TORONTO - Mark Knopfler doesn't tend to play the kind of music that makes people stand up and jump around. In fact, the former Dire Straits frontman is so low-key that he barely seems to break a sweat when he plays.

But sometimes, ironically, being understated and laid-back can actually intensify the musical experience -- at least that seemed to be the case at the Molson Amphitheatre last night, when Knopfler and his five-piece band swept the crowd up and away with practiced ease.

Knopfler, on tour for the first time since a motorcycle accident nearly killed him in 2003, used perfect pacing, a multi-talented backing band and his own elegant, distinctive guitar playing to bring songs from his two-decade-plus career to vivid life for an ecstatic crowd.

Stylistically, he moved all over the map, but whether playing rock 'n' roll, blues, folk, soulful country, Celtic new age or even bluegrass, Knopfler shot out fiery licks while seeming unbelievably cool, calm and collected, drinking "tea" in his plain white shirt and jeans.

The band -- guitar/keyboardist Guy Fletcher, guitarist Richard Bennett, bassist Glenn Worf, pianist/accordionist Matt Rollings and drummer Danny Cummings -- made a typically low-key entrance and immediately cracked open Why Aye Man, from Knopfler's 2002 album The Ragpicker's Dream.

Early on, they relied on their leader's dreamily atmospheric side, embellishing songs like Walk Of Life, What It Is and Sailing To Philadelphia with tasteful guitar solos and lovely piano breaks.

A gorgeous version of Romeo And Juliet was followed by Dire Straits' breakthrough hit Sultans Of Swing, whose famous fast-fingered solos, impeccably delivered, drew rapturous applause.

The band scaled down for Done With Bonaparte, with stand-up bass, bouzouki and accordion giving the song an acoustic, down-home feel.

Then they were down to a three-piece for the mournful, raw, back-porch blues tune Song For Sonny Liston, from Knopfler's newest album, Shangri-La, adding a second guitar and tambourine for the same album's Donegan's Gone.

Knopfler introduced his latest single, Boom Like That, as being about "a subject close to my heart -- fast food."

The song, about McDonald's founder Ray Kroc, featured lyrics about dogs eating dogs and rats eating rats. The set closer was another Dire Straits song, the Springsteen-esque Telegraph Road, an ambitious number with shifting moods and piano interludes.

Naturally, the encore was full of nostalgic treats like Knopfler's massive hit, Money For Nothing, as well as Brothers In Arms and So Far Away. But by that time, the crowd was completely and blissfully in Knopfler's capable hands anyway.