Nothing Like the Sun (album)
…Nothing Like the Sun is the second solo studio album by English musician Sting, released on 13 October 1987 by A&M Records as a double LP and single CD.[1][2] The album's title derives from the opening line of William Shakespeare's Sonnet 130, reflecting Sting's interest in literary influences amid themes of personal loss following his mother's death and broader social commentary inspired by his Amnesty International involvement.[1] Produced primarily by Sting himself, it features a diverse ensemble including saxophonist Branford Marsalis on several tracks and guest appearances by Dire Straits guitarist Mark Knopfler, blending pop rock, jazz fusion, and world music elements across its 12 original songs.[2] Key singles such as "Englishman in New York," "We'll Be Together," and "Fragile" propelled its chart performance, with the former addressing outsider identity and the latter critiquing political fragility in Latin America.[2] Commercially successful, it sold over 10 million copies worldwide, attaining multi-platinum certifications including in the United States and United Kingdom.[3][4] Critically, the record earned the 1988 Brit Award for Best British Album and three Grammy nominations, though some reviewers noted its ambitious scope occasionally overshadowed cohesion.[1]Background and conception
Album title and dedication
The album's title originates from the first line of William Shakespeare's Sonnet 130, which reads, "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun," employing a deliberately anti-idealized depiction of romantic beauty to contrast with Petrarchan conventions of the era.[5] [6] Sting adopted this phrasing to underscore the record's departure from superficial romanticism, aligning with its introspective examination of love's imperfections and human complexities.[7] ...Nothing Like the Sun is dedicated to Sting's mother, Audrey Sumner, who succumbed to cancer in June 1987 after enduring a two-year illness that coincided with the album's creation.[8] [9] This personal loss permeated the project's emotional core, evoking themes of maternal fortitude amid grief, as Sting later reflected on the period's toll in interviews.[10] The dedication appears prominently on the album sleeve, marking a tribute to her influence on his life and artistry.[11]Personal and artistic influences
Following the success of his debut solo album The Dream of the Blue Turtles in 1985, which marked Sting's departure from The Police toward jazz-infused experimentation with a new ensemble, ...Nothing Like the Sun represented a further maturation in his solo trajectory, emphasizing structured songwriting amid broader stylistic exploration.[12][5] This evolution occurred under public and industry attention focused on Sting's post-band independence, prioritizing personal artistic development over group dynamics.[8] The album's emotional core stemmed from the death of Sting's mother, Audrey Sumner, in late 1986 after a two-year illness, to whom it is dedicated; this loss infused several tracks with a stark, introspective quality centered on maternal resilience and human transience, rather than overt mourning.[13][8][6] Sting has linked the timing of her passing to a creative unburdening, allowing the work to escape commercial pressures and align more closely with raw personal reckoning.[14] Artistically, Sting sustained jazz foundations by retaining key collaborators like saxophonist Branford Marsalis and keyboardist Kenny Kirkland from his prior ensemble, while incorporating worldbeat and reggae elements to expand sonic palettes beyond pop-rock conventions.[1][6] His mid-1980s relocation to New York City provided experiential fuel, grounding outsider perspectives in observed urban detachment and cultural displacement, fostering empirical growth detached from activism.[8][15]Recording and production
Studio sessions and locations
The principal recording sessions for ...Nothing Like the Sun occurred at AIR Studios in Montserrat, commencing in early 1987 and extending over four intensive months through August.[1][14] This timeline aligned with the album's double-LP format, which demanded expanded production to incorporate diverse material while maintaining structural unity, resulting in a process that balanced deliberate experimentation against time constraints.[14] Final mixing took place at The Power Station in New York, with additional logistical travel involving London for preparatory and supplemental work.[14] As Sting's inaugural digital recording effort, the sessions prioritized sonic transparency at AIR Studios, leveraging the format's precision for flexible adjustments in tempo and key, though it also highlighted recording flaws that necessitated on-site refinements for an organic, band-like cohesion amid layered overdubs.[1][14] Creative hurdles emerged early due to lingering emotional strain from personal bereavement in late 1986, yielding initial subdued momentum that resolved into a focused two-week burst of output, enabling completion despite the project's scale.[14]Key collaborators and contributions
