Mark Knopfler was born in Glasgow the 12th of August 1949. His mother was a British teacher and his father a Jewish Hungarian architect who went into exile in Great-Britain in order to flee Nazism. Soon the family moved to Newcastle where Mark and his young brother David grew up. Encouraged by his parents, Mark built a passion for music and filled his dreams with guitars. As a teenager he reached the South of England and played in local bands during his journalism studies.
After graduating Mark left for Leeds to work as a reporter for the Yorkshire Evening Post.
At this time he met the blues guitarist Steve Phillips. They played a lot together after discovering their common musical tastes. They were appearing for a while under the name Duolian String Pickers. It might have been at this time that Mark, natural left-hander playing right-handed, began to develop his own style based on finger picking he learned with Steve. After two years as a journalist Mark went back to his studies in literature. He played in different bands and went to London to find a job. There he passed an audition with the band Brewers Droop. But at this time Mark was in a fix with no money, a divorce and a band that was not as fulfilling as he would. Eventually, he made up his mind to take a lecturer position at the University of Essex.
In the mid 70’s David Knopfler was also on his way to London after he quitted his studies. He stayed some days at Mark’s and the two brothers spent there entire nights to play the guitar. At the time when David settled in London, Mark played in a band that was somehow successful in the local pubs: the Café Racers. David was sharing his flat with John Illsley, a bass player from Leicester who was quickly introduced to Mark. One night John came on stage with the Café Racers. That was the starting point of his long musical association with Mark, who decided to move in with David and John for them to build their own band.
As far back as summer 1977 the band began to rehearse a lot of songs composed by Mark. Pick Withers, an acquaintance of Mark, came to join them on the drums. At first they used Mark’s former band’s name – Café Racers – when a friend of Pick suggested they name the band Dire Straits because of their deplorable financial situation. At that time their concerts brought nothing in and were played in front of a quasi non-existent audience. So they gambled everything and quit their jobs to devote themselves to music.
The band took off thanks to a demo tape they recorded. Charlie Gillett from BBC Radio London liked it so much that he played it without taking the time to inform the band. The broadcast was so successful that contract offers flew. John Stainze from Phonogram managed to make Dire Straits sign. He got in touch with Ed Bicknell asking him to settle concert dates for the band, and Ed decided to become Dire Straits’ manager after attending one of their concerts in December 1977. In January 1978, the band began to tour as the opening for Talking Heads, another band managed by Ed Bicknell. They took the road to the studio in February to record their first album simply entitled Dire Straits. Before the release of the album in June and the beginning of the tour that went with it, the band went on doing the first parts in Great-Britain. Then they began their first “real” tour and the success of the album increased as they performed in Holland, Belgium or England by the end of 1978. On the fringe of the punk movement of that time, the band began to become famous.
Dire Straits music quickly found its audience, the clear and sophistically tone of the band being likable and immediately recognizable. The first album did its way like a slow epidemic, despite the harsh and indifferent reaction of the critic… Mark’s lyrics and guitar playing were the main attractions for the audience. Sultans of Swing set up on the air and the album took place in the charts.
In December 1978 the band took off for Nassau (Bahamas) to record a second album. The major part of this album had already been played at the end of the 1978 tour and the demo they had recorded in London was so good that the band only needed to record the songs again, with the optimum conditions of the studio and under the thumb of the producers Jerry Wexler and Barry Beckett. The latter even played on the album on keyboards under the pseudonym B. Bear. Communiqué, the only piece composed in Nassau, gave the title to the album.
The Communiqué tour started in February 1979 as the album encountered a mixed success. But the public was there. The band accumulated the concerts and played for the first time in the US. They ended the year with a concert at the Rainbow Theatre in London that was filmed by the BBC for a documentary on Dire Straits. The interviews of this documentary showed a band in full doubt. The four Dire Straits members were exhausted and David even explained that he thought the band was not able to face such tours and demand from the media. But the Straits were so appreciated that Bob Dylan himself asked Mark and Pick to play on his album Slow Train Coming. Those sessions were slot in the middle of the tour in May 1979.
