Dire Straits "Money for Nothing"). Similarly, the album's title track was also relatively unsuccessful, failing to reach the UK Top 40. The final single released from the album and from the band in the UK was "The Bug", which contains backing vocals by Vince Gill, who was also invited to join the band full-time but declined to pursue a solo career. Session drummer Chris Whitten joined Dire Straits as a side-man when the band embarked on an extensive two-year, 300-show tour, playing in front of some 7.1 million ticket-buying fans. While musically more elaborate than the previous 1985–86 world tour, the band's
Dire Straits "Six Blade Knife" for BBC Radio London; in November demo tapes were made of "Setting Me Up", "Eastbound Train" and "Real Girl". The group's first album, "Dire Straits", was recorded at Basing Street studios in Notting Hill, London in February 1978, at a cost of £12,500. Produced by Muff Winwood, the album was first released in the United Kingdom on Vertigo Records, then a division of Phonogram Inc. The album came to the attention of A&R representative Karin Berg, working at Warner Bros. Records in New York City. She felt that it was the kind of music audiences were hungry