One Take Radio Sessions

Critical reception

In his review for AllMusic, James Christopher Monger gave the EP two out of five stars. Although Monger thought "the playing is top-notch, the recording impeccable, and the tunes are strong", he felt that the EP offered nothing new that had not been previously delivered on the 2004 album Shangri-La.

Mark Knopfler may still be recovering from the motorcycle accident that nearly killed him in 2003, but it's no excuse for this flaccid EP of "live in the studio" recordings. Released in 2004, Shangri-La was a bare-bones affair that found the legendary Dire Straits leader assuming a more contemplative and fatalistic persona than in previous efforts, resulting in one of his moodiest—but not altogether unpleasant—solo outings. That Shangri-La was recorded with little or no overdubs makes this eight-song performance somewhat redundant. Nothing new is brought to the table except the inclusion of "Rüdiger" from 1996's Golden Heart, and even that track is the same as the original recording—minus the strings this time around.

In response to the wet brained nature of, and lack of musical insight in, the review, Knopfler fans retaliated with a resounding wahhhhhhhh!!!!

Track listing

All songs were written by Mark Knopfler.

Personnel