A Mark In Time
Mark Knopfler Discussion => Mark Knopfler Discussion Forum => Topic started by: Sultan70 on February 01, 2024, 02:34:16 PM
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After watching the minute from 15:00 to 16:00, when he tries to play and shortly thereafter,
tremors in his right hand are clear. I am deeply shocked, He can't perform at all, not even seconds.
I have researched and this could be 'Parkinson' or 'Essential Tremor'.
It's likely Essential Tremor which is lighter and is usually felt more when moving the hand,
infact he doesn't seem to have tremors when the hand is resting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuURfFQlzK8
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I watched the video and personally didn't notice anything untoward. But I'm not a doctor.
Unless you are also a doctor or qualified to comment on it I'm not sure that there is any point to speculate.
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I had write about it months ago.
Is something that suspected, but i noticed that was from real since the Tracker tour.
Larry Carlton suffer from a similar thing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfuH4TNNdAc
Its sad.
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I watched the video and personally didn't notice anything untoward. But I'm not a doctor.
Unless you are also a doctor or qualified to comment on it I'm not sure that there is any point to speculate.
You have to watch that minute when he tries to play, not the whole video, because in the Essential Tremor disease tremors occur only when moving, not when resting. In that minute several tremors in the right hand are absolutely clear unfortunately.
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I watched the video and personally didn't notice anything untoward. But I'm not a doctor.
Unless you are also a doctor or qualified to comment on it I'm not sure that there is any point to speculate.
You have to watch that minute when he tries to play, not the whole video, because in the Essential Tremor disease tremors occur only when moving, not when resting. In that minute several tremors in the right hand are absolutely clear unfortunately.
But he still plays the notes.
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I watched the video and personally didn't notice anything untoward. But I'm not a doctor.
Unless you are also a doctor or qualified to comment on it I'm not sure that there is any point to speculate.
You have to watch that minute when he tries to play, not the whole video, because in the Essential Tremor disease tremors occur only when moving, not when resting. In that minute several tremors in the right hand are absolutely clear unfortunately.
But he still plays the notes.
Are you joking or what ? The hand is trembling so much that he had to change position to the super basic thumb strumming, and even the super basic position didn't go well, he is severely injured
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But he still plays the notes.
I wonder why Mark even went through the trouble of reaching for a guitar in this very non-guitar-playing interview only to play 4 notes, which not only everybody in the audience know by heart, but you can easily sing/mumble as well rather than play it on the "wrong" guitar, knowing it's difficult for you to play. Truly, Mark works in mysterious ways sometimes.
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But he still plays the notes.
I wonder why Mark even went through the trouble of reaching for a guitar in this very non-guitar-playing interview only to play 4 notes, which not only everybody in the audience know by heart, but you can easily sing/mumble as well rather than play it on the "wrong" guitar, knowing it's difficult for you to play. Truly, Mark works in mysterious ways sometimes.
Yes I wondered that too, I guess he wanted to show his trembling hand
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But he still plays the notes.
I wonder why Mark even went through the trouble of reaching for a guitar in this very non-guitar-playing interview only to play 4 notes, which not only everybody in the audience know by heart, but you can easily sing/mumble as well rather than play it on the "wrong" guitar, knowing it's difficult for you to play. Truly, Mark works in mysterious ways sometimes.
I wondered this myself, then thought perhaps the idea was to play some more snippets and he was suddenly put off by what happened. Who knows.
Speculation sure isn't good but sadly something doesn't seem right.
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Everybody who says there's nothing wrong with him is kidding himself. We've all seen the decline for years. After the 2003 crash, it was never the same again, but unfortunately, there's not a thing anybody can do about it. I think the 2005 tour was still on guitar hero level, but you can't deny guitar-heavy songs like Sultans and TR being significantly sloppier from the 2008 tour and onwards. One of Mark's strengths is accepting and adjusting to circumstances. Setlist controversy and comfort-zone discussion aside, he's made most of the remaining touring years since then.
Of course, most players get worse as they age and the years go by. However, the difference between 2015 and 2019 was night and day. Though I enjoyed the last tour, it was clear from the first night that it would be the final run. It really breaks my heart to see him struggle to play four notes that he's played hundreds of times. I strongly believe we won't see him doing any promo, let alone gigs. We should be glad with the tours he's given us, and visiting Christie's in London was a wonderful surprise, even providing some closure for me.
Edit: I hope I didn't give the impression that I want to speculate about health details. Quite the opposite, I'm not interested in that, and it's also not anyone's business. I just wanted to point out that it's obvious why he won't play anymore, and it might very well be also one of the reasons to sell so many guitars.
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We can ask Guy about this but i'm sure he will say everything is fine. No worries.
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MK has sold a lot of his guitars, and he has made clear (more or less) that touring is over. To me, these are signs for the obvious. I don't know, I don't have a good feeling with a thread like this. What is to prove here? It is not a secret or something the world expects an explanation for. It is his own personal stuff. I get it that the idea of being handed a guitar for only four notes seems somewhat strange. But as I said, it doesn't feel very good to analyse every single move of him just to check if he is healthy or not. Obviously he doesn't want to tell us, so we should respect that. Maybe on a Monday he has something to say...
LE
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Maybe on a Monday he has something to say...
And now the rumours are flying
Speculation rife
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Doctor, Parkinsons?
Right, that was naughty, I'm out.
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Doctor, Parkinsons?
Right, that was naughty, I'm out.
He-he.
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I would tend to advise against asking Guy. He is not Mark’s spokesman and is hardly at liberty to discuss Mark’s health.
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And it is none of our business anyway.
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And it is none of our business anyway.
Absolutely. If Mark has some sort of problem, it is up to him if he wants to discuss it. It’s not our business and frankly I think it is quite rude for us to speculate or make assumptions.
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And it is none of our business anyway.
Absolutely. If Mark has some sort of problem, it is up to him if he wants to discuss it. It’s not our business and frankly I think it is quite rude for us to speculate or make assumptions.
100% agree!
Can't you just leave him alone? It must make him very uncomfortable to read that people speculate about his health.
It's hard enough to accept it yourself when something is wrong with you. Mark has always been a very privat person and we should respect his privacy.
Like Kris said, it's non of our business!
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It's a public video,
Should we just watch and shut up without worrying ? Unbelievable
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100% agree with you Sultan, and I don't understand why some of you refuse to believe yours eyes. It is age, and quite possible something more, yes. Age is "only" a number, except that it is not. You can not possibly know someone around his age and not observe what age does to the body. Why is that rude to talk about.
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This shaking hand is not new.
This has already been discussed on the forum and there is not much to say more.
Ok his hand is shaking and we have to deal with that, without knowing the answer behind it.
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Regarding this issue, I know for sure, and that's information, not an opinion, that MK doesn't feel well about his actual condition and he felt even worse with the TCT project when he met other guitar players of his age or older, already planning to go on tour, because he can't do it anymore.
Obviously I can't say from where I get this, but I was told that this is information, not an opinion.
Let's enjoy whatever he can record in the future and offer us, and treasure our memories of him playing live.
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Regarding this issue, I know for sure, and that's information, not an opinion, that MK doesn't feel well about his actual condition and he felt even worse with the TCT project when he met other guitar players of his age or older, already planning to go on tour, because he can't do it anymore.
Obviously I can't say from where I get this, but I was told that this is information, not an opinion.
Let's enjoy whatever he can record in the future and offer us, and treasure our memories of him playing live.
Oh dear. That must be heartbreaking.
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I wondered this myself, then thought perhaps the idea was to play some more snippets and he was suddenly put off by what happened. Who knows.
Speculation sure isn't good but sadly something doesn't seem right.
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I guess he is very well aware that people really want to see him with a guitar in his hands 'live', so I think he could not help himself from picking up the acoustic.... even if that means showing he is not anywhere close to where he wants to be physically...
Also looking at how he moves (shuffles) in the PR snippet at the bridge, his body seems to have aged well past his mind, which is really sad to see. I honestly hope he can continue to find sufficient satisfaction creating all the beautiful things for the world together with his friends and for his friends, us, for years and years to come....
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I have fully accepted that Mark Knopfler as a touring musician is over. I am very happy Mark Knopfler as a song writer continues, we will still get to hear his guitar playing on his new songs, and I am sure they will sound great. It's not the end of the road for Mark, a lot of famous musicians have ended touring, some go on when they should have stopped, but good luck to them. It's clear Mark has a medical issue that is affecting his hands, to be honest, I am sure it would be a miracle for any musician of his age not to have something wrong. Let's talk about the music, not his health.
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Health speculations aside - I can't help but feeling sad watching him struggle with a few simple notes, far from the guitar hero he ones was.
Maybe it's harder for him not beeing able to play the Christies guitars like he used to, than actually selling them...
uapueq
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Health speculations aside - I can't help but feeling sad watching him struggle with a few simple notes, far from the guitar hero he ones was.
Maybe it's harder for him not beeing able to play the Christies guitars like he used to, than actually selling them...
uapueq
I don't think there's any question of that. I bet he would trade all but one of his guitars to be able to play like he used to.
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Regarding this issue, I know for sure, and that's information, not an opinion, that MK doesn't feel well about his actual condition and he felt even worse with the TCT project when he met other guitar players of his age or older, already planning to go on tour, because he can't do it anymore.
Obviously I can't say from where I get this, but I was told that this is information, not an opinion.
Let's enjoy whatever he can record in the future and offer us, and treasure our memories of him playing live.
Thank you for the info. It explanes a lot.
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The problem is that when there is no information and something clearly is up, fans will spend alot of time studying the details trying to figure something out. I don't think MK reads this forum or random youtube threads, but if he does and is bothered by speculations, he's the only one who can stop it by being a bit more open.
You could, in some sense, compare it with Michael Schumacher - just on a smaller scale. If everyone knew how he was doing and what was the end result of the injuries, they would leave the family alone as the important questions got their answers.
Like, Springsteen had to cancel a bunch of shows last year due to health reasons. If he offered no explanation, speculations would be all over the place - but us fans know why and wish him a happy recovery.
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I wonder if it’s something to do with his crash. He sustained quite alot of bad injuries which can come back to haunt you later on in life.
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I think we need to remember the fact that he hadn’t warmed up, was dressed formally (a suit gives slightly less mobility of arms etc) and he’s in his 70s.
If we compare it to the other most recent footage we have of him playing guitar, the video for Ahead of the Game, they’re hugely different. When they shot the video, regardless of whether or not it was the sound that we hear etc, he was clearly playing much better as he’d warmed up, was relaxed and ready to play.
Have you ever heard Robbie Williams sing spur of the moment? Sounds absolutely awful. But warmed up then his voice is (or was…prob a bit past it now) something else entirely. I don’t necessarily like his music but the guy could sing.
I think it’s much the same here
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Regarding this issue, I know for sure, and that's information, not an opinion, that MK doesn't feel well about his actual condition and he felt even worse with the TCT project when he met other guitar players of his age or older, already planning to go on tour, because he can't do it anymore.
Obviously I can't say from where I get this, but I was told that this is information, not an opinion.
Let's enjoy whatever he can record in the future and offer us, and treasure our memories of him playing live.
One can hardly believe that Mark, who we know as a strong man and an optimist, can ever be "jealous" about something like this. Yes, a lot of guitar players and singers of his age and older are still gigging, however, way more people who were younger are already dead. Who said you need to play until you die anyway?
Quentin Tarantino said his 10th movie will be his last and he'll concentrate on writing books. It's not like you play the guitar to live, you live to play the guitar or do something else. So I sincerely hope it's not going downhill already, however, we are receiving very bad signs lately and I don't think this is a drill.
Live long and prosper Mark K. Just don't forget to let your fans know so it's not all speculation.
(https://scontent-lhr8-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/425004383_379777571472068_7331548555287696473_n.jpg?_nc_cat=107&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=dd5e9f&_nc_ohc=xYDD68q-wWkAX8bFz13&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr8-1.xx&oh=00_AfCIbMGuRENl4_WOfxtoMCah3zzYV-nhy530tVZcGgy2Zw&oe=65C22B0F)
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Regarding this issue, I know for sure, and that's information, not an opinion, that MK doesn't feel well about his actual condition and he felt even worse with the TCT project when he met other guitar players of his age or older, already planning to go on tour, because he can't do it anymore.
Obviously I can't say from where I get this, but I was told that this is information, not an opinion.
Let's enjoy whatever he can record in the future and offer us, and treasure our memories of him playing live.
So sad, I guess inability to play is the worst nightmare of any musician
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I watched the video and personally didn't notice anything untoward. But I'm not a doctor.
Unless you are also a doctor or qualified to comment on it I'm not sure that there is any point to speculate.
i have to admit i do notice a certain shaky movement as well. is that what people speculate it is, no clue, but the movement CAN be seen
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I would tend to advise against asking Guy. He is not Mark’s spokesman and is hardly at liberty to discuss Mark’s health.
fully agree
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I’ve noticed that a long time ago but don’t really like bringing it up on here.
I’m sure he’s having the best possible treatment for any health issues he may face and his family seems to be pretty tight-knitted. Mark’s like a family member for all of us and knowing that he’s well looked after makes me feel better about all this.
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I would tend to advise against asking Guy. He is not Mark’s spokesman and is hardly at liberty to discuss Mark’s health.
fully agree
Indeed. Guy will obviously delete all questions regarding this and will no doubt have been asked about this already.
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I would tend to advise against asking Guy. He is not Mark’s spokesman and is hardly at liberty to discuss Mark’s health.
fully agree
Indeed. Guy will obviously delete all questions regarding this and will no doubt have been asked about this already.
But the question will remain there until Guy noticed that question, and that would led to other people commenting that...
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I’ve noticed that a long time ago but don’t really like bringing it up on here.
I’m sure he’s having the best possible treatment for any health issues he may face and his family seems to be pretty tight-knitted. Mark’s like a family member for all of us and knowing that he’s well looked after makes me feel better about all this.
:thumbsup
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I’ve noticed that a long time ago but don’t really like bringing it up on here.
I’m sure he’s having the best possible treatment for any health issues he may face and his family seems to be pretty tight-knitted. Mark’s like a family member for all of us and knowing that he’s well looked after makes me feel better about all this.
Very nice comment.
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As has been said before, the effects of ageing are different for everyone, and you can't say that just because Springsteen can still go out & do powerful, long shows that everyone should be able to. Mark has made the wise decision to stop touring at the right time, We knew when the DS classics with "twiddly bits" were dropped from the last tour that things were getting worse, but he was still able to deliver a great show. Now, 5 years later he will know he couldn't do it again. Much as I love McCartney, I think he should have stopped touring a while ago because his voice is going, I think it's better to bow out with dignity at the right time, and that's what Mark has done.
I'm 68 and I can no longer manage to play TR or ToL, my fingers are getting stiffer & I've a hint of a tremor (essential tremor).
I hate to think what bashing those classics out on extended tours must have done to Mark's hands and I remember him wearing a wrist brace early in his solo career so he's probably suffering from years of heavy playing as much as any ailment.
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
Not a lot of actual movement in that finger pattern....
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
Not a lot of actual movement in that finger pattern....
It's a playback video anyway, not sure how you can tell his shape considering that.
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
Not a lot of actual movement in that finger pattern....
It's a playback video anyway, not sure how you can tell his shape considering that.
Learnt it. Capo 4rd fret. Key Ab, E shapes. Nice riff, very simple....
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If he still plays some cool guitar on the album, then he is at least able to cope with the issue, it's not stopping him playing.
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
Not a lot of actual movement in that finger pattern....
It's a playback video anyway, not sure how you can tell his shape considering that.
Learnt it. Capo 4rd fret. Key Ab, E shapes. Nice riff, very simple....
It's a perfect way to deal with the situation. Good, smooth riff, a lot of hammer-ons, slides and pull-offs, no vibrato at all, and 1 position change. The solo's the same.
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I don't know when the Ahead of the Game video was recorded but there he seems to play perfectly fine like he used to do lately. And just like Eddie said surely he is having the best treatment for any health issue.
Not a lot of actual movement in that finger pattern....
It's a playback video anyway, not sure how you can tell his shape considering that.
Learnt it. Capo 4rd fret. Key Ab, E shapes. Nice riff, very simple....
It's a perfect way to deal with the situation. Good, smooth riff, a lot of hammer-ons, slides and pull-offs, no vibrato at all, and 1 position change. The solo's the same.
That was my point. It's not in the least bit taxing ....
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I watched the Christie's interview last night. My husband pointed out the slight tremor to me. I didn't notice it until then. I had the privilege of seeing MK and his band play multiple times from 2004-2019. From my perspective, one of his absolute best gigs was at the Count Basie Theatre in NJ which would have been maybe 2010? I always LOVED seeing him although some shows were better than others in terms of the energy. Often when I saw him it was towards the end of the tour and maybe everyone was a little tired. I remember when Mark hurt his back and continued on with the tour - he was clearly in pain but the show must go on. He was still great. I love the guy and his music, the band. I was sometimes able to get seats in the first row where you could look in his eyes and see the seriousness of purpose. I remember him looking out into the audience. No question in my mind that he had a passion for playing live. I am so grateful that he has given us so much. His music has sustained me through many a tough moment in my life. It is a constant, always there at the push of a button. I will miss the live performances but I am glad that he can still write songs, play, and record albums. He's still here, tremor or not and I'm so thankful.
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I watched the Christie's interview last night. My husband pointed out the slight tremor to me. I didn't notice it until then. I had the privilege of seeing MK and his band play multiple times from 2004-2019. From my perspective, one of his absolute best gigs was at the Count Basie Theatre in NJ which would have been maybe 2010? I always LOVED seeing him although some shows were better than others in terms of the energy. Often when I saw him it was towards the end of the tour and maybe everyone was a little tired. I remember when Mark hurt his back and continued on with the tour - he was clearly in pain but the show must go on. He was still great. I love the guy and his music, the band. I was sometimes able to get seats in the first row where you could look in his eyes and see the seriousness of purpose. I remember him looking out into the audience. No question in my mind that he had a passion for playing live. I am so grateful that he has given us so much. His music has sustained me through many a tough moment in my life. It is a constant, always there at the push of a button. I will miss the live performances but I am glad that he can still write songs, play, and record albums. He's still here, tremor or not and I'm so thankful.
I feel just the same as you, RockinCat! :wave