Branford Marsalis returned on saxophone, reprising his role from Sting's 1985 album The Dream of the Blue Turtles to infuse improvisational jazz phrasing across tracks like "Englishman in New York" and "Fragile."[16] [8] Kenny Kirkland likewise rejoined on keyboards, providing harmonic sophistication and blending acoustic piano with synthesizers to underpin the album's eclectic fusion style.[16] [8] Their continuity from the prior project ensured a core jazz sensibility amid Sting's expanding sonic palette.[8] Hiram Bullock contributed guitar parts, delivering funk-inflected riffs and chordal textures that bridged rock and jazz elements on several cuts.[16] Mino Cinelu's percussion work added layered polyrhythms and ethnic textures, enhancing rhythmic drive on songs such as "We'll Be Together" through congas, berimbau, and shaker patterns.[16] [17] Sting directed the integration of global motifs via targeted collaborations, notably on "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)," where Latin American influences evoked Chile's cueca folk dance tradition to commemorate victims of political repression under Augusto Pinochet, drawing from Sting's experiences on Amnesty International's 1986 Conspiracy of Hope tour.[5] This track featured vocal contributions from Rubén Blades, amplifying its thematic weight with salsa-rooted authenticity.Musical content
Genres, styles, and instrumentation
The album ...Nothing Like the Sun fuses jazz and rock into a sophisticated sonic palette, incorporating pop structures, world music percussion, and funk rhythms across its tracks, as realized through layered arrangements that emphasize counterpointing instruments rather than dense overcrowding.[6][16] This blend draws on diverse influences including Brazilian bossa nova, reggae grooves, and acoustic rock elements, evident in the rhythmic foundations of songs like "We'll Be Together," which deploys stiff funk percussion and bass lines.[18] Instrumentation centers on a core of electric and acoustic guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards, augmented by horn sections featuring soprano and tenor saxophones—played by Branford Marsalis on multiple tracks—for improvisational jazz flourishes, as in the opening interplay on "Englishman in New York."[19][20] Percussive layers, including Latin-inspired rhythms and shakers, add textural depth and global flair, particularly in "The Lazarus Heart," where they underpin mid-tempo jazz-rock progressions.[15] The Jimi Hendrix cover "Little Wing" showcases experimental extensions, with elongated guitar solos and keyboard harmonies evoking psychedelic rock fusion, diverging from the album's predominant maturity toward freer-form exploration.[6] Overall, the production highlights rhythmic innovation through one-chord vamps and polyrhythms, supported by session contributions from musicians like Kenny Kirkland on keyboards, marking an evolution to intricate, hypnotic interplay distinct from Sting's prior punk-reggae simplicity with The Police.[21][22]Lyrical themes and song analysis
The lyrics of ...Nothing Like the Sun recurrently explore motifs of human frailty, cultural exile, and the limits of historical wisdom, grounded in Sting's firsthand encounters with personal bereavement and geopolitical tensions during the mid-1980s. Tracks often interconnect individual vulnerability with broader causal failures, such as political violence yielding no constructive outcomes, reflecting a realist assessment of human systems prone to repetition despite evident patterns. Sting linked the album's conception to his mother's death in 1987, which amplified themes of loss across familial and archetypal feminine relations, stating it concerns "mothers and daughters, mistresses and wives, sisters," with every song incorporating such elements.[13] This personal catalyst underscores lyrics that prioritize empirical observation over optimistic narratives, critiquing naive reliance on past precedents for future stability. In "Englishman in New York," Sting articulates the isolation of expatriate life in Manhattan, portraying an outsider's defiance against conformist pressures through the lens of his friendship with Quentin Crisp, an English writer known for his overt homosexuality and nonconformity in mid-20th-century Britain. The song's narrative of carrying an "umbrella for two" and sipping tea amid urban excess symbolizes deliberate eccentricity as a response to alienation, with Sting affirming, "I'm the Englishman in New York," and crediting Crisp's maxim: "You have to be yourself, no matter what they say."[23] This draws causally from Sting's own relocation to New York City post-Police, where cultural displacement fostered introspection on authenticity versus societal norms. "Fragile" examines the precariousness of human constructs amid conflict, directly inspired by the April 1987 assassination of Ben Linder, a 27-year-old American Peace Corps engineer building hydroelectric projects in Nicaragua, who was ambushed and killed by U.S.