...Nothing Like the Sun
Encyclopedia
…Nothing Like the Sun is a 1987 album by Sting. The title comes from Shakespeare's Sonnet
#130
("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun"), which Sting used in the song "Sister Moon". He added that his inspiration for this was a close encounter with a drunk, in which Sting quoted the sonnet in response to the drunk's importunate query, "How beautiful is the moon?"
The album won Best British Album at the 1988 Brit Awards
.
on behalf of Amnesty International
, which brought Sting to parts of Latin America that had been ravaged by civil wars, and introduced him to victims of government oppression. "They Dance Alone (Cueca
Solo)" was inspired by his witnessing of public demonstrations of grief by the wives and daughters of men missing in Chile
, tortured and murdered by the military dictatorship of the time, who danced the cueca (the traditional dance of Chile) by themselves, with photos of their loved ones pinned to their clothes. "Be Still My Beating Heart" and "The Lazarus Heart" approach the subjects of life, love and death and also featured Police
guitarist Andy Summers. Elsewhere on the album, "Englishman in New York", in honour of Quentin Crisp
, continues the jazz-influenced music more commonly found on Sting's previous album, as does "Sister Moon".
The album's first single and biggest hit, "We'll Be Together" (reportedly not one of Sting's favorites), sported a prominent dance beat and funk overtones; it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100
charts in late 1987 and even crossed over to the R&B charts. Overall, the album's sales now stand at over 2 million, making it one of Sting's best-sellers.
The album also inspired a Spanish
/Portuguese
counterpart, the 1988 mini-album Nada Como el Sol
. It featured four of the songs from the album sung in either Spanish or Portuguese and in the case of "Fragile", both languages.
Three years after its initial release on both the album and in single form, "Englishman in New York" was remixed in mid-1990 by Dutch producer Ben Liebrand, apparently to increase Sting's commercial viability after a two-year absence in the charts. Providing a stronger dance beat, as well as an extended introduction, the song was a hit in clubs and reached number 15 on the UK pop charts. The maxi-single also included a dance remix of "We'll Be Together" as a B-side
.
...Nothing Like the Sun was one of the first fully digital audio recordings (DDD) to achieve multi-platinum status. It is also Sting's biggest-selling album yet, with worldwide sales of 11 million copies as of 1997.
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Shakespeare's sonnets
Shakespeare's sonnets are 154 poems in sonnet form written by William Shakespeare, dealing with themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality. All but two of the poems were first published in a 1609 quarto entitled SHAKE-SPEARES SONNETS.: Never before imprinted. Sonnets 138 and 144...
#130
Sonnet 130
Shakespeare's Sonnet CXXX mocks the conventions of the showy and flowery courtly sonnets in its realistic portrayal of his mistress.-Synopsis:...
("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun"), which Sting used in the song "Sister Moon". He added that his inspiration for this was a close encounter with a drunk, in which Sting quoted the sonnet in response to the drunk's importunate query, "How beautiful is the moon?"
The album won Best British Album at the 1988 Brit Awards
Brit Awards
The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...
.
Background
The album was influenced by two events in Sting's life: first, the death in late 1986 of his mother, which contributed to the sombre tone of several songs; and second, his participation in the Conspiracy of Hope TourA Conspiracy of Hope Tour
A Conspiracy of Hope was a short tour of six benefit concerts on behalf of Amnesty International that took place in the United States during June 1986. The purpose of the tour was not to raise funds but rather to increase awareness of human rights and of Amnesty's work on its 25th anniversary, and...
on behalf of Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, which brought Sting to parts of Latin America that had been ravaged by civil wars, and introduced him to victims of government oppression. "They Dance Alone (Cueca
Cueca
Cueca is a family of musical styles and associated dances from Chile, Bolivia, Peru, and Argentina. In Chile, the cueca holds the status of national dance, where it was officially selected on September 18, 1979.- Origins :...
Solo)" was inspired by his witnessing of public demonstrations of grief by the wives and daughters of men missing in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, tortured and murdered by the military dictatorship of the time, who danced the cueca (the traditional dance of Chile) by themselves, with photos of their loved ones pinned to their clothes. "Be Still My Beating Heart" and "The Lazarus Heart" approach the subjects of life, love and death and also featured Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
guitarist Andy Summers. Elsewhere on the album, "Englishman in New York", in honour of Quentin Crisp
Quentin Crisp
Quentin Crisp , was an English writer and raconteur. He became a gay icon in the 1970s after publication of his memoir, The Naked Civil Servant.- Early life :...
