Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, David Knopfler, John Illsley and Pick Withers. They were active from 1977 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 1995.
Mark Freuder Knopfler is a British guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits from 1977 to 1988, and from 1990 to 1995. He pursued a solo career after the band dissolved, and is now an independent artist.
Communiqué is the second studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 5 June 1979 by Vertigo Records internationally, Warner Bros. Records in the United States and Mercury Records in Canada. The album featured the single "Lady Writer," which reached number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 51 on the UK Singles Chart. The album reached number one on album charts in Germany, Spain, New Zealand, and Sweden, number 11 in the United States and number 5 in the United Kingdom. Communiqué was later certified gold in the United States, platinum in the United Kingdom and double-platinum in France.
Brothers in Arms is the fifth studio album by the British rock band Dire Straits, released on 17 May 1985 through Vertigo Records internationally and Warner Bros. Records in the United States. It was the first album in history to sell over one million copies in CD format.
On Every Street is the sixth and final studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 9 September 1991 by Vertigo Records internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The follow-up to the band's massively successful album Brothers in Arms, On Every Street reached the top of the UK Albums Chart and was also certified platinum by the RIAA.
Love over Gold is the fourth studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 24 September 1982 by Vertigo Records internationally and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album featured two singles: "Private Investigations," which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart, and "Industrial Disease," which reached No. 9 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the United States. The title track was released as a single two years later in its live version, and reached #15 in France, #29 in New Zealand, #43 in Netherlands and #50 in the band's native United Kingdom. The album reached number one on album charts in Australia, Austria, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom, as well as number 19 in the United States. Love over Gold was later certified gold in the United States, platinum in France and Germany and double-platinum in Canada and the United Kingdom.
"Money for Nothing" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, being the second track on their fifth studio album, Brothers in Arms (1985). It was released as the album's second single on 28 June 1985 through Vertigo Records. The song's lyrics are written from the point of view of two working-class men watching music videos and commenting on what they see. The song features a guest appearance by Sting who sings the signature falsetto introduction, background vocals and a backing chorus of "I want my MTV". The groundbreaking video was the first to be aired on MTV Europe when the network launched on 1 August 1987.
John Edward Illsley is an English musician, best known as bassist of the rock band Dire Straits. He has received multiple BRIT and Grammy Awards, and a Heritage Award.
Guy Edward Fletcher is an English musician, best known for his position as one of the two keyboard players in the rock band Dire Straits from 1984 until the group's dissolution, and his subsequent work with Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler for his many solo releases. Fletcher was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Dire Straits in 2018.
All the Roadrunning is a collaboration between British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler and American singer-songwriter Emmylou Harris, released on 24 April 2006 by Mercury Records and Universal Music internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album received favorable reviews, and reached the number one position on album charts in Denmark, Norway, and Switzerland. The album peaked at number eight in the United Kingdom, and number 17 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. The title track, which actually was released the year before as a new track on the compilation album Private Investigations, was released as a single and reached number 8 in the UK.
"Romeo and Juliet" is a rock song by the British rock band Dire Straits, written by frontman Mark Knopfler. It first appeared on the 1980 album Making Movies and was released as a single in 1981. The song subsequently appeared on the Dire Straits live albums Alchemy and On the Night, and later on Knopfler's live duet album with Emmylou Harris, Real Live Roadrunning. The track was also featured on the greatest hits albums Money for Nothing, Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits, and The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.
"Walk of Life" is a song by the British rock band Dire Straits, being the third track on their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms (1985). It was released as a single, but had first been available as the B-side of "So Far Away" released several months earlier in advance of the album.
"So Far Away" is a song by British rock band Dire Straits, the opening track on their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms (1985). It became the band's fourth top 20 hit, peaking at number 19. The original studio version of the track appeared on the 2005 compilation The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler: Private Investigations.
Real Live Roadrunning is a collaborative live album by British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler and American singer-songwriter Emmylou Harris, released on 14 November 2006 by Mercury Records and Universal Music internationally, and by Warner Bros. Records in the United States. The album was recorded live on 28 June 2006 at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles, at the end of their summer tour in support of their critically acclaimed album, All the Roadrunning. Real Live Roadrunning was released as a combined CD/DVD.
Private Investigations: The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler is the third compilation album by Dire Straits and Scottish-born British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler, released in 2005 by Mercury and Vertigo internationally, and Warner Bros. in the United States. Named after their 1982 hit single, the album consists of material by Dire Straits, with songs selected from the group's six studio albums from 1978 up through the group's dissolution in 1995. It also features work from the solo career of the group's singer, songwriter, and guitarist Mark Knopfler, including some of his soundtrack material.
The Notting Hillbillies were a country rock project formed by British singer-songwriter Mark Knopfler in May 1986. The group consisted of Knopfler, Steve Phillips, Brendan Croker, Guy Fletcher, Paul Franklin, Marcus Cliffe (bass), and Ed Bicknell (drums). They gave their first performance at a small club in Leeds, and followed up with a tour.
The albums discography of American singer–songwriter Emmylou Harris contains 28 studio albums: 22 of which were solo releases while six were released collaboratively with other artists. Her albums discography also includes 15 compilation albums, five live albums, one soundtrack album, four video albums and two box sets. Harris's first studio album Gliding Bird was released in 1969 by Jubilee Records.
Stuart Ian Duncan is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo.
Nicholas Stephen Phillips is an English blues and country musician, as well as guitar maker and painter. He is mainly renowned for being part of the supergroup The Notting Hillbillies along with the Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler and Brendan Croker.
"All the Roadrunning" is a song written and performed by Mark Knopfler featuring American country singer Emmylou Harris. It was first released as a new track on Knopfler's career-spanning compilation Private Investigations and as a CD single in 2005. In April 2006, the song was also released on the album of the same title.
