Mark Knopfler - MEN Tonight!!

Good review--glad you enjoyed the show despite the imperfections. I've heard of Matt Rollings before... now it's bugging me to remember where I've seen his name.

Becky

Yeah so have I. I think he's one of those well known session musicians that's worked for a number of people. Mark said while introducing the band that he and Guy Fletcher are both very talented and can play a large number of instruments.

Hope the review isn't too long. Took me a while to type it. :P

I'm definitely not the person to consult about the length of a review.

Becky

Aloha !

Nice review.

Anyway, a few things; Mark's voice has been this husky for the entire tour now, it hasn't got to do anything with his 7th gig in a row as you think. The shows have gotten shorter, or other songs in order to make them possible for him voice-wise. The first show (in South Africa) lasted 2 hours and 45 minutes and had 20 songs, the last shows last 2hours and 20 minutes, and have 18 songs. Not a big difference you'd say, but the songs that are harder to sing have been thrown out. They stopped playing Shangri-La after a few shows because his voice wasn't capable of doing it. It later on re-appeared a few times, but most of the times they take that Local Hero medley. Still, 2 hours and 20 minutes is great considering the time most bands play live nowadays. It's not bad for a guy reaching 60 (or is 60 already?).

Walk Of Life is done that bit slower because it otherwise gets boring to play. They decided to slow it down a bit to look at what it sounds like then, and according to Guy Fletcher the groove became bigger. It took me a while to get into it, but in the end he's right.

Those jokes and speeches were exactly the same night after night. About the tea, the part into Walk Of Life (everybody alright, down here at the side?) he's been saying this ever since the show was played live for the first time with Dire Straits, it really is the most predictable part of the show for me.

Although Sultans Of Swing was thé guitar highlight, it was a bit better a few years ago, when they broke it down in the middel, and builded it up again. That really made the song the best song of the night. Telegraph Road isn't anymore, it's played to slow, and it's become boring to me. Listen to any Dire Straits version, and then the solo version. It's never as tight and fast as it used to be with Dire Straits.

I was wondering another thing. Did the sound went up to loud after Boom, Like That at your venue as well? Here in Holland at both shows I went to the sound was too loud, it depended on the places you sat, but at both venues it hurted your ears, and at some point during Speedway you couldn't make up what they were playing anyway, all the solo stuff got lost in the noise.

All That Matters has been played only 1 or 2 times before, it's thrown into the setlist since the performances in the UK started. So you got a rare song so far.

Anyway, I can see you loved the show.

Salaam Aleikum,
Sebastiaan

It maybe was not perfect but you saw him !!!

And thanks for the review, interesting to read

Yeah I read on Guy Fletcher's website that while out in Australia Mark suffered a throat infection and couldn't hit the high notes in Our Shangri La so it was ditched. I've heard a version played before his infection though and that sounded about as good as it does on the studio version.

They played for 2 hours and 20 minutes for us too. Mark will be around 56 btw. He was born in Glasgow in 1949 if I remember rightly.

All That Matters was just like the studio version, but it's not really one of my favourates anyway. I see what you mean with Sultans. It was a very good version that they played, but not quite as good as the version on Alchemy on the Love Over Gold tour, or the version played on the Brothers in Arms tour where a saxophone is used in the second solo at the end of the song. Still very good. Telegraph Road was very good in my opinion and it didn't lack feel. I disagree that its boring, but Mark's voice was kinda patchy in places and his guitar was perhaps a little too distorted for that song, which took away a little sharpness from the solos.

Yeah, the sound did seem a lot louder when they played Boom Like That, but I think that's because the 4 songs they did previously were mainly ballads played acoustically, or with Song For Sonny Liston, just done on one electric guitar and percussion. Speedway sounded fine to me. It was just the vocals that were a little hard to hear, the solo stuff sounded quite sharp.

It doesn't surprise me that the jokes and speeches were the same night after night. That's kinda bad if you're going to see multiple gigs, which I don't tend to do, but then Mark has always been a rehearsal freak, and once he has a show the way he likes it he doesn't like to change, apart from maybe one or two songs here and there. He has done a similar intro speech to Walk of Life before back in 85 or 86 I think it was, and again on the On The Night live album, but I've heard multiple live versions and many different opening speeches to the song. I understand how you like the slower tempo to Walk of Life. It doesn't at all sound bad, but I prefer the high tempo version from 1985. I have a recording from Wembley London in 85 which is perhaps the fastest version I've heard. The opening speech is very good and it's really high tempo, tidy version. I don't know if you've heard it, but I could send it you if you want.

Thanks for your opinions Seb. I've needed someone with a similar insight to me into Mark's music. I've been struggling to find an active MK forum, apart from the MK News site, which for some reason I can't seem to sign up.

ooer

Ok I said I was gonna post some pics. There not from the gig I went to but I imagine that all venues have the same setup, etc.

During Romeo and Julliet. Mark on the left with the steel acoustic national guitar, Richard Bennet in the centre (I think) and Guy Fletcher on the right.




Mark and Richard Bennet




During Song for Sonny Liston. Mark with cup of tea to his left and Glenn Worf in the background playing the stand up bass.




Mark's unique finger picking style. Amazing pic!




Lighting effects during, what I think was Sultans of Swing




Some of his guitars




Mark doing the walk, Walk Of Life that is. :P




The band after the encore. Not 100% sure who everyone is, but I know Rochard Bennet is far right, with Guy Fletcher next to him. Then I'm guessing is the drummer Danny Cummings, obviously Mark, then Glenn Worf and Matt Rollins





May post a few more later if I can find some.

RICHIE Bennet damn it !


God the Knopf is looking old :O

Aye and the glasses make him look even older. He's 56 I think, but he's still got it. His guitar skills are as good as ever, and his songwriting skills better than ever. His voice is iffy here and there live, although on record it sounds superb on songs such as Our Shangri La, but then I suppose you can patch it up in the studio.