My Life in Dire Straits

The Inside Story of One of the Biggest Bands in Rock History

By: John Illsley

Narrated by: John Illsley

The first, and only, inside story of one of the greatest bands in rock history - Dire Straits - as told by founding member and bassist John Illsley

One of the most successful music acts of all time, Dire Straits filled stadiums around the world. Their albums sold hundreds of millions of copies and their music - classics like “Sultans of Swing”, “Romeo and Juliet", “Money for Nothing”, and “Brothers in Arms” - is still played on every continent today. There was, quite simply, no bigger band on the planet throughout the '80s.

In this powerful and entertaining memoir, founding member John Illsley gives the inside track on the most successful rock band of their time. From playing gigs in the spit-and-sawdust pubs of south London to hanging out with Bob Dylan in LA, Illsley tells the story of the band with searching honesty, soulful reflection, and wry humor. Starting with his own unlikely beginnings in Middle England, he recounts the band’s rise from humble origins to the best-known venues in the world, the working man’s clubs to Madison Square Garden, sharing gigs with wild punk bands to rocking the Live Aid stage at Wembley. And woven throughout is an intimate portrait and tribute to his great friend Mark Knopfler, the band's lead singer, songwriter, and remarkable guitarist.

Tracing an idea that created a phenomenal musical legacy, an extraordinary journey of joy and pain, companionship and surprises, this is John Illsley’s life in Dire Straits.

©2021 John Illsley (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Great book

Being a musician and lover of music I enjoy listening to this type of book

An excellent autobiography about a wonderful time in music. I highly recommend it.

Whether you're just a casual fan or a die hard fan of dIRE STRAITS, I highly recommend this book. John Illsley's description of his early life and the early days of the sTRAITS leading into their global success in the 1980s is fantastic, thoughtful and very entertaining.

Big fan of the band.

Story was wonderful but the reading was mediocre. It was nice to hear the author's own take on it though.

Impressively real, laid-back, contemplative, and dignified

Satisfyingly nuanced for us fans of the band and fans of Mark’s art. No dirt. John Illsley reads his sincere memoir beautifully. It's no surprise that Mark wrote and reads a supportive forward to this fine recording.

John Illsley & Mark Knopfler are class acts!

I was looking forward to this book & it did not disappoint. John Illsley doesn’t portray himself as a saint, but his decency is apparent. I enjoy books that let me peek into the lives of talented people, but I don’t think I’ve ever experienced any of them giving such praise to the roadies & others who are responsible to “put the show on the road” & he gives them ENORMOUS credit. Refreshing & admirable! Another add-on to this review is that my husband & I were quite fortunate to score great seats at a Mark Knopfler small venue concert in Dallas before COVID-19. (I count it as kind of a lifetime achievement concert!) Mark was gracious & friendly, telling bits of history of how the songs originated & performing them to perfection. He gave credit to the musicians with him (they were great) and it is easy to see how these two talented yet humble artists have maintained a friendship that spans so many years. Thanks for a terrific book that spotlights that talent nurtured by dedication & hard work can result in success beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.

Great book

John thank you for this book. I’ve listened to you guys since the beginning. Still do. The best band ever existed. It was great to hear your story and thank you for telling it !!! Love❤️❤️❤️

fantastically written

Dire Straits is my favorite band so getting this inside scoop from John was incredible. It's a wonderfully crafted and humble story. it confirms my suspicions that the members are all stand up guys with tremendous talents.

you'll love this book whether you are a DS fan or not. it's really a cool time machine back to the days where records were sold, getting a demo tape meant going to a studio and getting a song on the radio was the only way to get a chance.

Masterfully crafted

Illsley gives a unique insight on the many facets of his experience as a member of Dire Straits that even many diehard fans were unaware of thorough vivid imagery and wonderful anecdotes.

Interesting for fans but with some caveats

My Life in Dire Straits is written and narrated by John Illsley, a guitar sideman for the entire run of Dire Straits from 1977 to 1994 (when On Every Street tour ended). John is not as gifted a narrator as he is a musician, so the reading is stilted. His accent can also cause misunderstanding if you don't listen to his pronunciations closely.
As for the content of the book, it's a 9 hour listen and John doesn't get to the time with Dire Straits until 3 hours into the book. I have to say I was totally not interested in his life experience growing up in post-war England as it's a story I've heard before in books such as Life, Keith Richards autobiography. If you're really, really an Illsley fan, then you would find his life experiences interesting, but to my way of thinking it just didn't entertain me. Maybe if this was Mark Knopfler's autobiography I would have been more interested. I was more eager about the Dire Straits years.
Mark K. does offer a brief intro praising John's book and says he did a great job remembering all the key details of the growth of the band and trials and tribulations of personnel changes and the grinding impact of world tours.
I did learn that Dire Straits managed to develop a very strong following around the world, not just the US. They were popular in all over Europe, including Germany, Spain the Netherlands, and even Eastern Europe, as well as North America and Australia. In fact, in places like Australia they were something of a super group to the Aussies and New Zealanders. I doubt many bands had the breadth of fandom on nearly every continent clamoring for their latest music and concerts. Dire Straits was literally trying to please the entire world with each and every album and tour.
The descriptions of the world tours help clarify just how brutal long tours can be on people physically, mentally, and in terms of relationships. John and Mark K both lost relationships over their tours for the sake of fans. I think John's stories about being away from his children is the most heartbreaking aspect of the cost of touring.
I was not happy that Dire Straits took 6 years to follow up Brothers in Arms and then quit once and for all after On Every Street, but now I at least understand why the size and onerous burden of touring drove them to dissolve the band. I have admired Mark's diverse talents on his solo albums, but miss the Rock & Roll side of his music he left behind with Dire Straits.
I don't think Mark has any plans to write a bio on his life or the band, so this is probably the only definitive document we will ever get about this popular band.