Yeah that’s basically your classic American barber. Gossipy, usually bored, willing to hang around, joke and talk. That’s what I love about actual barber shops, guys in my neighborhood will just hang around there too if their friends/neighbors are getting a cut. It’s usually a one hour experience minimum, even though the cut takes 15 min and cost $12.
I always thought the joke was that after almost 400 years, the barbershop experience was the same. You could replace Capt Picard with Andy Griffith and Mot with Floyd and no one would blink.
As far as covers go, it’s new it’s creative, and would still sound good if you’d never heard the dire straits. I dig it man.
Fun fact: Mark Knopfler, the lead guitarist from the Dire Straits is also a pretty incredible classic country musician. He’s put out at least a couple albums playing with Chet Atkins, on account of their similar fingerpicking styles.