Author: Sting

Brand: Umgd/Pop-U.S.

Format: Enhanced

Release Date: 30-09-2003

Details: Product Description There isn't much point at this juncture in rehearsing all of Sting's accomplishments. Both as a solo artist and with The Police, he's written some of the best songs of our time and sold many millions of records. It's more newsworthy at this point to proclaim that he's working at the very height of his powers on Sacred Love, that, once again, he's made an album that is fun and provocative, serious and moving, a telling commentary on our lives and our times. Among its other ambitions, Sacred Love is a bold attempt to weave meaningful connections between the struggles within the souls of individual people and the larger events wracking our social and political worlds. That goal makes perfect sense, given the album's genesis. Sacred Love was recorded during the agonizing build-up to the war in Iraq, and the urgency of that time suffuses the entire album. Still, writing songs about love hardly constitutes an artistic breakthrough--particularly for Sting, who has written some of the best, and some of the eeriest, love songs of our time. Love may be the answer, but if it is to regain its rightful power in our lives, it will need to be rescued from the clichés that have eroded its meaning. Sting sets out to do that from the very start on "Inside," the album's opening track. "Inside the doors are sealed to love," the song begins, and that fortress will need to come down for love to do its work. Amazon.ca Sting explores his shiny, happy side on Sacred Love, adding playful touches of techno to his smooth, vaguely multi-cultural pop sound. Like 1999's Brand New Day, Love sounds effortless and content, with expert musicians backing up Sting's gauzy revelations about love and life. The former Police frontman shakes things up here and there; DJ/producers like BT and Victor Calderone breathe life into tracks like "Never Coming Home" and "Send Your Love," while Mary J. Blige puts her smoky vocals to work on "Whenever I Say Your Name." "This War" takes a not-so-subtle shot at George W. Bush, as Sting gives his left-leaning fan base a thrill with lyrics like "Your daddy was a businessman/ and it always made good sense/ You know the war can make you rich my friend/ In dollars, pounds, and cents." Of course, Sting long ago cashed in his rebel cachet for adult contemporary oblivion. But even though this music is designed for broad appeal, it does so with the natural, unforced ease of a seasoned showman. -- Matthew Cooke

UPC: 602498608005

EAN: 0724387539105

Languages: english

Binding: Audio CD

Item Condition: UsedVeryGood