Born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1949, the Knopflers moved to Newcastle in England when Mark was 7. He wanted an expensive Red Fender Stratocaster but he got a low cost twin-pick-up Höfner Super Solid, in standard right hand form. Which could have been an issue as Mark is left handed. He later said learning to play right handed helped him develop his strong string bending technique. He formed the band Dire Straits in 1977 – and the name reflected their financial status at the time. Mark worked part-time as an English teacher and journalist music critic to make ends meet. His first job as a journalist was to write the obituary for Jimi Hendrix. His bands first album ‘Dire Straits’ received little attention until they released ‘Sultans of Swing’ as a single and it became a chart hit in Holland. The album then took off all over the world. Knopfler has produced albums for the likes of Bob Dylan, written movie soundtracks, as well as songs for other artists – like ‘Private Dancer’ for Tina Turner.