After Dire Straits' Communiqué Tour ended on 21 December 1979 in London, Mark Knopfler spent the first half of 1980 writing the songs for the band's next album. He contacted Jimmy Iovine after hearing Iovine's production on the song "Because the Night" by Patti Smith—a song co-written by Smith and Bruce Springsteen. Iovine had also worked on Springsteen's "Born to Run" and "Darkness on the Edge of Town" albums, and he was instrumental in recruiting E-Street Band keyboardist Roy Bittan for the "Making Movies" sessions.