Dire Straits - Romeo And Juliet (REACTION) with my wife 

This is one of the most perfect love songs ever written. The lyrics, the beautiful guitar picking, the clever song structure. Recommend listening again, without watching the video.

Yes, the live performances are more emotional, still a masterpiece non-the-less.

It could do without the video, the song stands on its own merits.

You have to have LIVED this song to appreciate it.

That feeling of expecting more is effected by the sentiment of the song. The song is based on a relationship Mark Knopfler had a with a woman, and she left him. He felt used and mistreated but also longs for her and wants to get back together. Mark is a master story teller.

I don't know what you find confusing. It is a modern interpretation of the greatest love story written 400 years ago by the greatest writer in the English language. A story of two star-crossed lovers.

No confusion, Merchant of Alba! Unrequited love... och... Many of us have felt this. 😄 One of the finest love songs ever writ.

Of the Dire Straits songs I've learned to play on my bass so far, this one is my favorite to play. Such a sweet song, and it pulls you into its melody and sweeps you along with it. "You and me, Babe. How about it?" I love that.

It's a fantastic song that has stood the test of time. I have never seen that video with it and I understand why you're confused, have another listen without the distraction of the video. You will appreciate it much more.

It sounds like a modern day love song on a classic love story in the 80s.💗♥️💖💌

Love how you dig Dire Straits. Thank you. Not for everyone, but thank you!

The story behind the song is that Mark Knopfler wrote it after his failed romance with Holly Vincent who was lead singer in the band Holly and the Italians. He just used the Romeo and Juliet characters as the classic romantic couple that everyone can relate to and then added his own experiences of his own failed relationship. When you realise the actual emotions and feelings that went into it's creation, then it makes it one of the all time top songs. Watch it again and listen very carefully to the lyrics. What tears me up is the line "When we used to make love you used to cry". Every time I hear that line I cry myself and tell my partner how much I love her. It's a beautiful, clean song.

The song was semi-autobiographical. Mark Knopfler had been in a relationship with a singer and after they broke up she in an interview when asked about him she said "I used to have a scene with him." "Somewhere (There's a place for us)" - was the opening song from "West End Story" which was a modern take on Romeo and Juliet.... hence the "There's a place for us, you know the movie song" line.

The Indigo Girls did an amazing cover of this amazing song.

This probably is the only reason that Holly Vincent will be remembered.

This is a very personal song for Mark Knopfler. If you are confused, that's how he felt when he wrote this song. Confused and maybe a bit betrayed.

This song brings back a lot of memories from high school for me

When he sings, "You know the movie song...", he's referring to an extraordinarily heartbreaking song from West Side Story, a musical based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Don't listen to it unless you want to be emotionally destroyed.

a work of genius

ahh this is one of my favorite songs. Thank you.

This is such a sad sad song. The play is commonly thought of as a great romance, but really it is a Tragedy, and a devastating tragedy at that. Where generational feuding is responsible for killing two children, and Mercutio too. Dire Straights updates this song to a modern tragedy, where a great and deep love fails, not to death but to break up. The man is still desperately,deeply in love, and in his view the relationship was killed by timing, and with different timing in the course of their lives, they would have been together forever. We don’t know what Juliet thinks about why the relationship failed, because we never hear her voice. But the song just kills me with sadness, even as the music is so, so beautiful. Just as Shakespeare made us cry for Romeo and Juliet, as we remember them forever for the Beaty of the language.

The line: “He's underneath the window, she's singing, "Hey, la, my boyfriend's back..” Is a nod to the the song in West Side Story called “il divo Somewhere” There's a place for us Somewhere a place for us

I think the video actually detracts from the song. I love this song itself, and always have. Simply, it's the Romeo and Juliet story....period. "Juliet, when we made love, you used to cry..." What need is there for interpretation of that line? We alll know what it means: and it's heartbreaking and it's beautiful.

Their early videos were quite brilliant.. provocative and thought provoking, and did what they said on the tin.

