Walk of Life

Last updated

"Walk of Life"
Direstraits wof.JPG
Single by Dire Straits
from the album Brothers in Arms
B-side
  • "One World"
  • "Two Young Lovers" (live)
Released14 October 1985 (US) [1]
3 January 1986 (UK) [2]
Studio AIR (Salem, Montserrat)
Genre
Length4:12
Label Vertigo
Songwriter(s) Mark Knopfler
Producer(s)
Dire Straits singles chronology
"Brothers in Arms"
(1985)		"Walk of Life"
(1985)		"Your Latest Trick"
(1986)

"Walk of Life" is a song by the British rock band Dire Straits, being the third track on their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms (1985). It was released as a single in the US in October 1985 and in the UK in January 1986.

Contents

The track peaked at number seven in the US charts, becoming their third and last top ten hit. It was their biggest commercial hit in the UK (along with "Private Investigations"), peaking at number two. The track also appeared on three compilation albums: 1988's Money for Nothing , 1998's Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits , and 2005's The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations . It also appeared on the band's live album On the Night (1993).

History

Mark Knopfler told Classic Rock in 2015 how the song came about: "I saw a photograph of a kid playing a guitar in a subway, turning his face to the wall to get a good reverb. When I started playing the guitar, because I didn't have an amplifier, I'd put the head of the guitar on the arm of a chair and put my head on the guitar to try and get into a loud noise. It kind of reminded me of that, I suppose." [5]

Knopfler had not originally intended "Walk of Life" for the album, but rather as a B-side to one of the singles. Dire Straits manager Ed Bicknell heard it when it was being mixed and convinced Knopfler to include it on the album at the last minute. [6]

A simple rock and roll rhythm is used, with chord changes limited to I, IV and V chords. The long introduction has become iconic in some circles, with an instantly recognisable riff played on a synthesizer-driven keyboard with hints of the blues. The singer mentioned in the lyrics, "Johnny", is said to perform "down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay", a reference to busking in the subway. The songs he plays are oldies, including "I Got a Woman", "Be-Bop-A-Lula", "What'd I Say", "My Sweet Lovin' Woman", and "Mack the Knife". He also plays talking blues.

Music videos

Two music videos were produced for "Walk of Life": the first video features the band playing the song in concert while the character Johnny is playing 1950s songs in a tunnel; the second video features the band playing interspersed with clips of sports bloopers.

Reception

Cash Box said that song recalls "the band's '50s rock infatuation first heard on 'Twisting by the Pool'", but that it "is a more profound but equally energetic effort". [7] Cash Box later said that "a light sound is balanced by a meaningful lyric and wrapped in trademark Knopfler guitar accents". [8] Billboard said that "Knopfler and friends bob out to a cajun/zydeco track that might have sounded weird if Rockin' Sidney hadn't broken the ice." [9]

Track listings

7" single

  1. "Walk of Life" – 4:07
  2. "One World" – 3:36

12" single

  1. "Walk of Life" – 4:07
  2. "Why Worry" (Instrumental) – 3:56
  3. "One World" – 3:36

Chart performance

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [36] Platinum90,000‡
Italy (FIMI) [37] Platinum70,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [38] 2× Platinum120,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI) [39] 2× Platinum1,200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dire Straits</span> British rock band

Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, David Knopfler, John Illsley and Pick Withers. They were active from 1977 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 1995.

<i>Dire Straits</i> (album) 1978 studio album by Dire Straits

Dire Straits is the debut studio album by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 9 June 1978 by Vertigo Records internationally, Warner Bros. Records in the United States and Mercury Records in Canada. The album features the hit single "Sultans of Swing", which reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 8 on the UK Singles Chart. The album reached the top of the album charts in Germany, Australia and France, number 2 in the United States and number 5 in the United Kingdom. Dire Straits was later certified double platinum in both the United States and the United Kingdom by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) respectively.

<i>Communiqué</i> (Dire Straits album) 1979 studio album by Dire Straits

Communiqué is the second studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 5 June 1979 by Vertigo Records internationally, Warner Bros. Records in the United States and Mercury Records in Canada. The album featured the single "Lady Writer," which reached number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 51 on the UK Singles Chart. The album reached number one on album charts in Germany, Spain, New Zealand, and Sweden, number 11 in the United States and number 5 in the United Kingdom. Communiqué was later certified gold in the United States, platinum in the United Kingdom and double-platinum in France.

<i>Brothers in Arms</i> (album) 1985 studio album by Dire Straits

Brothers in Arms is the fifth studio album by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 17 May 1985 through Vertigo Records internationally and Warner Bros. Records in the United States. It was the first album in history to sell over one million copies in CD format.

