It sings the song out on the breathe
Sometime they sit up on my chimney
Then they take it up to the trees

Lord, he must have been hearing my old guitar
I believe he does it better than me
Don't have not one bad thought
Not one bad thought, no

My mama was a Cherokee
Spread her little laugh on a river fall
She had seven kids and let us know
There was plenty of room in her arms

She would start the day with a smile on her face
And not one bad thought, not one bad thought
Not one bad thought, not one bad thought

Not one bad thought
Not one bad thought
Just wondering
Not one bad thought
Not one bad thought

▲ TOP




  Redbud Tree

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Hunted down, I came upon
A place of ferns and grass
Gathered to a redbud tree
And now their footsteps pass
Where I crouch in dread
Discovery my certain death
Her leaves reaching for my head
As I suspend my breath

Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me
Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me

Those days of fear are gone
Yet I am pledged to her
As to my only one
My lovely protector

Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me
Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me
Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me
Redbud tree, shelter me, shelter me

▲ TOP



  Haul Away

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

It was a windless night when you left the ship
You never were a steady bold one
I gave my hand, ah, but you did slip
I’m a living man and you’re a cold one
Haul away, haul away for home

My love’s as fair as a girl can be
My wedding ring is a heavy gold one
Now you lie alone in the deep dark sea
I’m a living man and you’re a cold one
Haul away, haul away for home

The morning brings, Lord, a fresh young breeze
To fill our sails and end the doldrums
Our lucky ship speeds across the sea
I’m a living man and you’re a cold one
Haul away, haul away for home

▲ TOP




  Don’t Forget Your Hat

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well, look out the window
Never saw so much rain
You better get down to the station
If you want to catch that train
So long, I guess that’s that
Hey, hey, don’t forget your hat

Well, you don’t call the action
You don’t make the rules
You don’t pay the piper
You don’t even pay the fuel
So long, I guess that’s that
Hey, hey, don’t forget your hat

Well, it’s a big old world out there
Go get it if you can
You got a ways to go
Before you get to be a man
So long, I guess that’s that
Hey, hey, don’t forget your hat

▲ TOP



  Privateering

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Yon’s my privateer
See how trim she lies
To every man a lucky hand
And every man a prize
I live to ride the ocean
The mighty world around
To take a little plunder
And to hear the cannon sound
To lay with pretty women
To drink Madiera wine
To hear the rollers thunder
On a shore that isn’t mine

Privateering we will go
Privateering, yo ho hoho
Privateering we will go
Yo ho ho, yo ho ho

The people on your man o’ war
Are treated worse than scum
I’m no flogging captain
And by God I’ve sailed with some
Come with me to Barbary
We’ll ply there up and down
Not quite exactly
In the service of the Crown
To lay with pretty women
To drink Madiera wine
To hear the rollers thunder
On a shore that isn’t mine

Privateering we will go
Privateering, yo ho hoho
Privateering we will go
Yo ho ho, yo ho ho

Look’ee there’s my privateer
She’s small but she can sting
Licensed to take prizes
With a letter from the King
I love the streets and taverns
Of a pretty foreign town
Tip my hat to the dark-eyed ladies
As we sally up and down
To lay with pretty women
To drink Madiera wine
To hear the rollers thunder
On a shore that isn’t mine

Privateering we will go
Privateering, yo ho hoho
Privateering we will go
Yo ho ho, yo ho ho

Britannia needs her privateers
Each time she goes to war
Death to all her enemies
Though prizes matter more
Come with me to Barbary
We’ll ply there up and down
Not quite exactly
In the service of the Crown
To lay with pretty women
To drink Madiera wine
To hear the rollers thunder
On a shore that isn’t mine

Privateering we will go
Privateering, yo ho hoho
Privateering we will go
Yo ho ho, yo ho ho

▲ TOP



  Miss You Blues

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Miss you blues, baby, miss you blues
Miss you blues, baby, miss you blues
You never used to look behind you, that isn’t what you’d do
Didn’t leave a thing behind you but the miss you blues

Who’s gonna take your place, fill your shoes?
Who’s gonna take your place, fill your shoes?
You never used to look behind you, that isn’t what you’d do
Didn’t leave a thing behind you but the miss you blues

Miss you blues, baby, miss you blues
Miss you blues, baby miss you blues
You never used to look behind you, that isn’t what you’d do
Didn’t leave a thing behind you but the miss you blues

Walk alone down the avenue
Walk alone down the avenue
You never used to look behind you, that isn’t what you’d do
Didn’t leave a thing behind you but the miss you blues

Miss you blues, baby, miss you blues
Miss you blues, baby, miss you blues
You never used to look behind you, that isn’t what you’d do
Didn’t leave a thing behind you but the miss you blues

▲ TOP



  Corned Beef City

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Early in the morning
Going to meet a man
Wants a truck unloading
For cash-in-hand
You don’t ask questions
When there’s nothing in the bank
Got to feed the kids
And put the diesel in the tank

Bacon, egg and sausage
Double chips and beans
Tea and bread and butter
And a day on the machines
Christmas is coming
With the final demand
What you got going
For cash in hand

So it ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City
It ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City

Early in the morning
Where the trucks all stand
I’ve got a pocket full of folding
And a pair of jerry cans
I’ve got to keep it going
They’re laying off at Ford
I’m only one step ahead
Of my room and board

So it ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City
It ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City

Early in the morning
Going to meet a man
Wants a truck unloading
For cash-in-hand
You don’t ask questions
When there’s nothing in the bank
Got to feed the kids
And put the diesel in the tank

So it ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City
It ain’t too pretty
Corned Beef City

▲ TOP



  Go, Love

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

I had to leave for certain
I like to come back now and then
Maybe I’m just returning
So I can leave again

The wind comes softly blowing
From the cold grey sea
She leans into my collar
Starts whispering to me

Go, love, if you’re going
You keep looking down the track
Go, love, if you’re going
I’ll be here when you come back

Go, love, if you’re going
Go, love, if you’re going

So go, love, if you’re going
Don’t stay on account of me
Go, love, if you’re going
If that’s the way it’s got to be

Go, love, if you’re going
You keep looking down the track
Go, love, if you’re going
I’ll be here when you come back

Go, love, if you’re going
Go, love, if you’re going

▲ TOP




  Hot Or What

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

She came on the river
With a gift for me
I’m in way deep
That’s how it has to be
It’s hot in the desert
But I’m cool in the zone
People call me lucky
But I say you make your own

I’m on a roll
Yeah, I’m on a roll
I’m runnin’ hot
Baby, am I hot or what?

This is outrageous
I got all kinds of stuff
Can I dodge bullets
And can I bluff
Hot shots keep on a’ coming
Looking for a fight
But the names are going down
To the left and to the right

And I’m on a roll
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m on a roll
I’m runnin’ hot
Baby, am I hot or what?

It gets dark at night
That’s how it goes
It gets cold in winter
Don’t be surprised if it snows
You wanna play Hold’em
With my friend Mr Chan
If you lose your stack, well
You sure can’t blame the man

Ha! ha! ha!
Ha! ha! ha!
I’m runnin’ hot
Baby, am I hot or what?

They play with me a while
I’ll read ‘em like a book
Let’s go have a drink or two
And talk about the scalps I took
I got a big old stack
I had me a big old day
Tomorrow I go back
Gonna take it all the way

‘Cos I’m on a roll
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m on a roll
I’m runnin’ hot
Baby, am I hot or what?
I said I’m runnin’ hot, baby
Baby, am I hot or what?

▲ TOP



  Yon Two Crows

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Pennies from heaven
Don’t make me laugh
Here all you’ll get
Is the pattering rain
Or yon two crows up over the hill
Looking for winterkill
Always at your boots
The mud behind the byre
With its clammy hold
Would mock you up a grave
Here in the mire of a wrecked sheepfold

And all you’ll bring to this
Is muscle and grit
Persistence, that’s just about it
What made you think
There’d be a living in sheep?
Eat, work, eat, work and sleep

Duck under the eaves
Of the bothy
To sit here, caged by rain
Somewhere to go conjure
A next move
When I have to think again
The dog lifts his gaze to plead
Believes the wizard has a magic stick
Leans his weight into my tweed
I give an unholy hand to lick

I take a swig of sheep dip
From my flask
And once again I ask
What made you think
There’d be a living in sheep?
Eat, work, eat, work and sleep

They were at this game
Two hundred years ago
Had thirty ways
Of dying young, poor souls
Laid to rest in their soggy rows
Rain on their holy books
Blood and whisky
On the tongue
And no-one watching over anyone
No-one left but your stubborn one
And the crows and rooks

Ah, the dying young
Well I’m not done
You watch me and I’ll watch thee
I can still work for two men
And drink for three

And I raise my flask
To the clearing skies
To you, sweepers
You carrion spies
To scavenge and survive
If you can do it so can I

▲ TOP



  Seattle

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Above the bar the TVs are showing the game
But we’re not watching it, we’re hardly focussing
Through the windows in the fading day
1st Avenue is turning grey
Do you ever look at me and see another man
Let’s get two more beers and try to make a plan
Sometimes it feels as though I have a key
But every time I try it it won’t turn for me
Seattle - you’ve got to love the rain
And we both love rain
We both love rain

We watched the city skyline from the ferry deck
And you put your arms around my neck
We talked of looking just out of town
Now it’s looking like a dream shot down
I still believe that there’s somewhere for us
But now it’s something that we don’t discuss
And you’re the best thing I ever knew
Stay with me, baby, and we’ll make it to
We’ll make it to
Seattle - you’ve got to love the rain
And we both love rain
We both love rain
Seattle - I want you just the same
And we both love rain
We both love rain

▲ TOP



  Kingdom Of Gold

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

The high priest of money looks down on the river
The dawn coming up on his kingdom of gold
When the rim of the sun sends an arrow of silver
He prays to the gods of the bought and the sold

He turns to his symbols, his ribbons of numbers
They circle and spin on their mystical scroll
He looks for a sign while the city still slumbers
And the ribbons and the river forever unroll
In his kingdom of gold, his kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold, his kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold

On the horizon an enemy haven
Sends traces of smoke high up into the sky
A pack of dog jackals and a rabble of ravens
Who’ll come for his fortress, his castle on high
In his kingdom of gold, kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold, his kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold

His axes and armour will conquer these devils
The turbulent raiders will falter and fall
Their leaders be taken, their camps burned and levelled
They’ll hang in the wind from his citadel walls
In his kingdom of gold, kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold, kingdom of gold
Kingdom of gold

▲ TOP



  Got To Have Something

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well if you ain’t got whiskey
Don’t tell me that you ain’t got gin
If you ain’t got whiskey
Don’t tell me that you ain’t got gin
Well I got to have something
Need to get my medicine

Well I can play your fish fry
Play for change in town
I can play your fish fry
I can play for change in town
Well I got to have something
Keep me from going down

Well let me play you one thing
Somebody must have just got paid
Yeah, let me play you one thing
Somebody must have just got paid
Well I got to have something
Even if I don’t get laid

Yes, if you ain’t got whiskey
Don’t tell me that you ain’t got gin
If you ain’t got whiskey
Don’t tell me that you ain’t got gin
Well I got to have something
Need to get my medicine
Yeah, I got to have something
Need to get my medicine

▲ TOP



  Radio City Serenade

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

You’ve got to have no credit cards
To know how good it feels
The howling of the bridges
The sidewalks bound with steel
Sitting on the sidewalk
With a party to arrange
May you never change

I stay out when I want to
Still she takes me back
Don’t know another girl
Would cut me so much slack
Every wounded soldier
Needs a lady with a light
To help him through the night

So blow a kiss to Radio City
My forever silhouette
Oh, you are so pretty
My beautiful Rockette
You’ve got my arms
And the crosstown horns
Going on - we’ve got it going on

Have I got you a river view
This one tops the list
Got a head full of you
And Irish Mist
I know I owe it
To the lady by the sea
Who still looks out for me

So blow a kiss to Radio City
My forever silhouette
Oh, you are so pretty
My beautiful Rockette
You’ve got my arms
And the crosstown horns
Going on - we’ve got it going on

