Dire Straits' Chris White - 'It was a really happy band'

When Chris White was part of Dire Straits in the mid-1980s they were the biggest band on the planet.

Things took off during the Brothers in Arms tour in 1985, the Dire Straits' sax player and percussionist told RNZ's Music 101.

"It started out like other tours, really. We were playing venues of a certain size they were good size.

"And what happened was, as we as we got going, the album [Brothers in Arms] really took off. Suddenly we were playing much bigger venues. And instead of sitting in economy on the plane, we started sitting in business."

This audio is not downloadable due to copyright restrictions.

The tour was aptly named, White said.

"It was a really happy band, which is not that usual. Often, there are some difficulties here or there. But that tour, and that band, Brothers in Arms, was just so happy. Every night was a real a real joy, a real party. Actually, we all had a great time."

By happy coincidence the band were set up to play 13 nights at Wembley Arena when Live Aid was staged at Wembley Stadium, he said.

"Wembley Arena is across the car park from Wembley Stadium. So, 13 July 1985, we went in early and went into the stadium instead, which was just an amazing atmosphere.

"Backstage anybody you ever thought you might never meet was there. It was incredible, wall-to-wall musicians and artists, but pretty chaotic as well."

After they played Live Aid, the band wandered over to the arena to get ready their show, he said.

"What was really cool was that as people were finishing at Live Aid, they also walked across the car park and joined us on the Dire Straits show that night.

"So quite a few people came. And got up on stage and played along with us, which was very cool. It was also my 30th birthday that day, so it was the best birthday party you could ever have."

When Mark Knopler decided Dire Straits has run its course it wasn't a surprise, he said.

"He's a very creative man, Mark, and has done just about everything he could with the Dire Straits line-up.

"It got very big the On Every Street tour, we were nine people on stage. It was quite a big thing to wheel around the world, and I think he wanted to do something a bit more intimate."

There was certainly no acrimony, he said.

"There was no big bust-ups, not like Oasis. There was no punch up in the band room or anything like that.

"It was just a considered thing, Mark wanted to do something else, and that was fine."

The Dire Straits Experience started from a one-off charity show at The Albert Hall, he said.

"I put a band together, and it was just for one night. That was all it was. The show sold out. It was very well received.

"And in the weeks following it, I was getting calls from people saying, do you think you could come and do that somewhere else? Do you think you could come and do that again?

"So, we did a few more, and then a few more, and a few more. And here we are now with the Shiver in the Dark world tour."

'Romeo and Juliet' is one of his favourite songs to play from the repertoire, but there was no sax on the original recording, he said.

"This is one of the things about Mark, which was great. We were in rehearsal for the Brothers in Arms tour. I always loved Romeo and Juliet, and I always thought I'd love to play on that.

"I was standing there while Romeo and Juliet was being rehearsed, and at one point Mark stopped playing, the band carried on, so I just picked up my horn and started playing along. And Mark kind of looked at me, and I thought, oh.

"And he half smiles. I thought, Okay, I'll carry on then. So, I carried on and at the end of it, he looked and went, 'well, I think we'll have that.'

"So suddenly there was saxophone in 'Romeo and Juliet', which suited me down to the ground."

The sax had come in and out of vogue in rock music, he said.

"That period through the 80s into the 90s, saxophone was definitely in vogue during that time. I think it was very lucky for me. I was very happy that it was."

The Dire Straits Experience plays St James Theatre Wellington on 16 October and the Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre on 17 October.