Tensions then appeared within the band, especially between the two Knopfler brothers. It might have been the reason why David left Dire Straits in 1980 during the recording of Making Movies, Dire Straits third album. The presence of Jimmy Iovine as producer and of Roy Bittan behind the keyboards strengthened the rock style of Mark’s compositions to give birth to the most energetic Straits album in the mood of their live performances. The two main pieces of Making Movies are without any doubt Tunnel of Love and Romeo and Juliet, which was their second big hit after Sultans and demonstrated the musical diversity of the band.
The band then got involved one more time in a huge tour, with two new members: Alan Clark on keyboards and Hal Lindes on guitar. This world tour marked the band’s come-back after the semi-failure of Communiqué and its evolution with the addition of keyboards. Mark wrote a lot during this long tour, and this was how Telegraph Road appeared during the concerts in 1981. Mark gathered a total of twenty compositions with a view to a double album. But in front of the commercial stakes and the unwillingness of its manager, the band recorded only seven titles in New York City during the second trimester of 1982. The song Private Dancer was dropped to become Tina Turner’s good fortune in 1984, when The Way It Always Starts was to be recorded for the Local Hero soundtrack. So, oddly, only five titles made up Dire Straits’ fourth album, Love Over Gold, including a 14 minutes epic version of Telegraph Road. Mark produced the album with the help of the sound engineer Neil Dorfsman. By the end of the recording sessions Pick Withers left the band, expressing a desire to devote his career to jazz.
During July and August, Mark embarked on the recording of Local Hero (a Bill Forsyth and David Puttnam movie). A successful first experience as the Local Hero theme has become a classic… While Mark was contributing to a lot of other artists’ albums, the Straits gathered a few days at the Jam Studios in London to record the Twisting By The Pool EP which renewed with the band’s “rock’ n roll” style and came as a counterpoint to the tone of the album Love Over Gold, which was considered to be too gloomy. This recording was also the first appearance of Terry Williams, the new drummer. The following tour didn’t deny the tradition and was even more considerable than the previous one. Dire Straits even played in Japan for the first time. The new group worked perfectly well and the epic compositions of Love Over Gold reinforced their already well-stocked repertoire. This resulted in concerts of anthology, like the ones given at the Hammersmith Odeon in London in July 1983. Those concerts were recorded and became Alchemy, the over-acclaimed double album which came out in 1984.
By the end of the tour, Mark composed and recorded the soundtracks of Comfort And Joy and Cal. At this time he began to work with Guy Fletcher on keyboards who soon joined Dire Straits at Alan Clark’s sides. As far as his private life is concerned, Mark married Lourdes Salomone in November 1984.
Their fifth album, Brothers In Arms, established Dire Straits as a worldwide phenomenon. Recorded on the Island of Montserrat between November 1984 and February 1985, this album became their biggest commercial success and corresponded to the rising of the CD technology. Even if one can consider the tone of this album too commercial, one can only bow in front of the compositions gathered there that became a large number of hits. So Far Away, Walk Of Life, Money For Nothing, Your Latest Trick, Brothers In Arms… Maybe the lightest album as far as the production is concerned, but the densest in regard of its content.
One more time the band line-up had evolved during the recording sessions, as guitarist Jack Sonni took the place of Hal Lindes. The saxophonist Chris White also became a fully member of the band as the tour began. The Dire Straits team began to tour in stadiums around the world with a concert in Split at the end of April 1985 and never found rest until the 26th of April 1986 with a gigantic ending in Sydney. Despite more than twenty concerts in a row at the same venue, this last concert of the Brothers In Arms tour was largely broadcast on local radios and televisions in order to fill the lack of tickets. A large number of guests played with Dire Straits during this tour: Eric Clapton, JJ Cale, Bob Dylan, Hank Marvin, Paul Young and also Sting.
After the Live Aid in July 1985, apart from Mark’s numerous collaborations and the release of the soundtrack of The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner), it was an other charity concert that ended the long scarcity period for Dire Straits fans. Mark, who became father of the twins Benji and Joseph the 9th of November 1987, had kept himself away from the pressures generated by Dire Straits. But the anti-apartheid campaign led by the world main artists motivated him to rebuild the band and gave him the opportunity to excel one more time. Dire Straits ended the tribute concert to Nelson Mandela the 11th of June 1988 in Wembley and charmed the thousands of people in the audience and the millions of TV-viewers thanks to marvellous versions of great hits like Brothers In Arms, and a luxury second guitar player, Eric Clapton.
