The bandit man -- purveyor of one-armed bandits -- came north to indulge in la dolce vita (the good -- literally "sweet" -- life). No doubt -- with his Mark X Jaguar, birdcage heaven (dolls danced in birdcages in the clubs in the '60s and you can still catch the practice here and there, in places such as Rum Jungle, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas), and the pockets full of cash -- he held himself above the working men and women of Newcastle. What were they anyway but suckers?
The irony built up through the whole song, then, is that he wound up dead among them, murdered by the same greed and inhumanity that built the coal mines (in their own way, a capitalist slot machine) and buried the miners, near the ghosts of the churchyard, discovered by a collier (coal miner) bicycling home from the pithead. Using all the language of Geordieland emphasizes that by seeking "heaven," la dolce vita, amid the coal towns, the bandit man found hell instead. He sank into the black pits, sharing the same fate as those on whose backs he left his Italian boot prints on the way "up," the lowly victims of the gambling games of the sociopathic rich.
With several songs about heaven and several songs about hell, "Shangri-la" explores the contrast and what it all means. This is one of the "hell" songs. So is "Boom Like That," which is in a way a song from the Devil's point of view. Then there's "Don't Crash the Ambulance," a "tribute" to the Bush clan. Another bandit man seeks heaven and finds hell in "Postcards From Paraguay." More seeking heaven, finding hell: Sonny Liston's song. "Shangri-la" -- "it's the end of a perfect day" -- is one of the heaven songs. Love, as always, seems to be a reliable heaven, with or without riches. Likewise "All That Matters."
There is irony in the title "Shangri-La." We all seek it, but, like in life, hell is more prevalent than heaven in "Shangri-La." Knopfler is a cynic -- "Everybody Pays" -- but a realist. No solutions, really, just rueful observations.The surfer's approach is more direct and sensual, which leaves the door open to an uncluttered love like that. But the vivid contrasts between what we seek and what we find, and of course the music, make this a great album.
@asongsmith I agree about the irony in the song. Reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel's "Richard Cory" (based on the EA Robinson poem) and the Beatles's "A Day in the Life". I also appreciate how you draw attention to the larger theme.
@asongsmith I agree about the irony in the song. Reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel's "Richard Cory" (based on the EA Robinson poem) and the Beatles's "A Day in the Life". I also appreciate how you draw attention to the larger theme.
The bandit man -- purveyor of one-armed bandits -- came north to indulge in la dolce vita (the good -- literally "sweet" -- life). No doubt -- with his Mark X Jaguar, birdcage heaven (dolls danced in birdcages in the clubs in the '60s and you can still catch the practice here and there, in places such as Rum Jungle, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas), and the pockets full of cash -- he held himself above the working men and women of Newcastle. What were they anyway but suckers?
The irony built up through the whole song, then, is that he wound up dead among them, murdered by the same greed and inhumanity that built the coal mines (in their own way, a capitalist slot machine) and buried the miners, near the ghosts of the churchyard, discovered by a collier (coal miner) bicycling home from the pithead. Using all the language of Geordieland emphasizes that by seeking "heaven," la dolce vita, amid the coal towns, the bandit man found hell instead. He sank into the black pits, sharing the same fate as those on whose backs he left his Italian boot prints on the way "up," the lowly victims of the gambling games of the sociopathic rich.
With several songs about heaven and several songs about hell, "Shangri-la" explores the contrast and what it all means. This is one of the "hell" songs. So is "Boom Like That," which is in a way a song from the Devil's point of view. Then there's "Don't Crash the Ambulance," a "tribute" to the Bush clan. Another bandit man seeks heaven and finds hell in "Postcards From Paraguay." More seeking heaven, finding hell: Sonny Liston's song. "Shangri-la" -- "it's the end of a perfect day" -- is one of the heaven songs. Love, as always, seems to be a reliable heaven, with or without riches. Likewise "All That Matters."
There is irony in the title "Shangri-La." We all seek it, but, like in life, hell is more prevalent than heaven in "Shangri-La." Knopfler is a cynic -- "Everybody Pays" -- but a realist. No solutions, really, just rueful observations.The surfer's approach is more direct and sensual, which leaves the door open to an uncluttered love like that. But the vivid contrasts between what we seek and what we find, and of course the music, make this a great album.
@asongsmith I agree about the irony in the song. Reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel's "Richard Cory" (based on the EA Robinson poem) and the Beatles's "A Day in the Life". I also appreciate how you draw attention to the larger theme.
@asongsmith I agree about the irony in the song. Reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel's "Richard Cory" (based on the EA Robinson poem) and the Beatles's "A Day in the Life". I also appreciate how you draw attention to the larger theme.