The beauty and the cleverness of this song is that Mark has taken a beloved Shakespearian tragedy thats written in old world English with it's thee, thou and thousts and put it into the modern parlance of his time (80s/90s). And of coarse the fantastic use of his beautiful steel guitar is never to be under valued.

I must say, this song is in the top 5 of Dire Strait’s songs. First time seeing music video, I hope is the last, live version would have been preferable, IMO. ❤️🤘🎸🎻🇦🇺

The guitar sound comes from Mark using either a Dobro of National Steel metal bodied guitar. I have one, ordered from the Sates and I had to drive from London to Brighton to collect it. A great song of beauty. Maybe it’s not LOUD enough for you. It certainly suited all of Britain when it was released. A classic.

Love this song and beautiful guitar

This is such a beautiful song from Mark Knopfler, very heartfelt lyrics that reflect Mark's former relationship with Holly Beth Vincent. You should check out a live version, Mark plays a beautiful outro, and Mark's solo version from the A Night in London concert is worth checking out.

You have to remember that Mark Knopfler was a college instructor in English. Also look up Holly Vincent, this is a song about the breakup of their relationship. I agree a live version is preferable to the video MTV version.

it must be fun to compare this with the earlier Genesis take on the Romeo and Juliet store, Shakespeare is so inspiring

Do you know the band 'the killers'? They did a great cover of this masterpiece. It's a perfect love song.

A modern look on an old love story, it describes Mark Knopfler's failed romance with American singer Holly Vincent, so a real-life sad story.

There are a lot of videos from the 80s and 90s where a director came up with the vision, look, and whole design of the video. It would be an art piece for them. There are so many songs where the video has absolutely nothing to do with the subject matter of the song. The band usually has very little say in what happens, their management and the record companies would tell them what was going to be their marketing plan.

Beautiful song. Dire straits baby. Mark and his band just never ceases to impact me. Soooo evocative, sooo emotional. No vand like them in my opinion.

I think you would love the version from the Nelson Mandela tribute concert. Great reaction as usual guys. Thank you!! Take care.

Great video!

It reminds me of the musical film West Side Story a modern twist on romeo and juliet.The live version iof this song is great. Mark Knopfler - Romeo and Juliet (A Night In London | Official Live Video)

I love the acoustic guitar in this song it's a refreshing change from the electric guitar and it's played by the master himself Mark Knofler,

Mark Knopfler wrote this about the relationship he had with singer Holly Vincent, she broke off the relationship after she signed a record deal and Mark felt like she used him, in a radio interview she said "Mark Knopfler,? Yeah, I used to have a scene with him" He's refering to 2 other songs in this song, "My boyfriend's back" was a song by The Angels from 1963 and "There's a place for us" refers to the song "Somewhere" from the musical movie West Side Story from 1961

One of the great love songs of all time with that unmistakeable Knopfler guitar as a bonus. Superb, and one of my favourite DS songs (though there are many). Nice reaction too. The video is a distraction for me. Just play the album and listen to all the little details. Stunning.

Good choice. This was me and my first love's song.

Live version, plizzzzzz. "On the night tour" or "ALCHEMY-" albums, or in Sidney videos. You can try news sensations wiht this amazing song. Thanks for your reactions. I enjoy so much!❤

Review Alchemy, or the same live concert you did brothers in arms from or the ultimate sax solo from the Mandela concert is just stunning

Love the song, dont love the video 🙂

Always cry. This song is one of my favourites of all time. Reminds me of a man i adored.

Best to listen/watch Dire Straits performing live rather than from the record. Far better - always.

Another great song to react to!! ❤

This is autobiographical for Mark Knopfler He date a woman named Holly Vincent who was a singer, He helped her with her career and then she dumped him. He saw her on TV in an interview where she was asked about her and Mark Knopfler and her answer was yeah I used to have a thing with him which is a line directly in the song

One of my favorite groups. 🙋🏻‍♀️🇲🇽 There is a great live version of Money for Nothing with an special appearance of Eric Clapton and Sting. You can find it in this platform.

