Dire Straits – Live 1978-1992

Compared to my original UK of Alchemy, the remix on here sounds so much better. Buy with confidence

Was a lot of money but well worth it and one way to get a copy of “on the night”. Clean and quiet pressing, nice balance and a must if you like the band. Well worth it.

To be played LOUD... awesome. My vinyl is perfectly flat and sounds phenom. Great extra songs.

Mine are quiet and flat.
I would recommend this collection if you are a Dire Straits fan.

No issues with On the night 2nd record ( side 3&4 ) as other have reported. Play thru without distortion or sibilance. Wish Romeo and Juliet and Private Investigations were on the same side as their sedge-way into each other flowed nicely together on the CD. Not so here. That aside R&J and BIA are perhaps their best live versions of these songs ever.

This is a great set with (almost) no “buts” about it. I’m not experiencing any standout audio anomalies, mastering issues, or distortion. All vinyl is flat and dead quiet. I started with the BBC LP. Within the first minute there were a few loud pops. I cleaned the disc and it was still there. This was the only anomaly in the set. I ordered a second copy, swapped out the BBC disc (which fortunately didn’t pop like the first) and processed a return. If the set wasn’t so expensive I don’t know that I would have gone through that trouble. But I can see myself spinning these discs with great frequency. Very pleased. No regrets. (Purchased in U.S. made in .)

This is a review for the US Warner version because there is no release page on Discogs for it yet (I do not have the time to add it yet). Everything I say should still apply to this European because it's the same cut pressed at the same plant as the US.

Wow. This box sounds amazing. BG's work is fantastic. Much more lively and rich than the CD version of this box, especially on the new Rainbow live album which I didn't really care for on the CD version but love now. The energy added to the album on this vinyl mastering makes it so much better and more engaging to listen to. As for the pressing quality, mine is dead quiet and the packaging is very nice with plastic-lined inner sleeves.

The only disappointing thing with this box is the Encores LP, which re-uses the same cut from the 2021 RSD release. It's mastered very poorly. Even though it was cut by BG like the rest of this set, it was mastered by Bob Ludwig (who did not master the rest of the records in this box). Bob's vinyl mastering in the last few years has had very sharply bright high end which severely detracts from the listening experience. However, the rest of the box makes up for it. Also, there is really bad distortion throughout Side 4 and 7 of On The Night which I suspect may just be my cartridge having issues with the cut. This probably wont affect you if you have a really good system but it might considering it happened to me.

In short, get this box while it's still available and you won't regret it!

All in all a great set, but there is a "BUT" - to my ears all parts of Alchemy sound very weak/trebly, with very little dynamic and almost no bass/lower end, all parts but side six, which sounds absolutely "normal" i. e. does not show these issues.
I compared also with a 1980s pressing and none of the issues were present at that (old) pressing of Alchemy. Very surprised to hear the weak sound now on the new set, especially as the rest of the concerts/LPs in the collection sound quite nice to amazing.
Anybody else having the same or is it just a faulty pressing on my end?

Bought this expensive boxset from Amazon just in case there are any issues, and lo and behold there are issues aplenty. This is the European Mercury/Vertigo edition that is also available in Canada.

The first record set I put on was the Rainbow 3LP set. I noticed on both sides of record 1 and 2 that there was a (no pun intended!) rainbow like film baked into the vinyl. It somehow produces a “whooshing” sound that was especially audible during quieter ages. And just my luck, record 3 side 5 has some unmelted vinyl spec that is greatly indebted and impossible to play.

There is also a very major problem with “On The Night”. Record 2 both sides 3 & 4 suffer from horrible distortion throughout that is very noticeable once the bass and drums kick in. Side 3 is especially bad on “Sultans Of Swing”. It sounds like a very poorly cut LP and almost makes it sound mono with distortion. Kinda like a stylus with tons of gunk on it. I received a replacement but with the same exact problem. The copies I have are so bad that they are pretty much unlistenable especially with all the other discs sounding immaculate. What a crying shame!

