A Mark In Time

Mark Knopfler Discussion => Mark Knopfler Discussion Forum => Topic started by: 2manyguitars on March 08, 2021, 12:34:17 PM

Title: New Pick Interview
Post by: 2manyguitars on March 08, 2021, 12:34:17 PM
Just a few new interview clips from Pick Withers....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZn4Ln-1lqM (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZn4Ln-1lqM)

and part 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I24S3uizo0U&t=309s (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I24S3uizo0U&t=309s)

Part 3

https://youtu.be/u7dbo8Og-Iw (https://youtu.be/u7dbo8Og-Iw)

Part 4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqpmikxgDm4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqpmikxgDm4)

Part 5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8gDjo-yMbA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8gDjo-yMbA)

Part 6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr5eFrh8nus (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr5eFrh8nus)
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 08, 2021, 12:57:49 PM
When Pick discusses leaving DS, it's usually it was getting too loud, he didn't want to be pidgeonholed, wanted more freedom explore other venues, didn't want to be away from his family, etc. He also says there are other issues that he doesn't want go into.


In the RHoF interview, it's clear that he's not on good terms with neither Mark, John nor David. Makes me pretty sad that almost 40 years later these guys have not reconciled. I was in touch with Pick's wife some time ago, and she basically said Mark and Pick hadn't spoken to each other since Pick left ...
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: Pottel on March 08, 2021, 01:09:20 PM
wow, even mark and david speak. so you wonder really....
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 08, 2021, 01:15:53 PM
wow, even mark and david speak. so you wonder really....


How much they speak except for when dealing with necessary family business is anyone's guess. Probably very little.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: quizzaciously on March 08, 2021, 01:40:32 PM
Well, in a lot of ways, thanks to Pick, the band became a band in which at the end of the line there were only 2 original members. I think in a way Pick helped to start this whole mess of changing musicians like crazy. David left, then Pick left, half of the band's gone. Thanks, folks! If I were Mark, I'd be just as pissed TBH.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 08, 2021, 02:12:17 PM
Well, in a lot of ways, thanks to Pick, the band became a band in which at the end of the line there were only 2 original members. I think in a way Pick helped to start this whole mess of changing musicians like crazy. David left, then Pick left, half of the band's gone. Thanks, folks! If I were Mark, I'd be just as pissed TBH.


But as Pick said, he went from being Pick Withers to being "the drummer in Dire Straits [i.e. Mark's band]". And David has said he "didn't just want to be someone else's strummer".


I totally understand those guys. Sure, everybody knew Mark was special, but the band was a collaborative from the start, and it must have been terribly frustrating to feel that your artistic input is becoming smaller and smaller because one person is gaining greater prominence.


For me the first two albums will always be special, because you sense that band thing going on. John and David were not the greatest musicians on the planet, but there was this synergy that was lost when the DS got bigger and other personnel came and went.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: quizzaciously on March 08, 2021, 06:01:35 PM
Well, in a lot of ways, thanks to Pick, the band became a band in which at the end of the line there were only 2 original members. I think in a way Pick helped to start this whole mess of changing musicians like crazy. David left, then Pick left, half of the band's gone. Thanks, folks! If I were Mark, I'd be just as pissed TBH.


But as Pick said, he went from being Pick Withers to being "the drummer in Dire Straits [i.e. Mark's band]". And David has said he "didn't just want to be someone else's strummer".


I totally understand those guys. Sure, everybody knew Mark was special, but the band was a collaborative from the start, and it must have been terribly frustrating to feel that your artistic input is becoming smaller and smaller because one person is gaining greater prominence.


For me the first two albums will always be special, because you sense that band thing going on. John and David were not the greatest musicians on the planet, but there was this synergy that was lost when the DS got bigger and other personnel came and went.

Yes and no... In retrospect, I think both David and Pick would benefit more should the stay longer in the band. What I know is that pretty much everyone who ever worked with Mark divide their career into pre-MK and post-MK. Even people like Guy are forever MK stamped so to speak, so as I discussed it in Jack Sonny’s case, you should think more than twice whether you want to make an MK-turn in your career. Because Jack is literally known as “the other guitar player from Dire Straits”.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 12, 2021, 12:38:06 PM

This recent comment (by Linda Withers) sheds some more light on why Pick left.

(https://i.postimg.cc/76jzn2J6/Pick.jpg)
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: Dutchessy on March 12, 2021, 12:42:37 PM
Yes, now it's good :) Thanks Hunter
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 12, 2021, 12:44:30 PM
Yes, now it's good :) Thanks Hunter


 :thumbsup
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: Pottel on March 12, 2021, 01:18:02 PM
wow, never knew this...
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: hunter on March 12, 2021, 01:37:16 PM
I think Linda Withers wrote that she was Ed Bicknell's PA for some time in those days. She must know and have seen a lot.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: quizzaciously on March 12, 2021, 02:09:16 PM
Are you kidding me, a guy with 15 years of experience in one of the biggest and musical towns in Europe, and the only band he found was 3 amateur musicians? Hmmm...
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: Jules on March 13, 2021, 09:44:22 AM
Are you kidding me, a guy with 15 years of experience in one of the biggest and musical towns in Europe, and the only band he found was 3 amateur musicians? Hmmm...