Dire Straits were high on the world, but Mark didn’t feel like recording a new album with the band. He went on with his studio work and on stage with others artists. He composed Last Exit To Brooklyn, one more soundtrack. The Money For Nothing compilation was released in September 1988 and won a large success, but it is such a long time since the release of the last album in 1985!
During these post-Brothers In Arms period, Mark joined up with his old friends Steve Phillips and Brendan Croker to play in a pub in Leeds. Soon, Mark proposed to produce Steve’s next album, who suggested a duet album with Brendan. Mark began to work with them but, as they really get on well, they decided to form a band, The Notting Hillbillies. They recorded some old blues and country songs for pleasure, but the record company proved to be interested and their only album to date came out at the beginning of 1990. It was ironically entitled Missing… Presumed Having A Good Time.
The Notting Hillbilies started a short tour on the roads of England as the album entered the Top 10 in Great Britain. Guy Fletcher was on keyboards and Ed Bicknell on the drums. The mixture of old reinterpreted titles and band’s compositions (including a wonderful song wrote by Mark, Your Own Sweet Way) pleased the audience, the name Mark Knopfler always being a selling point. The same happened with the album Neck and Neck that Mark recorded with his lifelong idol Chet Atkins, who saw his sales increased by six. This intimate album gathered also rearranged traditional pieces and a composition by Mark entitled The Next Time I’m In Town. But after a five years break and a charity concert at Knebworth Park, Mark and John Illsley decided that it was time to go back to Dire Straits. Mark spent his summer of 1990 writing songs and came back with 15 titles for the new album. The band went to the studios in London to record On Every Street. A lot of famous musicians took part in this album, gathered around the hard core that really made up Dire Straits (Mark Knopfler, John Illsley, Alan Clark, Guy Fletcher). This was how Jeff Porcaro and Vince Gill played on the album, as well as Paul Franklin on pedal steel, a recurrent instrument on Mark’s compositions at this time.
One can find On Every Street surprising compared to the previous Dire Straits albums. But the traditional and a bit “country” aspect of Dire Straits last album ever was in the line with Mark’s previous works, and the guitar player with the headband naturally pursued his musical evolution with his band. And even if some people were fussy, the album became a success, led by the single Calling Elvis, itself supported by the most expensive clip of Dire Straits history. Despite the weariness they felt at the end of the Brothers In Arms Tour, the Straits embarked on a laborious and last world tour. Besides Paul Franklin and Chris White, the band had grown richer with three new members: Phil Palmer on guitar, Chris Whitten on the drums and Danny Cummings on percussion. Music was of quality but the emotion was sometimes missing. Dire Straits were a very well put-together machine and the excitement disappeared as the concerts went by. Yet, a number of them were recorded and Mark, almost reluctantly, produced a live album with a tone too clear: On The Night. It revealed nevertheless some beautiful highlights from the tour, and its released in 1993 settled the end of the Dire Straits era.
To unwind, Mark stayed in the background during a few years. He played on various albums with friends like Sonny Landreth, recorded tributes to Buddy Holly or The Shadows, and took part in a benefit single for the victims of the Dunblane disaster. He had also planed some sessions in Dublin with local musicians and realized that the resulting songs would be more suitable for a solo album than for a new Dire Straits release. So he went on with the recording of what became his first solo album, with a new group mainly composed by Nashville finest musicians. Mark took his time and Golden Heart was released in March 1996. Based on a minimal promotion the album experienced a mixed success. Mark then decided to do a small European tour with his new band, far from the big stadiums of the previous tours. Besides the titles from Golden Heart, he used some pieces from his soundtracks and of course the most famous titles from Dire Straits.
After this tour Mark kept on having a good time with more personal projects. In September 1997 he appeared with Eric Clapton, Sting, Phil Collins and Paul McCartney for the support concert to the island of Montserrat. The Notting Hillbillies occasional concerts became more and more regular. After several concerts in 1997, fans could encourage them up close in 1998 and 1999 when the band took possession of the Ronnie Scott’s jazz club for a few weeks. The blasé Mark Knopfler as he was seen during the On Every Street tour was replaced by a fifty years old musician glad to play in intimate atmospheres. He is also a father and in 1998 Kitty Aldridge, his third wife, gave birth to his first daughter Isabella. Even so, two new soundtracks came to complete his collection in 1998: Wag The Dog and Metroland, recorded with the solo tour band: the 96ers.