You’ve got my arms
And the crosstown horns
Going on - we’ve got it going on
We’ve got it going on

▲ TOP



  I Used To Could

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well, all down the 40 I never used to lift
Thirteen gears, double clutch shift
All those horses underneath the hood
I don’t do it no more but I used to could

GMC Cannonball going like a train
All down the 40 in the driving rain
All those horses underneath the hood
I don’t do it no more but I used to could

Well I don’t hang around ‘cause it ain’t no good
Like the big bad wolf in the neighborhood
Chasin’ after Little Red Riding Hood
I don’t do it no more but I used to could

▲ TOP



  Gator Blood

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Hammer on a skillet up they come
Showman whanging on a ballyhoo drum
Watch out, people I’m a greedy man
Swallowed all the fishes in the frying pan
Blood, gator blood, I got gator blood

Chicken on a hotplate gobbledegook
Come on up, honey and take a look
Mighty fine weather this time of year
Shake a tail feather you chicken you hear
Blood, gator blood, I got gator blood

Chicken on a hotplate it’s gonna dance
Gonna lose these chickens my first chance
Don’t you know I’m a flim flam man
A chicken show it ain’t worth a damn
Gator blood, I got gator blood

I got a country boy, he’s a bird who sings
Butter paddle, buck ‘n wing
Kid’s got a winner bonafide hit
I’m gonna have my dinner on a spit
Blood, gator blood, I got gator blood

Hoopla, humbug, howdy-do
Gonna make you into chicken stew
Alligator in the mud
Don’t you know I got gator blood
Gator blood, I got gator blood

Never lend a dollar to your good friend Tom
Hogwash Holler is where he’s from
If you got treasure all in a vault
And he gets you, baby that’s your own fault
Gator blood, I got gator blood

▲ TOP



  Bluebird

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Got crows in my pasture
Rats in my barn
Crows in my pasture, babe
Rats in my barn
If I was you, little bluebird
I’d up and find another farm

I’ve got nightshade in my meadow
Ragweed in my corn
Nightshade in my meadow
And ragweed in my corn
If I was you, little bluebird
I’d be long gone

Yes, I got squirrels in my rafters
Weevils in my hay
Squirrels in my rafters
Weevils in my hay
If I was you, little bluebird
I’d up and fly away
Fly away, baby

▲ TOP



  Dream Of The Drowned Submariner

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

We run along easy at periscope depth
Sun dappling through clear water
So went the dream of the drowned submariner
Far away from the slaughter

Your hair is a strawflower that sings in the sun
My darling, my beautiful daughter
So went the dream of the drowned submariner
Cast away on the water

From down in the vault, down in the grave
Reaching up to the light on the waves

So she did run to him over the grass
She fell in his arms and he caught her
So went the dream of the drowned submariner
Far away on the water
Far away on the water

▲ TOP



  Blood And Water

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Blood and water bound to overflow
Blood and water bound to overflow
Well there’s no more high water
But the Old Man’s just waiting, I know

He was sent up on the levee
Now they’ve gone up country
They won’t do nothing for you now
And don’t go asking me
They’ve gone - it’s all over here
Sometimes I’d see her passing
With the evening coming on
I’ve seen you on her pathway
I’ve seen you at dawn
Look over yonder at that empty shack
You know as well as I do
Theyain’t coming back
They’re gone - it’s all over here

Blood and water bound to overflow
Blood and water bound to overflow
Well there’s no more high water
But the Old Man’s just waiting, I know

So many promises
We broke them, every one
Kept people on the levees
Withsherrifs and shotguns
They’re gone - it’s all over here
Look over yonder at that empty shack
You know as well as I do
Theyain’t coming back
They’re gone - it’s all over here

Blood and water bound to overflow
Blood and water bound to overflow
Well there’s no more high water
No more high water
There’s no more high water
But the Old Man’s just waiting, I know

▲ TOP



  Today Is Okay

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well, we like to have some friends around
Do the twist to Ray Charles and James Brown
After lunch I’ll maybe take a nap
I like a nap before a scrap

Honey, pass me more of them peas
Mm, I do like these
And let me have some more of those
More steak and potatoes, yeah

In a little while I’m going downtown
Maybe take me one or two rounds
I’m gonna knock that man clean out
He’s going down, no doubt

Maybe I was born on a bad luck day
Born under a bad sign
But today is okay
Today’s just fine

Baby you can read my mind
I’ll be home just after nine
You’re the best medicine I know
Tonight we’re gonna let it all go

Put on that pretty silk shirt
Put on on that tight black skirt
Put on those heels so black
We can party on when I get back

Maybe I was born on a bad luck day
Born under a bad sign
But today is okay
Today’s just fine

▲ TOP



  After The Beanstalk

(released on 'Privateering', written by Mark Knopfler)

Well a hen can lay a golden egg but she still can’t sing
A hen can lay a golden egg but she still can’t sing
Well the hen’s alright but the harp is everything

When he’s gunning for glory a boy just won’t be told
Gunning for glory a boy just won’t be told
I went up three times but it never was for the gold

Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
That old cow she wasn’t milking anyhow

After the beanstalk your life’s not the same
After the beanstalk your life’s not the same
Well the harp’s worth more than any fortune and fame

Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
I’m still up in the morning to get behind the plough

A hen can lay a golden egg but she still can’t sing
A hen can lay a golden egg but she still can’t sing
Well the hen’s alright but the harp is everything

Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
Oh, Mama what’s the matter now
I’m still up in the morning to get behind the plough


▲ TOP

 

YOUR PERFECT SONG

(released as a bonus track of the 'Privateering' album. Only available as digital download on Amazon.de. Written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

Ever certain ever strong
Your song the perfect song
Like a bright star shining on
Your perfect song

Never wavers, never wrong
Your song the perfect song
In my heart where it belongs
Your perfect song

Your eyes in candlelight
Sparkle so true
My words could never shine as bright
But they’ll have to do

Ever certain ever strong
Your song the perfect song
In my heart where it belongs
Your perfect song
Your perfect song

▲ TOP




OCCUPATION BLUES

(released as a bonus track of the 'Privateering' album, part of the Super Deluxe Box set. Written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

I can get you what you want at the market
As long as you have the price
The colonel is the governor
He steals from his own supplies
The jailhouse is full of small fry
Who never did much wrong
All the big fish swam away
All long gone

All long gone, all long gone
All long gone, all long
All long gone

Well I can get you what you want at the market
Everybody’s on the make
The colonel is the governor
And he’s on a slice of the cake
And everyone in this occupied land
Is on the game
And over here in contraband
It’s the same

We're all long gone, all long gone
All long gone, we're all long
All long gone

Chief cook and bottle washer
That’s me, I’m the man
So many people to see
In contraband
Chief cook and bottle washer
That’s me, I’m the man
What do you do? What do you do?
You do what you can

But we're all long gone, all long gone
We're all long gone, we're all long
All long gone
There’ll be rain behind the wind
Last night it was cold
And when it all caves in
I’ll tell them
I only did what I was told

▲ TOP




RIVER OF GROG

(released as a bonus track of the 'Privateering' album, part of the Super Deluxe Box set. Written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

By day I sell them my soul
I'll work like a mole
Under the shop
By night I’ll drink in The Coal Hole
Or down in The Nine Foot Drop
By day I’m a company mule
The wage slaving fool
They chain up like a dog
By night I’ll be sailing away on my stool
On a river of grog
River of grog

Two drinks in my line of sight
But that can’t be right
I know it’s untrue
I’m seeing double tonight
But there can only be one of you
I’ve loaded my pockets with stones
To bury my bones in the mud of the bog
So let me go sailing away on my own
On a river of grog
River of grog

If you miss me when I go
It’s been a barrel of fun
I’m going to miss you when I go
But down in this bottle
There’s a song for me waiting, I know

I’ve loaded my pockets with stones
To bury my bones in the mud of the bog
So let me go sailing away on my own
On a river of grog
River of grog
River of grog

▲ TOP




FOLLOW THE RIBBON

(released as a bonus track of the 'Privateering' album, part of the Super Deluxe Box set. Written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

The day’s been a while fading
Seems like we have slowed
My eyes are getting weary
Can barely see the road
It's been a while since we left behind
The city lights
There’s just a line
Unwinding through the night

Yesterdays lie scattered
Like broken swords and shields
Like the used up shells and bullets
On a hundred battlefields
When I think of all the close calls
Both sides of love and death
Sometimes I can hardly get my breath

But I’ll follow the ribbon anyhow
I’ll follow the ribbon
That’s alright for now
Up in the high country
Or down where the river flows
Wherever it goes

Don’t care if they like it
I don’t care if they don’t
Never did much care about
If they will or won’t
If all you want to know is acorns
Rooting your patch of earth
What can you praise
Really be worth?

I’m just living with the ringing
Of tomorrow’s ancient rhymes
Though the road ahead may be shorter
Than the one we left behind
If there’s whisky in the bottle
Leave some for me
I’ll get to it eventually

But I’ll follow the ribbon
By the cold lagoon
Follow the ribbon
Under the helpless moon
Winding through the dark hills
Where a million stars have froze
Wherever it goes

▲ TOP
 

 



THE OLDEST SURFER ON THE BEACH

(released on 'Songs from St. Somewhere' by Jimmy Buffet, written by Mark Knopfler)

The sun’s dropping out of the picture
Soon be time to move
It hasn’t been a real big day
But I don’t have a thing to prove
I’ve still got the old nose rider
I still surf old style
I’ll go out beyond the breakers
Sit alone and rest a while

There’s nothing that I wanna do
No place I’m trying to reach
Only time is now more precious to
The oldest surfer on the beach

I stopped searching for perfection
Many waves ago
What really matters is the here and now
And that’s about all I know
Gonna catch me a big ‘ole roller
Sun setting on the sea
Riding in on her glassy shoulder
The water going grey like me

There’s nothing that I wanna do
No place I’m trying to reach
Only time is now more precious to
The oldest surfer on the beach
The oldest surfer on the beach


▲ TOP
 

 



SPANISH JACK

(released on 'Miracle' by Willy DeVille, written by Mark Knopfler and Willy DeVille)

Spanish Jack had a Cadillac
That he always parked around the corner
He wore his hat tipped to the side
Like a pimp on Easter morning

I was on the street that Saturday night
When they all claim they saw him
In his cowboy shoes and shantung suit
And the night was young in August

His lady's name was Sunny Day
She had Jack tattoed on her shoulder
Jack played cards with Gentleman Jim
And Sunny did everything Jack told her

Gentleman Jim won Jack's watch and chain
In a badly dealt game of poker
Then Sunny Day kind of moved away
As the last hand hit the table

Jack he had a pair of nines
And the Gentleman showed three aces
You took my watch and chain and now my gold tipped cane
Put both your hands up on the table

We can settle this thing in a gentleman's way
Let's just step outside the doorway
The night was warm and they looked at the stars
But only one would see the morning

There's nothing lower than a cheat at cards
Especially at poker
Before the Gentleman he could cheat again
The Spaniard pulled out his revolver

Spanish Jack shot Gentleman dead
And the shots sounded loud as thunder
And when the smoke it cleared Gentleman Jim lay dead
This was his last game of poker

Jack filled Jim with so much lead
It took six men to move him over
So full of lead and oozing red
They stole the boots right off his body

If you're gonna play a game of cards
Be sure with who you're gambling
This game of chance you can never win
If Spanish Jack is at the table


▲ TOP
 

 

 

POCKETS

(released on 'These wilder things' by Ruth Moody, sung by Ruth Moody and Mark Knopfler)

We lived in each other's pockets
We lived in each other's seams
We lived in the hope that someday
We would see our love redeemed

We took all the roads less travelled
We took the roads most would avoid
We could make each other feel so empty
Then we were there to fill the void

And my heart belonged
And my heart belonged
To all of you

We lived in each other's futures
We lived in each other's dreams
We spoke of the future less and less
'Til a dream was all it seemed

And my heart belonged
And my heart belonged
To all of you

Oh but how we dreamed, we would have died back then
We were young and we believed
As brothers will for brothers
And captains know they cannot leave
But soon the curtain it came down on us
Blame was laid and questions raised
And so like waves we were all scattered
But in our hearts in never changed

We lived in each other's pockets
With the shadows and the shame
We feld on for fear of losing love
Just as quickly as it came

And my heart belonged
And my heart belonged
And my heart belonged
To all of you


▲ TOP

 

WHEN I'M ON MY OWN

(In February 2014, Guy Fletcher had a competition on his first studio diary in which one could win a signed copy of Privateering and some guitar pics from Mark Knopfler if you had the correct answer which guitars were pictured on a photo and on which studio recording each guitar was used. When the competition was closed, Guy published the answer and used the info he got from Mark's guitar technician Glenn Saggers. Surprisingly, it included 3 songs that were totally unknown to the fans, so probably Glenn also mentioned a few songs that they were recording by the time this competition was held. Guy however said that they were old songs from previous sessions, but shortly after removed these titles from his site. So, maybe they will appear on the next MK album, but so far we only have the title).

