‘Going Home’: How Mark Knopfler captured the spirit of rural Scotland
In the shadows of its picturesque mountains, rolling wild hills, and vast natural beauty, it is difficult to think of anything further away from the pulchritudinous Highlands of Scotland than the hedonistic rock and roll lifestyle of Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler.
After all, Knopfler spent the vast majority of the late 1970s and 1980s firmly at the forefront of Britain’s mainstream rock scene, penning a litany of grandiose, iconic riffs which countless guitarists have since spent years attempting to rectify. During that time, it was almost impossible to imagine the guitarist in any setting other than huge stages, smoke-filled recording studios, or in the rather posh houses Dire Straits were able to buy with their endless stream of royalty cheques.
Nevertheless, back in 1983 – before the band had reached their arguable peak with Brothers In Arms a couple of years later – the legendary Scottish filmmaker Bill Forsyth called upon the Dire Straits guitarist to provide the soundtrack for his film, Local Hero.
Following the exploits of an American oil executive, supported by a very young Peter Capaldi, as he attempts to purchase the Highland village of Ferness to drill for oil, the film ended up becoming one of Forsyth’s most iconic, thanks in no small part to the incredible soundtrack supplied by Knopfler.
While Knopfler does have some connection to Scotland, having been born in Glasgow before relocating to Newcastle during his childhood, his knack for capturing the beauty of the film’s Highland surroundings is still pretty surprising. ‘Going Home’, as a particular stand-out from the soundtrack, seems particularly suited to the folk sounds and natural beauty of the Local Hero’s surroundings, which were largely filmed in Pennan, on the coast of Aberdeenshire.
In the wake of the film’s success, ‘Going Home’ was adopted by Newcastle United, who play the track before home games at St James’ Park, but the inherent sound of the song is virtually inseparable from the scenic surroundings of rural Scotland, contrasting the naturalistic imagery of the film’s two major settings, being Ferness and the bustling Texan city of Houston.
Not only did Knopfler perfectly channel the beauty of the Highlands within the instrumental masterpiece, but he also carved out a prolific side career for himself as a composer of film soundtracks.
While it was still Dire Straits that demanded the core of his attention, and earned him arguably the most fame as a guitarist, the songwriter went on from Local Hero to produce soundtracks for projects like The Princess Bride, Bill Forsyth’s similarly beloved Comfort and Joy, and, in more recent years, Altamira.
It certainly speaks to the multi-faceted talents of the Glasgow-born, Newcastle-raised guitarist that he could simultaneously create the backbone of classic records like Brothers In Arms while also creating some of the most emotive, beloved film soundtracks of the 1980s. There is no shortage of highlights to choose from when it comes to Knopfler’s extensive and illustrious career, but ‘Going Home’ is certainly a jewel within his output.
