Sting Ten Summoner's Tales CD

Personnel: Sting (vocals, harmonica, saxophone, bass); David Foxxe (spoken vocals); Dominic Miller (guitar); Paul Franklin (pedal steel guitar); Simon Fisher, Kathryn Greeley (violin); James Boyd (viola); Sian Bell (cello); Dave Heath (flute); Kathryn Tickell (Northumbrian pipes, fiddle); Larry Adler, Brendan Power (chromatic harmonica); John Barclay, Guy Barker (trumpet); Richard Edwards, Mark Nightingale (trombone); David Sancious (keyboards); Vinnie Colaiuta (drums).
Recorded at Lake House, Wiltshire, England.
"If I Ever Lose My Faith In You" won the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male; and TEN SUMMONER'S TALES won the 1994 Grammy Award for Engineered Album, Nonclassical. "If I Ever Lose My Faith In You" was also nominated for Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year; and TEN SUMMONER'S TALES was nominated for Album Of The Year.
This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: Sting (vocals); Dominic Miller (guitar); Simon Fischer (violin); Kathryn Tickell (fiddle); James Boyd (viola); Sian Bell (cello); Dave Heath (flute); Larry Adler, Brendan Power (harmonica); John Barclay, Guy Barker (trumpet); Mark Nightingale, Richard Edwards (trombone); David Sancious (keyboards); Vinnie Colaiuta (drums).
Audio Mixers: David Tickle; Hugh Padgham.
Recording information: Lake House, Wiltshire, England.
Photographer: Kevin Westenberg.
After two albums of muted, mature jazz-inflected pop, the last being an explicit album about death, Sting created his first unapologetically pop album since the Police with Ten Summoner's Tales. The title, a rather awkward pun on his given last name, is significant, since it emphasizes that this album is a collection of songs, without any musical conceits or lyrical concepts tying it together. And, frankly, that's a bit of a relief after the oppressively somber The Soul Cages and the hushed though lovely, Nothing Like the Sun. Sting even loosens up enough to crack jokes, both clever (the winking litany of celebrity pains of "Epilogue [Nothing 'Bout Me]") and condescending (the sneeringly catchy cowboy tale "Love Is Stronger Than Justice [The Munificent Seven]"), and the result is his best solo record. In places, it's easily as pretentious as his earlier work, but that's undercut by writing that hasn't been this sharp and melodic since the Police, plus his most varied set of songs since Synchronicity. True, there isn't a preponderance of flat-out classics -- only the surging opener "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You," the understated swing of "It's Probably Me," and the peaceful ballad "Fields of Gold" rank as classics -- but, as an album, Ten Summoner's Tales is more consistently satisfying than anything else in his catalog. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Mr. "Sheer Profundity" delivered a stunning fourth solo album that probably surprised himself as well as the critics who were prepared to watch his fall from grace after the seeming failure of the intense THE SOUL CAGES. Right from the opener, "If I Ever Lose My Faith In You," the album holds its pace. That track will be seen as a classic in years to come, as will the beautiful "Fields Of Gold" and "Shape Of My Heart." Sting is established as a major artist with a solo career that has now eclipsed his former supergroup.Rolling Stone (3/18/93, p.38) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...strikes the tricky balance of being both uncompromised and relaxed....TALES is loose and swinging; the joy in the playing is palpable....Sting's singing is superb, a virtual study in intelligent rock-vocal technique...masterful..."
Spin (4/93, p.94) - Highly Recommended - "...his most playful record....Sting continues to emphasize his flair for haunted, existential romance..."
Entertainment Weekly (3/12/93, p.60) - "...11 terse, vividly imagined gems....has plenty of catchy, unburdened moments..." - Rating: A
Q (1/94, p.83) - Included in Q's list of `The 50 Best Albums Of 1993.'