▲ TOP


 

BONFIRE NIGHT

(In February 2014, Guy Fletcher had a competition on his first studio diary in which one could win a signed copy of Privateering and some guitar pics from Mark Knopfler if you had the correct answer which guitars were pictured on a photo and on which studio recording each guitar was used. When the competition was closed, Guy published the answer and used the info he got from Mark's guitar technician Glenn Saggers. Surprisingly, it included 3 songs that were totally unknown to the fans, so probably Glenn also mentioned a few songs that they were recording by the time this competition was held. Guy however said that they were old songs from previous sessions, but shortly after removed these titles from his site. So, maybe they will appear on the next MK album, but so far we only have the title).

▲ TOP

 

 

WHEN IT'S OVER

(In February 2014, Guy Fletcher had a competition on his first studio diary in which one could win a signed copy of Privateering and some guitar pics from Mark Knopfler if you had the correct answer which guitars were pictured on a photo and on which studio recording each guitar was used. When the competition was closed, Guy published the answer and used the info he got from Mark's guitar technician Glenn Saggers. Surprisingly, it included 3 songs that were totally unknown to the fans, so probably Glenn also mentioned a few songs that they were recording by the time this competition was held. Guy however said that they were old songs from previous sessions, but shortly after removed these titles from his site. So, maybe they will appear on the next MK album, but so far we only have the title).

▲ TOP

 

 

SUMMER'S COMING MY WAY

In April 1970, while living in Leeds, Knopfler recorded a demo of a song he had written called "Summer's coming my way". It was, according to Dave Johnson, recorded in Harding's Studio, Bramley (a district in west Leeds, West Yorkshire), UK. The recording included Mark Knopfler (guitar and vocals), Steve Phillips (second guitar), Dave Johnson (bass), and Paul Granger (drums). Johnson, Granger, and vocalist Mick Dewhirst played with Mark in the band Silverheels. In December 2022, a picture was posted of the Silverheels featuring a young Mark Knopfler.

The demo was put on vinyl, but never officially released. Below a picture of the single that appeared on a website:

Click here for a close-up from one of the actual singles, owned by Dave Johnson.


The single is extremely rare and if reports are correct, t
here are just five or six copies worldwide, and maybe the mastertape.
 

Heal me in the morning when we play shy
Look out at the window at the sky
See the sun healing smile
You used to say goodbye

All whatever you say
I'm gonna play it my way
I'm gonna love you everyday
Summer's coming my way

If you are gonna stay we’ll have a good day
And if you’re even I won’t mind
Why should we try to make crimes
Just so we can stay in time

All whatever you say
I'm gonna play it my way
I'm gonna love you everyday
Summer's coming my way

All whatever you say
I'm gonna play it my way
I'm gonna love you everyday
Summer's coming my way

Summer plied battling at the window
Somebody lies across the road
Sometimes you are really right
Sometimes you might
Dream out on a sleeping afternoon

All whatever you say
I'm gonna play it my way
I'm gonna love you everyday
Summer's coming my way

All whatever you say
I'm gonna play it my way
I'm gonna love you everyday
Summer's coming my way

La la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la la la
 

▲ TOP

 

LAUGHS AND JOKES AND DRINKS AND SMOKES

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

Laughs and jokes
And drinks and smokes
And no lights on the stairs
We were young, so young
And always broke
Not that we ever cared
Not that we ever cared

Well, the holes in the walls
Were such a lot
Welcome to London town
But when you’re new to it all
And you think you’re hot
You’re not planning on hanging around
People would go on their different ways
I left to start a band
A note came through the letter box
In your childlike hand

Oh, laughs and jokes
And drinks and smokes
And no lights on the stairs
We were young, so young
And always broke
Not that we ever cared
Not that we ever cared

One day I rode to where you were
The doorbell jangled a note
They buzzed me in
I climbed the stairs
In my boots and leather coat
There’s an old brass
Standing there at the top
Without her witch’s broom
It almost seemed like a knocking shop
When the girls came out of their rooms

And they all stood around
And stared at me
Two brunettes and a blonde
Then the old brass shrugged and said
We don’t know where she’s gone
Later on I picked up the ball
And I took off down the line
I suppose by then I’d realised
You’d run into hard times

Oh, laughs and jokes
And drinks and smokes
And no lights on the stairs
We were young, so young
And always broke
Not that we ever cared
Not that we ever cared
 

▲ TOP

 

BASIL

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

My Saturday job pays six and six down
A copy boy at the Chronicle
Five cigarettes and two silver half crowns
Meeting Vince at Mark Toney’s in town
Boy, do we get around

Basil sits there on the table for subs
But not a part of the Bri-nylon club
Ancient blue sweater, too old for the job
Bored out of his mind
With the Colins and Bobs

I’m a jack and a lad
And I’m up for the world
And I’ve kissed a Gateshead girl

He calls for a copy boy, grumpy as hell
Poets have to eat as well
What he wouldn’t give just to walk out today
To have time to think about time
And young love thrown away

I’m a jack and a lad
And I’m up for the world
And I’ve kissed a Gateshead girl

Starlings swarming
A cloud over Grainger Street
Over the black church
Over the Black Gate
And the shadowy Keep

He peers through his wire rims
At the fish and chip words
He’s supposed to dish up and forget
His drudgery now has become slightly blurred
By one of his Players untipped cigarettes

Bury all joy
Put the poems in sacks
And bury me here with the hacks

In the summer the fair
Will stretch over the Moor
Lovers will lie and make out in the park
Basil puts on his old duffel and scarf
And goes out into the dark
 

▲ TOP

 

RIVER TOWNS

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

I came in three days early
To meet my boat
It ain’t the life of Riley
But it’s keeping me afloat
It’s quiet over Christmas
If you got no place to go
I got my home from river rats
The only home I know

I found myself a flophouse
And I hit the streets at nine
Get some grub and drink a beer
Maybe go down the line
These chips will take your money
Shake a young man down
It’s the same in every one of these
Sorry river towns

River towns, sorry river towns
River towns
River towns, sorry river towns
River towns

Well I picked me up a bottle
To take back to the room
Then I saw a young girl standing
In a doorway in the gloom
We’d hardly started talking
The old scenario
And I just let her work me over
Down by the Ohio

River towns, sorry river towns
River towns
River towns, sorry river towns
River towns

When I asked her if she’d like to stay
She was down my stairs so quick
I never asked what got her started
With the sorry river tricks
So I get the bottle open
But something’s hit a nerve
And I’m looking in the mirror
At the face that I deserve

River towns, sorry river towns
River towns
River towns, sorry river towns
River towns
 

▲ TOP

 

SKYDIVER

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

I’ve been banned from every racecourse in the country
There’s something about the unsure thing
Like scoring with a beauty of the county
It always makes the old bell ring

I like to go for broke and I’ll be randy
It’s got to be the unsure thing
In the Bentley Continental with the brandy
It always makes the old bell ring

And when it’s gone, all gone
I’ll stand on a hilltop and sing
I go where I want, I do what I want
And I don’t give a damn about a thing

Skydiver

Today I lost a packet at Wincanton
Dive Bomber in the 2.15
All on the nose and no-one counting
Nothing wishy-washy in between

Back when I made the pivotal decision
To take a winding road that I could see
It was just like being given an incredible permission
The rules don’t apply to me

And when it’s gone, all gone
I’ll stand on a hilltop and sing
I go where I want, I do what I want
And I don’t give a damn about a thing

Skydiver

I’m not being brave, it’s my money, not my life
When I need to take a break from the brushes and the knife
And I always took a fancy to the ones
Heading straight into the teeth of the guns

Skydiver
 

▲ TOP

 

 

MIGHTY MAN

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

A room on the top floor
And the chest all but knackered
Two fingers not working
And the back’s shot to hell
It’s a lifetime of digging trenches
In the cold and wet weather
And for laying half the roadway
In England as well

You’d finish in the one place
It was straight to the next one
And you never could settle
And you were always alone
Just a drifter in limbo
I was best off away, son
Just one of the thousands
Who could never go home

That’s your mighty man, son
Your mighty man

Well, the boat and the train ride
In a misty November
We had the worst of the lodgings
And we hated the subs
Ma’s face on the leaving
I will always remember
And we wouldn’t get paid
Until they had closed up their pubs

And I could stand up on horseback
Was the man for the singing
Put my hand up for boxing
At the fairground on the heath
I could play my accordion
And charm all of the women
And dance round the taproom
With a chair in my teeth

That’s your mighty man, son
Your mighty man
That’s your mighty man, son
Your mighty man
 

▲ TOP

 

 

BROKEN BONES

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

She likes a man with a broken nose
Lucky for me, I suppose
Shots coming in like the monthly bills
Soon they’ll be saying I’m over the hill

Well the bell goes clang and you’re on your own
You take your medicine and go home
You take it like a man, on the chin
And you don’t make a fuss when the towel comes in

Now let me go home, got to lay in ice
And I don’t want to hear no more advice
Just give me my clothes
Get me out of this place
How many more stitches in my face?

Those broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home
Broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home

He had the punch lines, I was the joke
Every shot felt like something broke
It was all much more than a man should stand
And I finally went down to a big right hand

Now let me go home, got to lay in ice
And I don’t want to hear no more advice
Just give me my clothes
Get me out of this place
How many more stitches in my face?