<i>Making Movies</i> 1980 studio album by Dire Straits

Making Movies is the third studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 17 October 1980 by Vertigo Records internationally, Warner Bros. Records in the United States and Mercury Records in Canada. The album includes the single "Romeo and Juliet", which reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart, as well as “Tunnel of Love,” featured in the 1982 Richard Gere film An Officer and a Gentleman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sultans of Swing</span> 1978 single by Dire Straits

"Sultans of Swing" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, written by lead vocalist and guitarist Mark Knopfler. The demo of the song was recorded at Pathway Studios, North London, in July 1977 and quickly acquired a following after it was put in rotation on BBC Radio London. Its popularity soon reached record executives, and Dire Straits were offered a contract with Phonogram Records. The song was then re-recorded in February 1978 at Basing Street Studios for the band's eponymous debut album.

<i>Love over Gold</i> 1982 studio album by Dire Straits

Love over Gold is the fourth studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 24 September 1982 by Vertigo Records internationally and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album featured two singles: "Private Investigations," which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart, and "Industrial Disease," which reached No. 9 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the United States. The title track was never released as a single, but two years later a live version from Alchemy: Dire Straits Live reached #15 in France, #29 in New Zealand, #43 in the Netherlands and #50 in the band's native United Kingdom. The album reached number one on album charts in Australia, Austria, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom, as well as number 19 in the United States. Love over Gold was later certified gold in the United States, platinum in France and Germany and double-platinum in Canada and the United Kingdom.

<i>Alchemy: Dire Straits Live</i> 1984 live album by Dire Straits

Alchemy: Dire Straits Live is the first live album by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 16 March 1984 by Vertigo Records internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon in London on 22–23 July 1983, the double album features songs from the band's first four albums, the ExtendedancEPlay EP and Mark Knopfler's Local Hero soundtrack. Many of the songs have reworked arrangements and extended instrumental segments. The album cover is taken from a painting by Brett Whiteley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Money for Nothing (song)</span> 1985 single by Dire Straits

"Money for Nothing" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, the second track on their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms (1985). It was released as the album's second single on 28 June 1985 through Vertigo Records. The song's lyrics are written from the point of view of two working-class men watching music videos and commenting on what they see. The song features a guest appearance by Sting who sings the signature falsetto introduction, background vocals and a backing chorus of "I want my MTV". The groundbreaking video was the first to be aired on MTV Europe when the network launched on 1 August 1987.

<i>On the Night</i> 1993 live album by Dire Straits

On the Night is the second live album by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 10 May 1993 by Vertigo Records internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album features many of the band's later hits, including the singles "Walk of Life" and "Money for Nothing". The cover art of the album features dishes of the Very Large Array in central New Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Private Dancer (Tina Turner song)</span> 1984 single by Tina Turner

"Private Dancer" is a song first released and made famous by Tina Turner in 1984. The song was written by Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, but never fully recorded or released by his band. Turner's recording was produced by John Carter for her fifth solo album of the same name and released as the album's fifth single. The track reached number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the US R&B chart. The song had moderate international success, reaching number 26 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Addicted to Love (song)</span> 1986 single by Robert Palmer

"Addicted to Love" is a song by English rock singer Robert Palmer released in 1986. It is the third song on Palmer's eighth studio album Riptide (1985) and was released as its third single. The single version is a shorter edit of the full-length album version.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romeo and Juliet (Dire Straits song)</span> 1980 song by Dire Straits

"Romeo and Juliet" is a rock song by the British rock band Dire Straits, written by frontman Mark Knopfler. It first appeared on the 1980 album Making Movies and was released as a single in 1981. The song subsequently appeared on the Dire Straits live albums Alchemy and On the Night, and later on Knopfler's live duet album with Emmylou Harris, Real Live Roadrunning. The track was also featured on the greatest hits albums Money for Nothing, Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits, and The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Your Latest Trick</span> 1986 single by Dire Straits

"Your Latest Trick" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, the fourth track on their fifth studio album, Brothers in Arms (1985). It was released as the album's fifth and final single in April 1986 by Vertigo Records. It later appeared on the live album On the Night; the same live version is on Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits. The full-length studio album version was included on the compilation The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">So Far Away (Dire Straits song)</span> 1985 single by Dire Straits

"So Far Away" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, the opening track on their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms (1985). It became the band's fourth top 20 hit, peaking at number 19. The original studio version of the track appeared on the 2005 compilation The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lady Writer</span> 1979 single by Dire Straits

"Lady Writer" is a 1979 song by Dire Straits, which appears on the band's second album Communiqué. It was written by the band's lead singer, Mark Knopfler.

