What Songs Look Like: Money For Nothing

Dire Straits: Money for Nothing

 

Back in the 80s, where I live, we had no MTV - until very recently - at which time it had degenerated so far that it wasn’t worth watching any more. That’s not to say that I was totally out of the main stream: I had friends who would record MTV to VHS cassette and send it to me “over here”, where we would watch the same 60 minute tape again and again trying to gain a sense of “main stream” America. And enjoying the music/media, of course.

Of these early videos, one in particular stands out – trite, but quintessentially classic – partly because of its name, partly because Star Maker has never given enough due credit to the group/the man. From the 1985 album Brothers In Arms: Money for Nothing. Here is Mark Knopfler  - among the guitarists supreme. I have a CD that includes him playing with Chet Atkins: excellent. I have a web-flv of him with Clapton.

I know he’s done much, much more. Dire Straits' “I want my MTV” seems to me to be among the best MTV clips. It’s got graphics that push the limits for the time, the music is timeless…

As Darius said, this was all before the time of what we take for granted as every-day computer generated graphics, so cut the visuals a break accordingly