Happy Birthday to former-Dire Straits guitarist and leader Mark Knopfler, who celebrates his 70th birthday today (August 12th)!!! Knopfler formed Dire Straits in 1977 with his brother David Knopfler, bassist John Illsey, and drummer Pick Withers. They recorded their self-titled debut album after appearing as the opening act for Talking Heads' during their 1978 European tour.
Set for release on September 18th, will be the six-CD collection, Dire Straits – Studio Albums 1978-1991. The set, which was previously issued as a vinyl-only set back in 2013, features all six of the band's albums: Dire Straits (1978); Communique (1979); Making Movies (1980); Love Over Gold (1982); Brothers In Arms (1985); and On Every Street (1991).
In March 2015, Knopfler released his eighth solo album, titled, Tracker, and hit the road for an extensive North American fall tour. 2015 also saw Knopfler appearing on Van Morrison's album, Duets: Re-Working The Catalogue, teaming up on “Irish Heartbeat.”