This leg took the band to several European countries, where they met journalists and performed on television programs. The second leg of the tour promoted the band's debut album. The group typically performed in small halls with a maximum capacity of one thousand. This first leg took the band around Great Britain in June and July 1978, performing in England, Scotland, and Wales.
The first leg of the tour promoted their first single, " Sultans of Swing". These concerts presented Dire Straits with their largest audiences to date. The European tour including concerts in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. Touringĭire Straits promoted the release of their first single and album with the Dire Straits Tour, which started on 6 June 1978 at the Lafayette Club in Wolverhampton, included 55 shows, and ending on 18 November 1978 at the College of Education in Hitchin. The Dire Straits Fender icon, which appears on the back cover, was designed by Geoff Halpern. The album cover artwork is taken from a painting by Chuck Loyola. and on 19 September 2000 in the United States. The album was remastered and released with the rest of the Dire Straits catalogue in 1996 to most of the world excluding the U.S. In Europe, the album sold four million copies, and in the United States, it sold two million copies. " Water of Love" was also released as a single in some countries, and charted in Australia, reaching number 54, and in the Netherlands, reaching number 28.
#Dire straits dire straits album full#
The single " Sultans of Swing" first broke into the United States top five early in the spring of 1979-being a hit a full five months after the album was released there-and then rose to number eight on the British charts. The album was produced by Muff Winwood, and engineered by Rhett Davies. David played a black Fender Stratocaster and a Harmony Sovereign acoustic guitar. He played his 1938 National Style O 14 fret guitar (serial number B1844) on "Water of Love" and "Wild West End." He also used a black Telecaster Thinline (serial number 226254) on " Setting Me Up". Knopfler used a few guitars for the recording, including a pair of red Fender Stratocasters-one from 1961 (serial number 68354) and one from 1962 (serial number 80470). Recordingĭire Straits was recorded at Basing Street Studios in London from 13 February to 5 March 1978. Two months later, Dire Straits signed a recording contract with Phonogram Records. Gillett liked what he heard and started playing "Sultans of Swing" on his show. The band respected Gillett and sought out his advice.
After a few months of rehearsals, the band borrowed enough money to record a five-song demo tape, which included the song "Sultans of Swing." They took the tape to disc jockey Charlie Gillett, who had a radio show called "Honky Tonk" on BBC Radio London. A friend of Mark's helped give the group their name, a reference to their financial situation. They recruited drummer Pick Withers and began rehearsing. In 1977, Mark, John, and David decided to form a band. Following his divorce and struggling financially, Knopfler moved into his brother David's flat, where John Illsley also lived. Wanting to pursue a career in music, he took a teaching position at Loughton College while playing music at night, performing with pub bands around town, including Brewer's Droop and Cafe Racers. After graduating from college with a degree in English, Mark Knopfler took a job writing for the Yorkshire Evening Post. Dire Straits was certified double-platinum in both the United States and the United Kingdom.ĭire Straits came about through a musical collaboration between Mark and David Knopfler. The album reached the number one position on album charts in Germany, Australia and France, the number two position in the United States, and the number five position in the United Kingdom. The album produced the hit single " Sultans of Swing", which reached the number 4 position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and number 8 on the UK Singles Chart. " Down to the Waterline / Water of Love"ĭire Straits is the debut studio album by British rock band Dire Straits, released on 7 October 1978 by Vertigo Records internationally, and by Warner Bros.
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