FIRST TIME HEARING Dire Straits - Telegraph Road LIVE - Alchemy Tour 1983 | Reaction 

The most underrated guitarist in rock history. Van you have to listen to In the Gallery, Walking in the Wild West End and Lions.

This band is so chill. If nothing else, they definitely win the good Vibe award!

The unbelievable story of Detroit told through a Master Musician/Storyteller! They don't come any better! Mark is STILL touring!

The very best of British music.

I'm from Detroit, near Telegraph Road. This song is so meaningful about all the changes through the decades. It's so sad.

Mark Knopfler is a top ten guitarist of all time. He set the standard and has a unique style. He used his fingers, not a pick, and it pays off in a sound where the guitar dances during the song.

Not only is Knopfler one of the great guitarists ever, but he's a brilliant vocalist and lyricist. This song is epic an absolute masterpiece 💯💯💯

One of the best live bands ever…

Love Dire Straits. They are a great British rock band from the 70's-90's. Mark Knopfler is one of the best guitarists around. They have had so many hits including "Sultans Of Swing", "Romeo & Juliet", "Private Investigations", "Twisting By The Pool", "Money For Nothing", "Walk Of Life", "So Far Away", "Brothers In Arms" etc. They don't have a bad song.

The sheer amount of talent at this stage at every instrument, the storytelling, a masterclass in dynamics, taking their sweet time for intro, buildup, extro...a piece of art...and when the finaly slowly starts like a thunderstorm in the distance, only to roll full force above your head!

The rest of the band tend to get overlooked because Mark Knopfler is so awesome but they are all fantastic musicians.

This is a masterclass in dynamics and timing. And they have done it live. Alchemy is one of the great live albums.

This song is a masterpiece. Each musician stands out and they play masterfully as a whole.

Alan Clark on keys, so talented.

The gentleman with the lead guitar is Mark Knopfler, he wrote everything that the band plays! Their Alchemy tour is the best ever. Have you heard Sultans of Swing? They really break it down, they tight! Also Money for Nothing was the First video Ever played on MTV! AMAZING, he can play with his eyes closed. This was done back in 1978-79, lotsa people have never heard them. Glad your generation is picking up on them. You are a Doll😊I am in North Florida, Panama City Beach, lotsa people like it down here, I miss the mountains! 😅oops, I got way off subject, sorry-you're so easy to talk to❤😂

Possibly one of their greatest live performances.

One of the G.O.A.T.S a masterpiece from the master...

My favorite DS song. The album Love Over Gold is phenomenal.

Oh, been hoping that you’d get to this lyrical gem from my favorite band of all time! I saw them in late ‘82 in the 10th grade. Mark Knopfler is not only one of the top ten guitarists (IMHO), he is a songwriting genius...one of the best. Thanks for the reaction!

Man what a beautiful choice… thanks for taking the time to react to this incredible journey of a song

Best song ever. Can't listen without tears in mt eyes. Mark is the best🎸🥰

Great, a British person wrote the best song about America.

What a great live band…

This song is actualy about Detroit, written by singer/ guitarist Mark Knopfler when Dire Straits was on tour when driving on US Highway 24(nicknamed Telegraph Road)

This live version does the studio version some justice. It has to be pretty hard to play, but always has been one of my favorites along with Private Investigations. MK knows how to use silence and time in a way I love. Always have loved his phrasing.

I always thought of Dire Straits as mature rock and roll. Great reaction, Sir!

Mark is still working, has 9 solo albums out and a 10th will be released in 2023. The band just reassembled to begin work.

It's one of the most gorgeous songs ever produced. Mark's voice is perfect for his songs, like Dylan and his style, or Jerry Garcia, or Paul McCartney, or Trey Anastasio, or Willie Nelson.

Dang! You did it again! Only version is the live version, thank you so much for reacting to Dire Straits again!!💯💥

If you lived through the 70's-80's. With recessions this song hits home.

i was at one of the shows in this tour, not the one featured in video, but it was ....... well what can i say? .... the first large event i ever attended, i was 12 and my father took me. my love for music has burned bright ever since! big love to all people :)

From when musicians could play and sings hah some substance to them, this was a great era to grow up in

This is the type of song that gets better every time you listen to it... very layered and artistic

Live right near Telegraph Rd. And 8 mile. North of Detroit. His words are even more true today.

