Dire Straits on Straits Vinyl Straits Vinyl from Dire Straits is available for home delivery with Vinyl Records London, only £26 +P&P Dire Straits is the debut studio album by the British rock band Dire Straits released on 7 October 1978 by Vertigo Records internationally, Warner Bros. Records in the United States and Mercury Records in Canada.23 The album produced the hit single Sultans of Swing, which reached 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 8 on the UK Singles Chart. The album reached 1 on album charts in Germany, Australia and France, 2 in the United States and 5 in the United Kingdom. Dire Straits was later certified doubleplatinum in both the United States and the United Kingdom.