|
When he decided to record his first live album in 15 years at his villa in Tuscany, Sting knew that the proposed date of September 11, 2001, would be memorable. Of course he didn't know just how memorable until news of the terrorist attacks against the United States reached Italy. While Sting initially thought about canceling and sending the select audience home, the former Police frontman decided to go ahead and dedicated the night to those who had lost their lives. The result is a singular concert experience. With a flamenco guitar intro and Sting's breathy crooning of lines like "If blood will flow when flesh and steel are one" from "Fragile", the intimate yet highly charged evening is underway. Sting and his new band conjure an eclectic mix of jazz and world-beat instrumentation that sounds miles away from the Police, even as they revisit hits such as "Roxanne" reworked here from a contemplative torch song into a big-band number and carry through to the title track of his recent Grammy-winning album, Brand New Day. The day's shattering events pump up the import of the performance, and even an unassuming pop ditty like "All This Time" is transformed into a gospel-powered testimonial. "Fields of Glory" receives a gorgeous acoustic reading, and the formerly spooky love ballad "Every Breath You Take" achieves a cathartic, triumphant velocity. The backing, including that of jazz bassist Christian McBride and Brazilian cellist Jacques Morelenbaum, is inspired, as the band rises to the occasion, summoning the strength to carry on. As testimony to music's gifts of comfort and inspiration, even under the most awful of circumstances, All This Time is truly timeless.
Condition:NEW. Brand New Factory Sealed
TRACK LISTINGS
Disc 1
1 Fragile (4:35)
2 A Thousand Years (3:02)
3 Perfect Love...Gone Wrong (4:11)
4 All This Time (5:20)
5 The Hounds of Winter (4:29)
6 Don't Stand So Close to Me (2:15)
7 When We Dance (4:52)
8 Dienda (3:12)
9 Roxanne (3:36)
10 If You Love Somebody Set Them Free (4:57)
11 Brand New Day (4:46)
12 Fields of Gold (3:50)
13 Moon Over Bourbon Street (2:55)
14 If I Ever Lose My Faith in You (4:31)
15 Every Breath You Take (5:04)
|