And sadly, on “Alchemy” there is a significant amount of “non-fill” on “Private Investigations” which just destroys the ambience of this song. On both copies this appeared! So now both versions of PI that appear in the boxset are sonically defective!

Another major fuck up by Universal that has gone unnoticed by their quality control if they even have one. I urge anyone to check their copy for this fault right away. You can especially hear it with headphones on.

I got this today. Very nice but expensive package!!! I have the CD about a month now and I really enjoyed that. I already own Alchemy on all formats, and On The Night on vinyl and CD from 1993. I’ve Encores on 12” and CD too. And the DVD releases.
At The BBC was pressed on vinyl back in 1995 but I’ve never seen it in the flesh and it’s expensive and hard to find. I only have the CD. After buying the CD box and enjoying it, I decided to buy this mammoth 12 vinyl set, because if I didn't I know in 6 months time it will be out of print and selling for far more than it costs now. So, as a long time fan of the band I am I don't mind shelling out on the bands I really love, and Dire Straits is one of them. The 6 studio albums were released in a vinyl box about 10 years ago and that had new masters and fleshed out Brothers In Arms to the CD length in a double vinyl package. On Every Street was spread over 2 vinyl discs too. I already had all the original LPs and the Stan Ricker cut of Brothers In Arms, another double pressing on Warner Bros. I don't really buy that much new vinyl these days as it's getting ridiculously expensive but this live box looked very attractive, and yes I bought "On Every Street" double LP a few years ago too!

LIVE AT THE RAINBOW [December 1979. Previously Unreleased].
This sounds nicer than the CD version. On the CD Marks vocal seems a little distant and his guitar has lots of reverb. Here the vinyl is very warm and punchy. It’s nice to hear songs from the first two albums in a live setting and “Southbound Again” sounds much funkier here that it does on the original album.
What’s strikes is Pick Wither’s drums. He’s an amazing timekeeper, with steady backbeat that’s tricked out at times with silky hi-hat licks and tom tom flutters.
The listening experience is delightful and engaging. I’m amazed this wasn’t released years before now! I wonder what else is in the archives! This gig was the final show from the tour and on the last four cuts are Rock 'n' Roll covers where the band are ed by Phil Lynott [Thin Lizzy] and Tony De Meur [The Fabulous Poodles].

LIVE AT THE BBC [Recorded July 1987. Previously released June 1995]
The first 7 tracks on this "live in concert" were recorded for BBC Radio in July 1978 at The Paris Theatre London, the bands hometown, while track 8 was recorded for the Old Grey Whistle Test in January 1981. This album has been remastered for this box and "Tunnel Of Love" which was previously mono for reasons unknown has had electronic 'widening' and sounds all the better for it.
The band are in fine form here after a rocky start. The songs are all from the 1978 debut except "What's The Matter Baby?" which is also a co-write between Mark and David Knopfler, don't differ too drastically from the original cuts, maybe they're a little loser. This new pressing sounds fine, with clear highs and tight low bass. There's no noise from the vinyl itself which is fantastic, so the sounds just pop out. Very nice indeed. Listening to the band live back in 1978 here, they could have been an American band from the mid-west you accidentally saw in a pub while stepping in out of the rain on a wintry Friday night in London, never to be seen again. You'd never have predicted the mega stardom less than 7 years later in 1985.

