“I think what we’ve had is an embarrassment of riches”: The first minute of Mark Knopfler’s star-studded charity single has been released – can you guess the guitar heroes from their chops?

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(Image credit: Press)

A one-minute preview from Mark Knopfler’s forthcoming Guitar Heroes track, a rendition of Going Home (Theme From Local Hero), has been released.

As far as star-studded collaborations go, Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes track – which is being released in support of Teenage Cancer Trust on March 15 – is up there with the very best.

The nine-minute extended cut not only features the Dire Straits legend himself, but also a huge array of his fellow guitar-playing peers. Overall, more than 60 of the music world’s most influential performers have been assembled for the single.

That collection includes Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, Tony Iommi, Peter Frampton, Pete Townshend, Susan Tedeschi, Steve Vai, Sheryl Crow, Slash, Joan Jett, Bruce Springsteen, Keith Urban, Ronnie Wood and Steve Lukather, as well as many, many others.

Notably, the epic Guitar Heroes cover also features Jeff Beck’s final recording. As such, the phrase “an unprecedented line-up of some of the greatest guitarists in history” feels extremely warranted.

We’ve still got just over a week to go until the full release, but fans have now been given a one-minute teaser of the track, which was previewed at Newcastle United’s home match over the weekend (the team walk out to the Local Hero theme).

“That reception for the new version of Going Home from the Newcastle fans was something that will live with me forever,” said Knopfler, who was in attendance for the Newcastle United match. “I can’t tell you what it means to me for the song to be so integral to this region.

“It’s a fantastic thing, it’s something I can be proud of forever. I’ve tried to get people to imagine what it’s like. It’s a tremendous feeling to be in St James Park when it plays.”

Now, it’s only a ninth of the final product, but it’s enough to have any guitar fan hooked, and, with no official confirmation concerning who is actually playing on the preview, it makes for a rather entertaining game of ‘spot the guitar hero from their chops’. 

The preview unfortunately skips out the original version’s extended intro, which would most certainly be a fitting sonic playground for Beck to weave together some of his trademark dynamic fingerstyle swells and off-the-cuff emotive melody embellishments.

(Image credit: Peter Blake / Teenage Cancer Trust / Sony BMG)

Instead, we’re thrown straight into the deep end with the main hook, which features layer upon layer of interconnecting guitar lines. There’s a hint of Knopfler himself in some of those deeply embedded clean lines, with some slinky Slowhand-style turnarounds also cropping up.

Elsewhere, some tightly compressed, perfectly executed deep vibratos a la Joe Bonamassa can also be made out.

The game will have to continue until the full track gets its official release, following which each players’ own contributions will hopefully be demarcated. What we do know right now, though, is that all of those contributions have helped create something rather spectacular.

Eric [Clapton] came in, played great, just one tasty lick after another. Then Jeff Beck’s contribution arrived and that was spellbinding

“Before I knew where I was, Pete Townshend had come into my studio armed with a guitar and an amp,” Knopfler said in an earlier statement. “And that first Pete power chord… man, I tell you. We were in that territory, and it was just fantastic. And it went on from there.

“Eric [Clapton] came in, played great, just one tasty lick after another. Then Jeff Beck’s contribution arrived and that was spellbinding. I think what we’ve had is an embarrassment of riches, really. The whole thing was a high point.”

The Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes version of Going Home (the Theme from Local Hero) is available to preorder now ahead of its release on March 15.

Eight guitars have also been donated by leading guitar brands to support the initiative, each of which has been signed.

Find out more at Teenage Cancer Trust and Teen Cancer America.

Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes are…

Joan Armatrading, Jeff Beck, Richard Bennett, Joe Bonamassa, Joe Brown, James Burton, Jonathan Cain, Paul Carrack, Eric Clapton, Ry Cooder, Jim Cox, Steve Cropper, Sheryl Crow, Danny Cummings, Roger Daltrey, Duane Eddy, Sam Fender, Guy Fletcher, Peter Frampton, Audley Freed, Vince Gill, David Gilmour, Buddy Guy, Keiji Haino, Tony Iommi, Joan Jett, John Jorgenson, Mark Knopfler, Sonny Landreth, Albert Lee, Greg Leisz, Alex Lifeson, Steve Lukather, Phil Manzanera, Dave Mason, Hank Marvin, Brian May, Robbie McIntosh, John McLaughlin, Tom Morello, Rick Nielsen, Orianthi, Brad Paisley, Nile Rodgers, Mike Rutherford, Joe Satriani, John Sebastian, Connor Selby, Slash, Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr and Zak Starkey, Sting, Andy Taylor, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, Ian Thomas, Pete Townshend, Keith Urban, Steve Vai, Waddy Wachtel, Joe Louis Walker, Joe Walsh, Ronnie Wood, Glenn Worf, Zucchero.

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Matt is a Staff Writer, writing for Guitar World, Guitarist and Total Guitar. He has a Masters in the guitar, a degree in history, and has spent the last 16 years playing everything from blues and jazz to indie and pop. When he’s not combining his passion for writing and music during his day job, Matt records for a number of UK-based bands and songwriters as a session musician.

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