I have been a fan of Mark Knopfler since the days of early Dire Straits. I believe that Mark is the best guitarist in the world today, and possibly the best of all time. He is a consistent triple threat: he is an amazing guitarist; a gifted songwriter; and a unique and talented singer and performer. While I like this CD (any Knopfler work is worth owning and listening to repeatedly) I have to admit that I find "Shangri-La" to be a bit less interesting and certainly less musically diverse than previous efforts.

The CD, as you would expect, is immaculately made with Mark's trademark signature perfectionism on prominent display throughout. If I can use one word to describe this CD it would be "understated." The songs are a fairly homogenous lot and are with a couple of exceptions an easy going blend of rock, folk, and funk. Unfortunately, for those desiring to hear traditional Knopfler soloing, prepare to be disappointed: there is essentially none. The songs universally are identifiable as Knopfler fingerpicking masterworks, but this time he chose to be essentially a rhythm guitarist. That's not necessarily a bad thing; it is just different than his previous efforts.

As always, individual song preferences are a matter of taste, but I actually found a couple of the songs to be overtly boring ("5.15 A.M.", "Whoop De Doo", "Our Shangri-La"), and one of them unpleasantly crude ("Don't Crash The Ambulance", the last song on the CD, which as the closing track left a bit of bad taste in my mouth.) My favorite song on the CD (and one that a lot of people have panned in their reviews) is "Song For Sonny Liston". I also enjoy "Postcards From Paraguay," which is the least homogenous of the songs with its touch of flamenco flavor (and a very out of character yodel from Mark.) I found the lyrics on "The Trawlerman's Song" to be a bit formulaic and uninspired, but found the concept of a song (Boom, Like That") dealing with Ray Kroc, founder of McDonald's, to be an original subject for a Knopfler tune (although a couple of the rhymes in the song seem a bit forced to me.)

It's always great to have new material from Mark, and I am delighted that he is apparently healed from his motorcycle accident. (Let's hope for a tour in 2005...) Overall I like this CD, but honestly do have to say that I will probably not play it as much as my other Knopfler/Straits CDs: it's not bad, it's just a bit more sedated and solo-deprived than I personally prefer.

This CD will take you time to appreciate. At first listen I thought "elevator music" -- rock so light it isn't rock. It takes a while to appreciate the subtleties and the quiet, quiet songs. (The reviewer who said this was Knopfler's most rocking effort since Dire Straits days obviously had never heard the CD. The only semi-rocking song is "Boom like That")

The CD also lacks the variety of recent Knopfler efforts. Gone are the Celtic, Country, Cajun, and Folk tunes that dotted his other CDs. Instead, "Shangri-la" is just six guys -- two guitars, a bass, a piano, an organ, and drums, sitting around playing relaxed songs. The CD gets my top rating for good lyrics, interesting tunes, virtuoso instrumentation, perfectionist fussiness, and Knopfler's voice, which sounds a little smoother with age than his usual Dylanesque gruffness. It's not a CD that inspires superlatives, and none of the songs will likely go to the top of the hit parade, but they're good -- every one of them. Some of them even have a little bit of a surf sound, reflecting perhaps the fact that the CD was recorded in California

Still, I can appreciate the opinion of those who say "Shangri-la" is boring. I yearn for one of Knopfler's great guitar solos like the screamers on "Telegraph Road," the chugging "Sultans of Swing," or the smoky country blues of "You and your Friend." No such luck. Are Knopfler's rocking days over? I guess we'll have to be content with what we get.

In many important ways, music reviews are as helpful as screen doors on a submarine. People who lament Mark Knopfler for not writing a 2004 version of Money for Nothing are pining for more of what they REMEMBER about Dire Straits, a band that was so thoroughly 80's without sounding dated. The fundamental shortcoming of this view is that Dire Straits was 20% Money For Nothing or Calling Elvis and 80% of what makes up the bulk of Mark's solo work.

I discovered Dire Straits through my older brother, just about when they stopped making music. I remember feeling how tragic this loss was, as I felt their last album, On Every Street, was an excellent follow up to Brothers in Arms. Clearly, the band did not sound like it was on the way out. Dire Straits became my favorite band and I have a deep love of every single album the band has released.