Those broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home
Broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home

Broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home
Broken bones, you pick ‘em up and carry ‘em
Broken bones, you carry ‘em home
 

▲ TOP

 

LONG COOL GIRL

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

All I do is think of you
As I go around the world
All I do is think of you
Long, cool girl

Long, cool girl
I like to say her name
Long, cool girl
With a showgirl frame

You took a look at me
I took a look at you
Now I just can’t see
What a man’s supposed to do

Long, cool girl
I like to say her name
Long, cool girl
With a showgirl frame

Me and you we’re 3 and 2
Something’s gonna happen now, it has to
Me and you we’re 3 and 2
Something’s gonna happen now, it has to

Pressure drop and weather change
All around the world
You got me at point blank range
Long, cool girl

Long, cool girl
I like to say her name
Long, cool girl
With a showgirl frame

All I do is think of you
As I go around the world
All I do is think of you
Long, cool girl
 

▲ TOP

 

 

 

LIGHTS OF TAORMINA

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

There’s laughter in the darkness
Music floating in across the bay
He’s half listening and wondering
How he could have let her slip away
So long ago but still he wants to know
If anyone has seen her
And he’s sitting out in the night
Looking down upon the lights of Taormina

They were young and love was shining
Like the colours of the rainbow
Desire felt like choking
Love was smoking under the volcano
He can still taste her kisses
Sweet as the red wine from Messina
Now he’s sitting out in the night
Looking down upon the lights of Taormina

Seems like another lifetime
When they rambled along the shore
Seems like another lifetime
She used to call him her sweet senor
Maybe in another lifetime
On a pathway to the sea
Maybe there they’ll be

The crowd calls for the emperor
Raise their hands to hail another king
But he’s been so long a wanderer
Another crowd can never mean a thing
He came, he saw, he conquered
Ten thousand voices roared in the arena
Now he’s sitting out in the night
Looking down upon the lights of Taormina

He hears the chimes of history
Myths of gods and men forever ringing
Ancient dreams in all their mystery
Wars for Sicily and Spartan women
In the mists of antiquity
Ships of war set sail from Carthagina
Now he’s sitting out in the night
Looking down upon the lights of Taormina
Sitting out in the night
Looking down upon the lights of Taormina
 

▲ TOP

 

 

SILVER EAGLE

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

It was so late and she’d be sleeping
He came through her home town
With the moonlight on the crossroads
And the green light shining down
And the bell at the railroad crossing
And the horn from far away
And his Silver Eagle passing
Half a mile from where she lay

At his feet a sea of faces
Make devotions with their love
Clap their hands and plead their cases
Call for blessings from above
Like the rolling waves forever massing
To crash and foam and creep away
And the Silver Eagle passing
Half a mile from where she lay

Road signs flow into the headlights
Whisper names and fall behind
He finds some honor in the darkness
Hopes for grace and peace of mind
And he thinks of how they’d lay together
He’d run his fingers through her hair
And he wonders if she’ll ever
Come to know that he was there
 

▲ TOP

 

 

BERYL

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler)
 

Beryl was on another level
When she got a Booker medal
She was dead in her grave
After all she gave
After all she gave

Beryl, every time they’d overlook her
When they gave her a Booker
She was dead in her grave
After all she gave
After all she gave

It’s all too late now
It’s all too late now
It’s too late, you dabblers
It’s all too late
It’s too late, you dabblers
It’s all too late

Beryl, the tobacco overtook her
When they gave her a Booker
She was dead in her grave
After all she gave
After all she gave

It’s all too late now
It’s all too late now
It’s too late, you dabblers
It’s all too late
It’s too late, you dabblers
It’s all too late

Beryl was on another level
When she got a Booker medal
She was dead in her grave
After all she gave
After all she gave
After all she gave
After all she gave
 

▲ TOP

 

 

WHEREVER I GO

(released on 'Tracker', written by Mark Knopfler, featuring Ruth Moody on vocals)
 

Maybe I’m bound to wander
From one place to the next
Heaven knows why
But in the wild blue yonder
Your star is fixed in my sky

Just another bar at a crossroads
So far from home
But that’s alright
Whenever I’m going down a dark road
I don’t feel alone in the night

There’s a place in my heart
Though we’re far apart
May you always know
No matter how long since I saw you
I’ll keep a flame there for you
Wherever I go

They’re looking to close up in here
They’re pulling down the blinds
But they’ll let you stay awhile
They’re not going to mind

Now I’ve got to leave you, brother
So this round’s mine
Here’s looking at you, anyhow
You can go on and have another
They won’t call time
I’m going to say my goodbyes now

There’s a place in my heart
Though we’re far apart
May you always know
No matter how long since I saw you
I’ll keep a flame there for you
Wherever I go
 

▲ TOP

 

 

.38 SPECIAL

(released on 'Tracker' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

The fate of a roving gambler
Is waiting down the bloodthirsty highway
The highway is my home, I’m a rambler
And I have to pay the devil every day

Now if I should owe a friend a million dollars
He knows my guarantee is sound
If we should get hijacked by robbers
There’d be no big money laying all around

I may be gone to the devil
But I ain’t rollin’ over for you
If you’ve got a pistol in your pocket
I’ve got my .38 Special too

Are you dancing for the payers of the piper?
Are you jumping through your party hoops for them?
You won’t see any nine to fivers
At the tables of my poker playing friends

So take your politician or your banker
Take your friendly health insurance man
I never met a cold hearted gambler
Could carry off a hustle like they can

I may be gone to the devil
But I ain’t rollin’ over for you
If you’ve got a pistol in your pocket
I’ve got my .38 Special too

▲ TOP

 


 

MY HEART HAD NEVER CHANGED

(released on 'Tracker' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

My car’s in for a brake job
Be ready in a while
Something about the waitress
Made me think about your smile
I tip her a ten spot
And I try to read her name
I’m just an old long hauler
A grinder at the game

Heaven knows the highways
Since we’ve been apart
But my heart don’t feel like leaving
Or you won’t leave my heart
Now and then I might take
A little something for pain
But there’s nothing much for heartache
And my heart has never changed
My heart has never changed

Now there’s no more rough and tumble
Down Highway 199
Nothing lasts forever
I just miss it sometimes

She comes to pour more coffee
But it’s time to see more world
I pick up my check and keys
And go and pay the girl
My mind’s in Hell’s Half Acre
And the rooms along Exchange
And the scenes are always shifting
But my heart has never changed
My heart has never changed
 

▲ TOP

 

 

 

TERMINAL OF TRIBUTE TO

(released on 'Tracker' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

On the road again in cabaret
Grey hair and Fenders
Old ghosts revisited today
No original members

Pick out a pretty one and toss your hair
Seems foolish when you’re older
You always felt you never had your share
A chip on both your shoulders

You’ve been faking it so long
Now you don’t know right from wrong
Or what the future has in store for you
In the terminal of tribute to

Every day you take the bitter pill
The minibus driver says and you are who
You never made it and you never will
In the terminal of tribute to

Where your plans are forever falling through
And your dreams are movies never shot
And you’re someone, a shadow passing through
Nobody ever knew, so nobody forgot

Your bag has fallen from the carousel
They say one day it could come back to you
Exactly when nobody can tell
In the terminal of tribute to

You’ve been faking it so long
Now you don’t know right from wrong
Or what the future has in store for you
In the terminal of tribute to

You’ve been faking it so long
Now you don’t know right from wrong
Or what the future has in store for you
In the terminal of tribute to
 

▲ TOP

 

 

HEART OF OAK

(released on 'Tracker' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

And how he used to thrill the crowd
The ready eye with bat and ball
The village fighter, heavy browed
The Englishman who had it all
A mighty shoulder to the wheel
To join in battle with the best
The iron arm, the will of steel
And heart of oak to mourn the rest

A power harnessed to the game
Once yoked and tempered fades away
The willing arm, the steady aim
The youth and fire that won the day
As twilight shadows dim the field
The ageing fighter stands bereft
With just the will to never yield
And heart of oak to mourn what’s left
 

▲ TOP

 

 

TIME WILL END ALL SORROW

(released on 'Tracker' Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

The campfires have been lit along the river
You wouldn’t know of trouble anywhere
Someone is playing a concertina
Some old familiar air

It takes me back into another lifetime
Before we ever fought in fields of mud
Where lives like autumn leaves are tossed and scattered
And lost in the swirling flood

But how a song can heal a weary heart
And bring you closer to me where I lie
A song can heal a weary heart
Time will end all sorrow by and by

The moon is laying soft upon the water
Smoke comes drifting gently from the hill
They tell us that this war will soon be over
Maybe in another lifetime it will

But how a song can heal a weary heart
And bring you closer to me where I lie
A song can heal a weary heart
Time will end all sorrow by and by

Time will end all sorrow by and by
 

▲ TOP

 

 

OKLAHOMA PONIES

(released on 'Tracker' Box-set Bonus Track CD, traditional melody, lyrics and arrangement by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")
 

We’re a badass band
From the kick ass south
Pizza goin’ down the sofa
A rockin’ little band
Got a record out
And buddy it’s a hit all over
We’re a badass band
From the kick ass south
Corn chips in the shagpile
We’re a’ gonna punch
One another in the mouth
They’re giving us a brand new hairstyle

Get on down, turn ‘em all around
Kick ’em in the old cojones
Gotta get on down, turn ‘em all around
We’re the Oklahoma Ponies
Get on down, turn ‘em all around
Kick ’em in the old cojones
Gotta get on down, turn ‘em all around
‘Cos we’re the Oklahoma Ponies

Now the badass boys
They’re a’ gonna wanna fight
Like they do in Oklahoma
They got a killer girl
To dress us right
And buddy do I wanna bone her
We’re a badass band
From the kick ass south
Pizza going down the sofa
A rockin’ little band
With a record out
And buddy it’s a hit all over

Get on down, turn ‘em all around
Kick ’em in the old cojones
Gotta get on down, turn ‘em all around
We’re the Oklahoma Ponies
Get on down, turn ‘em all around
Kick’em in the old cojones
Gotta get on down, turn ‘em all around
‘Cos we’re the Oklahoma Ponies
 

▲ TOP

 

 

HOT DOG

(released only on the German edition of 'Tracker', both on standard and Deluxe Edition. Sold exclusively in Germany at Mediamarkt, Saturn and other outlets. Written by Mark Knopfler )
 

I'm coming off your cooking
I'm coming off my food
I'm staring down this hot dog
And I'm in a fighting mood
Hot dog, it's either your or me
I guess the hot dog blues
Got a hold on me

Well I drink my coffee leaded
'Til I'm good to go
They tell me it ain't good for me
Maybe so
Hot dog, it's either you or me
I guess the hot dog blues
Got a hold on me

Well you're gonna give me trouble
I'm gonna stick around
Ain't no hot dog
Gonna run me out of town
Hot Dog, it's either you or me
I guess the hot dog blues
Got a hold on me

▲ TOP

 

 

I NEVER MET A ONE LIKE YOU

(Mark Knopfler wrote this song during sessions for his 2013 album “Privateering”. When Knopfler didn’t end up using the song, he offered it to Tim O’Brien, who brought it to Hot Rize. It was released on the album "When I'm free" in 2014.)

Lyrics not available yet

▲ TOP

 

 

PLAYTIME DELUXE

(Mark Knopfler wrote this song and played it for the first time live at Bill Wyman's 80th birthday party at Indigo at the O2, London, UK, 28th October 2016)


Holy Smokes
You're looking like a million bucks
Holy Smokes
You're looking like a million bucks
Chasing after you baby
Looking for Playtime Deluxe

Holy Smokes
Got me stuck on you
Holy Smokes
You got me stuck on you
Thousand miles away from me
How could I not be blue

Holy Smokes
With the trucks and the buses and the trucks
Yes I've been out on the road babe
Till then the buses and the trucks
When I get home
Got to be the Playtime Deluxe

Yeah 'cos you're a full time angel
I'm just a part-time saint
You're a full time angel baby
I'm a part-time saint
You might think I'm fooling
Baby I swear I ain't

Holy Smokes
You're like a million bucks
Ooh Holy Smokes
Like a million bucks
Thinking about you baby
Thinking about the Playtime Deluxe

▲ TOP

 

SACRED LOVING

(One of the five songs of the demo tape that Dire Straits sent to DJ Charlie Gillett. Played live during the early Dire Straits days, never officially released, written and sung by David Knopfler. An anonymous source shared 21 seconds of this song on the internet in December 2017. Lyrics provided by David Knopfler himself. On 8th January 2021, David Knopfer broadcasted the demo recording on his podcast!)

Oh my love I wish I were strong 
To carry your pain 
If my hands were of a granite 
I’d take all of your needs and never bend 

Living and loving sharing just nothing 
Waiting and praying just hoping for change 
It's the way of the world, so uncaring 
That a bad man needs good love is hard to explain 

Sacred loving, without it there’s just nothing 
I feel so humbled by the ways I've lied 
You ride with the winds, fly with your horses 
And I hide from a devil howling inside

 

Note:

Originally there was an extra verse in this song (followed after verse one from the lyrics above):

They say, you'll be weakness only with passion
That goodness come only through fire
My wisdom is so wild eyed
A child is still with me so is desire

There exists an audio version of Sacred Loving with a total of 4 verses, including this second verse.
Unfortunately, I have not heard that version myself up to now.
It looks like David Knopfler broadcasted an edited version of this song in his podcast.

