''Live at the BBC'' is a live album by British rock band

Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals and lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar and backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums and percuss ...

, released on 26 June 1995 on

Vertigo Records Vertigo Records is a record company with United Kingdom origins. It was a subsidiary of the Philips/Phonogram record label, launched in 1969 to specialise in progressive rock and other non-mainstream musical styles. Today, it is operated by Uni ...

internationally, and by

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

in the United States. The album was recorded on 22 July 1978 at BBC Studios in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, with one track recorded on 31 January 1981. The studio versions of the first six songs were released on ''

''. ''Live at the BBC'' was the band's third live album, preceded by '' Alchemy: Dire Straits Live'' (1984) and '' On the Night'' (1993).

Release

''Live at the BBC'' was released on 26 June 1995, the year in which the group officially disbanded. According to Knopfler, the album was released because Dire Straits still owed one album to

Phonogram Records Phonogram Incorporated was started in 1970 as a successor to Philips Phonographic Industries, a unit of the Grammophon-Philips Group (GPG), a joint venture of Philips N.V. of the Netherlands and Siemens A.G. of Germany. Phonogram was the name ...

(now

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

). This album was a means to end the legal contract, before Mark Knopfler began his solo career (still signed to Mercury).

Composition

''Live at the BBC'' consists of eight songs, the first seven were recorded for the BBC ''Live in Concert'' series on 22 July 1978. The eighth song, " Tunnel of Love", was recorded for the BBC TV program ''

The Old Grey Whistle Test ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...

'' on 31 January 1981, as stated in the booklet, but this version really comes from Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany, recorded on 19 December 1980. The album features one unreleased song, "What's the Matter Baby?", co-written by Mark Knopfler and his brother David. It is the only song to appear on a Dire Straits album not written exclusively by Mark Knopfler; while two other Dire Straits songs list Knopfler sharing writing credits — " Tunnel of Love" from ''

Making Movies ''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 sing ...

'' (with

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

and

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Ton ...

) and " Money for Nothing" from '' Brothers in Arms'' (with

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

) — but in both cases the song itself was entirely written by Knopfler, with only a small contribution to the backing or arrangement by the other credited artist. The riffs and general structure of "What's the Matter Baby?" were largely recycled for the song "

Lady Writer "Lady Writer" is a 1979 song by Dire Straits, which appears on the band's second album ''Communiqué''. Overview When asked what the song was about, lead singer Mark Knopfler said that he was watching TV one day, and there was a lady writer on ...

" from the band's second album ''

Communiqué A press release is an official statement delivered to members of the news media for the purpose of providing information, creating an official statement, or making an announcement directed for public release. Press releases are also considere ...

'', which may explain why it was never re-recorded in the studio.

Critical reception

In his review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, William Ruhlmann gave the album three and a half out of five stars, writing, "It's a modest effort from a modest band and, in that sense, a better representation of them than Alchemy or on the Night, both of which reflected their worldwide popularity." The album stayed on the UK albums chart for one week.

Track listing

All songs were written by Mark Knopfler, except where indicated.

Personnel

;Dire Straits *

Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler (born 12 August 1949) is a British singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Born in Scotland and raised in England, he was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits. He pursued a s ...

– guitar, vocals *

David Knopfler David Knopfler (born 27 December 1952) is a British singer-songwriter. He was born in Scotland and raised in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England, from the age of two. Together with his older brother Mark Knopfler, John Illsley, and Pick Withers, he f ...

– guitar, backing vocals (except on track 8) *

John Illsley John Edward Illsley (born 24 June 1949) is an English musician, best known as bass guitarist of the rock band Dire Straits. With it, he has received multiple BRIT and Grammy Awards, and a Heritage Award. As one of the founding band members, ...

– bass, backing vocals *

Pick Withers David "Pick" Withers (born 4 April 1948) is an English rock and jazz drummer. He was the original drummer of rock band Dire Straits and played on their first four albums, which included hit singles such as " Sultans of Swing", " Romeo and Jul ...

– drums *

Alan Clark Alan Kenneth Mackenzie Clark (13 April 1928 – 5 September 1999) was a British Conservative Member of Parliament (MP), author and diarist. He served as a junior minister in Margaret Thatcher's governments at the Departments of Employment, Tra ...

– keyboards (only on track 8) *

Hal Lindes Hal Andrew Lindes is an American–English guitarist and film score composer. In 1979, he played guitar with the new wave group Darling. Signed to Charisma Records, they released the single "Do You Wanna" (written by Lindes) and published the ...

– guitar (only on track 8)

Charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Live at the Bbc 1995 live albums BBC Radio recordings Dire Straits live albums Vertigo Records live albums Warner Records live albums