, continues the jazz-influenced music more commonly found on Sting's previous album, as does "Sister Moon".
The album's first single and biggest hit, "We'll Be Together" (reportedly not one of Sting's favorites), sported a prominent dance beat and funk overtones; it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
charts in late 1987 and even crossed over to the R&B charts. Overall, the album's sales now stand at over 2 million, making it one of Sting's best-sellers.
The album also inspired a Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
/Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
counterpart, the 1988 mini-album Nada Como el Sol
Nada Como el Sol
...Nada como el sol is an EP released by Sting, containing five tracks from the album ...Nothing Like the Sun performed in Spanish and Portuguese.-Track listing:# Mariposa Libre – 4:54# Frágil [Portuguese] – 3:50...
. It featured four of the songs from the album sung in either Spanish or Portuguese and in the case of "Fragile", both languages.
Three years after its initial release on both the album and in single form, "Englishman in New York" was remixed in mid-1990 by Dutch producer Ben Liebrand, apparently to increase Sting's commercial viability after a two-year absence in the charts. Providing a stronger dance beat, as well as an extended introduction, the song was a hit in clubs and reached number 15 on the UK pop charts. The maxi-single also included a dance remix of "We'll Be Together" as a B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
.
...Nothing Like the Sun was one of the first fully digital audio recordings (DDD) to achieve multi-platinum status. It is also Sting's biggest-selling album yet, with worldwide sales of 11 million copies as of 1997.
Side one
- "The Lazarus Heart" – 4:34
- "Be Still My Beating HeartBe Still My Beating Heart"Be Still My Beating Heart" is a song by Sting, from his 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun.-Song information:Andy Summers plays guitar on the track.The song later appeared in the 2000 film Dolphins, for which Sting also wrote the score....
" – 5:32 - "Englishman in New YorkEnglishman in New York"Englishman in New York" is a song by Sting, from his 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun. The "Englishman" in question is the famous eccentric Quentin Crisp. Sting wrote the song not long after Crisp moved from London to an apartment in New York's Bowery...
" – 4:25
Side two
- "History Will Teach Us Nothing" – 4:58
- "They Dance AloneThey Dance Alone"They Dance Alone " is a protest song composed by English musician Sting and published first on the 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun. The song is a metaphor referring to mourning Chilean women who dancing the Cueca, the national dance of Chile, alone with photographs of their disappeared loved...
" – 7:16 - "FragileFragile (song)"Fragile" is a song composed by English musician Sting from his 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun. Released as a single the following year, it placed to number 70 on the UK Singles Chart. Sung additionally in both Spanish and Portuguese under the title Fragilidad, it appeared twice more on his...
" – 3:54
Side three
- "We'll Be TogetherWe'll Be Together (Sting song)"We'll Be Together" is a song performed by Sting on his 1987 album Nothing Like the Sun. The song was also released as a single, and reached #7 and #41 on the U.S. and UK singles charts, respectively...
" – 4:52 - "Straight to My Heart" – 3:54
- "Rock Steady" – 4:27
Side four
- "Sister Moon" – 3:46
- "Little WingLittle Wing"Little Wing" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix. It was first recorded by The Jimi Hendrix Experience on their 1967 album Axis: Bold as Love...
" (Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
) – 5:04 - "The Secret Marriage" (Eisler, Sting) – 2:03
B Sides
- "Ghost In The Strand" (Englishman In New York 7"/ Maxi Single)
- "Ellas Danzan Solas" (They Dance Alone Maxi Single)
- "If You There" (They Dance Alone 7")
- "Conversation With A Dog" (We'll Be Together 7"/ Maxi Single)
- "Someone to Watch Over Me" (Englishman in New York 3-inch CD single)
- "Up from the Skies" (Jimi Hendrix cover with Gil Evans and His Orchestra, Englishman in New York 3-inch CD single)
Singles
- 1987 – "We'll Be Together" #7 US
- 1988 – "Englishman in New York" #84 US #51 UK
- 1988 – "Be Still My Beating Heart" #15 US
- 1988 – "Fragile" #70 UK
- 1988 – "They Dance Alone" #94 UK
- 1990 – "Englishman in New York" (Remix) #15 UK
Personnel
- Sting – Lead Vocals, Bass, GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
on "History Will Teach Us Nothing" and "Fragile" - Renée GeyerRenée GeyerRenée Rebecca Geyer is an Australian singer who has long been regarded as one of the finest exponents of jazz, soul and R&B idioms. She had commercial success as a solo artist in Australia, with "It's a Man's Man's World", "Heading in the Right Direction" and "Stares and Whispers" in the 1970s and...