▲ TOP

 

YOU DON'T WANT TO GET YOU ONE OF THOSE

(Mark Knopfler wrote this song and gave it to Tommy Emmanuel for his CD Accomplice One. Mark plays and sings together with Tommy on this little tune)

That old car would like to break your heart
But she's too far-gone to even start
Take it from ones who knows
You don't wanna get you one of those

She's always been as mean as she appears
Ain't done no rock 'n' rollin' for years
They should put it in a crusher I suppose
You don't wanna get you one of those

Leave her over there behind the barn
Where she’ll be out of the way
She's got chassis rot
The gearbox shot
She's had her day

It's all over for that old heap
She needs a whole lot of more than beauty sleep
If you want to get you one that goes
You don't wanna get you one of those

Leave her over there behind the barn
Where she’ll be out of the way
She's got chassis rot
The gearbox shot
She's had her day

It's all over for that old heap
She needs a whole lot of more than beauty sleep
If you want to get you one that goes
You don't wanna get you one of those

You don't wanna get you one of those

▲ TOP

 


Trapper Man

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

The trapper man’s in from the hinterlands
Filth and grease on his clothes and hands
From the outermost, the farthermost
Comes riding in to the trading post
Got a pack horse loaded up with hides
Steps in to see the man inside
‘I got furs, skins, a little meat too
Here, I got a good piece just for you'

'You take this home to give the wife’
The trapper draws his skinning knife
Now the fat man's desk is a butcher's block
The trapper cuts the meat and talks
‘You’re gonna lose your shirt on a nowhere man
Lose your shirt in nowhere land
Back out there is my country
And you best let this trapper be the trapper
You need the trapper man
The trapper man

If you don't want to be where lightning strikes
Better let me work the way I like
You don't want to know how I fill my sacks
You go out there you don't come back
You got nature red in tooth and claw
And you ain't got no rule of law
And if you don't know nature's way
All that's gonna stop you being the prey is the trapper
You need the trapper man
The trapper man

You wanna wear them gems and rings
You wanna show off them shiny things
Shake your money maker, bro
Where the movers and the shakers go
You wanna go do what you do
Let the gold and silver come to you
So leave the dirty work to me
Yeah you best let this trapper be the trapper
You need the trapper man
The trapper man

When he's done his thing and gone his way
The fat men light cigars and say
“Holy smokes did you see that?
We all made money on the trapper cat”
Sit back in their big ass chairs
Say, “Boys, that is the man right there”
I’m the lifeline for your big soft ass
It’s the trapper puts it in first class, the trapper
You need the trapper man
The trapper man

▲ TOP


Back On The Dance Floor

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

Hand me down my high roller Stetson
Hand me down my smokeless .41
We’re gonna look so sharp when we walk in
They’re gonna be jazzed we come

We’re going for the major comeback
For the motherlode, the mighty score
We’ll be the toast of every knocked out boogie shack
Now we’re back on the dancefloor

Going all the way is the only way to go
The only game in town
Shake your moneymaker closer to the floor
Shake ‘em on down, shake ‘em on down

Hand me down my two-tone wingtips
Hand me down my skull head walking cane
You all gotta wear them shantung gambler suits
They’re gonna be jazzed we came

We’re going for the major comeback
For the motherlode, the mighty score
We’ll be the toast of every knocked out boogie shack
Now we’re back on the dancefloor

Going all the way is the only way to go
The only game in town
Shake your moneymaker closer to the floor
Shake ‘em on down, shake ‘em on down

We’re going for the major comeback
For the motherlode, the mighty score
We’ll be the toast of every knocked out boogie shack
Now we’re back on the dancefloor

▲ TOP




Nobody’s Child

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

The ragged kid nobody wanted
Left alone to ramble wild
Long ago he was abandoned
Nobody’s child

Never smiles and never chatters
Never quarrels or complains
Grown as hard as the Sierras
And the Western Plains
Come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea
A'come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea

Learned to swing a broken bottle
Learned to use his fists and knife
In the bar rooms and bordellos
Of his life

He drifted down towards the borders
The sky was dark but it did not rain
Came the meanest pistoleros
In the Western Plains

He fell in with these desperadoes
Thieves and killers every one
Prizes hanging from their saddles
With their guns
Come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea
A'come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea

The ragged kid nobody wanted
Left alone to ramble wild
Now he rides beside the Devil
Nobody’s child
Come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea
A'come a'cow cow yicky yicky yea

▲ TOP




Just A Boy away from home

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

When I was just a boy I’d be kicking a tin
Take the short cut home through the loony bin
I never gave much thought to the souls in there
I was just a boy, too young to care

Well the years go by and you get to see
A dream’s not the same as reality
Well a dream or two is going to crash and burn
And that’s the way that you live and learn

Well it was late one night and I woke at two
And I lay there thinking the way you do
But it’s a long dark night of the soul
When those thoughts are turning sad and old

And then outside on the empty street
I heard the sound of walking feet
Well it was just a boy away from home
And he was singing the song ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’

▲ TOP




When You Leave

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

When you leave
There’s cordite in the air
A ringing in the stillness
Smoke drifting up the stair

When you leave
When you leave
My heart sounds in my ears
A beating in the darkness
A trace of you still here
When you leave
When you leave

Like it or not
How could I not have fallen for you?
And now that I’m caught
How could I not be blue?

When you leave
I’ll hear the smallest sound
And turn to look behind me
As though you’re still around
When you leave
When you leave

▲ TOP




Good On You Son

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

Flash goes a little hummingbird
A darting, whirring thread
At the screen door by his lemon tree
Out here with the quick and the dead
Designer blinds above L.A.
Frame the perfect view
It’s going to be another day
Of sun and shameless blue

By his cutting block the time has come
For the fruit there by the juicer
He’s grinds fresh coffee for himself
He’s meeting a producer
The L.A.Times lies on the stone
Warming there like bread
Hey, what’s not to like out here

With the quick and the dead?

Good on you, son, good on you
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two
Good on you, son, good on you
Uh-huh, oh yeah
Good on you, son, good on you
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two, yeah

Well, you want to know what happiness is?
In his eye there's a hunter’s gleam
Something to look forward to
This cat's gonna get the cream
The skin of a mango is so smooth
Smoother than the devil
Cut it, slice it, chop it up
To the rhythm of a Cockney rebel

Back in Blighty there’s a flat
On a grimy sink estate
That's why he walked out of that
And went to the Golden State
Left the baccy and the beer
Where he was born and bred
Now he’s cutting it out here
With the quick and the dead

Good on you, son, good on you
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two
Good on you, son, good on you
Uh-huh, oh yeah
What would you’d have had him do?
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two

Yeah good on you son, good on you
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two
Good on you, son, good on you
Uh-huh, oh yeah
Good on you, son, good on you
The Camden Shuffle and the old one-two, yeah

▲ TOP




My Bacon Roll

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

I never got the elbow
Just telling you
Before you go
Only telling you
Just so you know

I never got the elbow
I slung it in
Had it up to here
I just pulled the pin
Went and had a beer

I used to love a bit of folding
Just for getting by
A wad of cash
Now that’s out of date
And so am I
As pie and mash

S’cuse me, s’cuse me
Have you got my roll?
My roll? My bacon roll?

The time they took us bowling
What was that about?
I thought what a joke
I just went out
And had a smoke

Then the white water rafting
Just some know-it-all
With the new regime
There to show us all
How to build a team

He says what do you think we’re doing?
I said don’t ask me
I’ve no idea
They all laughed at that
That was pretty funny actually

S’cuse me, s’cuse me
Have you got my roll?
My roll? My bacon roll?
Have you got my roll?
My roll? My bacon roll?

I could order you a toastie
Just like that one there
Or the same in plain white bread
When you’re dealing with a toastie
What do you prefer
Brown or red?

I never got the elbow
Just telling you
Before you go
Only telling you
Just so you know

▲ TOP




Nobody Does That

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

I like the way you put yourself together
Nobody does that quite the way you do
I like the way you put yourself together
Nobody does that quite like you

Nobody does that
Nobody does that
Nobody does that

I like the way you’re holding my attention
Nobody does that quite the way you do
That stuff too hot for me to mention
Nobody does that quite like you

Nobody does that
Nobody does that

I like the way you work the opposition
Nobody does that quite the way you do
When you want to smoke the competition
Nobody does that quite like you

Nobody does that
Nobody does that
Nobody does that

I like the way you put yourself together
Nobody does that quite the way you do
I like the way you put yourself together
Nobody does that quite like you

Nobody does that
Nobody does that
Nobody does that

▲ TOP





Drovers’ Road

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

It’s a drover’s road
High up where ravens fly
And soon I'll lose my way
And I won’t know
It’s a drover’s road
From days so long gone by
When we knew who we were
And where to go

It’s a drover’s road
It winds a hundred miles
You'd sleep out in the open
Calm and still
You could trust a friend
To keep a watch awhile
Your cattle grazing
Quiet on the hill

Walk with me
And you can leave that old dog be
He does much better on his own
Leave him be
He’s a better man than me
He likes to find his own way home

On a drover’s road
With the moon and misty stars
We walked these hills
Before this all began
Before we gazed at screens
Went shopping in our cars
And a million houses
Sprawled across the land

Walk with me
And you can leave that old dog be
He does much better on his own
Leave him be
He’s a better man than me
He likes to find his own way home

▲ TOP




One Song At A Time

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

My whistle under the archways
Still echoes down the street
All the way back to Deptford days
Nights down by The Creek
Notes as big as river boats
Still echoing through the clubs
With the horns of the trains
Down the old back lanes
And the lights of the corner pubs

In a taproom lined with mirrors
There's a man there at the bar
Reminds you of somebody
He says I know who you are
He’s right, I know I could be him
But anyway who is who?
You could be looking at
What he’s looking at
And he’s looking at you

And I’ll be out of this place
And down the road wherever
There but for the grace, etcetera
I’ll see you later but it’s 1979
And I’m picking my way out of here
One song at a time

The slaving ports of plunder
Used to stink to heaven on high
Companions of honour
Always were in short supply
The Bristol ships and Liverpool's
On every tide they came
The times they may have changed, my friend
Some people stay the same

And I’ll be out of this place
And down the road wherever
There but for the grace, etcetera
I'll see you later but it's 1879
And I'm picking my way out of here
One song at a time

A grinning mogul greets the crowd
At Execution Dock
All come to see three mutineers
Turned off at twelve o’clock
The shyster takes a ringside seat
As they’re bringing them from the jail
And twenty thousand tickets
Sold online on premium sale

So if you need to reach me
You can leave word at The Pig
I have no wish to stay around
To watch that Newgate jig
Or any more poor old fakers
Trying to dance in my old shoes
I’ll be gone over the ocean
With the transatlantic blues

And I’ll be out of this place
And down the road wherever
There but for the grace, etcetera
I’ll see you later somewhere down the line
I’ll be picking my way out of here
One song at a time

▲ TOP





Floating Away

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

It’s the weight I’m trying
To get inside the frame
I’ve been painting a fat man
He’s big and fat and heavy
As a man can be
But he’s been floating away, floating away
He’s been floating away from me

In the mirror my withering skin
Is a thorny pleasure
I stand unflinching
And I mark each crease and sting
My brush my wooden flail
My ancient thresher
As unforgiving time flays everything

It’s the truth I’m trying
To get inside the frame
Now I’m painting myself naked
But I need a pair of boots
About as heavy as boots can be
Or I’d be floating away, floating away
I’d be floating away from me

And every thorn sends thistledown
Drifting all around
And floating away, floating away
Floating away from me

▲ TOP




Slow Learner

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

People say ‘Where have you been?’
Or ‘Where did you go?’
I’m a slow learner
I do everything slow
It’s my way, has to be true
The world goes by me fast
But where you’re concerned
I like good things to last
Where’s the point in worrying
If we should start a little late
Where’s the point in hurrying
When waiting feels so great?
I’m a slow burner
My last train left a while ago
I’m a slow learner
I do everything slow

So where’s the point in worrying

If we should start a little late
And where’s the point in hurrying
When waiting feels so great?
I’m a slow burner
My last train left a while ago
I’m a slow learner
I do everything slow

Yeah, I’m a slow burner
My last train left a while ago
I’m a slow learner
I do everything slow

▲ TOP





Heavy Up

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

Your slack-jawed dimness is our loss
Condemns us to your point of view
Who could give a flying toss
What you like to chill out to?
And why should I lighten up for you
If you can't heavy up for me?
Why should I? Why should I?

