Oh, good, a Dire Straits spin-off band

Here's some news to brighten the cold winter night, assuming your nights are easily brightened:

Dire Straits' Alan Clark and Chris White with five hand-picked, world class musicians - Terence Reis, Steve Ferrone from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Mickey Féat, Adam Phillips and Jamie Squire – are set to perform at venues in the United States starting in late February.

That's the keyboard player who joined after the Making Movies sessions, and the saxophonist who joined in 1985. So, yes, Dire Straits members unquestionably. But perhaps not the names you'd reach for first.

Obviously, they can't tour under the name Dire Straits, so they've dropped half the name.

They've gone with The Straits; that might not have been the half that's most honest to retain.

The headline on the PR blurb is kind of interesting, too:

DIRE STRAITS MEMBERS FORM 'THE STRAITS'
AND ANNOUNCE U.S. TOUR

The Straits played the Royal Albert Hall in 2011, so the "formation" not quite the breaking news the press release would suggest it is.