Forgotten Guitar: Mark Knopfler’s Inspiration Behind Dire Straits' "Money for Nothing"

In 2012, Mark Knopfler sat down (with his original 1958 Gibson Les Paul in hand) to discuss the inspiration behind the rock guitar classic, "Money for Nothing."

The track’s percussive fingerstyle-infused riff is arguably one of the most recognizable guitar riffs of the Eighties. It, of course, appeared on Dire Straits' nine-time platinum album, Brothers in Arms, which was released in 1985.

This part-interview/part-demonstration, which you can check out in the clip below, is from Guitar Stories: Mark Knopfler, a 60-minute special made for U.K. TV channel Sky Arts.

The former Dire Straits frontman, who is joined by former bandmate John Illsley, highlights the six guitars that have had the greatest impact on his sound. In the full episode, he travels to Newcastle, London and New York City's West 48th Street to reveal the geographic significance of the chosen instruments, which were made by Gibson, Fender, Hofner and Pensa.

The story behind "Money For Nothing"

Happy New Year to everyone from Forgotten Guitar. In this clip, Mark Knopfler sits downs with his 1958 Gibson Les Paul to demo, and discuss his inspiration behind the Dire Straits classic, "Money For Nothing" with John Illsley.#Guitar #GuitarLegends #MarkKnopfler #GibsonLesPaul #Burst ForgottenGuitar.com

Posted by Forgotten Guitar on Saturday, January 2, 2016

Jonathan Graham is an ACM UK graduate based in London studying under the likes of Guthrie Govan and Pete Friesen. He is the creator of ForgottenGuitar.com, a classic-guitar media website, and is completing his debut album, Protagonist, due for release in 2016. Updates also can be found at Graham's YouTube channel.