You grunt and root your patch of earth
Adrift from shame and deaf to sound
How much is your praise really worth?
About the same as your thumbs down
And why should I lighten up for you
If you can't heavy up for me?
Why should I? Why should I?

So heavy up, heavy up for me
Heavy up, heavy up for me
You can give it up
Give it up with me
Or heavy up, heavy up for me

What would it take
To get you to shut it?
I’d so love it

And why should I lighten up for you
If you can't heavy up for me?
Why should I? Why should I?

So heavy up, heavy up for me
Heavy up, heavy up for me
You can give it up
Give it up with me
Or heavy up, heavy up for me

You won’t of course, you will be heard
Ah, but at least a man can dream
I’m afraid, alas, the turd
Who thinks he’s an ice cream
And why should I lighten up for you
If you can't heavy up for me?
Why should I? Why should I?

So heavy up, heavy up for me
Heavy up, heavy up for me

You can give it up
Give it up with me
Or heavy up, heavy up for me

Yeah, heavy up, heavy up for me
Heavy up, heavy up for me
You can give it up
Give it up with me
Or heavy up, heavy up for me

▲ TOP




Matchstick Man

(released on 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler)

So there he was then, Penzance to play
Christmas Eve in a nowhere band
Now early morning Christmas Day
He’s hitching home to Geordieland

Last night the snow came, just my luck
And who the hell do you think you are
Climbing up into that truck
With your old bag and your guitar

And you, you would-be vagabond
No-one invited you, you know
Matchstick man, up in the dawn
You've got five hundred miles to go

The driver now must drop off his load
The snow still laying thick on the ground
Leaves him on a high crossroads
Where he can see for miles around

The sun is shining, sky is blue
And everything is white and bare
Not a car comes into view
There's nothing moving anywhere

And you, you would-be vagabond
No-one invited you, you know
Matchstick man, you speck upon
These vast and silent plains of snow

▲ TOP

 

PALE IMITATION

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe LP Box Set from 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")

Once I went back and I stayed on the street
Where I used to live
Got up in the morning
Put on my boots and I crossed the road
Stood in front of our house
And went back to my tricycle times

At the end of the terrace I looked up the alley
And there he was
A little blonde boy
With a stick in his hands looking straight at me
And if he wasn’t me
Then my god, he was just like I used to be

We stared at each other
But he stared me down and I looked away
After a moment
When I turned again he was gone

I don’t think I ever became half the man
That I used to be
The warrior captain
The bold pirate king of the sea
Nobody does me like I do
Or that’s what they say to me
But I’m a pale imitation
I’ve been keeping my secret safe with me

▲ TOP

 

 

DON'T SUCK ME IN

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe LP Box Set from 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


She was dancing at the Lucky Spot
Then she was at The Flame
Then she went to the Red Rooster
But the story was the same
Had a boyfriend name of Buddy
Then she had a guy called Slim
Married a cat played bebop drums
Whatever happened to him?
Who knows what kind of a dive
She’s currently working in
Don’t know, don’t care
Don’t suck me in

Remember that jack of all trades
And a master of none
Played rock or pop, they’d tell him what
He was just another gun
Teenybop in Tokyo
Bubblegum in France
A mister glass half-empty
A pessimist in advance
Now it’s looking like free fall
The work’s not coming in
Don’t even ask, my friend
Don’t suck me in

And your so-called business partner
Was another fair weather friend
All he really cared about
Was what was due his end
He liked to check his bank account
Hang with the pimps and liars
Come creeping by to sniff the wind
Show up to kick the tyres
Now he’s in some kind of a dive
Maybe it’s a tailspin
I don’t want to know, my friend
Don’t suck me in

Your second cousin’s Uncle Frank
Is coming into town
With crap for all the family
And to see what’s going down
He’ll eat you out of house and home
Disappear your wine
Says he could have been a concert pianist
If he’d only had the time
You pulled the pin on that grenade
Now you’re stuck with him
Don’t even ask, my friend
Don’t suck me in

▲ TOP
 

 

SKY AND WATER

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe LP Box Set from 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


There’s only sky and water
As far as we can see
You came in a dream last night
Dear heart, you spoke to me
There’s only sky and water
And never so alone
When we cut the captain loose
We cut all ties with home
Lord, we cut all ties with home

We let the tyrant drift away
In one of his own boats
I don’t know why I stopped the hands
From going for his throat
Every man did curse the day
He signed up for the trip
And every man did know
This was no way to run a ship
Lord, no way to run a ship

Good riddance to his bitter soul
And now we have the brig
It’s sure we’ll not be sailing home
To dance the hempen jig
There’s only sky and water
We sleep and dream of land
But free of chains of iron
And the captain’s iron hand
Lord, the captain’s iron hand

He lashed me to a grating
For the nine claws of the cat
And now I have a fever
But I give no thought to that
I am high over the water
I sleep and dream of land
Free of chains of iron
And the captain’s iron hand
Lord, the captain’s iron hand

▲ TOP

 

 

BACK IN THE DAY

(this song was meant to be released as a bonus track from 'Down the road wherever' (written by Mark Knopfler). It was announced on the official Mark Knopfler site, including the lyrics but at the last moment is was withdrawn and did not see the light unfortunately!
But on 28th July 2022 it was released on Spotify and YouTube and finally in October 2022 became part of the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


You had to know what you were doing
Up on the band
Nobody lining up
To come give you a hand
No way could you fake it
At 18th and Vine
And we could really put the sauce on it
We’d do it all the time

We was hot as smokin’ pistols
Chopping everybody down
Swinging like dogs, man
Kings of the town
There’d be a cutting contest
You had to do your research
I’d pull out a lick or two
From Saturday night church
Yeah, you’d maybe get to try
A couple things you learned
But you had to do your homework
‘Cause a gig was earned

When swing turned into bebop
It was all going on
Blowing all night
On past the dawn
I might play all day
I might play all night
Whatever made you stronger, baby
That was alright
Yeah, you’d maybe get to try
A couple things you’d learned
But you had to know your business
‘Cause everybody burned

Well a beer was a nickel
A whiskey was a dime
They’d come to Kansas City
See the girls on Vine
Might get a hot shot
Wanna bring along his horn
We liked to clean ‘em up
And head ‘em back where they belong
So long

But it’s just the old malarkey
That’ll wear you down
Some people are the pits, man
There’s always some around
Some will take advantage
If they can
It’s the old baloney sandwich
You dig me, man?
I’m talking about a time
When every man could play
But that’s the way it was
Back in the day

▲ TOP

 

 

PRECIOUS VOICE FROM HEAVEN

(this song was from the 'Down the road wherever' recording sessions (written by Mark Knopfler) and was released as a bonus track on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


Remember your skinny young folkster
With his guitar and his greasy cap
Do you still want your ageing hipster
With his records and his trilby hat?

Angel heart, it's time to let go
It's so much harder to live in this town
Fact of it is I'm forty-two years old
And the venues are closing down
Folk rock's just beat up old names
I've been holding out as long as I can
It's a new tech crowd, it's a property game
And I'd need to be a richer man

Ah, but you have a precious voice from heaven
A once in a blue moon ecstasy
You could sing the phone book
If there was still a phone book
You could sing the phone book
It would sound beautiful to me

Nowadays when I get up and sing
They'll be talking like I'm not even there
Now it appears I'm maybe not their thing
That's okay though it's not that I don't care
With all the rest of the semi-fixed abodes
With their colours and their songs and their soul
I'd be long gone down the road
If not for you, girl rent and control

Ah, but you have a precious voice from heaven
A once in a blue moon ecstasy
You could sing the phone book
If there was still a phone book
You could sing the phone book
It would sound beautiful to me

The cool kids who make your town
Gotta help them stick around
You wanna keep your city hip
Or all the kids will desert the ship


▲ TOP
 


 

REAR VIEW MIRROR

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe CD from 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


Last I saw of you was in the rear view
That rear view mirror of mine
Last I saw of you was in the rear view mirror
Getting so much smaller all the time

And when I think of you you’re in the rear view
That rear view mirror of mine
When I think of you you’re in the rear view mirror
Getting so much smaller all the time

Do I owe you for letting me know
Do I? I guess so
Do I owe you for letting me know
So I’m thanking you for letting me go

Do I owe you for letting me know
Do I? I guess so
Do I owe you for letting me know
So I’m thanking you for letting me go

Do I owe you for letting me know
Do I? I guess so
Do I owe you for letting me know
So I’m thanking you for letting me go

So when I think of you you’re in the rear view
That rear view mirror of mine
Oh, when I think of you you’re in the rear view mirror
Getting so much smaller all the time
Getting so much smaller all the time
Getting so much smaller all the time

Getting so much smaller, baby
So long, baby

▲ TOP
 

 

 

EVERY HEART IN THE ROOM

(released as a bonus track in the Deluxe CD from 'Down the road wherever', written by Mark Knopfler. In October 2022, it was also released on the box set "The studio albums 2009-2018")


The barflies chatter
They don’t know any better
It doesn’t matter
You’re hanging on to a dream
To your own dream
They’re laughing and talking
One or two are clapping
But nobody’s walking
And you’re hanging on to a dream
To your own dream

Let them do what they do
Say what they say
It doesn’t matter anyway
Every heart in the room
Will belong to you one day

Let them do what they do
Say what they say
It doesn’t matter anyway
Every heart in the room
Will belong to you one day

A beer glass shatters
The bar staff clatters
It doesn’t matter
You’re hanging on to a dream
To your sweet dream
You don’t hurry, don’t worry
They’re going to know your story
It doesn’t matter
You’re hanging on to a dream
To your sweet dream

Let them do what they do
Say what they say
It doesn’t matter anyway
Every heart in the room
Will belong to you one day

▲ TOP

 

 

THE BOXER

(Mark Knopfler played this track live in the BBC Piano Room on 29th October 2018 as a "thank you" to Paul Simon for all the music over the years. Written by Paul Simon)


I am just a poor boy
Though my story's seldom told
I have squandered my resistance
For a pocket full of mumbles, such are promises
All lies and jests
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest

When I left my home and my family
I was no more than a boy
In the company of strangers
In the quiet of the railway station
Running scared,
Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters
Where the ragged people go
Looking for the places
Only they would know

Lie la lie, lie la la la lie lie
Lie la lie, lie la la la la lie la la lie

Asking only workman's wages
I come looking for a job
But I get no offers
Just a come-on from the whores
On Seventh Avenue
I do declare
There were times when I was so lonesome
I took some comfort there

Lie la lie, lie la la la lie lie
Lie la lie, lie la la la la lie la la lie

Then I'm laying out my winter clothes
And wishing I was gone
Going home
Where the New York City winters
Aren't bleeding me
Leading me
Going home

In the clearing stands a boxer
And a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminders
Of ev'ry glove that laid him down
Or cut him till he cried out
In his anger and his shame
"I am leaving, I am leaving"
But the fighter still remains

Lie la lie, lie la la la lie lie
Lie la lie, lie la la la la lie la la lie

▲ TOP

 

 

WATERBOUND

(Mark Knopfler played this track live with the band of Jools Holland, broadcasted on BBC Radio 2, 19th November 2018. Written by Dirk Powell)


I went out late one night
The moon and the stars were shining bright
A storm come up and the trees come down
I tell your boys I was waterbound

Waterbound on a stranger's shore
The river rising to my door
It carried my home to the field below
I'm waterbound nowhere to go

I carve my name on an old barn wall
And no one would know I was there at all
The stable's dry on a winter night
You turn your head you can see the light

A black cat crawling on an old box car
A rusty door and fallen star
Ain't got a dime in my nation sack
I'm waterbound and I can't get back

It's I'm goin' and I won't be back
You don't believe me count my tracks
The river's long and the river's wide
I'll meet you boys on the other side

So say my name and don't forget
The water still ain't got me yet
Ain't nothing but I'm bound to roam
I'm waterbound and I can't get home

▲ TOP

 

 

TWO PAIRS OF HANDS

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

We got the roller coaster piling along
The power and the glory with the song
Holy moly, where did the time go?
I told you, baby, now you know

I'm keeping the balls in the air
When I'm up here on the band
There'll be a little bit here and there
Still be trying to understand

But they'll all be in the air
When I'm up here on the band
What it is, I'm juggling here
I've only got two pairs of hands

There's a pin-drop, they follow a thread
And a lonе voice cries out overhеad
When the thunder bursts in the velvet night
There's joy and wonder and delight

I'm keeping the balls in the air
Tryna keep up with the band
There'll be a little bit here and there
I might get covered by the drifting sand

But they'll all be in the air
When I'm up here on the band
What it is, I'm juggling here
I've only got two pairs of hands

They're back in the streets and into the bars
The trams and the trains and back in their cars
Holy moly, where did the time go?
I told you, baby, now you know

I'm keeping the balls in the air
Tryna keep up with the band
There'll be a little bit here and there
Might get covered by the drifting sand

But they'll all be in the air
When I'm up here on the band
What it is, I'm juggling here
I've only got two pairs of hands

▲ TOP

 

AHEAD OF THE GAME

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

It's nothing but the hits in a room downtown
They're noisy as hell but nice
People don't usually get to play in there
More than a time or twice
You had you a regular spot
They were even advertising your name
Better than the usual thing you got
Staying just ahead of the game
Ahead of the game


And I can't tell you one thing new
About playing for the door
Some of my dreams back there too
With the sawdust on the floor
We're worn out and weary, all of us
But we know why we came
Banged up and battered like this old bus
Staying just ahead of the game
Ahead of the game


The sky's as big as nowhere
Which is where we've been
Left a dream behind there somewhere
You've got to have a dream


I gave your buddy a ride to the train
He was telling me he'd be back
It was a red light shining, love in vain
When we rolled across the tracks
Barista-bartender selling beat-up car
Needs a ticket for a bus or a plane
Singer-songwriter heading for home
Staying just ahead of the game
Ahead of the game

▲ TOP

 

SMART MONEY

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

The Santa Ana's been kicking up sand
All the way from Utah to La La Land
Sways the fairy lights up in the boughs
The finger-lickers who test the blow
And make predictions for best in show
Say the smart money ain't on your dog now
Ain't on your dog now

Cinderella's in the square
They wait in line to see her there
This little tootsie, she's showing 'em how
Fresh out of fame school class
This little hoofer means to kick some ass
And the smart money ain't on your dog now
Ain't on your dog now

Helicopters overhead
Showbiz kids are getting wed
They already sold the shoot
The ring going on her finger
The slipper on her foot

Down on the river, the wind's turned cool
It's blowing all the way from Boston to Liverpool
At least the summer knows when to take a bow
Groovy nights and golden days
Feel they could might just slip away
And the smart money ain't on your dog now
Ain't on your dog now

▲ TOP

 

SCAVENGERS YARD

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

I closed my eyes and made a wish
Lord, don't let me lose this fish
Scored myself a genuine squillionaire
I'm the drawing room boy with the pinky ring
I'm here to sell you anything
I've got a brand new friend
And we're doing a good job there

Thought he'd come down to sniff around
In my old blood-stained hunting ground
Walked right in, I never should have stayed
He's taking all my sage advice
So keep it shut, you'll get your slice
We do him both ends twice, and we both get paid

In Scavengers Yard where the wild things roam
Welcome, the bag man's home
Come on down to where the tigers roar
In Scavengers Yard, the wild things roam
Welcome, the bag man's home
You'll find me down on the killing floor

Now as someone I'd recommend
I bring you in, a dear old friend
Who knows just where there's another shiny toy
It goes the way I want it to
There's a major drink in this for you
Finder wins and seller too, old boy

He's a greedy swine, he loves a steal
We tell him here's one killer deal
I'll hold his hand, and a reaming there will be
I've let him know he's number one
I've told him as a rule of thumb
I don't trust anyone, not even me

Never had a sucker come on like this
He's giving me arthritis
I feel like I have grown a set of claws
I'm not going to let this one slip
And I don't intend to lose my grip
Now that I've got him in my jaws

In Scavengers Yard where the wild things roam
Welcome, the bag man's home
Come on down to where the tigers roar
In Scavengers Yard, the wild things roam
Welcome, the bag man's home
You'll find me down on the killing floor

▲ TOP

 

BLACK TIE JOBS

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

So sorry for your trouble
Tell me to take a walk
And I would understand
Of course, it's good to talk
Here, take my handkerchief
No, I don't need it back
Please don't worry

So sorry for your trouble
And I was wondering
And I would understand
If you might have one to hand
If you had a photograph?
Of course, I'd bring it back
Please don't worry

And I wonder, if I stay in this
How hard-boiled will I become?
As hard-boiled as some
My friends in the newsroom
The Colins and Bobs
All done their black-tie jobs

I have to go, so sorry
Walking back to the car
And I can hear your sobs
I hate these black-tie jobs

▲ TOP

 

TUNNEL 13

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

In the Siskiyou Mountains, the old railroad winds
Through the golds of the maples and the green of the pines
Up to Tunnel 13, the Southern she climbs
And three bandits waiting with evil in mind

The D'Autremont brothers had chosen their road
Chosen to live by a criminal code
Word was the mail car was loaded with gold
The brothers had heard it, or had maybe been told

They wanted no witnesses, that was a fact
The brothers were bent on a barbarous act
Gold there was none, only sadness and tears
And the law coming after them year after year

Three bandits, hearts filled with resentment and hate
Killed mail clerk Elvyn Daugherty, engineer Sydney Bates
With shotgun and pistols, they were panicking when
They killed brakeman Coyle Johnson and fireman Marvin Seng

Robbing and looting is as old as the hills
They're still jumping freight trains with crowbars and drills
A hundred years later in Downtown LA
They rob the Union Pacific damn near every day

Four good men lay murdered in the dogwoods and pines
Leaving widows and children and heartbreak behind
Tunnel 13 is the place in the song
Where the beautiful redwood for my guitar came from

▲ TOP

 

JANINE

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

It's the same old rodeo
Whenever it appears
The roughnecks and truck drivers
Pipeliners and engineers
Our dusty little cowtown
Turned into a boomtown fast
Guess we had to say so long
To our little town of the past

Janine my heart goes out to you
I know you've been trying
I've been trying too

Now there's big rigs on the highway
Loaded up with sand and tools
Oil rigs on the skyline
New kids in the schools
The thing about a cowtown
There's always dust
But it always rains eventually
And rain it must

Janine my heart goes out to you
I know you've been trying
I've been trying too
Janine my heart goes out to you
I know you've been trying
I've been trying too

I hope that you've been saving
A little of that boomtown pay
I hope that you've been holding on
To something for a rainy day
The thing about a cowtown
There's always dust
The thing about a boom is
There's always a bust

Janine my heart goes out to you
I know you've been trying
I've been trying too
Janine my heart goes out to you
I know you've been trying
I've been trying too

▲ TOP

 

WATCH ME GONE

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

There was a train leavin' for a big beat in a big life
Are you comin'?
I may have asked you once or twice
But I'd already left the hallway with broken lights
Some dingy landin' we used to tumble from
Where the stairs were cracked and worn, whatever

Watch me go, babe, watch me gone

And the songs were pushin' harder all the time
Wasn't your fault, then again it wasn't mine
Broke, frustrated, and obsessed
You saw me as ridiculous, I guess
And I didn't know from nothing
Not even my own voice

But I knew there was something
And I knew there was no choice
I was leavin', mostly heartache
But I was in no mood to rejoice
There was so much that was wrong, whatever

Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone

Well, maybe I'll hit the road with Bob
Or maybe hitch a ride with Van
It's all gonna happen
And I'll be a happening man
And God must still be laughing at a boy and his plans
In the streets where they were born

And the hopscotch traces, well, you can still see 'em here
The chalk lines faded and unclear
Time for me to disappear
Put my old boots back on, whatever

Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone
Watch me go, babe, watch me gone

▲ TOP

 

SWEETER THAN THE RAIN

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

My hunter's heart may not be merciless
But on this day of freezing snow
It's as cold as the heart of the ice princess
Who didn't want to know

I take my orders, ask few questions
It's no real life for a decent man
Few clear-cut lines or regulations
Low on prospects and future plans

If you should hearken to the devil's bidding
Perchance you'll bring me work to do
It may not be my heart's true calling
But I will surely come for you

To you who live by rape and plunder
I'll shoot or hang with scant remorse
My Old Reliable, the avenging thunder
Else my rope and faithful horse

Your late companion in haste repented
I had him take a ride with me
Through this poor country he had so tormented
Until we came to the highest tree

He did reveal in his confession
That you were making for the train
This bitter snow will soon be melting
And nothing sweeter than the rain

▲ TOP

 

BEFORE MY TRAIN COMES

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

That's my train coming, I can hear the whistle blow
There's something you should know
Before I leave you
And I hang up my guns
Before my train comes

Good times together can last you for a while
And a memory take you back in style
Some will fade away forever, but I know some will not
Yours all mean a lot

Well, a cloud can come from nowhere, out of a blue sky
Sad to be leaving for somewhere without a goodbye
That's my train coming, I can hear the whistle blow
There's something you should know

Well, a cloud can come from nowhere, out of a blue sky
Sad to be leaving for somewhere without a goodbye
That's my train coming, I can hear the whistle blow
There's something you should know

Before I leave you
And I hang up my guns
Before my train comes
Before my train comes
 

▲ TOP

 

THIS ONE'S NOT GOING TO END WELL

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

This one's not going to end well
But after he's gone, the traders will trade
Fliers will fly, seafarers will ride on the swell
Shading their eyes in the glare of the sun
Though this one's not going to end well
For anyone

This one's not going to end well
But after he's gone, the gypsy will smile
And the poets will dream
And their fortunes in crystal she'll tell
As she looks in the glass where the stories are spun
Though this one's not going to end well
For anyone

Chained to the oars below
Or bound to the wheel
Drums beating hard and slow
Under the heel

This one's not going to end well
Still after he's gone, they'll whip up old lies
To ride into power, and history comes back from hell
Give a tyrant his way with the club and the gun
This one's not going to end well
For anyone

This one's not going to end well
For anyone

▲ TOP

 

ONE DEEP RIVER

(released on 'One deep river', written by Mark Knopfler)

Now the highway is sleeping
The plains are still
The steel rails are silent
Sun's going down behind the hills
And the night comes falling
With the evening star
Wherever you're going
Wherever you are

You are one deep river, old friend
One deep river, amen
You're one deep river, old friend
One deep river, amen

The wild geese are flying
Into the west
And your soul is heading
To its rest
But your light will keep on burning
Like that evening star
And your song will keep returning
Wherever you are

You are one deep river, old friend
One deep river, amen
You're one deep river, old friend
One deep river, amen
 

▲ TOP

 

THE LIVING END

(released on 'One deep river' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler
)

I'll walk up the mic
At the top of the show
Think, only fifty-nine more
Flaming minutes to go
The old suit doesn't fit
The money's nothing at all
To give 'em the stand-up
And the mirror ball

When I was in fashion
The toast of the town
By God, it were smashing
There was totty all round
I'd have them all legless
In the palm of my hand
And we'd be off to wherever
From my laughter land

You had loyalty
Back in the ITV years
We all played for royalty
All had the big careers

Well you wake up one morning
Hey presto, you're ogne
You've slipped out of style
And there you are, done
You wake up one morning
You're just not the trend
Soon enough you're appearing
At The Living End

I'm going too fast
I can tell you for free
Dying from trying
Is what you can see
Needs a break and a brandy
Your funny man friend
Tonight appearing
At The Living End
Tonight appearing
At The Living End

▲ TOP

 

 

FAT CHANCE DUPREE

(released on 'One deep river' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler)

Fat Chance Dupree
Had it in for me
The cause of which I never could divine
Well they say it had to be
Some kind of fear or jealousy
Anyhow, I did not see it at the time

Now Fat Chance Dupree
Was a trapper same as me
Could have been a reason I suppose
In the winter he'd come down
From his mountain hunting grounds
But I never wanted any part of those

But who knows why
I wish I knew
We feel the things we feel
Do the things we do
Yeah who knows why
I wish I knew
We feel the things we feel
Do the things we do

Kitty Mary used to come around
The most beautiful woman in town
We'd keep each other happy now and then
She did let fall that Chance Dupree
Might try to waylay me
In the cottonwoods down by the river bend

I thought: Come on if you're comin'
Come on Fats
Come on if you're comin'
Good luck with that

Now Fat Chance Dupree
Was lying in wait for me
Which I took to be considerable unkind
I took his weapon from his hand
Which made him understand
He should not have took the path he had in mind

But who knows why
I wish I knew
We feel the things we feel
Do the things we do
Yeah who knows why
I wish I knew
We feel the things we feel
Do the things we do

▲ TOP

 

 

ALONG A FOREIGN COAST

(released on 'One deep river' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler)

In a silhouette the slumbering grove
Against a twilight sky
An arch of stars to span the cove
In dusk, now in dark they lie
In dusk, now in dark they lie

His privateer in anchored and rides
Along a foreign coast
And now his cherished guest must rise
And so must leave her host
And so she must leave her host

And a simple thing he will press her to take
A seal for their time alone
Set in silver for love's sake
A sea green precious stone
A sea green precious stone

▲ TOP


 

WHAT I'M GONNA NEED

(released on 'One deep river' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler)

Say, is that a saxophone?