– Background Vocals - Dollette McDonald – Background Vocals
- Janice Pendarvis – Background Vocals
- Vesta WilliamsVesta WilliamsMary Vesta Williams was an American R&B singer. Originally credited as Vesta Williams, she was sometimes simply billed as Vesta beginning in the 1990s. She was known for her four-octave vocal range...
– Background Vocals - Kenwood Dennard – DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
on "Little Wing" - Manu KatchéManu KatchéManu Katché is a French musician of Ivorian origin, born in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés on 27 October 1958. He is a drummer and songwriter.-Career:Session musician...
– Drums - Andy NewmarkAndy NewmarkAndrew "Andy" Newmark is an American musician, best known as a popular session drummer, and for playing with the funk band Sly & the Family Stone from 1972 to 1973....
– Drums - Gil EvansGil EvansGil Evans was a jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader, active in the United States...
& His Orchestra (on "Little Wing") - Mino CineluMino CineluMino Cinelu is a French musician. He plays multiple instruments. He is a composer, programmer and producer; and is most often associated primarily for his work as a jazz percussionist.-Biography:Cinelu was born in Saint-Cloud, Hauts-de-Seine...
– Percussion, VocoderVocoderA vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder... - Rubén BladesRubén BladesRubén Blades Bellido de Luna is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, lawyer, actor, Latin jazz musician, and politician, performing musically most often in the Afro-Cuban and Latin jazz genres...
– Vocals (on "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)") - Mark EganMark EganMark Egan is an American jazz bass guitarist and trumpeter, arguably best known for his membership in the Pat Metheny Group from 1977 to 1980, and the Gil Evans Orchestra...
– BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
on "Little Wing" - Hiram BullockHiram BullockHiram Law Bullock was an American jazz funk and jazz fusion guitarist.He was born in Osaka, Japan to African American parents serving in the U.S. Military. At the age of two he returned to Baltimore, Maryland with his parents, and quickly showed a prodigious musical talent...
– Guitar on "Little Wing" - Eric ClaptonEric ClaptonEric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
– Guitar on "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" - Fareed HaqueFareed HaqueFareed Haque is a fusion guitar virtuoso of Pakistani and Chilean descent.Raised in Chicago, he studied at North Texas State University and Northwestern University....
– Guitar on "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" - Mark KnopflerMark KnopflerMark Freuder Knopfler, OBE is a Scottish-born British guitarist, singer, songwriter, record producer and film score composer. He is best known as the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the British rock band Dire Straits, which he co-founded in 1977...
– Guitar (on "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)") - Andy SummersAndy SummersAndy Summers is an English guitarist born in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, England. Best known as the guitarist for rock band The Police, he has also recorded twelve solo albums, collaborated with many other artists, toured extensively under his own name, published several books, and composed...
– Guitar on "The Lazarus Heart" and "Be Still My Beating Heart" - Kenny KirklandKenny KirklandKenneth David “Kenny” Kirkland was an American pianist/keyboardist. He is most often associated with Sting, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, and Kenny Garrett....
– KeyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - Ken Helman – PianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
on "The Secret Marriage" - Branford MarsalisBranford MarsalisBranford Marsalis is an American saxophonist, composer and bandleader. While primarily known for his work in jazz as the leader of the Branford Marsalis Quartet, he also performs frequently as a soloist with classical ensembles and has led the group Buckshot LeFonque.-Biography:Marsalis was born...
– SaxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
Chart positions
| Chart (1987-88) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to 1998... |
5 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 3 |
| Canadian Albums Chart RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
3 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 3 |
| French Albums Chart | 3 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Japanese Albums Chart | 1 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 13 |
| Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
2 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 7 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 3 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
9 |
| U.S. Billboard R&B Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
52 |
| West German Albums Chart | 4 |
Certifications
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Year-end charts
| Chart (1987) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 82 |
| Canadian Albums Chart | 26 |
| Japanese Albums Chart | 56 |
| UK Albums Chart | 68 |
| Chart (1988) | Position |
| Australian Albums Chart | 46 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 8 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 3 |
| Japanese Albums Chart | 87 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 3 |
| UK Albums Chart | 84 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 24 |
Decade-end charts
| Chart (1980-89) | Position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums Chart | 19 |