Mark Knopfler Biography
Mark Knopfler is a famed musician who has achieved considerable success. He was identified by the band 'Dire Straits' before striking out on his own. Read on to learn about his life.
Mark was born on August 12, 1949 in Glasgow, Scotland. His father was a Jewish Architect from Hungary while his mother was English. His father was forced to flee fascist Hungary because of his communist sympathies. His family shifted to Newcastle when he was seven.
He attended Gosforth Grammar School, where his uncle Kingsley's harmonica and boogie-woogie piano playing inspired him. In his teens he bought a 50-pound guitar and participated in a few schoolboy bands. He subsequently studied journalism, and got a job for the Yorkshire Evening Post in Leeds. He wrote about new bands, and the new music scene and decided to go to London to jumpstart his music career.
In London he joined a few more bands. He also worked as a lecturer and gave guitar lessons. His brother David came to London and over a night experimenting with their guitars, realized they were into the same music. Mark moved in with David and his flat mate John Illsley, a promising bass player. During the summer of 1977 they rehearsed Mark's songs, but were missing a drummer and Mark remembered a friend he worked with before, called Pick Withers. He gave him a call and Pick was in their group.
A friend of Pick's was the source of the name 'Dire Straits'. In 1977 they dispatched a now famous demo tape, and were signed a few weeks later. Two years later, the band, scored their first hit, 'Sultans of Swing'. They released several famous songs. They were dubbed 'The Biggest Band in the World' and the album Brothers In Arms was one of the biggest selling albums of all time. In 1982 Dire Straits released their fourth album, 'Love Over Gold'; which included 'Industrial Disease', 'Telegraph Road', and the hit 'Private Investigations', which became a popular live song. At that time Mark Knopfler was also involved with other projects, including writing the music score for the film 'Local Hero' was released in 1983. The soundtrack album 'local hero' was a big success, and it was followed in 1984 by the score for the film 'Cal'. He was also associated with artists such as the Chieftains, Waylon Jennings and Vince Gill.
Mark's first marriage was to Kathy White, his girlfriend from his school days. The marriage was short-lived though. Knopfler married Lourdes Salamone in November 1983. This was Mark's second marriage. They had twin sons, Benji and Joseph, who were born in 1987. The marriage ended in 1993. His third marriage was to Kitty Aldridge in 1997. They have a daughter Isabella who was born in 1998. Their second daughter Katya Ruby Rose was born in 2003.
Dire Straits was dissolved in 1995. Subsequently Mark has continued to record and produce albums as a solo artist, under his own name. His debut solo album, 'Golden Heart' was released in 1996. Britain's Queen Elizabeth named Mark an Officer of the Order of British Empire (OBE) on New Year's Eve, 1999. In 2002 he released 'Shot at Glory'. He had a motorcycle accident in March 2003. In 2004 her released 'Shangri-La'. In 2006 he released 'All the Road Running', a joint project with Emmylou Harris. This was recorded over the span of almost seven years) . He released 'Kill to Get Crimson' in 2007. Mark currently lives in Chelsea.
He attended Gosforth Grammar School, where his uncle Kingsley's harmonica and boogie-woogie piano playing inspired him. In his teens he bought a 50-pound guitar and participated in a few schoolboy bands. He subsequently studied journalism, and got a job for the Yorkshire Evening Post in Leeds. He wrote about new bands, and the new music scene and decided to go to London to jumpstart his music career.
In London he joined a few more bands. He also worked as a lecturer and gave guitar lessons. His brother David came to London and over a night experimenting with their guitars, realized they were into the same music. Mark moved in with David and his flat mate John Illsley, a promising bass player. During the summer of 1977 they rehearsed Mark's songs, but were missing a drummer and Mark remembered a friend he worked with before, called Pick Withers. He gave him a call and Pick was in their group.
A friend of Pick's was the source of the name 'Dire Straits'. In 1977 they dispatched a now famous demo tape, and were signed a few weeks later. Two years later, the band, scored their first hit, 'Sultans of Swing'. They released several famous songs. They were dubbed 'The Biggest Band in the World' and the album Brothers In Arms was one of the biggest selling albums of all time. In 1982 Dire Straits released their fourth album, 'Love Over Gold'; which included 'Industrial Disease', 'Telegraph Road', and the hit 'Private Investigations', which became a popular live song. At that time Mark Knopfler was also involved with other projects, including writing the music score for the film 'Local Hero' was released in 1983. The soundtrack album 'local hero' was a big success, and it was followed in 1984 by the score for the film 'Cal'. He was also associated with artists such as the Chieftains, Waylon Jennings and Vince Gill.
Mark's first marriage was to Kathy White, his girlfriend from his school days. The marriage was short-lived though. Knopfler married Lourdes Salamone in November 1983. This was Mark's second marriage. They had twin sons, Benji and Joseph, who were born in 1987. The marriage ended in 1993. His third marriage was to Kitty Aldridge in 1997. They have a daughter Isabella who was born in 1998. Their second daughter Katya Ruby Rose was born in 2003.
Dire Straits was dissolved in 1995. Subsequently Mark has continued to record and produce albums as a solo artist, under his own name. His debut solo album, 'Golden Heart' was released in 1996. Britain's Queen Elizabeth named Mark an Officer of the Order of British Empire (OBE) on New Year's Eve, 1999. In 2002 he released 'Shot at Glory'. He had a motorcycle accident in March 2003. In 2004 her released 'Shangri-La'. In 2006 he released 'All the Road Running', a joint project with Emmylou Harris. This was recorded over the span of almost seven years) . He released 'Kill to Get Crimson' in 2007. Mark currently lives in Chelsea.
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