Tippster wrote: 
That takes me back. I played flugel horn for my high school band, and being the only player I got more solo parts than when I was in the trumpet section. It does have a lovely smooth yet robust sound, halfway between the strident rasp of the trumpet and the super-smoothness of a cornet. Easy to play for a trumpet player, too, as it's got the same fingering.

Flugelhorn - always sounds more mellow than a trumpet.

 Otomi wrote: 
That's a real horn?  Is Haynes some sort of robot?  I guess it does sound a bit organic near the end, but the rest of the time he sounds like a Casio! 

 boober wrote: 

They sure did...Boeing's are very expensive.

They spent a lot of money on that album cover.

Almost everything Mark has done gets at least a seven (7).

They say you're a star
That's what the boys all say you are
I don't see much TV
So you don't mean shit to me
But you look like a fine thing Jerry
Yeh you look like a fine thing Jerry

 davin wrote: 
I knew someone must have made the comparison already. Leonard Cohen - just what I was thinking.

This entire LP is a 10+ imo. Love MK.

 WonderLizard wrote: 
I'm listening to the CD right now. I remembered this discussion and clicked in to clear things up. The liner notes say that it's Mike Haynes on flugel horn. I guess they decided to go for a more subtle sound than a trumpet would have delivered. (Wayne Jackson plays trumpet on The Last Laugh, the preceding song on this album.) Prairie Wedding, with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings singing backup and Paul Franklin on pedal steel, just came up. It all sounds really good to me.

 jwb wrote: 
It's Wayne Jackson on trumpet.

In my opinion most of the Dire Straits records had the same synth flavor here and there (exept the first two ones). On the other hand I think this is a great song and fine mixed, so the trumpet does not bother me this much.

 zair99 wrote: 
Yes, but it would be even better if it were a real trumpet or a cornet.

 jwb wrote: 
Yes, but a trumpety synth!

BB King to Knopfler:  smooth to even smoother.  

I still like Mark Knopflers Music!

 stkman wrote: 
I'm pretty sure that's just a synth.

 fredriley wrote:  Could not be stated more perfectly!

Surefire cure for stress: Listen to Mark Knopfler sing anything

Knopfler just doesn't do anythng halfass, I love this with trumpet great song

Same old Knopfler - smoother than mercury on glass, and that's smooth. 7 from the Nottingham jury.

ziggytrix wrote:

I have an issue with that, too. He could afford the best session trumpeter money can buy.

Sadly, Joni Mitchell's newest album is guilty of the same thing. Synth bassoon, horns and strings (the latter is least offensive)...but a REAL sax player. I just don't get it.

Bosonator wrote:

Just my opinion, but if he'd used a real trumpet here, even one played by a second year high school band, it would have been a perfectly enjoyable song. As it is, the horrid brass synth (the rest of the synths sound fine IMO) drags down the whole thing for me.

mbrailer wrote:
Good post. I'd never really listened to the words before, but I looked after reading your post. I wonder too about the untold story.

And the fake horns are cheesy, but I'm sure that's intentional. It's the cheesy Casio organ sound you might hear in a cheesy bar where El Macho hangs out. That said, they still grate on me. Fortunately, Bill always has the anti-cheese horns of Calexico ready to remedy the situation.