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Mark Knopfler

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Mark Freuder Knopfler, OBE (born August 12, 1949, Glasgow, Scotland) is a British guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best-known as the lead guitarist and vocalist for the band Dire Straits, but has also made albums as a solo performer and played in other bands (such as the Notting Hillbillies). He has also performed on work by other artists, such as Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and the late Chet Atkins, and produced albums for artists such as Tina Turner, Randy Newman, and (again) Bob Dylan. In addition, he has scored the music to several films, including Local Hero, The Princess Bride, Cal, Last Exit to Brooklyn and Wag the Dog.

Contents

Personal life

Early days

Mark Knopfler is the son of a Jewish architect whose communist sympathies forced him to flee the fascist regime in his native Hungary. When Mark was about nine years old, the family moved to Newcastle upon Tyne in the North-East of England. There, he and his younger brother David (also a musician) attended Gosforth Grammar School. He was inspired by his uncle Kingsley's harmonica and boogie-woogie piano playing. Later, in his teens, he wished to buy the expensive flamingo-pink Fender Stratocaster just like Hank Marvin's, but had to settle for a £50 twin pick-up Hofner Super Solid. Like many other schoolboys of the 1960s, he served an early apprenticeship by forming and joining anonymous schoolboy bands and listening to guitarists such as Chet Atkins, Scotty Moore, Jimi Hendrix, Django Reinhardt and James Burton. At sixteen he made a local TV appearance as half of a harmony duo along with school-friend Sue Hercombe.

At school Knopfler had demonstrated a flair for English and in 1967 he studied journalism for a year at Harlow Technical College. At the end of the course he secured a job in Leeds as a junior reporter on the Yorkshire Evening Post. After two years he decided to further his studies and commenced a degree in English at Leeds University. He also worked as a lecturer at Loughton College during this period. It was whilst Knopfler was living in Leeds that he met a local blues singer/guitarist by the name of Steve Phillips. He married Kathy Knopfler in Leeds, who was an art teacher. He then moved (alone) to London and joined a band called Brewer's Droop. His wife sent money to him on a regular basis. They were later divorced. Soon after he made his first record in a London studio: an unreleased demo of an original song, "Summer's Coming My Way".

Dire Straits

Dire Straits recorded and released their first, self-titled album in 1978 to little fanfare but five months later a single release, "Sultans of Swing" became an unlikely chart hit and album sales took off. The second album, Communiqué, followed in 1979. The band's third album, Making Movies was released in 1980 and marked a move towards more complex arrangements and production which would continue for the remainder of the band's career.

In 1982 Dire Straits released their fourth album, Love Over Gold. Around this time Mark Knopfler was also concentrating on other things, writing the music score for the film Local Hero, released in 1983. This was followed by Cal in 1984.

Dire Straits' biggest hit was the band's fifth album, Brothers in Arms, which became an international hit on its release in 1985, and spawned several chart singles including the number one hit "Money for Nothing", which was the first video ever to be played on MTV in Britain. The band's 1985-86 world tour was immensely successful.

After the Brothers In Arms tour Dire Straits went on a lengthy hiatus, with Knopfler concentrating on solo work, film soundtracks and work with the Notting Hillbillies. Dire Straits regrouped in 1990 for the release of their final original studio album, On Every Street in 1991. The album was released to a mixed critical reaction, regarded by some as an underwhelming follow up to Brothers In Arms.

After On Every Street two live albums were released, the first of which, On The Night, in 1993, documented Dire Straits' final tour. This was followed two years later by Live at the BBC.

Dire Straits' line-up changed over the band's career, and Knopfler was always the driving force behind the band. After expressing a desire to give up touring on a large scale, Mark Knopfler launched his solo career and quietly disbanded Dire Straits in 1995. The band's keyboardist, Guy Fletcher, has been associated with almost every piece of Knopfler's solo material following Dire Straits's dissolution.

After Dire Straits

In 1996, the year after Dire Straits' official disbanding, Knopfler released his first solo album Golden Heart, with most critics seemingly impressed. In this same year, in August, Brothers In Arms was certified 9x platinum.

In 1997 Rolling Stone magazine released a poll: "Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock And Roll", which included "Sultans Of Swing", Dire Straits' first hit, which remained significant throughout their entire career as a band.

In 1998 Knopfler recorded the soundtrack for the movie Wag The Dog. In October a hits collection of Dire Straits was released: .

Knopfler has also released four other solo albums since the dissolution of Dire Straits: "Golden Heart" (1996), Sailing to Philadelphia (2000), The Ragpicker's Dream (2002), and Shangri-La (2004).

In March 2003, Knopfler was involved in a motorbike crash, suffering from a broken collarbone and six broken ribs. He recovered however, returning to the stage in 2004.

In late 2005 a third compilation, was released, and consisted of material from most of Dire Straits' studio albums and Knopfler's solo and soundtrack material.

Knopfler has recently completed work on an album of duets with country music singer Emmylou Harris, entitled All the Roadrunning, which was released on April 24 2006. It has reached #1 in Denmark and Switzerland, #2 in Norway and Sweden, #3 in Germany, Holland and Italy, #8 in Austria and UK, #9 in Spain, #17 in USA (Billboard Top 200 Chart), #25 in Ireland and #41 in Australia.

Music

Mark Knopfler is noted for being left-handed, but playing right-handed, and for fingerpicking instead of using a plectrum (i.e., "pick"); fingerpicking is usually associated with the acoustic guitar, but Knopfler usually (though not always) plays an electric guitar. His guitars include:

His Artist Series Stratocaster can be viewed [on the Fender website].

Knopfler and his associated bands have sold over 100 million albums, and performed live to audiences totalling many millions. He has twin sons (Benji and Joseph, born 1987), and two daughters Isabella (1998) and Katya (2003). Mark holds a degree in English from Leeds University and, in May 2006, became Doctor of Music (DMus) at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.

Discography

With Dire Straits

Solo albums

Soundtrack albums

Other albums

Trivia

See also

External links

Dire Straits
Mark Knopfler | John Illsley | Alan Clark | Guy Fletcher | David Knopfler | Pick Withers | Hal Lindes | Terry Williams | Jack Sonni
Discography
Albums and extended plays: Dire Straits | Communiqué | Making Movies | Love over Gold | ExtendedancEPlay | ' | Brothers in Arms | On Every Street | On the Night | Live at the BBC | Money for Nothing | ' |
Hit Singles: Sultans of Swing | Lady Writer | Romeo and Juliet | Skateaway | Private Investigations | Twisting by the Pool | So Far Away | Money for Nothing | Brothers in Arms | Walk of Life | Your Latest Trick | Calling Elvis | Encores EP |

 

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