The Legacy of Dire Straits

[dustyvalentino]

Post BiA, Dire Straits/MK were rightly regarded as peers of the "legends" of music, Dylan/Clapton/McCartney/Elton John etc

Sadly, since MK went solo, he has allowed Dire Straits to be almost forgotten to the extent that they are not mentioned in the "top league" anymore.

Check out this poll on another forum:

https://www.tdpri.com/threads/tom-petty-and-the-heartbreakers-vs-dire-straits.1104344/

A stupid comparison to make, but the fact people are voting for Tom Petty 2 to 1 over Dire Straits shows how far things have fallen. This would never have happened in the late 80s/early 90s

If MK and the management had done what other acts had done, ie expanded re-release campaigns, retrospective documentaries etc, this wouldn't have happened.

I guess MK doesn't care, but I think it's a shame.

[jbaent]

It is indeed a shame, but it's the way MK wanted it.

Sad because he is who he is because of Dire Straits, despite they were his band, his songs etc etc, his name was known because Dire Straits gained a name as a band, and he didn't had any regret leaving that name die.

[quizzaciously]

It is indeed a shame, but it's the way MK wanted it.

Sad because he is who he is because of Dire Straits, despite they were his band, his songs etc etc, his name was known because Dire Straits gained a name as a band, and he didn't had any regret leaving that name die.

Yes, he left DS just like any other band member and started his own solo career, using DS fame as a trampoline. It's quite obvious why he doesn't need DS anymore, but it's quite astonishing to me that in his solo career he pretty much done the same mistake as with DS. His current band already has like 10 people in it, that's too many shows on the road for a guy in his situation, I think it just got too big. And I'm pretty sure at this point he's also not in touch with all the crew. Basically, nothing has changed lol.

[Robson]

I think he has more control over everything.

[rmarques821]

And no one steals his sausages anymore.

[wakeywakey]

The Hall Of Fame snub showed how much he is bothered about the DS legacy.
Of course it is very sad for us fans because we are missing out on what fans of every other legacy group are getting.
But kudos to him for now living how he wants to and just not bothering with all the other bull....
Who wouldn't want to spend the last 20+ years of their working life doing things at their own pace and only working with people you like and trust.

[Klaus74]

MK buried Dire Straits in the mid nineties, and he lives and works in his own current musical world. That´s it. And he have to accept this, but we have many positive memories in case of visited shows, with many videos and many many records, CDs and so on. His musical work is not dead, of course not.
Yes, dustyvalentino, your intension to this thread makes me more sensitive to think about the development of that group and it´s musical meaning in the field of musical culture. So, my personal opinion, if MK is not currently interested in holding the name and leagcy of DS in the mind of today´s music-enthusiasts, his management or some other creative people can make this job, to produce some sensful re-releases with known and unknown DS music for us and for the next generation of music-lovers. It can be a solution. 

[dustyvalentino]

MK buried Dire Straits in the mid nineties, and he lives and works in his own current musical world. That´s it. And he have to accept this, but we have many positive memories in case of visited shows, with many videos and many many records, CDs and so on. His musical work is not dead, of course not.
Yes, dustyvalentino, your intension to this thread makes me more sensitive to think about the development of that group and it´s musical meaning in the field of musical culture. So, my personal opinion, if MK is not currently interested in holding the name and leagcy of DS in the mind of today´s music-enthusiasts, his management or some other creative people can make this job, to produce some sensful re-releases with known and unknown DS music for us and for the next generation of music-lovers. It can be a solution. 

There's been an indication that John in particular is keen to restore the legacy of DS, let's see what happens - the shambolic MFN compilation release isn't a good start...

[qjamesfloyd]

My view is, Mark can do what he wants with Dire Straits, if he is not interested anymore, fine, I will still enjoy all the songs and albums. I don't think that he doesn't care, but it's more he has moved on, ages ago, I would be the same, why would you want to be constantly reminded of things you did upto 45 years ago, some people are ok with it, like Paul McCartney, but as Glen Worf has said, "He doesn't choose to live in his past" Good on you son!!!

Looking at the comments from that Tom Petty v Dire Straits thread, a lot of people just think the comparison is unfair, I can't compare because I have only hear 2 or 3 of their songs. Just look at some of these quotes from that thread:

1.  Not a fan of either band but there are few bands more bland than Dire Straits. They are a band whose whole aesthetic is background music. Just an awful, awful excuse for a rock band. Tom Petty by default.

2. Gold albums aside, in a real sense Dire Straits was a one hit wonder. "I want my MTV...."

3. When did great music become a competition?
Comparisons of this sort are doomed to fail.

4. I happen to digg both for different reasons.

5. Why does everything have to be a competition???

The name Dire Straits is forever, when Mark and all the other members are dead and buried, the music will still be heard and sold, their are lots of people on YouTube, young and old who are only discovering that band now by doing reaction videos, and most are blown away by the songs.

[Klaus74]

Yes, John Illsley is a proper candidate for such re-releases in the future. I think he will have good arguments to convince MK to allow such projects. I hope so.

MFN 2-LP-Set was a "little start" in this direction, but with essential mistakes. I hope the responsible persons had learned from that.