This is why it is baffling to me when people who review Mark Knopfler's work through the lens of Dire Straits fail to remember the huge volume of work that is stylistically very similar to his new music. For example, the Brothers in Arms album, which is widely considered the most popular album by his former band, is packed with tracks that bare this out:

So Far Away; Your Latest Trick; Why Worry; Ride Across the River; The Man's Too Strong; Brothers in Arms

None of these songs rocked. Only 3 of the 9 tracks on this album were traditional rock tunes, only 2 of those getting radio play (with So Far Away making it on the radio despite its sleep walking mood).

Go back to any album from Dire Straits and you will find that the majority of the material would feel right at home on a Mark Knopfler album. To name just a few examples: Once Upon A Time in the West; Love Over Gold; Portobello Belle; Six Blade Knife; Telegraph Road; On Every Street... the list goes on. In interviews with both Mark and his brother David, who has also released solo albums, the rock tunes were for radio and the storytelling and exploration into American folk music was for the love of the craft.

Mark Knopfler is widely considered one of the top five guitar players ever to pick up the interment, but never because his fast fingers. It is because of his ability to coax his steel guitar into guiding the emotion of his music, not just merely playing the notes on the page. As for the critiques of his voice? I can think of more than a dozen artists whose voice had character at the expense of velvety smoothness. Mark's voice is no different.

If you enjoyed all the music of Dire Straits and not just the radio hits, you will not be disappointed with Mark Knopfler's solo work, including this one. In the same spirit as James Taylor, Van Morrison and Eric Clapton, Knopfler has taken a seat amongst modern music's hall of fame elite. He has matured into an adult's musician who has a tremendous mastery of his craft; able to reach into many corners of musical style. Like watching a veteran athlete making the impossible seem effortless, Mark Knopfler's work, and Shangri-La is no exception, is an honor to experience.

Mark Knopfler returns to the fertile ground of Richar Thompson-esque folk in Shangri-La, his fourth solo album. There is, however, a little of the old rock and roll fire here. The guitar has returned to the fore on several of the tracks, and there are extended solos that rival anything he's done since Dire Straits disbanded. Where "Ragpicker's Dream" was mostly thirties-style blues and folk, "Shangri-La" has the feel of late Dire Straits, circa "On Every Street," or perhaps "Golden Heart." Thematically, too, this is a very different album than "Ragpicker's Dream." Where that album concentrated on the beaten-down working man, the Depression-era hero of the tracks and bars, the first few tracks of "Shangri-La" approach the men who beat them down in the first place. "Boom, Like That" is about the man who founded McDonald's, Ray Kroc, and how his original concept was turned into a sea of mediocre identical cheap eateries. "Sucker Row" is about every young wolf in the business world, emulating the heartless men above him in an effort to get ahead. I think there's a kind of veiled reference to the founding of Las Vegas in there, too. The title track is a gem of a love song, with guitars at the end that made me close my eyes until the last note went away.

The remainder of the songs range from the traditional-sounding "Donegon's Gone" to the Ragpicker-ish "Stand Up Guy." There's some uneven songwriting here, and I have to agree with the Amazon reviewer's assessment of "Song for Sonny Liston," in that it didn't reach the level of most Knopfler songs, with their eye for dialog and atmosphere. I interpreted the last track, "Don't Crash the Ambulance," as the sly advice for one leader to his successor, as he leaves the office (perhaps the Oval one?) for the last time.

Overall, Knopfler delivers his usual grace and musical skill to this effort. Well worth the price for his fans, although not likely to attract new listeners not used to his particular brand.

There's a lot of people out there who will not admit that they're waiting, album after album, for Knopfler to light up the afterburner on his guitar and kick ass again. But no, they say, we can't go back to the senior prom again. "An' further," they huff, "Mark is more sophsticated now." Yea, yea, yea. Mark may be more sophisticated but he's also a bore.

Trouble is, the man could fire it up if he wanted. But instead we get a collection of techically tight but overall rambling and mediocre tunes. It's indicative of this that most people point to "Boom Like That" as their favorite track. The reason is obvious. This is the closest Knopfler somes to catching fire again.

Like Ragpicker's Dream before it, Shangri-La is alright. But it's limp.

Want a few good licks of old-style Knopfler guitar? Try John Fogerty's "Deju Vu." Track 6, "Nobody's Here Anymore." The guitar work sounds so much like "Sultans of Swing" that you'll swear it is Mark Knopfler... and it is.

Bring it back Mark. Cut loose. For us. -- Tim Yoder