-backed Contra rebels. Sting composed the track during a Montserrat storm, using it to convey that "we are fragile" and "nothing comes from violence and nothing ever could," emphasizing how ideological struggles erode shared humanity without yielding resolution.[24] Sting later noted the song's interpretive evolution, applying its core warning to subsequent crises like the Bosnian War, illustrating a consistent causal realism in viewing power imbalances as perpetuators of fragility rather than progress.[25] "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" documents the ritualized protests of Chilean women under Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship (1973–1990), who performed the national cueca dance solo—traditionally a couples' form—while holding photographs of relatives "disappeared" by state security forces, estimated at over 3,000 cases by official post-regime inquiries. Sting, informed by visits to Chile in the late 1970s alongside Peter Gabriel, employs the metaphor of these vigils outside government buildings to highlight suppressed grief and the regime's reliance on foreign financing, without romanticizing resistance as inherent virtue but as a factual endurance mechanism.[26] He described the imagery as drawn from "the poor women dancing alone in front of government buildings," underscoring empirical human cost over abstract ideology.[27] "History Will Teach Us Nothing" extends this skepticism to collective amnesia, arguing that seeking "solace in the prisons of the distant past" or "security in human systems" fosters delusion, as recurring barbarism—from robber barons to modern tyrants—defies patterned learning without individual reckoning. The lyrics dismantle illusions of perpetual stability, positing that "without the voice of reason, every colorful idiom is its own curse," a first-principles rejection of dogmatic history as prescriptive. Sting framed the title as a deliberate polemic to incite debate, clarifying he rejects absolute fatalism but uses provocation to expose causal disconnects in human behavior.[28] Personal tracks like "Be Still My Beating Heart" and "Straight to My Heart" mirror relational exile, depicting guarded emotions and elusive connections as extensions of broader frailty, where optimism yields to wary realism forged by lived disappointments.Release and promotion
Initial release details
...Nothing Like the Sun was released on October 5, 1987, in the United Kingdom and on October 13, 1987, in the United States by A&M Records.[29][8] The album launched in formats including a double vinyl LP and a single compact disc containing all 12 tracks, totaling approximately 53 minutes of music.[2] Initial pressings featured regional variations such as country-specific vinyl configurations and inserts with lyrics, credits, and photographs; some included promotional hype stickers on the packaging.[30] The sleeve artwork presented abstract, stylized imagery evoking solar motifs, consistent with the album's title drawn from William Shakespeare's Sonnet 130. In the context of the 1980s recording industry, the decision to issue a double album format carried commercial risks amid preferences for concise single-disc releases, though it afforded Sting expansive artistic scope following his prior solo success.[31]Singles and marketing strategies
The lead single from …Nothing Like the Sun was "We'll Be Together", released on October 30, 1987, as an upbeat funk-pop track designed to provide commercial accessibility amid the album's denser jazz and sophisti-pop elements.[15] This was followed by "Be Still My Beating Heart" in January 1988 in the United States, emphasizing rhythmic percussion and thematic introspection to bridge pop radio play with the record's sophisticated arrangements.[32] Subsequent singles included "Englishman in New York" on February 5, 1988, which highlighted Sting's expatriate experiences in New York City through a blend of reggae influences and horn sections, accompanied by a music video that reinforced his cosmopolitan image.[33] "Fragile" followed in April 1988, promoted with live performances underscoring its message of human vulnerability, while "They Dance Alone" served as a politically charged release later in the cycle, tying into Sting's advocacy themes without prioritizing chart success.[34] Formats varied, including 7-inch vinyl, 12-inch extended mixes for dance markets, and promotional cassettes, with some editions featuring B-sides like alternate versions of "We'll Be Together" or non-album tracks such as "Conversation with a Dog".[32] Marketing efforts centered on Sting's intellectual and global persona, positioning the album as a mature evolution from his Police days through targeted media appearances and the Nothing Like the Sun Tour, which launched on October 16, 1987, at New York's Palladium with setlists heavy on singles to build momentum.[35] Promotional tactics included television spots, such as coverage on Good Morning America in December 1987, and print interviews framing the releases as thoughtful contrasts to mainstream pop, balancing artistic ambition—evident in the double-LP format allowing extended tracks—with accessible hooks to sustain radio airplay and sales.[36] This approach aimed to appeal to both existing fans and broader audiences by sequencing upbeat singles early while integrating deeper cuts via tour tie-ins, though it drew attention to Sting's perceived seriousness in promotional narratives.[9]Track listing
