Sting Fragile

Sting recorded 'The Bridge' during the pandemic with a coterie of trusted musicians beaming into his studio remotely. That easy sense of musical camaraderie, connection and kinship is on full display in the lead single 'If It's Love', an unabashed pop song which is lent wings by a whistled refrain, joyful handclaps, and uplifting brass and strings. The urgently staccato, electric guitar-driven 'Rushing Water' soars with Sting's trademark melodic invention and vivid imagery. The decidedly romantic 'For Her Love' is a delicate pledge that harkens back to some of Sting's classic ballads. That said, Sting can breakdown the genesis of 'Harmony Road', a jazzy jam that artfully combines fever-dream, social realism and autobiography. The circle of trust of a group of likeminded musicians pulling in a myriad of brilliant directions but with one accord, is a solid foundation of 'The Bridge'. Super Deluxe Album in gatefold packaging, featuring six live tracks from The Panthéon in Paris. Also includes poster and two Japan only exclusive bonus tracks.

On the day that the second live album of Sting's illustrious solo career (and third if you count the Police's 1995 Live! set) was to be recorded in Tuscany, Italy, the widely respected singer/songwriter/bassist was beset with one of the world's worst horrors of all time. The show was to be recorded and broadcast live on the Web on September 11, 2001, the day of the World Trade Center tragedy. Instead of canceling it altogether, Sting went on with the recording (although the Web broadcast was scrapped except for a single song), resulting in the release of the 15-song All This Time, just two short months later. Featured are a trio of Police-era classics inventively rearranged ("Roxanne," "Don't Stand So Close to Me," and "Every Breath You Take") and renditions of many solo selections: an expansive "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free," "Brand New Day," "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You," and the poignant folk-like ballad "Fields of Gold."

The Studio Collection vinyl LP box set featuring all of Sting's solo studio albums on A&M Records in one collection for the very first time. Included are eight studio albums across eleven 180-gram heavyweight vinyl LPs in exact replicas of the original release artwork plus two albums that are previously unreleased on vinyl namely Brand New Day and Sacred Love all housed in a high-quality two-part slipcase box package. New vinyl masters for all were cut at the legendary Abbey Road studios to ensure exceptional audio quality throughout.

Sting - The Living Sea: Soundtrack from the IMAX Film (1995) {A&M Records 540 350-2}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 313 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 125 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 56 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1995 A&M records | 540 350-2
Stage & Screen / Rock / Pop / New Age / Instrumental

I now feel somewhat deprived at not having seen this IMAX movie as of yet as if the soundtrack is anything to go by, it must be fantastic. I bought this CD purely because of Sting's name on the label and was pleasantly suprised to notice that the music herein differs from anything I have heard from any of his studio albums. Many of the songs seem to be in a similar vein to "St. Agnes and the burning train" from the Soul Cages and it is good to see the original album version included along with Fragile. The entire album is full of relaxing ocean music with a twist of some of Sting's earlier work interspersed for good measure.

Early in his solo career, Sting defined himself as a man of taste, choosing to work with jazz musicians instead of rockers. Inevitably, this meant he walked the thin line between sophisticated pop and adult contemporary, but he did it with grace from 1985's Dream of the Blue Turtles to 1993's Ten Summoner's Tales. Unfortunately, Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting doesn't illustrate what a deft trick he pulled off with that quartet of albums…

Early in his solo career, Sting defined himself as a man of taste, choosing to work with jazz musicians instead of rockers. Inevitably, this meant he walked the thin line between sophisticated pop and adult contemporary, but he did it with grace from 1985's Dream of the Blue Turtles to 1993's Ten Summoner's Tales. Unfortunately, Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting doesn't illustrate what a deft trick he pulled off with that quartet of albums…