Marcus Cliffe is not amateur at all.

But I get your point, and I agree with you.

Also, where has been Pick Withers, the profesional, all these years?
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: dustyvalentino on March 13, 2021, 10:44:13 AM
Are you kidding me, a guy with 15 years of experience in one of the biggest and musical towns in Europe, and the only band he found was 3 amateur musicians? Hmmm...

Marcus Cliffe is not amateur at all.

But I get your point, and I agree with you.

Also, where has been Pick Withers, the profesional, all these years?
I think Quiz was meaning MK, DK and JI were the amateurs?


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Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: quizzaciously on March 13, 2021, 10:48:46 AM
Are you kidding me, a guy with 15 years of experience in one of the biggest and musical towns in Europe, and the only band he found was 3 amateur musicians? Hmmm...

Marcus Cliffe is not amateur at all.

But I get your point, and I agree with you.

Also, where has been Pick Withers, the profesional, all these years?
I think Quiz was meaning MK, DK and JI were the amateurs?

Yes, absolutely! Pick's current band sounds as professional as the band could ever professionally sound, so no doubt about it. But in the late 70s, he joined DS for some reason, only to leave after a couple of albums, according to his wife, because of the lousy rhythm-section. This statement blows my mind on so many levels...
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: dustyvalentino on March 13, 2021, 11:06:18 AM
From a purely financial level, imagine leaving Dire Straits just before the release of Brothers in Arms...


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Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: quizzaciously on March 13, 2021, 11:29:11 AM
From a purely financial level, imagine leaving Dire Straits just before the release of Brothers in Arms...

And the band was very successful even before Brothers in Arms, so that only begs one explanation — the relationships broke before the band would break. I think Pick wasn't a fan of John's drumming and David's rhythm guitar, so Mark tried to "solve" this problem with David's leaving, however, John stayed in his position. So what could happen is Pick would eventually start to get on Mark's nerves and the rest is history...

I think Pick was pretty bad-tempered at the time, as this story about him leaving a drum kit in anger after a show tells a lot about his approach. So I think, his and David's leaving was as natural as natural someone's leaving could get. I love all the stories about musicians who worked with Mark, every story is so unique and tells so much about the characters of people.

If you're not a fan of the rhythm section in the band and the actual songs and success are not of any value for you, and if you don't like the path the band goes onto, then fine, go find yourself another band. This is yet another strange place in Pick's story. Personally, I don't think that the sound has changed so dramatically as he describes it.

Clearly, 4-piece wasn't Mark's best choice for the band, it was a choice of convenience and financial sense. And if you don't love the idea of adding a keyboard and such, and the music becoming more pop, then that means you don't love the songs, and if you're not in love with the songs, why you're playing here at all?

Oh, Pick, so many questions, and so few answers.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: NicoMK on March 15, 2021, 02:19:54 PM
But in the late 70s, he joined DS for some reason, only to leave after a couple of albums, according to his wife, because of the lousy rhythm-section. This statement blows my mind on so many levels...

Seems that MK's problems with drummers is nothing new halas.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: dustyvalentino on March 15, 2021, 04:04:35 PM
From a purely financial level, imagine leaving Dire Straits just before the release of Brothers in Arms...

And the band was very successful even before Brothers in Arms, so that only begs one explanation — the relationships broke before the band would break. I think Pick wasn't a fan of John's drumming and David's rhythm guitar, so Mark tried to "solve" this problem with David's leaving, however, John stayed in his position. So what could happen is Pick would eventually start to get on Mark's nerves and the rest is history...

I think Pick was pretty bad-tempered at the time, as this story about him leaving a drum kit in anger after a show tells a lot about his approach. So I think, his and David's leaving was as natural as natural someone's leaving could get. I love all the stories about musicians who worked with Mark, every story is so unique and tells so much about the characters of people.

If you're not a fan of the rhythm section in the band and the actual songs and success are not of any value for you, and if you don't like the path the band goes onto, then fine, go find yourself another band. This is yet another strange place in Pick's story. Personally, I don't think that the sound has changed so dramatically as he describes it.

Clearly, 4-piece wasn't Mark's best choice for the band, it was a choice of convenience and financial sense. And if you don't love the idea of adding a keyboard and such, and the music becoming more pop, then that means you don't love the songs, and if you're not in love with the songs, why you're playing here at all?

Oh, Pick, so many questions, and so few answers.
The music wasn’t really becoming pop when Pick left, the Love Over Gold album was more like a 70s style prog album.
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: straitsway75 on March 15, 2021, 07:08:26 PM
I know that:
1 LOG production was in Mark & Dorfsman's hands (Pick John Alan and Hal were 'only' players)
2 Pick was a professional player before DS, but his work is world wide recognized after DS albums, his work for  Mal & the Primitives was basically pop, very easy listening
3 Mark was the STAR.
His talent is the reason for being here now
Title: Re: New Pick Interview
Post by: 2manyguitars on April 01, 2021, 12:35:00 PM
First post updated with additional clips...