April 15th - pics from gig last night.. snapped by Keith Curtis - for next shows click here
April 4th 2013
New limited edition live CD. Due for release April 12th 2013 and entitled "Made In Germany" to mark 30 years of working with my colleague and friend Harry Bogdanovs. Copies should be available at concerts and at CDBABY.com in about a week or so but I expect pre-orders can be placed...
Track listing at cdbaby.com
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Feb 21st
It is with some sadness that I announce the end of a long and very fruitful relationship with my booking Agency, Sounds Promotion in Germany but it also marks the beginning of what I hope will be a long and fruitful relationship with Ballarin Music instead. Dirk Ballarin has left Sounds Promotion and I'm going with him. Any promoters interested in booking David Knopfler for Germany or indeed all other territories (exc USA, Canada and UK) should contact Dirk at dirk@ballerin-music.com.
Feb 18th
Adding UK and US dates all the time for April/May 2013 ... here
Jan 23rd 2013
Wow, where does the time fly... Just posted some new concert dates for April/May 2013 here
October 13th 2011
Four more German concert dates just sold out. Having fun with it :) All the best DK
September 2011
Lots of stuff has been and gone since I last posted... my apologies for letting this page slide so comprehensively... please feel free to catch up at my Facebook page Harry and I have very recently been in the studio in London - - so October 2011 will see a new Duo Tour in Germany to coincide with the release of CD12, a double CD called "Acoustic" - Cheers DK
April 28th 2011
Two special concerts in Scotland coming up - see tour news for details.
Had a wonderful time touring Austria - the perfect set up with Harry Bogdanovs and our regular crew. Lots of sold-out concerts and happy audiences. Special thanks to Hasi for organising it!
Feb 9th 2011March 14th 2010
Just back from a happy, successful tour of Germany and Switzerland, (most of it sold-out) with Harry Bogdanovs. My thanks to everyone involved in organizing it, both Sounds Promotion, Dirk and Jens in particular, the local Promoters and staff at the venues, and last but far from least, those who came to see us perform. It was all very enjoyable and rewarding. Thank you! Wound up visiting Münster twice, which was a bit different! What a nice place. The Jazz Café there was completely sold out, and then some. The next live work in the diary is the US and I'll be updating the dates shortly... should be both fun and arduous... I'd better hit the gym. Cheers DK.Feb 2nd 2010
Sorry to everyone who quite properly complained to me about the lack of updates recently. Since last I wrote here, me and "the boys" thoroughly enjoyed an electric tour of Europe, which was sold out almost all dates: So special thanks to everyone who made that possible - including Dirk at Sounds Promotion, Kai and Jens in our crew, Harry Pete and Martin as ever the perfect combo and all the wonderful local promoters many of whom provided much over and beyond. And for the one who didn't (in Belgium I believe it was)... well there's usually one! We liked your club at least. And special thanks to you if you attended any of those concerts. Fame Guitars went overboard in fine materials to make me two really remarkable Telecasters which Celine set-up in London for me, and were a real pleasure to play. The one Dirk is looking after for me is on loan Dirk!! I mean it. I think it's my favourite of the two.
This next tour in Switzerland Germany (Feb/March 2010) will probably feature our lovely custom Breedlove Guitars - Harry is thinking of taking his out on the road for the first time - so it should be a joy. My Taylors are in the US ready for the next dates there in April/May.
Hmm... what else? Harry and I had a treat performing two concerts in Chile last December 2009. The Agostini Family who run the club there are a completely lovely bunch and made it very cosy and special. Would love to figure out a way to head down there again next winter.
I also aquired an interesting electric 12 string - more on that anon.
The live dates are likely to be most current at Myspace
That'll have to be it for now. In haste... domesticity calls. DK
Hope to have some pics anon too
Tour starts in a couple of days - I'm going to be dedicating 4U (Rabbit Song) every night on behalf of a chap called Akmal Shaikh, who is currently awaiting the death sentence in China. Apart from the fact he's a British Citzen we have one other thing in common - we've both written our own "rabbit" songs... Akmal's concept was rather more ambitious and grandiose - - he wanted to use it to usher in World Peace, after getting a Chinese Record Deal, which is as implausible as it sounds, but then Akmal suffers from Bi-polar Disorder which, might just save his life if the Chinese Authorites would accept it. In any event if you want to know more about him please visit Reprieve.
Three concerts for the upcoming electric German tour with the band are
already sold out... others will soon be going the same way. Probably the most likely
place to still get tickets will be Hamburg
The last German Tour was a complete sell out so buy tickets now to avoid disappointment
Speaking of going... the rehearsals are going really well too. Really enjoying these new Fame telecasters a lot.