[dustyvalentino]

My view is, Mark can do what he wants with Dire Straits, if he is not interested anymore, fine, I will still enjoy all the songs and albums. I don't think that he doesn't care, but it's more he has moved on, ages ago, I would be the same, why would you want to be constantly reminded of things you did upto 45 years ago, some people are ok with it, like Paul McCartney, but as Glen Worf has said, "He doesn't choose to live in his past" Good on you son!!!

Looking at the comments from that Tom Petty v Dire Straits thread, a lot of people just think the comparison is unfair, I can't compare because I have only hear 2 or 3 of their songs. Just look at some of these quotes from that thread:

1.  Not a fan of either band but there are few bands more bland than Dire Straits. They are a band whose whole aesthetic is background music. Just an awful, awful excuse for a rock band. Tom Petty by default.

2. Gold albums aside, in a real sense Dire Straits was a one hit wonder. "I want my MTV...."

3. When did great music become a competition?
Comparisons of this sort are doomed to fail.

4. I happen to digg both for different reasons.

5. Why does everything have to be a competition???

The name Dire Straits is forever, when Mark and all the other members are dead and buried, the music will still be heard and sold, their are lots of people on YouTube, young and old who are only discovering that band now by doing reaction videos, and most are blown away by the songs.

To be fair McCartney does still play "new" songs live, he got some minor criticism for doing them at Glastonbury.

[dmg]

Post BiA, Dire Straits/MK were rightly regarded as peers of the "legends" of music, Dylan/Clapton/McCartney/Elton John etc

Sadly, since MK went solo, he has allowed Dire Straits to be almost forgotten to the extent that they are not mentioned in the "top league" anymore.

Check out this poll on another forum:

https://www.tdpri.com/threads/tom-petty-and-the-heartbreakers-vs-dire-straits.1104344/

A stupid comparison to make, but the fact people are voting for Tom Petty 2 to 1 over Dire Straits shows how far things have fallen. This would never have happened in the late 80s/early 90s

If MK and the management had done what other acts had done, ie expanded re-release campaigns, retrospective documentaries etc, this wouldn't have happened.

I guess MK doesn't care, but I think it's a shame.

Very interesting indeed.  Reading through the comments it probably wasn't so clear cut though, as most of them were in high praise of both and seemingly found it difficult to choose a winner.

[dustyvalentino]

Post BiA, Dire Straits/MK were rightly regarded as peers of the "legends" of music, Dylan/Clapton/McCartney/Elton John etc

Sadly, since MK went solo, he has allowed Dire Straits to be almost forgotten to the extent that they are not mentioned in the "top league" anymore.

Check out this poll on another forum:

https://www.tdpri.com/threads/tom-petty-and-the-heartbreakers-vs-dire-straits.1104344/

A stupid comparison to make, but the fact people are voting for Tom Petty 2 to 1 over Dire Straits shows how far things have fallen. This would never have happened in the late 80s/early 90s

If MK and the management had done what other acts had done, ie expanded re-release campaigns, retrospective documentaries etc, this wouldn't have happened.

I guess MK doesn't care, but I think it's a shame.

Very interesting indeed.  Reading through the comments it probably wasn't so clear cut though, as most of them were in high praise of both and seemingly found it difficult to choose a winner.

Yes, it was stupid to try to even compare the two but my point is back in the day it would have been a different result.

I guess Tom Petty dying plays a part too, see all the Mercury/Bowie worship.

[superval99]

My view is, Mark can do what he wants with Dire Straits, if he is not interested anymore, fine, I will still enjoy all the songs and albums. I don't think that he doesn't care, but it's more he has moved on, ages ago, I would be the same, why would you want to be constantly reminded of things you did upto 45 years ago, some people are ok with it, like Paul McCartney, but as Glen Worf has said, "He doesn't choose to live in his past" Good on you son!!!

Looking at the comments from that Tom Petty v Dire Straits thread, a lot of people just think the comparison is unfair, I can't compare because I have only hear 2 or 3 of their songs. Just look at some of these quotes from that thread:

1.  Not a fan of either band but there are few bands more bland than Dire Straits. They are a band whose whole aesthetic is background music. Just an awful, awful excuse for a rock band. Tom Petty by default.

2. Gold albums aside, in a real sense Dire Straits was a one hit wonder. "I want my MTV...."

3. When did great music become a competition?
Comparisons of this sort are doomed to fail.

4. I happen to digg both for different reasons.

5. Why does everything have to be a competition???

The name Dire Straits is forever, when Mark and all the other members are dead and buried, the music will still be heard and sold, their are lots of people on YouTube, young and old who are only discovering that band now by doing reaction videos, and most are blown away by the songs.

To be fair McCartney does still play "new" songs live, he got some minor criticism for doing them at Glastonbury.

I watched McCartney at Glastonbury and whilst I did enjoy the show, I found the newer songs pretty dull.   The show only came to life for me, about an hour into the set, when they sang "Love Me Do" and "I Saw Her Standing There" partly due to Dave Grohl!    From then on the show improved somewhat with some older songs.

[Banjo99uk]

These are silly polls because art/music is completely subjective. However I think in the US TP will always kick DS. It would probably be different if the poll was more european based. I get the impression that most of the comments are from Americans. Also being dead is a great way to move your legacy up the rankings.