DIRE STRAITS - BROTHERS IN ARMS (MFSL) (2LP/180GM/45RPM) VINYL

180GM numbered, limited edition 45RPM 2LP in a gatefold jacket.

Digital clone of Sony 1630 U-Matic digital master.

1985's Brothers in Arms has sold more than 9 million copies in U.S. alone.

There are hit records. And then there are blockbusters. One of the world's best-selling records, a winner of two Grammy Awards, an era-defining reference statement, an MTV favorite, and a set that catapulted an already-acclaimed band to arena status, Dire Straits' Brothers in Arms is the kind of epic spectacular that comes around only once or twice a decade.

The sense of realism this edition delivers will leave slack-jawed even the most hard-to-please audiophiles. As the recipient of the Grammy for Best-Engineered Recording, the album has always been a go-to sonic standard, but never has it sounded so reach-out-and-touch-it realistic as it does on this analog pressing. All of the hallmark characteristics - ample spaciousness, ideal balances, widescreen dynamics, immersive depth, lush production - are here in spades. As is music-making of enviable proportions.

Reasons for the album's chart-busting success primarily owe to the expertly crafted songs and memorable playing turned in by a group hitting its creative peak. Not to mention the spatial dimensions that cause instruments and vocals to naturally float in a fixed area.

Anchored by "Money for Nothing," a caustically themed smash immediately identifiable via Mark Knopfler's resonant finger-picked guitar riff and Sting's "I want my MTV" vocal refrain, Dire Straits' fifth album is stuffed with bluesy signatures, jazz-rock motifs, clever lyrics, and organic accents.