The new CD "The Anthology" Paris CD11 is finally pressed
and ready for sale. It is a lovely digipac limited edition memento of 25 years
of studio recordings from 1983 to 2008 - I've shipped a few copies to
www.CDbaby.com where you can order a copy. You can also order direct from
me by paying me £12.50 pounds, including postage and packing using paypal to
my email david@knopfler.com. Delivery to the US will be immediate - but Europe and
other places will involve a delay of a couple of weeks or so.
Tracks include Soul Kissing, Double Dealing, When We Kiss, What Then Must We
Do, To Feel That Way Again, Rise Again, Lonely is The Night
Southside Tenements, The Heart of It, I Remember It all, St. Swithuns Day,
Arcadie, Going Down With The Waves, Easy Street, Steel Wheels.
The US Duo tour is being rescheduled for April/May 2010. It should, as a result,
be better than ever when it happens. Apologies for all those inconvenienced.
The German Electric tour is all sorted and will begin in November... see you
there :) DK
August 13th 2009
Just back from doing the Breedlove Festival and Experience 09 in Bend Oregon where I got to meet a bunch of lovely people too numerous to name individually. I picked up a nice electric Breedlove guitar which will be tried out alongside the new pre-CBS Telecaster style guitar (Fame are making for me) for my November band tour Germany. The Breedlove looks like it aught to be a screamer but in fact it's amazingly refined and civilised... It's going to be interesting getting to know it... the main challenge being not to let all the knobs intimidate me. I also picked up one of their fun A-tuned Baby Acoustics! Nice Madola style qualities.
Also in the pipeline are some dates in the US with Harry Bogdanovs as a duo in September/October 2009 which should be
fun... then maybe two dates in Chile in December - which should be an exciting way
to finish the year.
Ellie, and Pete from Breedlove helping out on BVs for an impromptu bit of fun.
The stock I ordered for repressing several of my CDs together with a Compilation
CD are finally finished and ready for collection.. never a dull moment. I'm also
in the process of moving for about the sixth time in the last two/three years...
it would be nice to eventually have a place I could put down roots and re-build myself
a studio... meanwhile Harry and I did manage to lay down a track with Clay
at his Oregon Studio, Soundsmith which seems like a cool place
to record.
May 30th 2009
A much belated thank you to everyone
who helped make the sold-out acoustic mini tour of Germany such a success, Harry
for his excellent playing, Dirk for wearing a dozen hats simultaneously (as agent,
driver, sound engineer, tour manager, monitor engineer, lighting engineer, backline
and anything else I might have forgotten.) the local promoters at each of the
venues as well as the people who work for them... and last but not least, the wonderful
people who came to the concerts.
For an unrelated but equally enjoyable event, in Koblenz tonight. I'd like to thank
Lorenzo Michelli, Massimo and the other guys from the Italian band/Orchestra for
their talent and professionalism for the reprise of the "Morning in Iowa"
Robert Nathan/Castelnuovo-Tedesco Concert - where Lorenzo also gave me the lovely
gift of a beautiful arrangement of an old song of mine "The Great Divide"
which we performed, pretty much completely unrehearsed, as one of our encores. What
an amazing thing it is to work with classical musicians who seemingly can instantly
produce such polished performances and harmony from the ideas of one arranger, with
only 15 minutes to spare and a few pages of music manuscript. Lorenzo also owes me
a lesson in the extraordinary art of false harmonics... his command of his instrument
is scary. It would be fun to take this project across the trails of mythic
America, as so eloquently and gracefully portrayed by Nathan; from New England to
Iowa and on to Colorado... and maybe then we could nip down to California, the home
of its composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. Doesn't hurt to put your dreams out there
I guess. It's interesting how for American writers, when they are descendents of
"settlers," the mythology of their stories is almost invariably "the
journey" and "the land."
May 19th 2009
Berlusconi at 72 is allegedly dating a 17 year old hottie. He owns half the media that are proudly showing her in her fetching bikini. The current salary for rank-and-file members of the House and Senate is $174,000 per year and that's before they even start fiddling their expenses - Germany's politicians get allowances that completely dwarf their generous salaries - so they effectively get about 200 euros a year before adding private income - but we want to lynch our somewhat unimaginative MPs for dry rot or having their relatives, like sons and daughters, share the homes they'll be unemployed in after 2010... I dunno, what am I missing here? Isn't there something a bit wrong about this whole debacle... Shouldn't we be petitioning our MPs to have more largesse or something? Admittedly they frequently lose us billions if not trillions in their incompetent decisions such as illegally invading sovereign countries, or changing our gold to dollars or deregulating the City... but still we only want to string them up for cutting back their wisteria?
