The Straits at the Palace Theater
The Straits, a tribute band honoring the very famous Dire Straits, was hosted Friday night at the ornate Austrian baroque Palace Theater in Albany, New York.
The Straits are an incredible group of musicians whose members include Alan Clark and Chris White of the original Dire Straits line-up, as well as some newer members. The Straits lead guitarist - Terence Reis (rhymes with “beige”), from South Africa - was discovered by Alan Clark, who was the first keyboardist for Dire Straits. Mr. Reis was recruited when Alan Clark and Chris White decided to put The Straits together. Their drummer, Steve Ferrone, was on loan from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The band is rounded out by Mickey Feat, who has played with Marc Knopfler before, playing bass; Adam Phillips on rhythm guitar; Jamie Squire plays keyboards, guitar and percussion.
The first thing one notices about Terence Reis’ guitar-work is that he has mastered Marc Knopfler’s guitar style and technique. Completely. That is to say, if one had no idea what Marc Knopfler looked like, one would not have been able to tell just by listening, that he was not up there on the stage himself. The next most obvious thing is that Terence Reis has also mastered Marc Knopfler’s vocal style to the same degree.