Say, that badge, the gold one, in your lapel
that a bunch of grapes, right?
wine's a thing
hey you guess how I could tell.

Hey, it's nice, Mallorca, and the hotel,
that's a part of Spain, right?
You're from Spain, alright?

Golf is the game we're here to play
I've been hitting at a mother* down the old fairway
all freakin' day

Originally Memphis, that's nice
so you're from around here, all right?

Say, what's your name, man? Alejandro
that works for me I guess
nonethless
don't hear it much in Tenessee.

Hey, Alejandro, what I'm gonna need
is a cold, crisp, dry white wine
can you do that for me?

▲ TOP

 

 

NOTHING BUT RAIN

(released on 'One deep river' Deluxe Edition and Box-set Bonus Track CD, written by Mark Knopfler)

On this night
More water than the world can bear
Rain and muddy water
On this night
Somebody moving
In the swamp out there
And rain, nothing but rain

I was half way to sleeping
I've tried to go back
To a forgotten railcar
On a forgotten track

Stopped there in the darkness
A forgotten train
On a night with no tomorrow
And nothing but rain

A forgotten railcar
On a forgotten track
And a child who was born there
In the deep Delta black

Tears in the darkness
A forgotten railcar
I've been trying to find you
I want to know where you are

Stopped there in the darkness
A forgotten train
On a night with no tomorrow
And nothing but rain

▲ TOP

 

DOLLY SHOP MAN

(released on 'One deep river' Box-set Bonus Track LP, written by Mark Knopfler)

Sparkling Diamonds
From out of a stash
They told me I could take 'em
And turn 'em into cash
I took 'em to the corner
To the dolly shop man
He said, son, I should inform you
Just so you understand

I'm not an operator
I'm not here to take you in
I'm not here to tell your fortune
Or listen to your sins
I got nothing to sell you
I would never rob or steal
But I'll be sure to tell you
If your diamonds ain't for real

That's why you can trust me
You know you can
You're getting it straight
At the regular rate
From the dolly shop man

It's always open season
Somebody looking for a slice
There ain't no rhyme or reason
To the tumbling dice
I got nothing to sell you
I would never rob or steal
But I'll be sure to tell you
If your diamonds ain't for real

A parcel of preachers
Talking heaven and hell
They never quit the speeches
They're always doing well
I got nothing to sell you
I would never rob or steal
But I'll be sure to tell you
If your diamonds ain't for real

That's why you can trust me
You know you can
You're getting it straight
At the regular rate
From the dolly shop man

That's why you can trust me
You know you can
You're getting it straight
At the regular rate
From the dolly shop man

▲ TOP

 

YOUR LEADING MAN

(released on 'One deep river' Box-set Bonus Track LP, written by Mark Knopfler)

The greenkeeper rolls himself a smoke
And watches her walk by
Tall and poised and beautiful
Let's out a sigh
Down in the allotments
They put their plants in pots
Go home to watch some Wimbledon
Doze off to snooker shots

And I'm flying
Through the starry night
High over distant lands
And I dream you're lying in my arms
And I'm your leading man
Your leading man
Darling, I'm your leading man

Muggy garden centres
Stuffy afternoons
Teapots, cup and saucers
Sugar, milk and spoons
Bottles go back on doorsteps
Tools go back in sheds
They clear away the dishes
Get ready for their beds

And I'm flying
Through the starry night
High over distant lands
And I dream you're lying in my arms
And I'm your leading man
Your leading man
Darling, I'm your leading man

Well the caretaker steals glances
As she waits outside the school
Tall and poised and beautiful
Elegant and cool

And now the kids are spilling out
Laughing and chattering
Home for tea and fame tv
And a quiet night in

And I'm flying
Through the starry night
High over distant lands
And I dream you're lying in my arms
And I'm your leading man
Your leading man
Darling, I'm your leading man
Your leading man
Darling, I'm your leading man

▲ TOP

 

WRONG 'UN

(released on 'One deep river' Box-set Bonus Track LP, written by Mark Knopfler)

You're so nonchalant
You could get anyone you want
But he's a wrong 'un
A wrong 'un
He's got a record as long as your arm
Keep your distance and you won't get harmed
He's a wrong 'un, uh-huh
A wrong 'un

Leave him where you found him
Why carry that load?
Leave him where you found him
At the side of the road

Leave him where you found him
Don't let him inside
Leave him where you found him
Hitching a ride

You're kind and beautiful
You could have a man who's cool
But he's a wrong 'un
A wrong 'un

You got to know the way that I feel
You could get a better deal
And he's a wrong 'un, uh-huh
A wrong 'un

Leave him where you found him
Why carry that load?
Leave him where you found him
At the side of the road

Leave him where you found him
Don't let him inside
Leave him where you found him
Hitching a ride

▲ TOP

 

CHESS

(released on 'One deep river' Box-set Bonus Track LP, written by Mark Knopfler)

The boys play cards and they don't care
A breeze blows in from the sea
It's warm outside but I'm aware
It's neither here nor there to me
I can hear the cooks in the kitchen
The sprinklers on the lawns
My knights out there have both been pitching
I have sacrificed a pawn
It's Chess

A little mouse could trip that wire
You won't be going anywhere
Your noble house will be on fire
And you trapped in that golden chair
Surrounded by your works of art
The flames will do their worst
You may be rich, you may be smart
But the truth will finish first
It's Chess

▲ TOP


 

MR SOLOMONS SAID

(released on 'The boy' EP - Record Store Day release 20th April 2024, written by Mark Knopfler)

One day Mr Solomons said
There was a little black cloud over your head
Anyway you’ve received a threat
Or so he understands
I’m a country lad but I see it too
How much it’s got to you
And now you’re slipping down
Into the shadowlands

My life’s the fighting game
I keep my cool, I stay the same
We never mind how bad it is
In fact we like all your
Showbiz shenanigans
And Jack wants to help you out
Is what it’s all about
With Mr Solomons

We like the flashbulbs, pop, pop, pop
All the razzamatazz
We like the big nights, the West End lights
And all of that jazz

And you can bet
Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley
You can bet Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley

He signed me as a prospect, see
Then something let go in my knee
But I’m no clapped out punchateer
Like some of the other ones
Promoting’s all about the gate
Information’s worth its weight
I’m the eyes and ears and it’s great
With Mr Solomons

Daytimes I’ll make the rounds
In every caff and every pub In this part of town
There’s a mug or a pug
And always someone blathering
It’s gossip calypso all day long
Who’s the money going on
Who’s been training wrong
Got hurt or struggling

Well I might have a couple with a cornerman
The one with the sponge and bucket
I’ve maybe got a bottle for a club doorman
Tickets for a waitress in my pocket

She said ‘It’s me or the ring, Jack’ years ago
So he swapped his gloves for Savile Row
Jack’s no pushover though
He likes that story told
Behind the pinstripe buttonhole
Behind the yellow rose
Beats a heart of gold

Now he’s got me something new
Which is to look out for you
I said, ‘I’d be happy to, Mr Solomons’
One day Mr Solomons said
‘London, son, we have got some hard pavements’
There’s more to the man than the motto read
On the wall above his head
‘Winners win, losers make their own arrangements’

You can bet Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley
Yeah, you can bet Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley
You can bet Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley
Yeah, you can bet Jack is never going back
To Frying Pan Alley
 

▲ TOP

 

 

THE BOY

(released on 'The boy' EP - Record Store Day release 20th April 2024, written by Mark Knopfler)

Sandwich in my pocket
Topcoat buttoned tight
Still thirty miles to pedal
On these empty roads at night
But the moon’s a giant lantern
There’s no need for a light
I’ll be home in good time In the morning

The Boy turned pro so early
Went down London way
I’ll pay a visit now and then
Make sure he’s okay
We don’t do too much talking
We look forward anyway
Sometimes we’ll just talk
About the same old

Who knows where the world is going
Nobody does
But all the same
We could never change
We could never change
Because he’s all we’ve got
No more or less
The Boy, God bless
He’s just The Boy

There’s no sign he’ll pack it in
Says why should he stop
He makes more money in that gym
Than in any blacksmith’s shop

He seems to like the glamour
The crowds and city lights
He likes the cash, he likes the flash
And fuss around the fights
Will he know when it’s all over
Will he still be sharp and bright
Still be working
Still be on a payroll?

Who knows where the world is going
Nobody does
But all the same
We could never change
We could never change
Because he’s all we’ve got
No more or less
And he’s The Boy,
God bless
He’s just The Boy
The Boy, God bless
He’s just The Boy

▲ TOP

 

 

ALL COMERS

(released on 'The boy' EP - Record Store Day release 20th April 2024, written by Mark Knopfler)

There’ll be one or two in every crowd
One or two lads being loud
Having themselves a weekend
Come out the beer tent with their mates
Look over where we stand and wait
Going to want to be showing off to the girlfriend
Over to the booth they’ll come and stand
One’s going to want to put up his hand
But he’s maybe had a drink
Never seen a real ring
He can take on his pals, keep on his shirt
We don’t want locals getting hurt
Our people on the show are all the real thing

We were here back then since way back when
In the long hot summers
Here back then and we’re back again
And taking on all comers
All comers

You keep your hands up
And your expectations slim
And you never underestimate
The man who’s climbing in

Well it’s a hard way to earn a pound alright
You’ll maybe get three or four fights a night
Maybe more on a weekend
But we want to see them back in here
When we come round again next year
May it never change, just like old friends

We were here back then since way back when
In the long hot summers
Here back then and we’re back again
And taking on all comers
All comers

▲ TOP

 

BAD DAY FOR A KNIFE THROWER

(released on 'The boy' EP - Record Store Day release 20th April 2024, written by Mark Knopfler)

Rain’s like thunder on the canvas
It’s been coming down hard all day
You’ll get the weather
And the people all staying away
On the old showground
On the edge of town
And the wind buffeting the van
Well, whatever
I still don’t have a plan

Tried to call you once or twice
Drawing a blank
That thing we talked about
I need to see it in the bank
Sitting like a dud in the fairground mud
Everything is slower
It’s been a bad day
For a knife thrower

It was a pound a round in ‘64
With all us kids to feed
They stuck together
For whatever it was we’d need
Truth is he was flying
On one engine all the time
Out on the racecourse
He knew a bookie in disorganised crime

When he couldn’t pick up a payday
Or anything else
He’d have to come through
With a tenner or two
Have a little bet against himself
Sitting like a dud in the fairground mud
Feel I’m sinking lower
It’s been a bad day
For a knife thrower
Sitting like a dud in the fairground mud
Feel I’m sinking lower
It’s been a bad day
For a knife thrower

▲ TOP