April 21st
US label has released a "Best of..." I'm looking forward to seeing a copy.
April 4th
Just back from Frankfurt - where I was having a stab at checking
out the offerings at the annual Music Fair for musical instruments, audio equipment
et al. It could all too easily make you yearn to be as offensively rich as a retired
banker... so much cool stuff I'd like to own and tinker with. Many thanks to
everyone I met there for making it both fun and productive. Shubb gave me two
lovely capos... Yay! Carlos Juan was a complete gentleman as ever. providing
me with corporate cover, so as a Muso I could potter around and check stuff out quai-legally...
Also Jean Claude, for the loan of one of their Breedlove acoustics, because I was
too indolent to carry mine out there. Their US custom shop guitars are a joy to play.
While nothing can replace a real grand-piano for quality, the New Roland V-piano
looks like it might well be another notch or three towards the holy grail of a
decent stage piano... maybe in my lifetime even ;) Writing this, I can't help notice
that it's so wonderfully quiet and relaxing back here tonight in my little domestic
environment with just the hums of my domestic electrical appliances :)
I put up two free-standing shelves tonight using just two cheap pine planks...
the kinda thing I used to do when I was eighteen. Funny how circular life can be.
By contrast, the hotel in Frankfurt, which was on the river, rather nice and already
heavily discounted, gave me a free upgrade to a suite big enough to accomodate an
entire stadium-rock entourage... which was very nice of them, if a tad excessive
for my modest needs for a kettle and tea bags. That said, I do seem to have
my moments of living the proverbial charmed life.
Frankfurt Airport was so slick and glossy... highly polished marble flloors and lovely
integrated steel and glass structures. I'd forgotten how Up-Scale Germany often is.
Flew back c/o a foodless, somewhat charmless BA flight, to built-to-a-budget
Terminal 5 Heathrow, 90 mins late (i.e Seemingly as per usual for European
flights into Heathrow), The bags were announced to be arriving on carousel 6, then
8, then 11, then 8 again - with 10 minute intermissions and all without any
tannoy announcements to say there were changes... then they actually arrived somewhere
different again despite the electrical screen saying not to trust the evidence
of my own eyes. Would it be nostalgia for those aspirational, selfish eighties,
to hanker (if just for a moment) for life in a real First World Country like Germany?
25th March 2009
PRS has launched a campaign re' copyright and YouTube enfringment of same. They have postedmy comments as a supporter which is kinda cool
Also I've now got a few concerts lined up - the dates are at TOUR NEWS and more are at Myspace.com
20th November 2008
- Just back from an excellent
little concert in Turkey - where Harry Bogdanovs and I played to a sold out theatre
of 530 people in Eskisehir, where a grand time was had by all. Lovely place
to play. The Blue Mosque in Istanbul can't be over-hyped either... amazing piece
of 17th century architecture. Hope we get invited back next year. Thanks to everyone
there for excellent organisation, nice hotel and friendly help. Similarly a belated
but no less enthusiatic thanks to everyone in Canada who made us feel so welcome
and comfortable there on our mini-tour and especially Charles and Gavin (who's sold
out Festival Theatre
in Edmonton was also such a joy to play). Yay!
The next likely dates in the diary will be April 2009 - European Tour (I hope) and possibly with a five piece fully plugged band - but I'm awaiting some dates and confirmation from Sounds-Promotion in Germany that it's doable. If any Eurropean Promoters are interested - please get in touch either with me or Sounds Promotion directly
While on my thank you rounds - thanks to Celine in Denmark
Street for setting up my lovely Breedlove six string custom and the excellent work
on my Taylor 12 string too.
I've been writing a tune or two with a chap called Callum Adamson - we had a wee
session on Sunday just gone, which bore really interesting fruit. So, what
with that, and the stuff I've written with Mack Starks, and last but anything
but least, Harry Bogdanovs - the next record (when Harry and I get down to recording
it) should prove to be really exciting.
Been zapping backwards and forwards across the Atlantic a lot in recent times
- should have more to report on that soon.
There is also further information at david-knopfler.de and also
at Myspace
Cheers DK :)
22nd August 2008
Just back from wonderful Bend Oregon, visiting the quite unique Breedlove Guitars, where I was lucky enough to take part in their "2008 Experience" involving all kinds of white water/fast car excitements. It was a lot of fun!!! and the people there couldn't have been nicer. I've rarely, if ever felt more at home while away from home. I'm also now the proud owner of a custom shop 12 string with a cedar top and koa sides and back... which not only looks and sounds beautiful but plays beautifully too. Awesome instrument! Just hope the shipping proves uneventful... my suitcase is three days late and it was on the same plane as me! Also did a little impromptu private concert there with my guitarist Harry. The first time ever I think I've done a concert where I'd already met all my audience! We are both converts to their build and sound.
