David 'Pick' Withers was the original drummer for the world renowned band Dire Straits, and played on their first four albums, which included hit singles such as Sultans of Swing, Romeo and Juliet and Private Investigations.

He first played a drum in the Boy's Brigade and was given a few rudimentary drum lessons by the band master. He became a professional musician at the age of 17, joining a band called The Berkeley Squares when they went to Germany. He later jumped ship and joined a band called the Primitives, then The Doc Thomas Group, and later a band called Spring. Spring secured a record contract with the RCA/Neon label and recorded and released one album, which became a collector's item, recorded at the legendary Rockfield Studios in Monmouth. They had a cult following and Pick is very proud of the work he did with Spring.

The rest is history â€" Dire Straits went on to become one of the biggest rock bands in the world. Pick was a founder member and stayed for six years, playing on four studio albums plus one live recording, ‘Live at the BBC', and a compilation album was released just after he left the band entitled ‘Money for Nothing', most of which were recordings he played on. Whilst with Dire Straits, Pick played on the ‘Slow Train Coming' album by Bob Dylan with wonderful musicians such as Barry Becket, Tim Drummond and produced by the revered Jerry Wexler (founder of Atlantic Records). Pick's style with Dire Straits was referred to in the magazine, International Musician, December 1980: ‘Water of Love from the first Dire Straits album provides the clearest example of Withers' role as mood maker. With the snares turned off, he carries the beat on the hi-hat while playing off-beats on the toms. On the choruses, the off-beats are switched to the hi-hat. The effect is a floating swirl of rhythm with the song developing over it'.