Standard edition tracks
The standard edition of ...Nothing Like the Sun features 12 tracks across a double LP format, sequenced to transition from introspective personal narratives to expansive social and historical reflections before concluding with interpretive covers and romantic closure, reflecting Sting's intent to layer emotional depth with worldly concerns inspired by personal bereavement.[2][1] The vinyl configuration divides the material into four sides, with Side A and B emphasizing rhythmic pop-jazz fusions, Side C addressing labor and loss, and Side D incorporating atmospheric reinterpretations.[20]| No. | Title | Duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Lazarus Heart" | 4:37 | Side A opener, co-written with Gil Friesen.[2] |
| 2 | "Be Still My Beating Heart" | 5:00 | Features syncopated rhythms building tension.[2] |
| 3 | "Englishman in New York" | 4:25 | Side A closer with scat influences.[20] |
| 4 | "History Will Teach Us Nothing" | 4:58 | Side B start, guitar-led introspection.[20] |
| 5 | "They Dance Alone (Gueca Solo)" | 7:16 | Extended Side B track incorporating Chilean folk elements.[2] |
| 6 | "Fragile" | 4:35 | Concludes Side B with acoustic-driven melody.[1] |
| 7 | "We Work the Black Seam" | 5:40 | Side C opener on industrial themes.[37] |
| 8 | "Consider Me Gone" | 4:42 | Mid-tempo reflection.[37] |
| 9 | "Moon Over Bourbon Street" | 4:39 | Side C closer evoking New Orleans jazz.[37] |
| 10 | "Little Wing" | 5:35 | Side D cover of Jimi Hendrix's original, reimagined with strings and slower tempo for a more contemplative arrangement.[2][37] |
| 11 | "The Secret Marriage" | 2:04 | Brief Side D instrumental adaptation of Hans Eisler's lied.[1] |
| 12 | "We'll Be Together" | 5:23 | Album closer with upbeat horns.[37] |
B-sides, remixes, and expanded editions
The singles from ...Nothing Like the Sun were paired with B-sides that included non-album recordings, such as covers and alternate interpretations. For example, the "They Dance Alone" single featured the Gershwin standard "Someone to Watch Over Me" as its B-side, a jazz-inflected track not included on the album proper.[38] Similarly, the "We'll Be Together" single included a dedicated B-side track, providing listeners with supplementary material tied to promotional efforts.[39] Remixes of select album tracks appeared on extended 12-inch formats to appeal to dance and club audiences. These variants, such as the extended mix of "We'll Be Together" and dub-oriented reworkings of "Fragile" (including DJ Monk's Hard Rain Dub and Bedroom Rockers Remix), extended runtimes and altered arrangements while preserving core compositions.[40] In 2022, an Expanded Edition was issued digitally on October 13 to mark the album's 35th anniversary, expanding the original 12 tracks to 26 by incorporating 14 bonus selections drawn from archival sources. These additions comprised previously released B-sides, remixes (e.g., the 12-inch version of "Mad About You"), alternate takes, and instrumentals, offering a more complete presentation of session-era material without introducing new recordings or altering the 1987 vision. Available exclusively in digital format, the reissue prioritized accessibility to rarities for modern streaming platforms over physical production.[13][41][7]Critical reception
Contemporary reviews
Upon its release in October 1987, …Nothing Like the Sun received generally positive reviews for Sting's artistic evolution, with critics noting advancements in his vocal delivery and compositional sophistication compared to his debut solo album. Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone described the record as representing "impressive growth for Sting," emphasizing that "his voice is rich, grainy and more mature" and that "Sting’s voice has never sounded more mature or expressive," while praising the increasing complexity of his ideas and arrangements as evidence of ambition and skill.[6] DeCurtis awarded it four stars out of five, positioning it as a hypnotic blend of jazz, pop, and world music influences that showcased Sting's maturation beyond his Police-era work.[6] Some reviewers expressed mixed sentiments regarding the album's extended runtime and accessibility, viewing its double-disc format as both innovative and occasionally taxing. DeCurtis observed that "at times, the album feels overly long, testing the listener’s patience," a critique echoed in broader discussions of its sprawling structure, which clocked in at over 52 minutes across 12 tracks.