As the chief singer, songwriter and guitarist for Dire Straits, Mark Knopfler earned a reputation for crafting easily accessible albums. His production values were impeccable. Consequently, expectations for his first proper solo album were very high when it was released in 1996. That album, Golden Heart, proves Knopfler worthy of his reputation. A few songs on Golden Heart even exceed expectations. Three tunes, recorded in Dublin, feature Uillean pipes, violin, bouzouki, accordian and Paul Brady on whistle. Intensely atmospheric, these instruments support lyrics from a lost age. Another wonderful tune is straight out of New Orleans with Michel Doucet on fiddle and Sonny Landreth on National Steel Guitar. Even the lyrics are in French! However, Knopfler is not on a "world music" binge. The bulk of Golden Heart, with its straightforward love songs and happy-to-be-alive shuffles, was recorded with studio musicians in London and Nashville. Of course, it doesn't really matter where or with whom Golden Heart was recorded, because MK's electric guitar and voice saturate every track. Both are warm and mellow, having matured during Dire Straits' countless world tours. Among the the London/Nashville songs, Imelda and Cannibals are the most notable. Although the lyrics to Imelda might strike some listeners as mean spirited and after-the-fact, I feel obligated to remind them that there is no Statute of Limitations for singing Feelings during a Ruby Wax interview. Lyrics aside, Imelda contains the album's best riff and a great guitar solo at the end. The most disappointing song on this highly recommended album is Cannibals. With its similar riff, repeated on the organ ad nauseum, and its family-oriented lyrics, it seems little more than retread on Dire Straits' Walk of Life. Yet even with this blatant miscue, Golden Heart is warmly recommended.