I love Mark Knopfler's CDs, but they sure pale in comparison to his live performances. I wish they'd do a concert CD. And DVD.

This is the third time I've seen him perform at Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery in Woodinville, and (as before) tonight was an amazing concert. It's a great venue - outdoors, in a glade ringed by trees. I don't understand the folks who buy tickets for seats - plastic chairs on a slab of cement. It's much more comfortable and enjoyable to camp out on the grass (and you can get just as close to the stage along the sides). One of the winery's peacocks even wandered in this time.

The opening act (Jesca Hoop) was accompanied by thunder and lightning, and the rain began by her final song. A bit of a downpour kept us entertained while we waited for Mark and band, but the rain stopped as they took the stage. (The lightning continued to light up the sky all evening, which was cool.)

The audience gave a standing ovation when Mark came out, so the concert opened with a lot of wonderful energy that just kept growing through the evening. I think pretty much everyone was standing for the last four or five numbers, dancing and clapping. The really cool part was the absolute silence during the slow measures when it was him and his guitar and thousands of people hanging on every note. 

I haven't the musical expertise or vocabulary to describe the performance itself. All I can say is I was in awe.

I totally agree.  Awesome concert.  I took my 5 year old son, who's the only other true Mark Knopfler fan I know right now.  Through MK's music (played in my car, a LOT), he's learned about mining and black lung, fight and game rigging, the awkwardness of junior high "dance" class in P.E., the plight of the UK's working class under Thatcher, who Imelda Marcos is, and about a zillion other cultural references and sayings.  His and my "song" is "Cannibals", given the reassuring father/happy son theme--you can't imagine our delight when Mark opened with that song!!  And despite his exposure to mostly post Dire Straits stuff, his favorite remains Sultans of Swing, which certainly tells the tale of that song's universal and timeless appeal.

 I found the crowd interesting.  We were in the lawn, and it looks like the true MK fans were in the seats.  Most of the folks around me were chatting and blabbing amongst themselves for all the early songs, and then they started to complain about "When is he going to play some Dire Straits songs?"  I felt like throttling the half drunk guy behind me, who, upon hearing the opening bars of "Sultans", said "Finally, some Dire Straits", despite the fact that the song that preceeded it was "Romeo and Juliet".  Gah!  But I could see in the seat section most everybody clapping and singing along with all the songs, not just the ones that got airplay in the 80's.  Next time, it's a seat for me and my boy, for sure.

 For anyone interested, here's the playlist from last night (except for the last two songs, which we missed because my son had fallen asleep and I had to schlep him, our chairs, our cooler, our blanket and our picnic basket to the shuttle bus before the hordes--can anyone tell me what songs I missed?)

1.  Cannibals
2. Why Aye Man
3. What it is
4. Sailing to Philadelphia
5. True Love will Never Fade
6. The Fish and the Bird
7. Hill Farmer Blues ("Goin' into town, Lord, to get what I need..." from Ragpicker's Dream)
8. Romeo and Juliet
9. Sultans of Swing
10. Song for Sonny Liston
11. Marbletown
12. Speedway at Nazareth
13. Telegraph Road
14. Brothers in Arms
15. Shangri-La
16. ?
17. ?

Thanks for great reviews,

I was not there, but last two songs were surely So Far Away and Going Home (Theme of Local Hero).

 

Next time he comes, I'm going make Berkeley north, and whatever other Pacific Northwest stops he makes.  Sorry to hear your experience was distorted by those too talkative too repect the awesome talent(s) in front of them.  In all honesty, while I of course love his Dire Straits songs, they only get half the play his solo stuff gets in my player.  My son is 15, and he too has learned a bit of history through Knopfler's songs.  But it is a shame that you had distractions keeping you from a more complete enjoyment of the show.  They may not have been around you at the winery, but there are a few more true Knopfler fans out here...I promise.

 

 

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Sliante

Corndonkey:

 

 I found the crowd interesting.  We were in the lawn, and it looks like the true MK fans were in the seats.  Most of the folks around me were chatting and blabbing amongst themselves for all the early songs, and then they started to complain about "When is he going to play some Dire Straits songs?"  I felt like throttling the half drunk guy behind me, who, upon hearing the opening bars of "Sultans", said "Finally, some Dire Straits", despite the fact that the song that preceeded it was "Romeo and Juliet".  Gah!  But I could see in the seat section most everybody clapping and singing along with all the songs, not just the ones that got airplay in the 80's.  Next time, it's a seat for me and my boy, for sure.

This is why I'm delighted that he took MNF out of the setlist for this tour...time to weed out fairweather fans

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Doctor parkinson declared Im not surprised to see you here
Youve got smokers cough from smoking, brewers droop from drinking beer
I dont know how you came to get the betty davis knees
But worst of all young man youve got industrial disease

Corndonkey:

can anyone tell me what songs I missed?)

It looks like you missed

16. So Far Away 

17. Going Home (Theme from the Local Hero film).

Morten