Just two guitar riffs, that’s all it took to dispel any doubts and reservations. Would The Dire Straits Experience re-capture that old magic from the 1980’s when they ruled the musical world? The opening bars of Telegraph Road cut a channel back through the years and when Terence Reis broke in with his vocals the 2,000 crowd knew this was the real deal.

Mark Knopfler is a tough act to follow but the new lead singer reveled in the responsibility and with original members Chris White on sax and flute and Chris Whitten on drums in cracking form. One of their biggest hits, Walk Of Life, was next and people were already up and dancing. The Magma Arts & Congress Centre in Costa Adeje is finally starting to get the amount of concerts it deserves, the cavernous layout with banked seating at both sides offers loads of space and with low key unobtrusive stewarding the party atmosphere was allowed to grow as the concert unfolded.

I knew it was going to be a packed crowd, getting a few cheeky Doradas’s beforehand at El Gomero and Las Rosas was a slow process and I recognized a lot of friends of a similar certain age as myself. Romeo and Juliet was another hit greeted like an old friend, Chris White was able to show of his mastery of the saxaphone and there was sparkling support from Richard Cottle on piano and keyboards, Tim Walters guitar and vocals, Paddy Milner also on piano and keyboards, and Michael Feat on bass guitar and vocals.

Some of the ladies in the audience were flowing with the music and dancing like demons. It wasn’t just us mature Brits enjoying the show, there was a good mix of locals and a few more far flung visitors. Tunnel Of Love was plucked out of their greatest hits catalogue and really hit the spot before Your Latest Trick,and The Man’s Too Strong followed on in style with Chris White switching to his flute to add another musical dimension. Private Investigations was more atmospheric and lingering and Down To The Waterline blended in nicely. The band were very much at ease and their enthusiasm was echoed by the fans, Lady Writer was one of their hits that I had almost forgotten about but I was glad to hear it again in all its glory.

Brothers In Arms was always a goose pimple song and it was more poignant than ever set against recent world events, Dire Straits Experience wrung out every ounce of emotion and for me it was one of the stand out songs of the night. Sultans Of Swing took us back to the earliest days of the band, it really got people pumped up and their were even a few air guitarists who were living every note. That was the final song, or was it? The clamour for an encore was met by the opening strains of Money For Nothing, the boys milked the audience on that one and the hall was a mass of waving arms and ancing bodies, while everyone pleaded for their MTV. Going Home was a fitting finale for two hours of pulsating pop, it was quite an experience.