KNOPFLER, MARK

KNOPFLER, MARK (1949– ), British singer, songwriter, and producer. Knopfler was born in Glasgow, Scotland. After working as a journalist, he formed the rock group Dire Straits, which established itself as a serious force to be reckoned with in the late 1970s. The song "Sultans of Swing " from the album Dire Straits (1978) was critically lionized and shot out of nowhere to the top of the charts. Knopfler followed this smash debut with four more hit Dire Straits albums, Communiqué (1979), Making Movies (1980), Love over Gold (1982), which included the single "Private Investigations," and Alchemy-Live (1984). During this time Knopfler also became recognized as an outstanding guitarist. In 1985, he released Dire Straits' Brothers in Arms, which dwarfed every other record in its wake and became one of the biggest-selling albums in the history of the music industry. The album included the U.S. No. 1 single "Money for Nothing." Knopfler was then acknowledged (with Paul McCartney and David Bowie) as one of the three richest recording artists in the U.K. Knopfler waited six years before issuing a sixth Dire Straits album, On Every Street (1991), which became an instant No. 1 on the album charts, but only briefly. The band's last album was the live recording On the Night. He also produced high-quality albums for bob dylan (Infidels, 1983) and randi newman (Land of Dreams, 1988). Knopfler had another band, the Notting Hillbillies. Knopfler wrote the soundtracks for a number of films as well, such as Local Hero (1983), Cal (1984), Comfort and Joy (1984), The Princess Bride (1987), Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989), Tishina (1991), Wag the Dog (1997), and A Shot at Glory (2000). In 1999 he was named an Officer of the Order of British Empire (O.B.E.) by Queen Elizabeth. In 2002 he released the solo album The Ragpicker's Dream, and in 2004 he released Shangri-la. (Jonathan Licht / Ruth Beloff (2nd ed.)