Latest Release
- JAN 19, 2024
- 64 Songs
- Private Investigations: The Best of Dire Straits & Mark Knopfler · 1985
- Dire Straits · 1978
- Brothers In Arms · 1985
- Making Movies · 1980
- Brothers In Arms · 1985
- Brothers In Arms · 1985
- Making Movies · 1980
- Dire Straits · 1978
- Rock Party · 1979
- Communique · 1979
Essential Albums
- With this 1985 album, Dire Straits frontman/producer Mark Knopfler created an enduring rock manifesto. It’s smooth, well-crafted, and filled with sharp wit and social commentary: The super-catchy “Money for Nothing” skewers the idea of pop stardom while simultaneously embracing it, the moody title song tackles the ridiculousness of war, and the poppy “Walk of Life” uses a street busker’s story to make a bigger statement. It’s diverse, too—“Ride Across the River” blends blues, Latin, and Caribbean music while “Your Latest Trick” touches on jazz.
- Dire Straits muscled up on their third album, building on their lyrical romanticism and blues-meets-pub-rock foundation. The opening duo of “Tunnel of Love” and “Romeo and Juliet” are a breathtaking one-two punch, stretching out with masterful picking and soloing from Mark Knopfler, while his marvelous mumble takes on Springsteen-esque stories—and that’s the E Street Band’s Roy Bittan on piano, too. They augment their sound with cool organ on “Skateaway” and produce a glittering heartland ballad with “Hand in Hand,” pushing their sound to the next level.
- Dire Straits crashed the punk and disco parties with a debut album blending blues twang and pub-rock grunt. Their calling card here is “Sultans of Swing,” almost six minutes of a beguiling shuffle beat, with Mark Knopfler singing the praises of an underappreciated band and answering himself with lyrical guitar riffs that cry and sing. The band marry slinkiness and swampiness to electric effect, while “Water of Love” and “Wild West End” showcase acoustic guitars that strum and sigh.
Albums
- 1979
- 1978
Artist Playlists
- British roots rockers find an international audience.
- Rockers share screen time with cartoon clods and sports madness.
- The lyrical guitar work and raspy romanticism between the hits.
- The poetic lyricism and guitar grooves that fueled the band.
- Lean back and relax with some of their mellowest cuts.
- Rootsy rhythms and grand alt-rock lit from the band's sparks.
Singles & EPs
Live Albums
Compilations
About Dire Straits
When Dire Straits released “Sultans of Swing” in 1978, it sounded like little else coming across the airwaves. Besides introducing the world to Mark Knopfler’s tangled fingerpicking, the Dylan-esque gem layered earthy blues and country (the Tulsa sound in particular) over a shuffle so lean and tight, fans of New Wave music couldn’t help but embrace it. This knack for marrying American roots music to contemporary sounds would become Dire Straits’ defining quality as they became stadium rockers in the ’80s. Indeed, their biggest hit, “Money for Nothing,” from the 1985 blockbuster Brothers in Arms, sounds like cyborgs playing roadhouse blues rock on synthesizers. (The image is further enhanced by its music video, a neon-suffused product of early computer animation that’s regarded as one of the most iconic artifacts of early MTV.) Knopfler, low-key and more interested in developing his craft than stardom, began retreating from the spotlight, devoting more time to composing movie scores. The band would notch one last big hit before falling silent: 1991’s “Calling Elvis,” a brilliantly atmospheric update of Memphis rockabilly. Though Dire Straits have remained broken up since the ’90s, they have found new admirers in the 21st century with indie artists like The War on Drugs and Mac DeMarco professing their love of the band’s uniquely modernist approach to roots rock.
- ORIGIN
- London, England
- FORMED
- 1977
- GENRE
- Rock