Walk of Life (Dire Straits song)

"Walk of Life"
Single by Dire Straits
from the album Brothers in Arms
B-side	One World Two Young Lovers (live)
Released	29 November 1985
Recorded	December 1984
Genre	Country rock, New wave
Length	4:12
Label	Vertigo (United Kingdom), Warner Bros. Records (United States)
Writer(s)	Mark Knopfler
Producer	Mark Knopfler Neil Dorfsman
Dire Straits singles chronology
"Brothers in Arms" (1985) "Walk of Life" (1985) "Your Latest Trick" (1986)

"Walk of Life" is a song by the British rock band Dire Straits. It appeared on their best-selling album Brothers in Arms. It subsequently appeared on their live album On the Night. It was released as a single in November 1985 but had first been available as the B-side of "So Far Away" released in advance of Brothers in Arms. The track peaked at number seven in the US charts and was their biggest commercial hit in the UK, peaking at number two. The track also appeared on two compilation albums: 1998's Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits, and 2005's The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.

History

The song was nearly excluded from the album when the co-producer Neil Dorfsman voted against its inclusion, but the rest of the band out-voted him.

A simple rock 'n' roll rhythm is used, with chord changes limited to I, IV and V chords. The long introduction has become iconic in some circles, with an instantly recognisable melody played on a synthesiser organ patch, giving it a slight cajun twist. The singer mentioned in the lyrics is said to perform "down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay," a reference to busking in the subway. The songs he plays are oldies, including "I Got a Woman", "Be-Bop-A-Lula", "What'd I Say", "Sweet Lovin' Woman", and "Mack the Knife". He also plays talking blues.

B-sides

Having itself been used as a flip side for the European version of the "So Far Away" single, "Walk of Life" had many different B-sides across different formats of release in different territories. The two songs most commonly used were a live version of "Two Young Lovers", which had previously appeared on the 1983 EP ExtendedancEPlay and "One World", the eighth track from Brothers in Arms. A double Vinyl released in the UK in 1985 featured the band's 1978 breakthrough Top 10 single "Sultans of Swing", as well as live versions of "Two Young Lovers" and the rare song "Eastbound Train", one of the first tracks that Dire Straits recorded as a band in demo format but never appeared on an album or as a single.

Music video

The music video for the song shown in the UK video features a busker or street musician wearing the same shirt as Mark Knopfler intercut with the band performing on a stage, while the US features various sports bloopers intercut with footage of the band performing the song on a stage.

Track listings

7" single

1. "Walk of Life" – 4:07
2. "One World" – 3:36

12" single

1. "Walk of Life" – 4:07
2. "Why Worry" (instrumental) – 3:56
3. "One World" – 3:36

Charts

Chart (1985-86)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)	11
Canada (RPM)	5
Germany (Media Control AG)	15
Ireland (IRMA)	1
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)	20
New Zealand (RIANZ)	3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)	6
UK Singles Chart	2
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	7
U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks	6
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks	4

Preceded by "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." by A‑ha

Irish Singles Chart number-one single 25 January 1986 – 30 January 1986

Succeeded by "Borderline" by Madonna

Cover versions

• In 1986, The Shadows did an instrumental version on the album Moonlight Shadows.
• In 2007, alternative country artist Shooter Jennings recorded a cover version, included on his album The Wolf. The single was the lead-off single to the album, however, the song failed to enter the Hot Country Songs charts.

Uses in popular culture

• "Walk of Life" is heard in various 2012 TV commercials for Burger King.
• The song can be briefly heard in the 1986 film Lucas, starring Cory Haim and Kerri Green.

External links

• Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics