A Mark In Time
Mark Knopfler Discussion => Mark Knopfler Discussion Forum => Topic started by: ybot on April 23, 2016, 10:38:31 PM
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There may be few times when Mark used a pick inste ad of his 3 fingers and the tremolo
I now only can remember in "the man is too strong" and the beginning of "So far" after DS band
I have never seen Mark using the tremolo at DS
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I wrote an article about this subject on Ingo's blog :
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2014/09/30/songs-that-mark-knopfler-plays-with-a-pick/ (http://www.mk-guitar.com/2014/09/30/songs-that-mark-knopfler-plays-with-a-pick/)
Mark used a pick on many DS songs : the man's too strong, expresso love, twisting by the pool, many rhythm parts...
for DS songs, he used the tremolo bar on :
- private investigations studio version see at the end of the clip :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9K27HvhDxA
- solid rock and wild world on the steinberger in 85-86 :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNukqm4jGMw
and of course on many solo songs for his Marvin sound (shangri-la, everybody pays, you don't know you're born, seattle, the fizzy and the still, true love, etc...)
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I have just read what you wrote in Ingo`s blog
Very nice info!
Detailed
I wonder why Mark switched from vibrato to tremolo in certain parts
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He used it on the Steinberger on One World I think too (sounds like it) and the 2nd solo on MFN, also at the very end.
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He used it on the Steinberger on One World I think too (sounds like it) and the 2nd solo on MFN, also at the very end.
One world is fingers. (There is also a video clip available with the live version from the 1985 US tour to prove...)
Mfn also.
Playing with a pick is nothing new for Mark by the way, see this blog post that discusses using a pick on stage for several songs in 1979:
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2013/08/29/mark-knopfler-playing-with-a-pick-in-1979/
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He used it on the Steinberger on One World I think too (sounds like it) and the 2nd solo on MFN, also at the very end.
One world is fingers. (There is also a video clip available with the live version from the 1985 US tour to prove...)
Mfn also.
Playing with a pick is nothing new for Mark by the way, see this blog post that discusses using a pick on stage for several songs in 1979:
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2013/08/29/mark-knopfler-playing-with-a-pick-in-1979/
You can see him use the tremolo at the 5:00 mark on the Princes' Trust concert '86:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFSZYIFNJfQ
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He used it on the Steinberger on One World I think too (sounds like it) and the 2nd solo on MFN, also at the very end.
One world is fingers. (There is also a video clip available with the live version from the 1985 US tour to prove...)
Mfn also.
Playing with a pick is nothing new for Mark by the way, see this blog post that discusses using a pick on stage for several songs in 1979:
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2013/08/29/mark-knopfler-playing-with-a-pick-in-1979/
Bernadette= fingers
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The fizzy and the still
I already said it in my post
the complete list of songs played with pick is here :
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2014/09/30/songs-that-mark-knopfler-plays-with-a-pick/ (http://www.mk-guitar.com/2014/09/30/songs-that-mark-knopfler-plays-with-a-pick/)
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Bernadette= fingers
not 100% sure
we discussed this with Ingo :
I’d say that the riff sounds pick, but the solo sounds fingers especially the rake at 1:44, but well, it could also sound pick
http://www.mk-guitar.com/2013/08/29/mark-knopfler-playing-with-a-pick-in-1979/#comments (http://www.mk-guitar.com/2013/08/29/mark-knopfler-playing-with-a-pick-in-1979/#comments)
btw, has someone ever noticed that the Bernadette riff is very similar to Clash's london clalling ?
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- private investigations studio version see at the end of the clip :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9K27HvhDxA
to my knowledge, it's the only time we can see the red schecter strat with a tremolo arm
the strange thing is that it seems to be a Fender one (the one from his 61 strat ?) with a plastic white ending, while shecter ones didn't have this plastic white ending I think :think
another thing I alwasy wondered : does Hal play on this song ?
I can't hear a specific guitar part that could sounds him, but he is figuring in the clip... as it only for the band image ? :think
http://www.mk-guitar.com/gear-on-all-songs-for-all-albums-wiki/gear-on-album-love-over-gold/ (http://www.mk-guitar.com/gear-on-all-songs-for-all-albums-wiki/gear-on-album-love-over-gold/)
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to my knowledge, it's the only time we can see the red schecter strat with a tremolo arm
the strange thing is that it seems to be a Fender one (the one from his 61 strat ?) with a plastic white ending, while shecter ones didn't have this plastic white ending I think :think
You are right. The original was a stainless steel arm with a chromed brass tip.
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I have never seen Mark using the tremolo at DS
hey, we talked about MFN, solid rock and one world (all 3 on the steinberger) and private investigations on red the schecter strat but we forgot to mention the early days with the outro on News and the solo on eastbound train ! both on the strat of course
from 3:37
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz51p5PZuGQ
from 3:30. then he uses it so hard that he looses it at 3:41 !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bAY-gl6Ga0
and you can see him fixin it again at 0:10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyFsmTcCfj8
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Nice videos, yes, he used the tremolo there.
What might be the cause he gave it up?
He spent many years without the tremolo, only with the vibrato.
I have got a MK1 replica, it has got the tremolo bar. I have never seen Mark using it with the Pensa MK1
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Tremolo, vibrato is quite confusing.
Vibrato is a change in pitch (as for a left hand bending) and this is what I assume to be the effect obtained with a steel arm.
Tremolo keep the pitch but it is a change in volume and I wonder how the steel arm could do that...
Fender does advertise it as "Tremolo Arms" but actually it is a vibrato isn't it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvNzFH9lDTY
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Nice explanation, vibrato=change in pitch
tremo=change in volume
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I have got a MK1 replica, it has got the tremolo bar. I have never seen Mark using it with the Pensa MK1
the tremolo (vibrato ;) ) of the MK1 is blocked. It has a Floyd Rose tremolo mainly because Mark wanted the fine tuners.
With the Fenders on the 1977-79 stuff Mark used the tremolo a lot (e.g. the train chords in the Eastbound Train solo, the last chord in DTTW, news outro,...
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Nice explanation, vibrato=change in pitch
tremo=change in volume
Actually, there isn't really any rule to this if I'm not mistaken :P . A change in volume or a change in pitch may be called either tremolo or vibrato depending on who's talking. In this case with Mark and his guitar, we're only talking about a change in pitch from either his left hand fingers or the tremolo arm of the guitar. BUT on some amplifiers the change in volume effect is called tremolo, and on others it's called vibrato. I think the confusion stems from the early days of Fender, Marshall and Vox amps using both words for the same effect. ;D
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a notable difference between tremolo bar and left hand vibrato :
the hand vibrato can only make a pitch up, while in most of the cases, the tremolo arm can only make a pitch down
(although some rare systems can make a pitch up like on Satriani's guitar for example or on recent strats like mine from 2005)
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I have got a MK1 replica, it has got the tremolo bar. I have never seen Mark using it with the Pensa MK1
the tremolo (vibrato ;) ) of the MK1 is blocked. It has a Floyd Rose tremolo mainly because Mark wanted the fine tuners.
Yes, it has got a Floyd Rose bridge, and microtuners
But, my tremolo bar is not blocked, I copied the exact MK1 but did not know about bar blocked
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Actually, there isn't really any rule to this if I'm not mistaken :P . A change in volume or a change in pitch may be called either tremolo or vibrato depending on who's talking. In this case with Mark and his guitar, we're only talking about a change in pitch from either his left hand fingers or the tremolo arm of the guitar. BUT on some amplifiers the change in volume effect is called tremolo, and on others it's called vibrato. I think the confusion stems from the early days of Fender, Marshall and Vox amps using both words for the same effect. ;D
Right, technically it is clear: a modulation of pitch is vibrato, one of volume is tremolo. Fender did it wrong right from the beginning so today you can call it what you want.
a notable difference between tremolo bar and left hand vibrato :
the hand vibrato can only make a pitch up, while in most of the cases, the tremolo arm can only make a pitch down
(although some rare systems can make a pitch up like on Satriani's guitar for example or on recent strats like mine from 2005)
Fender's (and others) tremolo/vibrato was designed to be used with a floating bridge plate so you can push it down or pull it up. Adjusting it so that it touches the top and can only be pushed down, like Mark probably had on all early Dire Straits stuff, was not the way it was meant to work. The reason is more tuning stability of course, plus the tune of other strings does not go down when you bend a string.
But, my tremolo bar is not blocked, I copied the exact MK1 but did not know about bar blocked
I think it is stated in the MK guitar style books that it is blocked and the fine tuners were why he wanted the FR.
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(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160501/0531ca259aa6016039c090ee0813f043.jpg)
My 1964 Fender Concert amp (MK has one too!) calls it vibrato. :)
Sent from my Tab2A7-20F using Tapatalk
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Fender's (and others) tremolo/vibrato was designed to be used with a floating bridge plate so you can push it down or pull it up. Adjusting it so that it touches the top and can only be pushed down, like Mark probably had on all early Dire Straits stuff, was not the way it was meant to work. The reason is more tuning stability of course, plus the tune of other strings does not go down when you bend a string.
I thought the "normal " way was that it touched the top and Fender changed this only in recent models
You mean that all early strats from 50ies and 60ies had a floating bridge ?
However, many guitarists have their guitar in the same way as Mark's one
eg.g the gilmour black strat
http://www.gilmourish.com/?page_id=66 (http://www.gilmourish.com/?page_id=66)
Gallagher's one seems to
http://images.google.fr/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fthehandmadeguitar.com%2Fcustom-guitar%2Fgallery%2Fbravewood-guitar-vintage-reproduction-stratocaster-guitars.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fthehandmadeguitar.com%2Fbravewood-guitars-uk-made-vintage-replica-guitars&h=820&w=1300&tbnid=B9iwWoKqP9YL_M%3A&docid=DBKvoyP4xqhH4M&ei=kyYnV63eGomQaJiBmqAL&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=366&page=1&start=0&ndsp=43&ved=0ahUKEwjt8_yikrvMAhUJCBoKHZiABrQQMwgtKAgwCA&bih=995&biw=1920 (http://images.google.fr/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fthehandmadeguitar.com%2Fcustom-guitar%2Fgallery%2Fbravewood-guitar-vintage-reproduction-stratocaster-guitars.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fthehandmadeguitar.com%2Fbravewood-guitars-uk-made-vintage-replica-guitars&h=820&w=1300&tbnid=B9iwWoKqP9YL_M%3A&docid=DBKvoyP4xqhH4M&ei=kyYnV63eGomQaJiBmqAL&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=366&page=1&start=0&ndsp=43&ved=0ahUKEwjt8_yikrvMAhUJCBoKHZiABrQQMwgtKAgwCA&bih=995&biw=1920)
and I think many others are in this case, so not only Mark's one
http://www.google.fr/search?q=vintage+strats&biw=1920&bih=995&site=webhp&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi_p7KdkbvMAhUF7hoKHR9MCaUQ_AUIBigB (http://www.google.fr/search?q=vintage+strats&biw=1920&bih=995&site=webhp&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi_p7KdkbvMAhUF7hoKHR9MCaUQ_AUIBigB)
http://www.guitarhq.com/57strat.html (http://www.guitarhq.com/57strat.html)
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Right, and I am sure: the Strat tremolo was designed to be floating. This is the way it is pictured in the patent drawings and this way all Strat came out of the factory for decades.