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Lot Essay
Mark Knopfler purchased this acoustic guitar from the Vintage Guitar Emporium on New Kings Road in London in April 2017 and immediately put it to use in the recording studio. Knopfler used the Martin D-28 to record the song ‘Nobody’s Child’ and bonus track ‘Pale Imitation’ at British Grove Studios for his solo studio album Down The Road Wherever, released in November 2018. The latter track was only available on the Box Set Deluxe edition LP. Knopfler has since recorded three tracks on the D-28 for his tenth solo studio album, expected for release in 2024. As yet unreleased at the time of writing, are the 20 or so musical numbers Knopfler wrote and recorded during a 2018 project to rewrite his acclaimed Local Hero soundtrack for the stage, of which 'Game Over' was recorded on this guitar. Most recently, the 1951 acoustic was photographed by keyboardist and album co-producer Guy Fletcher as one of a group of guitars used during album recording sessions at British Grove Studios in 2022. Knopfler used the D-28 to record the song ‘Smart Money’ for his tenth solo studio album, expected for release in 2024.
C.F. MARTIN, DREADNOUGHT
As early as 1917, The C.F. Martin Company was producing ‘extra-large’ bodied guitars for the Boston publishing house of Oliver Ditson, which were sold bearing the Ditson name. They came in three styles - the 111, 222, and 333. Christened the Dreadnought, it got its name from the class of large battleships deployed by the Royal Navy at the beginning of the 20th century. These first Dreadnought guitars, constructed by Martin, were made with mahogany back and sides similar to today's Style 18s and fitted with a 12-fret neck. After Ditson's demise in 1931, Martin began producing D-series guitars under their own name, in response to musicians’ demands for these larger and louder instruments.
The Dreadnought gained increased traction among performing guitarists despite some reservations by Frederick and Frank Henry Martin. During the height of the Depression, the "D" models would outsell all other models made by the Martin Company excluding the budget priced O-17.
The fact that the majority of guitar makers employ a Dreadnought model to this day is a testament to its success as an outline in acoustic guitar design.