Mark Knopfler's fourth solo album will be released Sept. 28 via Warner Bros. Dubbed "Shangri-La," the set is the former Dire Straits leader's follow-up to 2002's acclaimed "The Ragpicker's Dream."
The 14-track album is named for the Malibu, Calif., studio where it was recorded. "People like Bob Dylan, Neil Young and the Band used to hang out there," Knopfler says. "Old California seemed to go with a pile of the stuff I was doing and some of it rubbed off on the recordings. I found myself in the '60s a fair bit and even earlier influences from when I was small, like Lonnie Donegan and the Shadows."
In creating "Shangri-La," Knopfler relied on longtime collaborators Richard Bennett (guitar), Jim Cox, Glenn Worf (bass), Chad Cromwell (drums) and his Dire Straits bandmate Guy Fletcher (organ, piano).
In March 2003, Knopfler was forced to cancel tour dates in support of "The Ragpicker's Dream" to recover from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. He returned to live performance in November, joining Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings on a bill at London's Royal Albert Hall.
"The Ragpicker's Dream" debuted at No. 38 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 183,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
In other news, one of Knopfler's guitars was among those auctioned earlier this summer to benefit the Eric Clapton-founded addiction treatment facility Crossroads Centre in Antigua. The artist's Tobacco Sunburst Schecter Strat netted just over $50,000.
The 14-track album is named for the Malibu, Calif., studio where it was recorded. "People like Bob Dylan, Neil Young and the Band used to hang out there," Knopfler says. "Old California seemed to go with a pile of the stuff I was doing and some of it rubbed off on the recordings. I found myself in the '60s a fair bit and even earlier influences from when I was small, like Lonnie Donegan and the Shadows."
In creating "Shangri-La," Knopfler relied on longtime collaborators Richard Bennett (guitar), Jim Cox, Glenn Worf (bass), Chad Cromwell (drums) and his Dire Straits bandmate Guy Fletcher (organ, piano).
In March 2003, Knopfler was forced to cancel tour dates in support of "The Ragpicker's Dream" to recover from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. He returned to live performance in November, joining Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings on a bill at London's Royal Albert Hall.
"The Ragpicker's Dream" debuted at No. 38 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 183,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
In other news, one of Knopfler's guitars was among those auctioned earlier this summer to benefit the Eric Clapton-founded addiction treatment facility Crossroads Centre in Antigua. The artist's Tobacco Sunburst Schecter Strat netted just over $50,000.
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