I think you're right about not finishing the story. Romeo is creating all this drama about how much he loves Juliet, and he's upset because she rejects him, but then in the last scene he sees another girl he likes and starts the same thing all over again. Note that the chords don't resolve at the end either... they fade out without any real closure. I don't know what breakup was bothering Mark when he wrote the songs on Dire Straits' 1980 album, but he got some good songs out of it!

Yes live please!.

Young love. One has success and moves on, the other has life and longs for.

I strongly recommend 'when something is wrong with my baby' jimmy barnes Feat John farnham

listen to this band live...

I had never seen this video before but I feel as thought it distracts you from this brilliant song.

the videos a bit odd but avangard so hmm I guess? but the song is outstanding as is this whole album 'making movies' he made the thing feel like watching a movie, great music

It would be fun if you reacted to the Alchemy Live version of this song, or maybe even the Real Live Roadrunning version. Those are the best ones in my opinion.

You should try one of the live versions, like Alchemy or Sydney 1986. In case you are thinking of taking on Private Investigation please go with a live version. The experience is so different with the band playing and Mark rocking the guitar.

Classic

Surely everyone (who has lived a little) has had a relationship like this? A young(er) time when you fall in love with someone and for a while they are in love with you. You think / hope it will last for ever, it is passionate, you give it ALL your emotion, you are really happy and commit to each other. But then life happens, maybe you make mistakes, and one of the couple then falls out of love and moves on. The one left behind is left with a feeling it wasn't completed, they don't believe it can have ended. The age old story of unrequited love. If you are unlucky, then in the dark times that can come later, you think back and yearn for those magical times you once had. Doesn't matter if you have since found other loves and maybe have had a happy life. In the end, if even that fails, you still look back to what is now probably just a selective memory of the good times, forgetting the bad. But you can't help it and you commit the cardinal sin of thinking "what if" instead of realising that it was great, but it was also never meant to be. I think for some people it might even be your first real love that you remember, or think you remember. This is a very, very sad song, telling an extremely old story. One that will continue happening as long as there are people and as long as people fall in love.

The video was so literal no one was ever sure if it was a piss-take or not. Song is fab though

"You and your friend" Live On the night please!

Hi guys, when Gary Moore? Empty Room 1987?

This pair have no idea

If you don’t know Shakespeare you won’t know

Pink floyd dogs

The video is not that good, but it’s one of the very first in the video history (1980 i.e prehistory of videos). However the song is gorgeous. I think it should be approach without the video to fully appreciate it. There is another video with the band playing. I personally like it better : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-9ADcFE-si4s.html

With all due respect, this video gives me nothing - but the song a lot! I agree with below fellas, please check this song out live!! Focus to me, should be on the lyrics (and not on this visual)...

The amazing Dire Straits! Romeo & Juliet is a true classic. However, that awful, distracting "interpretive dance" video was truly a poor mismatch for such a beautiful song, I'm not surprised it left you both bemused. Keep up the good work though, I really like your channel 🙂

Great Song from the best Music Decade ❤❤❤❤❤

I don't think the video has anything to do with Dire Straits

I absolutely love this song. The video though, i can't stand, for the exact reason you like it. The literal reproduction of the lyrics to video is pointless and takes the emotion out of it. For example, the part where he sings about the dice being loaded and exploading is almost laughable the way its represented literally.

As soon as reactors focus on the music video I'm out.

Unfortunately, like many 80's music videos, they are so corny, and completely destroy the whole concept of the tune, and this is no exception.

For me it's probably the worst "successfull song" Dire straits ever made... I don't like that song at all.

Can I just say. This is the 1st time that I've seen this music video, I'm very familiar with the song... I'm sorry, this may be unpopular opinion, but having known the song for so long, this video clip is utter shit! Maybe somehow in the 80s.... no I don't know, sorry the music clip was absolutely crap and it really made it very hard to connect to the actual lyrics.

Hello les amis [e]Gilbert de France il y a le live de 1986 je suis un fan de Dire straits j'adore 😊😊😊

Live live live live 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 😅cheers