<i>Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits</i> 1998 greatest hits album by Dire Straits

Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits is the second greatest hits compilation by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 19 October 1998 by Mercury Records internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album was originally released, featuring liner notes by Robert Sandall, as both a single CD and a limited edition double CD, with the second CD containing live recordings from Mark Knopfler's first solo tour in 1996. A DVD of the same name was also released, featuring the music videos of all the songs on the single CD version, in addition to short interviews with Mark Knopfler about each song. The album is named after the band's 1978 hit single of the same name. In 2002, a limited edition box set, comprising the two CDs and the DVD, was released as part of Universal's "Sight and Sound" series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heavy Fuel</span> 1991 single by Dire Straits

"Heavy Fuel" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits from their 1991 album On Every Street. The song was also released as a single and reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, making it the band's second song to do so.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bug</span> 1992 single by Dire Straits

"The Bug" is a song written by Mark Knopfler and originally recorded by Dire Straits on the final studio album by the band, On Every Street (1991). It was covered by Mary Chapin Carpenter in 1992, and also recorded on the albums Blues Ballads (1996) by The Alex Bollard Assembly and Keep Your Hands to Yourself (2002) by Mike Berry & The Outlaws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Setting Me Up</span> 1978 song by Dire Straits

"Setting Me Up" is a song written by Mark Knopfler. It was originally recorded by British rock group Dire Straits on their self-titled debut album but not released as a single. Ken Tucker in Rolling Stone described the song as a "heavenly number" combining humor with bitterness, despite having a typical messed-up romance theme. Tucker noted that the song's impact is enhanced by the growling tone in Knopfler's singing voice and by the song's country music-style guitar solo. Carly Darling in Billboard Magazine praised the song's rockabilly guitar but criticizes the lyrics.

References

  1. ↑ "FMQB" (PDF). p. 38.
  2. ↑ "Music Week" (PDF). p. 18.
  3. ↑ Bull, Debby (4 July 1985). "Brothers in Arms". Rolling Stone . Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  4. ↑ Rose, James (15 September 2015). "30 Years Since: Dire Straits' 'Brothers in Arms' Album". Daily Review . Retrieved 8 May 2023. The opening tracks are pretty conventional pop-rock chart shooters
  5. ↑ Beviglia, Jim (15 April 2024). "The Meaning Behind "Walk of Life" by Dire Straits and How It Was Inspired by a Photo". American Songwriter.
  6. ↑ Rees, Paul (17 April 2015). "Sultans of Swing: The Untold Story of Dire Straits". Classic Rock. Louder Sound. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  7. ↑ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. 25 May 1985. p. 11. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  8. ↑ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. 2 November 1985. p. 15. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  9. ↑ "Reviews". Billboard. 2 November 1985. p. 73. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  10. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  11. ↑ "Dire Straits – Walk of Life" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  12. ↑ "Dire Straits – Walk of Life" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  13. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0560." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  14. ↑ "European Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Eurotipsheet . Vol. 3, no. 5. 8 February 1986. p. 12. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  15. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Walk of Life". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  16. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 2, 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  17. ↑ "Dire Straits – Walk of Life" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  18. ↑ "Dire Straits – Walk of Life". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  19. ↑ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN   84-8048-639-2.
  20. ↑ "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (D)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  21. ↑ "Dire Straits – Walk of Life". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  22. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  23. ↑ "Dire Straits Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  24. ↑ "Dire Straits Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  25. ↑ "Dire Straits Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  26. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending FEBRUARY 1, 1986". Cash Box . Archived from the original on 2 October 2012.
  27. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Dire Straits – Walk of Life" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  28. ↑ "RPM's Top 100 Singles of 1985". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. 16 December 1985. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  29. ↑ "National Top 100 Singles for 1986". Kent Music Report . No. 650. December 1986. Retrieved 24 January 2023– via Imgur.
  30. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  31. ↑ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1986". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  32. ↑ "Top 100 Singles". Music Week . 24 January 1987. p. 24.
  33. ↑ "Top 100 Hits for 1986". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  34. ↑ "Year-End Charts – Adult Contemporary Songs: 1986". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  35. ↑ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1986". Cash Box . Archived from the original on 2 October 2012.
  36. ↑ "Danish single certifications – Dire Straits – Walk of life". IFPI Danmark . Retrieved 23 August 2022.
  37. ↑ "Italian single certifications – Dire Straits – Walk of Life" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana . Retrieved 25 October 2021. Select "2021" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Type "Walk of Life" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  38. ↑ "Spanish single certifications – Dire Straits – Walk of life". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España . Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  39. ↑ "British single certifications – Dire Straits – Walk of Life". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 19 January 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.