The 1978 album that David Gilmour is “still influenced by”
When Syd Barrett left Pink Floyd, David Gilmour and Roger Waters quickly realised that their strength lay within the production of an album instead of the creation of singles.
It took the lacklustre tune ‘Point Me At The Sky’ for them to come to this revelation, something that Waters himself looks back on and, unusually, calls a mistake. It was “one notable failure when Syd left the band,” he said.
However, this failure needed to happen, as it helped Pink Floyd realise that they needed to look at the bigger picture when it came to making music instead of getting too locked in with smaller tracks that could be branded as hits. The result was the likes of The Wall and Dark Side of the Moon, intricate concept albums that are still considered the benchmark by musicians today.
Both of these albums have since sold 45million copies and 30million copies respectively, making them two of the best-selling records of all time in any genre, let alone prog / classic rock or wherever you’d like to place them.
Now, after so much experience working on albums and having an innate ability to craft them, David Gilmour is an expert in both writing and recommending LPs that you should listen to. In fact, one key facet of his own output is that he always remains open to influences from afar. So, in 1978, at a time when the Floyd were already giants, one album in particular that caught his attention was the self-titled Dire Straits record.
The Geordie band’s debut album divided audiences at the time, but in retrospect, there is no escaping the fact that the amount the band managed to accomplish on their debut really is something. The record features ‘Sultans of Swing’, which is still one of their biggest songs to date, and ‘Water of Love’. The album had a particular impact on David Gilmour, who not only calls it their best album but also one of the best albums he has ever heard.
Once again, the public seemed to agree. Dire Straits’ debut sold around 15million copies, which is no mean feat considering classic rock was copping it from all angles amid the rise of punk, disco, and continuation of glam rock in ‘78. The fact it stood firm and trusted its own originality with arpeggiated really inspired Gilmour from the off. It still does to this day.
“Mark Knopfler has a lovely, refreshing guitar style. He brought back something that seemed to have gone astray in guitar playing,” said Gilmour, discussing why he likes the album so much, “These days, I don’t listen to other people with the objective of trying to steal their licks.”
He added, “Although I’ve got no objections to stealing them if that seems like a good idea. I’m sure that I’m still influenced by Mark Knopfler.” That was even clear on his most recent album, Luck and Strange from 2024. The very same year, Gilmour featured on Knopfler’s charity single, which revisited ‘Going Home’. Clearly, the mutual admiration remains.
This is a massive compliment from Gilmour, as someone who has particular mastery over exciting playing techniques and musical tone. For him to say that Dire Straits’ sound on their debut is not only good but is so good that he has considered stealing it is nothing short of the highest praise within music.
There is a magic that surrounds the album as an artistic format. They give people an insight into a band and the kinds of minds occupying different musical outfits. This can occur through the narrative that the band constructs throughout their album, as is the case with many Pink Floyd albums, or it can be because of the constant tone that lingers throughout a record, which happens with Dire Straits.
Regardless, both are responsible for exciting LPs and are a testament to the importance of the format.
