ALBUM BY ALBUM

From a grotty flat in Deptford to ubiquity in the CD era: how these brothers in arms conquered the world

IT’S hard to believe now, but when they first formed in 1977, Dire Straits struggled to get gigs because their brand of liquid blues-rock was considered old hat by the new punk orthodoxy. Within eight years, the tables had turned spectacularly. Not only were Dire Straits the biggest band in the world, they were harbingers of a shiny new digital age, with Brothers In Arms becoming the first album to sell a million copies on CD.

“As a 14-year-old, you dream of playing the guitar in some form or other with other people,” says bassist John Illsley – along with frontman Mark Knopfler, the only ever-present Strait. “But having success, you never really thought about it. So we had to deal with a lot of things quite quickly. I think Mark and I made a pretty good team. We understood a little bit more about life because we both worked in a normal job for a few years.”

Ultimately, superstardom didn’t really suit this band of modest musos and they’ve been pursuing more personal projects since calling time on Dire Straits after just six studio albums. “A lot of people say, ‘Why don’t you get back together again?’ but I’m very happy with it stopping in 1993,” Illsley insists. “We did it exactly the way we wanted and we did it pretty well. I got to play all over the world with some great people, and Mark and I’s friendship survives to this day, which for me is one of the most important things.”

“It’s lovely that people look back on the band with fondness and can still be inspired by it,” adds Guy Fletcher, keyboardist from 1984 onwards. “Songs like ‘Brothers In Arms’ play a big part in people’s lives. When you hear stories of people who have lost loved ones and the music gives them support, you feel a particular kind of warmth that you’ve been a part of that.”

SAM RICHARDS

Dire Straits in 1978: (l–r) John Illsley, David Knopfler, Pick Withers, Mark Knopfler

Recording Brothers In Arms in Montserrat, 1984: (l–r) Guy Fletcher, Knopfler, Alan Clark, Terry Williams, Illsley

GIJSBERT HANEKROOT/REDFERNS

DIRE STRAITS

VERTIGO, 1978

The assured debut is an instant smash, thanks largely to the irresistible “Sultans Of Swing”, a Top 10 hit on both sides of the Atlantic JOHN ILLSLEY: I was sharing a rather grotty council flat with David [Knopfler] in Deptford. Early one morning, I found Mark asleep on the floor in the sitting room. We started chatting, and I immediately thought to myself, ‘I’m going to know this chap for quite a long time.’ When we started playing together, I noticed there was a certain style about his playing which was pretty unusual – this rock’n’roll, bluesy picking-type thing, with no plectrum. Mark had played with [drummer] Pick Withers in a band called Brewers Droop, and as soon as he joined the band, it just felt right.