ALCHEMY [Recorded July 1983. Previously released March 1984]
This was the bands first live album recorded on the last two nights of the Love Over Gold tour at Hammersmith Odean, London, July 1983. The band was now augmented with keyboards, Saxophone and percussion and the sound is for the stadiums and not the pubs. Drummer Pick Withers had left before the tour started and was replaced by Terry Williiams, ex-Rockpile and Paul Brady. Williams was a heavy hitter for sure and the sound is tougher and bigger.
The original double vinyl had just 10 tracks while the CD and Cassette slipped in "Love Over Gold" making it 11.
It's now been expanded to a 3 LP set with the addition of "Industrial Disease", "Twisting by The Pool" and "Portobello Belle" which was on the 1988 Money For Nothing compilation but the mix sounds different here. I not sure if they're identical. Also on this set "Telegraph Road" swaps places with "Solid Rock". "The Rocks and the Thunder" is missing from the intro of "Going Home" I must add. The original release has this intact. I would have liked to hear "It Never Rains" from this tour too but it may have been dropped from the set after the 1982 leg.

The vinyl is well pressed again, nice solid and warm sound. This is as good as it gets. I always felt the earlier press and CD were a bit harsh and slightly aggressive. The long moody intro to "Once Upon a Time in The West" pays off when Terry William's drums explode and the band comes to life. Alchemy is often regarded as the best era of the band and will be 40, soon. Some cite it as one of the best live albums of all time and as of now, officially anyway, we can't compare it to anything from 1985/86 when the band were at their commercial and global peak with the zillion selling "Brothers in Arms" album. Note! in 2025 "Brothers in Arms" will be 40 so I predict a box set of that album and maybe a live DVD/LP/CD in the package as that tour was very well documented. Including anything from that tour in this set would have been a bit overkill and bumped the price significantly I'd imagine, but it's food for thought.

ON THE NIGHT [Recorded 1992. Previously released May 1993]
I saw the band on this tour in late August 1991 at The Point [now 3 Arena] Dublin. This is the most streamlined and tightest incarnation of the band and the sound is very big. On the Night was recorded in May 1992 at Les Arenes in Nîmes, , and at Feijenoord Stadion in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Now expanded to a 4 LP set with 7 previously unreleased recordings "Sultans Of Swing", "Fade To Black", "When It Comes To You", "I Think I Love You Too Much", "Two Young Lovers", "Tunnel Of Love", "Telegraph Road". I always felt the omission of "Sultans" on the 1993 is akin to a Queen live set without "Bohemian Rhapsody". It should have been a double from day one and none of that EP malarky which has reared it's ugly head again here.
"The Bug" was earlier in the main set than presented on "Encores" I must add.
I have noticed on the CD and now on the vinyl the extra tracks are not exactly like the previously released tracks. They seem to lack the smoother production or may be from different sources. Just thought I'd mention that.
I love the way "Calling Elvis" opens this concert. Each band member gets a little solo near the end too. The new cut is smooth, warm and muscular with no harshness whatsoever. Drums and percussion are beautifully balanced, just wait until the drum solo! Knopfler's dark distortion toned Pensa-Suhr is demonic and his playing top notch, arguably the best of his earlier career? I love the way Paul Franklin's pedal steel answers Knopfler's licks with virtuoso brilliance. You just don't want it to end.
This 4LP package makes you want to listen to the concert more and more and it is Dire Straits on full throttle with a powerful ensemble. This is a fantastic set.

ENCORES EP [Recorded 1992. Previously released May 1993]
On The Night came in a double CD case and when you bought the EP, you popped it in. The same with the 12" as it was intended to fit in the original pressing of the album. This was common practice back in the 90s, especially with CD singles.
The only odd thing here is "Your Latest Trick" was then duplicated in the track listing! So I wonder if the new box set issue of On The Night would have been more complete with this disc minus the duplicate!

There’s a booklet but the essay is brief and doesn’t get into too much detail. Lithograph prints of the sleeves with embossed print.
Still it’s a nice addition to the Dire Straits studio and Knopfler solo sets. While the music of Dire Straits is still incredibly popular around the world it’s not often we see releases like this. Grab it while it’s hot!

Further Note: I just found this interesting piece by Guy Fetcher who was involved with compiling the set.
https://www.guyfletcher.co.uk/dire-straits-live-box-set-2023/