On January 31, 2024, the sale of 123 items from Mark Knopfler’s personal collection fetches £8,843,940 at Christie’s Auction in London.

Dire Straits frontman and guitarist Mark Knopfler recently concluded an auction featuring over 120 pieces of his personal gear, with 25 percent of the proceeds generously earmarked for charity.

Among the coveted items were many of his most iconic guitars, such as his 1983 Gibson Les Paul ’59 Reissue and his Pensa Suhr MK1.

Let’s delve into the highest-priced sales from this remarkable collection.

Mark Knopfler’s Top 5 Most Valuable Guitars Auctioned Off

5. Multi-signed Gibson Les Paul ‘Gold Top’ (£403,000) – (estimate | £20,000-40,000)

The Gibson Les Paul ‘Gold Top’ guitar adorned with multiple signatures signifies an eagerly awaited collaborative endeavor led by Mark Knopfler. This ambitious project, slated for announcement in February 2024, will feature numerous legendary guitarists from around the globe, marking a significant moment in music history. The upcoming auction presents a rare chance to own a piece of this momentous occasion before details of the collaboration are unveiled to the public.

The autographs gracing this guitar, including those of Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, David Gilmour, Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, Slash, Ronnie Wood, Brian May, Sting, Ringo Starr, Bruce Springsteen, The Edge, Joan Jett, Nile Rodgers, and other esteemed musicians still active today, were collected as part of this exclusive initiative. In support of the project, eight guitars were generously contributed by Gibson, Fender, Gretsch, and Atkin: four for the Teenage Cancer Trust in the UK and four for Teen Cancer America. The guitars allocated for Teen Cancer America were auctioned at private fundraising events across the US in 2022, each fetching a substantial six-figure sum for the charity. In contrast, the guitars designated for the Teenage Cancer Trust, including the one up for auction, have been further autographed by Ringo Starr, Ronnie Wood, David Gilmour, and Buddy Guy.

The purchase of this guitar will include two tickets to the exclusive UK VIP launch event on March 1, 2024, with comprehensive details provided to the buyer post-auction.

All proceeds from the sale of this guitar will go directly to Teenage Cancer Trust, a cause proudly championed by Mark Knopfler as its Patron. The organization provides specialized nursing care and support to young individuals aged 13-25 battling cancer, making it the sole UK charity dedicated to serving this age group.

4. Red Schecter Telecaster (£416,000) – (estimate | £4,000-6,000)

Knopfler’s red Schecter Telecaster, utilized in the creation of the amazing track ‘Walk of Life,’ was acquired for £416K,

Purchased around April 1984 from Rudy’s Music Stop on New York’s West 48th Street, this striking red Schecter Telecaster stands as one of Mark Knopfler’s most enduring and extensively toured instruments. It has graced the stage for every rendition of the infectious Dire Straits classic ‘Walk Of Life’ since 1985.

As highlighted in The Official Mark Knopfler Guitar Styles: Volume I, the caption emphasizes its role as a superb rhythm guitar, frequently providing the distinctive “picking rhythm” that characterizes Mark’s signature sound, as exemplified in the track ‘Walk Of Life’.

3. Pensa Suhr MK1 (£504,000) – (estimate | £6,000-8,000)

The iconic Pensa Suhr MK1, frequently featured in his 1980s live performances, commanded £504K, versus an estimate of £6000-8000k…

2. Gibson Les Paul ’59 Reissue 1983 (£592,000) – (estimate | £10,000-15,000)

Mark Knopfler’s 1983 Les Paul ’59 reissue was bought for £592K against an estimate of £10k-15k! This guitar was integral to the recording of Knopfler’s famous hits ‘Money For Nothing’ and ‘Brothers In Arms,’ both of which he performed live at the historic Live Aid concert in 1985.

1. Gibson Les Paul 1959 (£693,000) – (estimate | £300,000-500,000)

One of two late 1950s Les Paul Standards owned by Mark Knopfler for well over twenty years, this cherished vintage instrument was a holy grail acquisition. It was bought at Christie’s for the crazy price of £693K!

“I’d wanted a Les Paul really badly since I was a kid,” Knopfler shared with guitar guru Tony Bacon in 2002, ‘but I’m afraid it was always out of the price range. I knew about Strats since I was very small, but I got more aware of the Les Paul through becoming a blues fan in my early teens.

I do remember the John Mayall album cover with Eric [Clapton] on it; we were listening to that a lot. It’s a very, very evocative thing… So Gibson has always been there in my life, big time. Gibson is one of the most beautiful words in the English language as far as I’m concerned.’

Knopfler purchased his first Les Paul Standard, a ’59 reissue (lot 10), from Manhattan music store owner Rudy Pensa in 1984, just as Dire Straits headed out to AIR Montserrat to record their landmark album Brothers In Arms.