[6] In the Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll for 1987, the album ranked 36th among voters, garnering 105 points from participating music critics, reflecting solid but not top-tier consensus amid competition from releases like U2's The Joshua Tree and Prince's Sign o' the Times.[42] This placement underscored appreciation for its musical depth while highlighting divisions over its departure from more concise pop conventions.[42] Publications like Q magazine also contributed to the favorable reception in late 1987, framing the album as a philosophical and boundary-pushing effort that freed Sting from past constraints, though specific technical praises centered on its eclectic instrumentation and lyrical introspection rather than immediate commercial hooks.[1] Overall, contemporary assessments privileged the album's demonstration of Sting's growth as a songwriter and performer, with empirical support from its jazz-infused production and diverse guest contributions, over concerns about its less radio-friendly expansiveness.[6]Criticisms of pretentiousness and politics
Critics have frequently targeted ...Nothing Like the Sun for perceived pretentiousness, attributing it to Sting's ambitious stylistic eclecticism, including jazz fusions, world music elements, and highbrow literary references like the album's title drawn from Shakespeare's Sonnet 130. Robert Christgau, in his 1987 consumer guide, labeled the effort pretentious, contending that even well-intentioned humanism inevitably reveals itself through overly mannered musical execution.[43] Similarly, the Trouser Press review portrayed Sting's solo persona—evident in elaborate arrangements and thematic depth—as smug and pretentious, a carryover from his Police days amplified by his command of prestigious session musicians.[44] A particularly harsh UK critique, as referenced in contemporary interviews, dismissed Sting as "a fake... living in the shadow of his ego," critiquing the album's technical polish and self-serious tone as contrived overreach rather than authentic evolution.[45] This echoed broader 1980s sentiments against "muso" excess, where sophisticated production and genre-blending were derided as anti-rock posturing amid punk's lingering influence, though Sting's established fame insulated him from market repercussions.[46] On the political front, songs such as "They Dance Alone"—inspired by the cueca sola dances of Chilean women protesting Pinochet's disappearances—drew accusations of subtle self-righteousness, with the track's earnest advocacy framed as didactic moralizing under a veneer of cultural appropriation.[47] Detractors argued this reflected Sting's pattern of leveraging global issues for artistic elevation, enabled by his commercial security from The Police's sales exceeding 75 million units by 1987, which afforded risks unattributable to systemic oppression but rather to privileged experimentation.[44] Such views challenge media tendencies to romanticize celebrity activism without scrutinizing its causal detachment from personal stake, as mainstream outlets often amplified praise for alignment with progressive causes despite empirical evidence of insulated intent.[48]Retrospective assessments
In a 2017 analysis marking the album's 30th anniversary, Ultimate Classic Rock highlighted Nothing Like the Sun as a transformative work where Sting channeled the grief from his mother's death into emotionally resonant art, establishing a template for his solo career through its fusion of jazz improvisation, African rhythms, and classical undertones with polished songcraft that alternated between introspective ballads and upbeat tracks.[8] The publication emphasized its commercial endurance, achieving multi-platinum status and topping the UK charts, while underscoring Sting's maturation in balancing thematic depth—such as political commentary in "They Dance Alone"—with melodic accessibility in singles like "We'll Be Together."[8] A 2022 35th-anniversary retrospective on Albumism.com praised the record's lasting appeal as a mood-evoking listen that invites deep immersion, crediting its sophisticated arrangements and Sting's evolved vocal timbre for sustaining interest amid evolving musical tastes.[15] Similarly, the album's digital expanded edition release that year, via Sting's official site, positioned it as evidence of artistic progression, noting a richer, more textured voice and increasingly complex compositional ideas that integrated diverse influences without sacrificing cohesion.[1] Reviewers have retrospectively identified it as among Sting's strongest solo efforts for its jazz-inflected songwriting, with AllMusic's assessment affirming superior lyrical and structural ambition over his debut, though acknowledging occasional overreach in conceptual scope that can feel dated in production sheen reflective of late-1980s studio norms.[49] A 2003 Rolling Stone evaluation of Sting's subsequent Brand New Day reinforced this by citing Nothing Like the Sun as his prior benchmark for stylistic integration, blending global genres into a unified whole that prioritized song quality over trend-chasing.[50] These views collectively recognize enduring strengths in thematic maturity and musical versatility, tempered by admissions of era-specific elements like synth-heavy textures that may not age as gracefully as the core compositions.Commercial performance
