Mark Knopfler Details Charity Single Featuring Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Jeff Beck’s Final Recording & More

Mark Knopfler assembled a staggering group of guitarists including Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi and the late Jeff Beck in his final recording to perform on a remake of “Going Home (Theme from Local Hero),” due out on March 15. The track arrives as a charity single to benefit Teenage Cancer Trust and Teen Cancer America.

Dubbed “Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes” by the former Dire Straits frontman, “Going Home (Theme from Local Hero),” an instrumental from Knopfler’s soundtrack to the 1983 film Local Hero, also features Queen’s Brian May, Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, The Who’s Pete Townshend, Rush’s Alex Lifeson, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood, Joan Jett, Buddy Guy, Tom Morello and many more. The track begins with Jeff Beck’s final recording.

The non-guitar playing lineup is also star-studded with The Who’s Roger Daltrey (an honorary patron of Teenage Cancer Trust) on harmonica, Ringo Starr and his son Zak Starkey on drums as well as Sting on bass. Longtime Knopfler collaborator Guy Fletcher produced the new “Going Home (Theme from Local Hero).” Creator of The Beatles iconic Sgt. Pepper’s cover Peter Blake did the artwork for the track in a similar style to Pepper.

“What I really want to do, more than anything else, is just to thank each and every one for this sterling response,” Knopfler said as published in Consequence. “I really had no idea that it was going to be like this. It hit Guy [Fletcher] and I quite early on that we had to extend this piece somehow, to take in the number of people who joined in.”

He added: “Before I knew where I was, Pete Townshend had come into my studio armed with a guitar and an amp. 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.”

Hear a snippet of the new “Going Home (Theme from Local Hero)” below:

Full list of contributors:

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.