I want to learn my first dire-straits solo, what is a good one to start from?

Question

I have been playing my guitar for a few years but never put in enough time in order to advsnce from a "chords player" to someone who can improvize a bit. I do have a good ear... I thought to get in to it i would learn to play something i realy like- anything played by Dire straits. any ideas what is a good one for my case?

Answer 1

While I don't disagree that Sultans of Swing is a difficult song, there are so many licks in there that you can certainly benefit by learning them. It is fast at 150bpm, but you can slow it down and it will be rewarding to get even to the first bridge. Sultans, of all the Dire Straits songs, is about the best tabbed and/or transcribed song.

I don't think I've ever heard anyone play like Mark Knopfler, but it's just the most amazing thing to listen to and having seen him live, it's just amazing how carefully he tweaks each note for volume, vibrato -- it's like he has an inner dialogue going with his guitar.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Boy, you don't start off slow, do you? Mark Knopfler's playing is virtuosic---not, perhaps, the flashiest or fastest, but subtle and with tons of inflection. If you're just getting started learning to solo, you'll be able to learn all the notes, but after a few years, you'll listen to the song again and hear things you've never heard before, and you'll probably have to re-learn the solos. Which is great, really.

So with that in mind, here are some suggestions:

• "Tunnel of Love", starting around the 5:59 mark. Simple, beautiful, full of feeling. Pay attention to when he hammers-on and pulls-off to notes instead of plucks, and especially pay attention to the notes to which he bends.
• "Romeo & Juliet", starting around 4:53. Again, the notes aren't difficult, but playing them just right is.
• "Brothers In Arms", from 4:49 to 5:39, and then again from 6:03 to the end. Just, wow.

Don't start with "Sultans of Swing". Yes, it's great, but it's probably too fast to start with, not just because your fingers may not be ready, but your ear probably won't follow it yet either. "Money For Nothing" is a great song too, but the solo is actually a couple of guitars layered over each other, each of which is playing double-stops---that's too much going on for right now.

Anyway, start with those three and build up from there. Enjoy!