Unfreaking-real performance - Unfreaking-real performance
Heading back to Italy again in a few days to do another of the Robert Nathan/Castelnuovo-Tedesco recitations/concerts. The last one was a lot of fun... I'm sure this one will be too... hanging out with classical Mystros in Italy, when I don't know a crotchet from a hatchet... who has more fun than me? I'll have to plant a forest though... my carbon footprint must be bigger than a Yeti's. Hoorah.. my suitcase just arrived! love DK.
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18.3.08
5th February 2008
29th January 2008Only in rock-n-roll do you break an arm jumping off a stage ;) Six weeks passed since I broke it and the bone is all mended... hoorah. It will take awhile to get the muscles working again and mobility back, so lots of physio needed (even second gear quite an operation!) but managing to play my guitar and piano without problems... so all systems go for the upcoming European Tour as I'd hoped and expected.
11th January 2008
Just back from two relaxing weeks in Cuba.
Guitar Magazine did a video interview with me which they've just posted for February 2008
http://www.guitarheroes.com.au/ag_0108/cd_0108.htm
19th December 2007
Long overdue update time: Harry and I had a wonderful time touring Australia last month. Everyone was extremely helpful and positive and my thanks goes out to each and everyone we met and worked with, for helping to make a success of the shows. There are simply too many names for individual credits. We plan to revisit before long. What a fantastic level of positivism and “can do” mentality. Lots of red letter memories.
Nearer to home and more recently, in a moment, for which I can only plead temporary insanity, I managed to break my shoulder at The Blues Garage in Hannove, which doesn't have a back stage area behind he stage, and only one small set of steps on one side. I was on stage with my acoustic guitar, doing sound-check with a 10 piece jam band, but no crew nor indeed a guitar stand and I was positioned furthest away from the stairs. The stage was packed with amps and musicians. I had just put in ear plugs for the first time ever in my life, because the stage volume was high. I'd neglected to consider that wearing ear plugs would affect my balance! --plus because I couldn't put my guitar down, or easily get past all the other players, I decided to jump off the stage holding my Taylor (another absolute no no)... stumbled, predictably enough and to save my guitar, didn't put my hands out, et voila, one fractured shoulder. Crazy judgment call on my part but it's a "good break" in as much as it should heal without needing a operation and steel pins, assuming nothing moves in the next couple of days. So I’m reliably told I should, all being well, be strumming again in 6 weeks. No doubt the morals will be absorbed in the coming weeks.From the people I was working with, through to the ambulance staff, through to all the hospital staff, I experienced a measure of care that ranged from saintly to angelic. It’s extremely life affirming to discover that when you are forced into a condition of dependency, (something that doesn’t come naturally to me), that so many fine people stepped up to the plate over and beyond just the call of duty. Even the crew on the BA flight home, fussed over me! As someone who lives without any kind of meds or medical intervention from decade to decade, the experience of needing, and being able to have, vast quantities of pain killers is novel. I can only say, as a convert, thank God I live in a place where they are plentiful and what a fantastic invention they are!
Seasons greets to one and all
DK14th November 2007
Retail outlets in Australia, where I'm touring for Ship of Dreams include
Real World Music Pty Ltd T/A Fish
JB HiFi Chatswood
Fantasy Sight and Sound
Beaumont Street Beat
Readers Companion
Leading Edge Music Taree
Just Funkin Music
All Music & Vision - Byron
Don Tuckwells Audio
Explore Music
Rockaway Records
Jungle Music Harbour Town
Cosmic Music
Muses Rundle Mall
Dillons Music NORWOOD
Carrig Music5th/6th November 2007
Australian Tour:
Many thanks to all the wonderful people Harry and I are meeting on our Australian tour and especially for their "nothing is a problem" help and generosity of spirit.
I've been enjoying my night off in Sydney tonight, ordering room service, snoozing and watching TV... luxury! Batteries recharged for the next leg - Heading off for the Blue Mountains later today after doing Channel 9 Breakfast show live in a few hours - luv DK x
European dates for February/March 2008 now up
10thOctober2007.
Australian Tour dates - Oct/Nov 2007
News of TV appearance on Today Breakfast Show and press interviews to follow
Media seeking interviews in Australia please contact Anouk Van Meeuwen Publicity17th September 2007
This is a snap taken by Tim Lewis at The Stables Milton Keynes a few nights ago, when I guested at the launch of Stage Two, their new performance space.
Still a few t's to cross and i's to dot, but it looks like it's all steam ahead for the Australian dates - Oct/Nov 2007 - which I'll be posting in the touring section of the site.
Germany and Europe looking likely for 2008.