My sister had 'Brothers In Arms' on her driving play list coming back from a trip last weekend. I commented 'Telegraph Road' and 'Private Investigations' we're probably two of my fav Dire Straits tracks. One of many great bands we grew up listening to. Been lovin your reaction to Steely Dan. Be fab for you to check out some Supertramp one of these days 😁🤞

Dire Straits are definitely one of the greatest live bands and their music and performances are so wonderful. They are all on the same waive level and have so much fun bringing superb entertainment to their audience. I had the privilidge of seeing them live and it was an awesome adventure. Thank you for your reaction which I enjoyed.

Van, If you wonder how Mark Knopfler plays so well it's because he doesn't use a pick on his guitar like most guitarists. He "finger picks" using only his fingers similar to a banjo player. If you really want to see him shine check out an album that he did with the country guitarist Chet Atkins. The Album is titled "Neck and Neck"

Origin stories Mark Knopfler's dad , Irwin , was a Hungarian Jew who escaped to Glasgow in 1938 ; he was an architect and described himself as a leftist atheist - he was blessed to marry a Geordie * lass called Louise , a primary school teacher , ( * from Newcastle ) and they were blessed with three healthy happy children - Ruth , Mark and Dave . Fast forward to November 1976 : John Illsley , the founding bass player from the Straits , was 26 and a mature sociology student who had digs in a poor but proud working class estate in Deptford , south London ( also home to Mick and Keith , funnily enough .) He took in a lodger - Dave Knopfler - and they bonded over the blues , JJ Cale and jamming - eventually Mark moved in and they began to spontaneously jam and formed a band called the Cafe Racers but changed the name to Dire Straits once the excellent drummer , Pick Withers , completed the line up - 'cos Pick's flat mate told him he was always broke or in dire straits . In June 1977 John inherited 500 quid from his gran and used this windfall to fund their first professional demo tape which they managed to get played on a well respected London wide radio show called Honky Tonk presented by Charlie Gilletts - a musician's musician' s broadcaster - they were signed by Epiphone within the month which allowed them to tour - first around the UK then Europe and by 1979 , north America .

This was really nice. I wasn’t very familiar with their music aside from the hits they played on the radio, but this makes me want to explore further. Nice choice Van 🌺✌️

I was in college many years ago with a woman who was related to the drummer. I had the chance of tickets but couldn't go. I was gutted. Some of their best is Brothers In Arms, Going Home, Sultans of Swing, Romeo and Juliet. Their best albums are Alchemy and Brothers in Arms. Mark Knopfler is one of the most prolific guitarists I have ever heard.

Can’t believe how tight they are as a band… not a note out of place and the drummer is off the chart.

The man with the sack on his back was Henry Ford and we all know who he was, the Ford Motor Company. The dirt track became the Telegraph Road which runs into and through Detroit City USA.

I always listen to Great music with my Eyes closed!

Hahaha, the gentleman with the guitar's turn. Your reactions Crack me up. Thanks.

Van, my man, if you wanna listen to more Dire Straits, check out "Romeo and Juliet", it's perfect for the upcoming Valentine's day :D In fact, I struggle listening to it, since it always brings up bittersweet past memories and never fails to make me tear up :P

Romeo & Juliet is my favourite track this comes close.. Alchemy live amazing album.

Alchemy is the best Live Album out there

Quickest 14 mins of your life , if you don’t look at how long this track is you would never believe it , Geordie genius !!!!

So much talent on that stage!!! Beautiful composition.

Five star band,five star music. Five star review. Glad you enjoyed it.

Everyone always raves about Mark knopfler in these Dire straits videos (and he deserves it!), but shout out to the fantastic keyboard player, Alan Clark. On a lot of the band's songs, including this one, his sophisticated and powerful parts add SO much. And of course the whole band, the drummer, the bass player, all great musicians!

Best song, best performance ever.

One of the last actual living legends.

Can’t hit that thang quick enough on this one. Would love a reaction to Private Investigations. Either live from same concert or the album version. Despite getting to number one in the UK I haven’t seen a single person react to it. Such a great song.

Marks new music is just in time,, he gets better like Wine...🎸🎶☮️🙏

Insomma, lo vogliamo dire? Mark è perfetto, inimitabile, irraggiungibile. Nessuno come lui.

Best music for years

Great song, almost brings me to tears as well, considering I'm from the cold rural north. The song is also based on the book 'Growth of the Soil' by Nobel Prize winner, Knut Hamsun, of which MK was reading on the tour bus.

