The Man's Too Strong - Dire Straits

Dentro del álbum superventas Brothers in Arms hay algunas joyas escondidas, como este The Man´s Too Strong, que está interpretada principalmente con una guitarra Dobro (todos los discos de dIRE sTRAITS incluyen, al menos, una canción con ese instrumento).

 

Este tema encaja dentro de la temática antibelicista de parte del disco, donde se pone en la piel de una figura similar a Rudof Hess, uno de los hombres fuertes de Hitler, según las propias palabras de Mark Knopfler, líder y guitarrista y compositor de todos las canciones de Dire Straits.

 

Espero que os guste

 

I am just an aging 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 legalized robbery

And called it relief

I have run with the money

I have hid like a thief

Rewritten histories with 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've tried to be meek

I have tried to be mild

But I spat like a woman

And I sulked like a child

Hid 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 we all did hear him say

"You always was 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 'em to your wife."

Oh father, please help me

For I have done wrong

The man's too big

The man's too strong

Why Worry - Mark Knopfler

The Everly Brothers fueron una influencia para muchos músicos, incluyendo Mark Knopfler o The Beatles, como ya declararon en alguna ocasión.

Desde luego, en este tema es evidente la huella del lado más romántico del famoso dúo americano, quienes también tenían algunos temas más movidos teniendo en cuenta la época. 

 

Curiosamente, en este vídeo sale otro de los personajes más idolatrados del guitarrista escocés que no es otro que el mítico Chet Atkins, quién influyó en su manera de tocar la guitarra.

Espero que os guste

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?

War

Cocaine - JJ Cale

JJ Cale era un músico que podía haber sido mucho más conocido de lo que fue, pero él mismo se empeñó en pasar un tanto desapercibido.

Asociado al sonido Tulsa (mezcla de estilos netamente americanos) disfrutó de cierta fama y notoriedad cuando Eric Clapton versionó algunos de sus temas como After Midnight en su álbum debut o, posteriormente, este Cocaine.

Escuchando los temas de JJ Cale podemos suponer porque Eric Clapton o Mark Knopfler parecen músicos americanos cuando son británicos; inglés el primero y escocés el segundo.

Aunque la asociación de Eric Clapton con el sonido Tulsa es más obvia por las versiones y el sonido de su banda de esa época (años 70), en el caso de Knopfler no hay más que escuchar algunas de sus canciones para ver que existe una gran influencia del músico americano en el líder de Dire Straits, al menos en sus primeros discos. 

Espero que os guste

If you want to hang out, you've got to take her out, cocaine

If you want to get down, get down on the ground, cocaine

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine

If you got bad news, you want to kick them blues, cocaine

When your day is done and you got to run, cocaine

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine

If your thing is gone and you want to ride on, cocaine

Don't forget this fact, you can't get it back, cocaine

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine

Las mejores canciones interpretadas con un saxo

Pues tal y como indica el título, vamos a escuchar algunos de los mejores temas en los que se puede escuchar un saxofón, ese maravilloso y moderno instrumento creado (patentado) en 1846 por Adolph Sax que se ha convertido en imprescindible el jazz y es bienvenido en la clásica y en muchas bandas de rock.

Estos son algunos de los más emblemáticos:

Baker Street - Gerry Raferty

A juzgar por la de veces que los saxofonistas tocan la famosa intro, debe ser uno de los temas más populares del pop/rock que se pueden interpretar con este instrumento. 

Temazo redondo y con un gran solo de guitarra, el saxo está interpretado por Raphael Ravenscroft.

Your Latest Trick - Dire Straits

Dire Straits, los hermanos Randy (trompeta) y Michael Brecker (saxo) y una banda que quita el hipo interpretan este superéxito del álbum superventas Brothers in Arms. Todo un clásico.

Maneater - Hall & Oates

El tema más popular de Hall & Oates con su correspondiente saxo (con delay) interpretado por Charles DeChant. 

Por cierto, Daryl Hall tiene una serie de vídeos en youtube, Live from Daryl’s House, que son una pasada: una banda en directo interpretando temas del dúo con Oates y colaboraciones con Cee Lo Green.

Who Can it Be Now - Men at Work

Una intro potente y muy reconocible de los lunáticos australianos que en los 80 dio la vuelta al mundo.

21st Century Schizoid Man - King Crimson

King Crimson y el primer tema del disco que, seguramente, inaugura el rock progresivo tal y como lo conocemos. Riffs imposibles de la guitarra de Robert Fripp y el bajo de Greg Lake que no intimidan al saxo de Ian McDonald. 

Lily Was Here - Dave Stewart & Candy Dulfer

No por manido deja de ser un temazo este Lily Was Here, composición de Dave Stewart, mitad de Eurythmics, con la colaboración de Candy Dulfer que toca el saxo para la banda sonora de De Kassiére, película alemana que comparte procedencia con la saxofonista.

The Heat is On - Glenn Frey

Otro tema para una banda sonora, Beverly Hills Cop (Superdetective en Hollywood aquí en España; supongo que aquí no conocía Beverly Hills casi nadie y decidieron mencionar Hollywood, más conocido por estos lares). 

Canción potente y pegadiza compuesta por Harold Faltermeyer y Keith Forsey  y cantada por uno de los miembros principales de The Eagles.

We Don´t Need Another Hero - Tina Turner

Otro tema ochentero y muy popular cantado por la incombustible Tina Turner para otra banda sonora, en este caso la de Mad Max III, más allá de la cúpula del trueno (Thunderdome). El saxo lo interpreta Tim Cappello a quién se puede ver (a él y a su cuerpo hercúleo) en el vídeo tocándolo.

Going Home - Mark Knopfler

Y como cierre, este precioso tema de la primera banda sonora que compuso Mark Knopfler para la película Local Hero y con el que Dire Straits cerraban sus conciertos. Interpretado de nuevo por Michael Brecker.

Espero que os haya gustado

Lions - dIRE sTRAITS

Red sun go down way over dirty town

Starlings are sweeping around crazy shoals

A girl is there high heeling across the square

Wind blows around in her hair and the flaqs 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 trying to get a crowd for Evensong

Nobody cares to depend 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 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 tonight

What happened to the lions

Once Upon A Time In The West - dIRE sTRAITS

Tema de apertura del segundo disco de los Dire Straits, Communiqué.

Some people get a cheap laugh breaking up the speed limit

Scaring the pedestrians for a minute

Crossing up progress driving on the grass

Leaving just enough for 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 don't do something

Sitting on a fence that's a dangerous course

Oh, 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

Once upon a time in the west...

History of Rock

Magia

Ride Across The River - Dire Straits

I'm a soldier of freedom in the army of man

we are the chosen, we're the partisan
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
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
Nothing gonna stop them as the day follows the night
right becomes wrong, 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

News - dIRE sTRAITS

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 listen baby 
I'm your wife 
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 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.

Water of Love - Dire Straits

High and dry in the long hot day

Lost and lonely every day

Got the flats all around me sky up above

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

I need a little water of love

Water of love deep in the ground

No water here to be found

Some day baby when the river runs free

It'll carry that water of love to me

There's a bird up in a tree sitting up high

Waiting for me to die

If I don't get some water soon

I'll be dead and gone in the afternoon

Once I had a woman I could call my own

Once I had a woman now my woman is gone

Once there was a river now there's a stone

You know it's evil then you're living alone