Chart achievements
Nothing Like the Sun topped the UK Albums Chart for one week on 24 October 1987, following its release earlier that month, and remained on the chart for a total of 47 weeks.[51] In the United States, the album peaked at number 9 on the Billboard 200 during the week dated 14 November 1987, after entering the chart in late October. It also reached number 1 on the Japanese Oricon Albums Chart.[13] The album performed strongly across Europe, achieving top-three peaks in countries including Germany and the Netherlands.[13] In Australia, it reached number 3 on the Kent Music Report chart. In Canada, it peaked at number 3 on the RPM Top 100 Albums chart. Overall, the release demonstrated greater commercial success in the UK and continental Europe compared to the US, where it fell short of the top five despite extended chart longevity.[13]| Country | Peak Position | Peak Date |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 1 | 24 October 1987 |
| Japan | 1 | 1987 |
| Australia | 3 | 1987 |
| Germany | 3 | 1987 |
| Canada | 3 | 1987 |
| United States | 9 | 14 November 1987 |
Sales data and certifications
...Nothing Like the Sun has achieved estimated pure sales of 9.5 million copies worldwide.[3] These figures reflect a decline from the commercial peaks of Sting's Police-era albums, such as Synchronicity, which exceeded 20 million units globally; the double-disc format, with its elevated retail pricing relative to single albums, empirically correlates with moderated unit volumes in comparable releases.[3] The album earned multi-platinum status in key markets, underscoring its commercial viability despite the format's constraints.| Country | Certification | Certified sales |
|---|---|---|
| France | 2× Platinum | 600,000 |
| Germany | Platinum | 500,000 |
| United Kingdom | Platinum | 300,000 |
| United States | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000 |
Personnel and credits
Musicians and performers
Sting performed lead vocals and bass guitar on all tracks, while also contributing to songwriting and arrangements.[16] The core ensemble included saxophonist Branford Marsalis, who added improvisational fills and solos emphasizing the album's jazz influences, and keyboardist Kenny Kirkland, delivering blues-tinged lines and harmonic support.[16] [53] Drummer Manu Katché handled primary percussion duties, succeeding Omar Hakim from Sting's prior work, alongside Mino Cinelu on additional percussion for layered rhythms recorded in live studio sessions.[16] Guest performers enhanced select tracks with specialized contributions. Andy Summers, formerly of The Police, played guitar on "Be Still My Beating Heart," bridging Sting's solo and band eras.[16] Hiram Bullock provided guitar on the Jimi Hendrix cover "Little Wing." Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler delivered guitar parts on "They Dance Alone," with Clapton's solo noted for its emotive phrasing.[16] For "Little Wing," arranger Gil Evans conducted an orchestra, creating an expansive, orchestral backdrop that underscored the track's improvisational authenticity.[16] These sessions prioritized organic interplay among musicians, drawing from jazz ensemble dynamics rather than overdubbed isolation.[16]Production and technical staff
The album was primarily produced by Sting alongside engineer Neil Dorfsman, who handled production duties for tracks 1–6 and 8–12, while Bryan Loren produced track 7 ("Rock Steady").[54] Recording sessions took place from March to August 1987 at AIR Studios in Montserrat, where Dorfsman also served as the primary recording and mixing engineer, emphasizing layered instrumentation and Sting's use of the Synclavier digital synthesizer for composition and arrangement.[55][29] Mixing was shared between Dorfsman and Hugh Padgham, with assistance from Bob Vogt and Mark McKenna to balance the dense arrangements featuring jazz influences and guest contributions.[29] Producer assistant Dave O'Donnell supported Dorfsman during sessions at AIR Studios.[56] Mastering was completed by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk in New York, ensuring the double album's dynamic range suited vinyl and early CD formats amid the industry's shift toward digital mastering in 1987.[55][57]| Role | Personnel |
|---|---|
| Producers | Sting (all tracks), Neil Dorfsman (tracks 1–6, 8–12), Bryan Loren (track 7) |
| Recording/Mixing Engineer | Neil Dorfsman |
| Mixing Engineer | Hugh Padgham |
| Mixing Assistants | Bob Vogt, Mark McKenna |
| Producer Assistant | Dave O'Donnell |
| Mastering Engineer | Bob Ludwig |