Dire Straits was a british rock band, formed in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (guitar and vocals), his brother David Knopfler (guitar), John Illsley (bass), and Pick Withers (drums), and subsequently managed by Ed Bicknell. Dire Straits emerged during the post-punk era of the late '70s, and while their sound was minimalistic and stripped down, they owed little to punk. If anything, the band was a direct outgrowth of the roots revivalism of pub rock, but where pub rock celebrated good times, Dire Straits were melancholy. Led by guitarist/vocalist Mark Knopfler, the group built their sound upon the laid-back blues-rock of J.J. Cale, but they also had jazz and country inflections, occasionally dipping into the epic song structures of progressive rock. The band's music was offset by Knopfler's lyrics, which approximated the winding, stream-of-conscious narratives of Bob Dylan. As their career progressed, Dire Straits became more refined and their new maturity happened to coincide with the rise of MTV and the compact disc. These two musical revolutions from the mid-'80s helped make Dire Straits' sixth album, Brothers in Arms, an international blockbuster. The band - along with Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, and
| 1 | Money For Nothing (Live Knebworth) | Live At Knebworth: 1990 |
| 2 | So Far Away | Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits |
| 3 | In The Gallery | Dire Straits |
| 4 | Your Latest Trick (Live) | Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits |
| 5 | The Man's Too Strong | Brothers In Arms |
| 6 | Angel Of Mercy | Communique |
| 7 | Iron Band | On Every Street |
| 8 | News | Communique |
| 9 | Once Upon A Time in The West (Live) | Alchemy (Disc 1) |
| 10 | Romeo & Juliet | Making Movies |
| 11 | Expresso Love (Live) | Alchemy (Disc 1) |
| 12 | When It Comes To You | On Every Street |
| 13 | Money For Nothing | Money For Nothing |
| 14 | Ticket To Heaven | On Every Street |
| 15 | Follow Me Home | Communique |
| 16 | Expresso Love | Making Movies |
| 17 | Walk of Life | Sultans of Swing: The Very Best of Dire Straits |
| 18 | Going Home - Theme From 'Local Hero' (Live) | Alchemy (Disc 2) |
| 19 | Setting Me Up | Dire Straits |
| 20 | Romeo And Juliet - Dire Straits | 200 Cigarettes |