Dire Straits scored numerous hits during their career, but only one single ever reached number one on the US charts: "Money for Nothing", which topped the chart for three weeks in 1985. The song, taken from the band's fifth studio album Brothers in Arms, was co-written by frontman Mark Knopfler and Sting, then of The Police, making it a rare crossover collaboration between the two acts.

Knopfler has said the idea came from seeing The Police feature in an MTV advert declaring "I want my MTV", which he later used to open the track. Wanting the song built around a melody similar to The Police's 1980 hit "Don't Stand So Close to Me", he invited Sting, who happened to be on holiday nearby, into the studio, and credited him as co-writer since the tune borrowed five notes from Sting's earlier song. "Money for Nothing" went on to become one of MTV's most popular videos of the era.