Officially his birthday was yesterday (August 12) but, today we say Happy 69th to Dire Straits founding member and guitarist Mark Knopfler. He brought a unique fingerpicking style and sound to rock n' roll, not to mention his legendary songwriting...
With a minimalist sound that sold a lot of records, Dire Straits, one of the most commercially successful rock bands of all time, joined an elite club tonight.
Dire Straits are one of the few major bands who've stayed broken up after splitting — and according to former bassist John Illsley, it seems likely to stay that way.