Good On You Son

Album: Down the Road Wherever (2018)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Here, Mark Knopfler celebrates an unrefined character from London who makes it in America but misses the English food and beer.

    Back in Blighty there's a flat on a grimy sink estate
    That's why he walked out of that and went to the Golden State
    Left the baccy and the beer where he was born and bred
    Now he's cutting it out here with the quick and the dead


    Uncut asked Knopfler if he's singing about himself. He replied: "We all come from somewhere. The thing with rockers and film kids is that the critics would much rather they remain stuck where they started. There' a snobbery."

Comments: 4

  • Jam from Queensland, Australia The song appears to be about Steve Harley who moved to LA for a while in the early 80s. ‘Meeting my producer’ I think refers to Guy Fletcher, who used to play with Harley. I think it’s amazing how Knopfler dreams up these songs out of long past events. Harley, btw, came from New Cross, S-E London, where Knopfler et al formed Dire Straits (in adjacent Deptford).
  • Rmjp from UkI have always been inclined to think he might be referring to Sir Michael Caine
  • Levi from Adelaide, South Australia I’ve always been intrigued by the verse that refers to mangoes and the “tune of a Cockney Rebel”. I’m still not sure what it means, but there may be a connection between this song and the English Glam Rock band, Steve Harley & the Cockney Rebels.
  • Lea from Kansas City, MoI absolutely adore this song. Earned his way into his retirement years, and getting to spending them the way he wants to. Great condo in L.A., gets to play with a band, have fun, record more albums, in a great, sun-filled city, all the while keeping in mind the English life from where he came. I believe his incorporation of "the Quick and the dead" refer to the American wild west, where you're either "quick on the draw" in a shootout, or you're the dead one. It's a way to say that L.A. is a happening place, and he is getting to be a part of it. Not stooped over getting old, doing the old one-two like one might expect of a senior citizen -- no, he's quick on the draw, living his life the way he wants to, to the fullest, jamming out to his heart's content -- and isn't about to slow down!
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Colin Hay

Colin HaySongwriter Interviews

Established as a redoubtable singer-songwriter, the Men At Work frontman explains how religion, sobriety and Jack Nicholson play into his songwriting.

Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt On How To Create A Music Scene

Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt On How To Create A Music SceneSong Writing

With $50 and a glue stick, Bruce Pavitt created Sub Pop, a fanzine-turned-label that gave the world Nirvana and grunge. He explains how motivated individuals can shift culture.

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"They're Playing My Song

As a songwriter and producer, Narada had hits with Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Starship. But what song does he feel had the greatest impact on his career?

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many Songs

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many SongsSong Writing

For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.

P.F. Sloan

P.F. SloanSongwriter Interviews

P.F. was a teenager writing hits and playing on tracks for Jan & Dean when he wrote a #1 hit that got him blackballed.

David Bowie Leads the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Long-Haired Men

David Bowie Leads the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Long-Haired MenSong Writing

Bowie's "activist" days of 1964 led to Ziggy Stardust.