Also, that's the most jacked piano player I've ever seen! XD He gives your biceps a run for their money, Van :P

I’ve seen hundreds of live bands but dire straits is still my favourite

You nailed it brother, got it completely right, especially about the drummer! Cheers!

One of the most requested studio guitarists in Nashville. They tried to get Vince Gill to join Dire Straits.

Superb. That’s all. 🎸🎸🎸

Great reaction. My favourite Dire Straits song.

MK ❤melhor músico do planeta. Vida longa querido 🇧🇷

I remember what led up to Mark writing Telegraph Road, and in fact there's an interview with him where he talks about riding in the "shotgun" seat on the band's bus as they were leaving Detroit, looking at what they were passing, and starting to write the lyrics. You can listen to this recording of "Telegraph Road" a hundred times, and every time you'll hear more. All the musicians in Dire Straits were masters in their own right but here, when Mark brings them together in this song, or in "Brothers In Arms" or "Tunnel of Love" it's like all of their combined skill and power is multiplied on itself, again and again. It was all done live, no studio lip-sync, no auto-tune, no crap added in later. They were up there, playing it just like you hear it, for real and without a net. That's what musicianship and artistry is about. Some young performers today don't understand that, or don't think it matters. It's a life lesson for a musician - when you step out on that stage, this is why you're there.

Hell yeah, Knopfler (the guitarist/singer) is so incredibly cool! He doesn't have BDE, he has HDE!! XD

Nearly 40 years ago that gig bro !.

Mark Knopfler. You should check out his song called "Sonny Liston." It's about the boxer.

If you would like to see pure greatness do Brothers In Arms, A night in London. Mark Knopfler accompanied by a string section no less.

when you talked about the piano just for a second there you sounded so deep like Barry White charming the ladies haha

Omg awesome 👏

Took a while but we hit a song here that I don't know! Very damned cool. #headbandsforeverybody

5 stars any day

o Mark Knopfler é incrivel em tudo o que faz... Compõe excepcionalmente e faz trilhas sonoras únicas. Fui ao show dele no Credcard Hall SP e era como eu o imaginava desde que comecei a ouvir o Dire Straits em 1978. Simples demais. Local Hero é surreal. O LP de 78 tem Six Blade Knife que adoro e por aí vai. Obrigada por reagir ..." You had your head on my shoulder, you had your hand in my hair".....

CHECK OUT SKATE AWAY FROM THEM. FIRST SONG I HEARD BY THEM AROUND 79'-80 ISH.

Good times... good times indeed!!!!!

Loved it!

'Delicate'. Good comment. Serious musicians.

Good stuff! 🎶💜

This has always good stuff lots of love

He is the only guitarist who makes me cry when he plays. Nothing else to say.

Tunnel of Love is their greatest song but this is close.

After Made in Japan (deep Purple), Alchemy is my favorite gig. Saw them back in the 90'. Mark Knopfler is of top 10 best guitar player of the century

Dungarees!!! 🤣😆 love it!! And yes- quite delicate indeed. This reaction was my fave so far. Peace out.

Grew up on this , double LP live album. Thanks to my parents 🙏🏻

I’ve never heard this song either 👍🏻

Dang it Van! I've had a Strat for 20 years and I can't finger pick it anywhere near that!!

Dude always always has something to say. The thing people don't know about Mark Knopfler is that he used to be a journalist working for an English tabloid newspaper. Who, when his boss came in asking him in a derogatory way to go write a story about this guitarist that died in Amsterdam (Jimi Hendrix of course,) literally told his boss the bad ass word "you can take this job and shove it." That day he decided to go pro in music. So he basically 'is' a writer, which is why you should always listen to his lyrics just as much as his guitar.

Omg- Just got to Latency!! 🤣 You are too funny. 👏👏👏

I think it's the best song ever. Even the studio version is great. Good lyrics super music, really a complete song.

Sometimes you only realize how good a band is after you watch them live. BTW...tomorrow is election day. Lets save the country.

Van my man! Jumped from your serious stuff to one of my favorite bands ever.

I have enjoyed Dire Straits so much more since you have been reacting too them

This was my favorite song by these guys. Industrial disease is also great.

This song is based on an actual real story about a real Telegraph Road

No one is as cool as Mark Knopfler. He has a dinosaur and a planet named after him. 🧊🧊🧊🧊

Powerful, powerful song

It's a jam session. Greatest band of the 80's. Well....at least until I hear my next favorite. I loved ELO. Mr rhythm made me laugh. I clap too.

Amazing