Speaking to Willie G. Moseley for Vintage Guitar magazine in 2004, Knopfler explained: ‘I could never afford to buy one from the “classic years,” so I got a reissue in the [80s], and I recorded things like ‘Brothers In Arms’ and ‘Money for Nothing’ with that one, and I toured with it. Then the Gibson Custom Shop built one for me in the 80s, with my birthdate as the serial number’ (lot 30). Looking back, Knopfler admitted: ‘I didn’t realize… I didn’t know that there was much of a difference between the more recent guitars and the late 50s ones – the 58s and 59s – I didn’t know about that because I’d never been near a guitar like that.’

Knopfler first used the 1959 Les Paul to record the song ‘Let’s See You,’ at AIR Studios, Lyndhurst, circa 2000, released as a B-side to ‘What It Is,’ the lead single on his 2000 solo studio album Sailing To Philadelphia. The guitar was first seen on stage on Knopfler’s Sailing To Philadelphia Tour from March to July 2001, used for performances of ‘Pyroman,’ an unreleased track from the Sailing To Philadelphia sessions, and ‘Brothers In Arms’.

Honorable Mention

6. Black Schecter Telecaster 1980 (£277,000) – (estimate | £4,000-6,000)

Utilized extensively on stage during the early 1980s as his primary ‘rock and roll’ guitar, this black Schecter Telecaster was among the initial instruments that Mark Knopfler procured from Rudy’s Music Stop on 48th Street in New York City, while Dire Straits were in town to record their third studio album, Making Movies. Knopfler began acquiring Schecter Strats and Teles to replace his cherished vintage Fenders on the road. ‘I didn’t want to keep flogging a Strat around the world, getting it smashed to pieces,’ Mark shared with Guitar Player magazine in September 1984.

The Schecter is beautifully made and very strong.’ Originally furnished with a black pickguard, Knopfler expressed his fondness for the guitar to International Musician and Recording World in May 1984: ‘One of my favorites is a black Schecter Telecaster, which is a very heavy, loud instrument.’ Featured in the Official Mark Knopfler Guitar Styles, Volume I, the caption specifies that this guitar was ‘often used for a “heavier” sound.’ In an interview with Bob Hewitt for Guitarist magazine in 1986,

Knopfler’s then guitar tech Pete Brewis elaborated: ‘most of Mark’s guitars do specific jobs these days, and I’ve strung that one with heavy bottom strings to use for rock and roll.’

Having recorded a demo version earlier in 1979, Knopfler promptly employed his newly acquired black Schecter Telecaster to record the album version of ‘Solid Rock’ during the Making Movies sessions at the Power Station from June to August 1980.

6. RUDY PENSA BY JOHN SUHR 1984 (£277,000) – (estimate | £4,000-6,000)

Mark Knopfler enlisted John Suhr to custom-build a “synth” guitar to complement his new Synclavier system in early 1984. At considerable expense, Knopfler had acquired a Synclavier II digital synthesizer from America before commencing work on his second movie soundtrack for the 1984 Irish drama Cal.

It was during this period that Knopfler first collaborated with tech-savvy keyboardist Guy Fletcher, seeking someone knowledgeable about synthesizers to operate the intricate Synclavier for the film score. Alongside controlling the Synclavier via Guy’s keyboard, Knopfler aimed to utilize the synthesizer’s digital guitar interface. Reflecting on the process, Knopfler shared, ‘There were people trying synth guitars, but I knew if I got a John Suhr-built guitar, it had a good chance of survival.

This is what he came up with. I’m still not sure exactly how it works, but I plugged it in on the ‘Brothers In Arms’ record. There was a little chorusey effect on this that just came from the synth, but it was somehow worked through this pickup. So, it was working as a guitar, but also introducing… like a keyboard sound.’ In addition to two Seymour Duncan pickups for use as a standard Stratocaster-style guitar, Suhr installed a Roland guitar controller assembly that enabled the guitar to function as a MIDI controller, triggering the synthesizer sounds whenever the guitar was played, thus creating a blended sound effect.

The guitar did not make its stage debut until the final leg of the Brothers In Arms Tour in Australia and New Zealand in 1986. ‘I’ve got a Synclavier guitar,’ Knopfler disclosed to Bob Hewitt for Guitarist magazine in 1986. ‘We have had problems with the Synclavier set-up and towards the end of the tour we are going to use the Roland system in Australia. I hope to spend some time later on in the year working with the synth guitar.’

Sale proceeds will benefit nonprofit organizations

A minimum of 25 percent of the auction proceeds will be allocated to three nonprofits close to Knopfler’s heart: the British Red Cross, Tusk, and Brave Hearts of the North East. Knopfler has long been involved with these organizations, serving as an ambassador for Tusk, which concentrates on wildlife conservation. He has previously contributed concert proceeds to Tusk and donated signed Dire Straits’ albums to aid Brave Hearts of the North East, a children’s health organization.

This auction isn’t Knopfler’s inaugural endeavor in leveraging his guitar collection to support philanthropic causes. Back in 2011, he contributed a Fender Signature Stratocaster to a prize draw benefiting Streets of London, a charity dedicated to assisting the homeless.

Recommended for you

• 
  Exposing the Fake Birthday Scam on Facebook
• 
  On this day in 1987, Tom Petty’s House Went Up in Flames
• 
  Celebrating 70 Years of the Fender Stratocaster

Read more Trending News Here