Dire Straits’ Mark Knopfler Shares How Do His Iconic Guitar Solos Come About

Guitarist, songwriter, and Dire Straits former frontman, Mark Knopfler revealed his secret behind how he performed and crated his greatest guitar solos on his Instagram account.

As you may remember, Mark Knopfler gained international fame and proved his guitar and songwriting skills first in Dire Straits and later he continued his successful career as a solo artist. Until disbanding of Dire Straits in 1995, Knopfler recorded some of his greatest guitar performances which influenced many guitarists from different generations.

Both his songs which he played for Dire Straits and his own solo works took their places in the different top 10 lists and favorites of all time lists of guitar performances. The best-known among them belongs to Dire Straits self-titled debut studio album was released on 7 October 1978. The album’s hit single, ‘Sultans of Swing’ was considered as one of the best guitar solos of all time. Knopfler’s performance was appreciated a lot and he proved his unique skills.

Along with ‘Sultans of Swing,’ Knopfler performed his greatest guitar solos in ‘Down to the Waterline,’ ‘Water of Love,’ and also in his solo works such as ‘Don’t You Get It,’ ‘Speedway at Nazareth,’ and ‘Baloney Again.’ Recently, to be able to produce great works Knopfler emphasized that a guitar can be the voice of a musician when he or she can’t sing. According to him, people should focus on their instruments to get better and better.

Here’s what he wrote:

“When I’m working on a solo, I don’t really know how it comes about. I think not being able to sing means the guitar becomes like a voice and you make it do things that you wouldn’t do otherwise. Perhaps if you can’t sing, you push a little harder with your instrument.”

You can see the photo below.

Photo Credit: Mark Knopfler – Instagram