The release of two Dire Straits albums, Live At The BBC in 1995 and The Very Best Of in 1998, didn’t revive Mark’s desire to reform is old band. He devotes himself entirely to his solo carrier. But renown left him as well as limelight. Even if the 1996 tour excerpt included in the Very Best Of as a limited edition was unanimously acclaimed, the influences that compose Golden Heart and the music lessons offered to the Notting Hillbillies audience are still less attractive than the name Dire Straits. However, the release of his second solo album Sailing To Philadelphia marked a new turning point.
It seems that this album was well perceived by Mercury and Warner Bros to such an extend that they decided to rush a little Mark Knopfler in his habits and to organize a more important promotion and tour for this album. As Mark was in disagreement with his manager, Ed Bicknell was replaced by Paul Crockford in summer 2000. The latter took Mark into a promotion tour for radios and TV around the world at the end of 2000. Fans enthusiasm in Europe, United States and South America reassured Mark about the viability of a large tour. The Sailing To Philadelphia tour took off in Mexico City at the end of March 2001 going through South America, United States and Europe to end in Moscow at the end of July.
This tour was not as large as those with Dire Straits, but it went through countries in which Mark had never played before. This came to comfort an audience who had been waiting for this moment for a long time. The set lists kept a lot of classic songs from the repertoire to please the majority and included some pieces of the new album. As far as the line-up is concerned, Jim Cox was replaced by Geraint Watkins on keyboards and accordion, and the Nashville bluesman Mike Henderson brought in his talent as a guitarist, violinist and harmonica player on the brand new songs. The tour was very successful and the name Mark Knopfler is on its way to be perfectly known, Sailing To Philadelphia being one of the best record sales since its release, led by the large success of the single What It Is.
Mark Knopfler was Paul Brady’s guest on the 26th of October 2001 for an intimate concert in Dublin. One can also enjoy some new songs on his numerous contributions and his new soundtrack A Shot At Glory. This soundtrack recorded at the same time as Sailing To Philadelphia is reviving the traditional Scottish spirit while being really original in its style. Summer 2002, Mark Knopfler played four charity gigs at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London (in aid of Save The Baby, Teenage Cancer Trust and Leuka 2000) and in front of the Palace House in Beaulieu (in aid of Countryside Education Trust). 16th of September 2002 Why aye man is released to be the new Single of the 3rd solo album of Mark Knopfler. The Ragpickers dream is released worldwide 1 October 2002. Just as rehersals were about to begin, the planned 2003 tour had to be cancelled due to a serious motorcycle accident. Thankfully, Mark has made a full recovery from his injuries and is looking forward to being on the road in 2005 to promote his fourth solo album, Shangri-La, released in September 2004.
After a succesfull tour it has been quiet around Mark and his band, in 2005 there is a release of the Trawlerman’s Song Ep. A year later Mark has bring out an album with Emmylou Harris, All The Roadrunning, followed by a tour from which a DVD is made, Real Live Roadrunning.
Then again one year later there is a new MK cd, Kill To Get Crimson which Rolling Stone magazine gave the following review :
Along with occassional soundtracks and All the Roadrunning, his winning 2006 
collaboration with Emmylou Harris, Kill to Get Crimson is Mark Knopfler’s fifth solo album, and it’s a gem. Since the 1995 breakup of Dire Straits, Knopfler has dedicated himself to making music that blends the deep resonance of traditional folk with the off-kilter edginess he brought to his former group’s most trenchant songs. Knopfler is best at deftly drawn character studies — the failed actor in “The Fizzy and the Still,” the aging painter in “Let It All Go” whose passion for color gives the album its title. A recovering guitar god, Knopfler plays superbly — check out his haunting solo on “The Scaffolder’s Wife” — but always with instinctive restraint. He’s an ensemble player, nestling in among the likes of accordionist Ian Lowthian and fiddler John McCusker to summon sonic images that subtly reinforce the moods of his songs. Kill to Get Crimson, then, is at once egoless and supremely accomplished, a testament to the rare talent that enables a master to say something simply and beautifully, and leave it exactly at that.
After a great tour which brought Mark and his band to Europe and The US, Mark is allready back in the studio to work
on his 6th solo album named Get Lucky. This album has got his release in september 2009.
Taken from Dire Straits – Colin Irwin