Mark Knopfler [ tickets ] wore a glowing neon headband in a hit '80s video. Today, one of rock guitar's elder statesmen wears an Everyman grin and graying beard.

No shock, then, that two years after the Scotsman's fourth solo disc, the onetime Dire Straits frontman cowboys up to America's First Lady of roots rock, Emmylou Harris [ tickets ], our country's very own Everywoman, on "All the Roadrunning."

"All the Roadrunning" ranges from great and epic to banal and bland. At its best, this album explores deep roots themes--dark tales from the coalmine ("I Dug Up a Diamond"), weary ramblers ("Beachcombing") and highway repentance ("Rollin' On").

At its worst, though, the disc has a penchant for poppy overindulgence and twangy cliche. The Harris-penned "Love and Happiness" is a sedate fireside snore. Later, when the duo explores a small-town romance on "Donkey Town," they're unconvincing. "There's a purple heart in a silver tin / And a gray .45 in a drawer / Most of the time you can drink with him / But some of the time he's just sore." So is this droll track.

Nevertheless, "All the Roadruning" is mostly a solid folk, country and blues album. A classic 3-star disc, this album finds Knopfler and Harris glossier than ever, more Sting '01, than Dylan '76. Still, it's Knopfler's most robust work in years, revealing the songwriter's passion for country songcraft. A little Emmylou can do that for an aging guitar slinger who once sang about money for nothing and chicks for free.