Out now: Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes ‘Going Home (Theme From Local Hero)’

Over 60 of the finest performers ever have assembled on one iconic track, for Mark Knopfler’s new special recording of his anthemic ‘Going Home (Theme From Local Hero)’, to raise funds for Teenage Cancer Trust and its American equivalent Teen Cancer America.

Artists on the track include: members of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Dire Straits, The Who, Pink Floyd, Queen, Black Sabbath, The Shadows, Rush, Guns N’ Roses, and many more.

LISTEN TO THE TRACK HERE 

DOWNLOAD HERE

Next week a video will be released identifying each performer across the piece.  For now, fans can take their educated guesses by listening out for each distinctive style on this extraordinary record.

Performed by Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes, produced by his long-time collaborator Guy Fletcher (who has edited the contributions into a 9 minute piece), the track features an unprecedented line-up of some of the greatest guitarists in history. ‘Legendary’ does not begin to cover it - David Gilmour to Ronnie Wood, Slash to Eric Clapton, Sting to Joan Armatrading, Bruce Springsteen to Pete Townshend, Nile Rodgers to Joan Jett, Brian May to Tony Iommi, Joe Walsh, Sam Fender and many more jaw dropping names.

And, in a great honour, the track opens with Jeff Beck’s final recording.

Roger Daltrey, Teenage Cancer Trust’s Honorary Patron and co-founder of Teen Cancer America (with Pete Townshend), added harmonica, and Beatles icon Ringo Starr is on drums along with his son Zak Starkey, their two drum tracks switching from one to the other, revealing an unmistakable family style. Sting completes an extraordinary rhythm section on bass.

With artwork designed by Sir Peter Blake (The Beatles, The Who, Band Aid, Paul Weller etc), this release is a landmark in rock music history.

Recorded at British Grove Studios, in West London, often with the great musicians in person, sometimes sent from their own studios around the world, it started with Pete Townshend, Eric Clapton and Albert Lee.

On March 2nd, Mark Knopfler previewed the track to 50,000 Newcastle United fans at St James Park before their Premier League match against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The song is the club anthem, played at every home game and precious to the fans. 

The night before, Mark and club legend Alan Shearer took part in a Q&A on stage at the club and an auction raised a further £110,000 for the charities. Mark also visited the Teenage Cancer Trust unit at the Great North Children’s Hospital, Newcastle, to meet young people who are being supported by the charity, and to speak to staff.

Mark Knopfler: “What I really want to do, more than anything else, is just to thank each and every one for this sterling response.

 “I really had no idea that it was going to be like this. It hit Guy and I quite early on that we had to extend this piece somehow, to take in the number of people who joined in.

“It was absolutely meant to be,” says Guy Fletcher of the late Jeff Beck’s contribution, “And what he did with it, it just brings you to tears.”

The film Local Hero was released in 1983 and starred Burt Lancaster. It was Mark Knopfler’s first credit as a film composer and earned him a BAFTA nomination. Much to Mark’s delight, the track is played at every Newcastle United game before the team take the pitch.

Net proceeds will go to the charities and the project has been further supported by leading guitar makers, who have donated a total of eight guitars to be signed by the contributing artists. Four of the eight have already been sold in the US for Teen Cancer America - the only U.S charity to provide specialist support to adolescent and young adults with cancer. 

This was in October 2022, before several of the most high profile and rarest autographs were added to the four remaining guitars that will benefit Teenage Cancer Trust, the only UK charity providing 13-24-year-olds who are diagnosed with cancer, with age-appropriate specialist nursing care and support, so no young person faces cancer alone.

In January, Knopfler sold his guitar collection at Christie’s for over £8M, with the Gibson Les Paul ‘Gold Top’ Standard, signed by many artists from the project, selling for over £403k. Also offered for auction were exclusive items of music memorabilia - future coveted pieces of music history.

 In addition - an Ionic Original Disc of the master recording has been privately sold by NeoFidelity Recordings in advance of the single’s release, enabling that company to make a six-figure donation to the charity. Ionic Original Discs are a new vinyl format, promising the highest fidelity sound and durability ever on an analogue record.

 Physical formats of the single are available on CD, 12” with etched b-side and deluxe CD+BluRay, including sleeve notes by Paul Sexton, and digital formats include a Dolby Atmos mix.