Winter in Madison usually signals the beginning of an endless tear-jerking cold followed by the silent hush of a snowfall that cloaks the entire city in an ivory veil. Poetic moments like these need a soundtrack, and blasting Lil Wayne or Miley Cyrus while witnessing snowflakes land on your tongue seems like a betrayal to the splendor of the season.
Thankfully, Sting decided to fill the winter soundtrack void by writing a musical love letter to the season with his release of If On a Winter’s Night…. But let’s make a clear distinction right away — this is not a Christmas album.
This seasonal album beautifully explores the quiet eeriness of frosty winter nights and musically tells the story of centuries of celebrated winters through traditional British Isle songs, carols and lullabies.
By performing these ghostly, almost desolate historical carols, Sting is going against the tradition of familiar holiday albums that focus solely on the holly jolly tired themes of the gift-giving season. Instead, he acknowledges the lonely and sometimes intense isolation of holidays that is often overshadowed or selectively pushed aside by cheerful mass-marketed melodies.
Helping Sting meander through haunting winters past is his friend and guitarist Dominic Miller, who has been musically collaborating with Sting for nearly two decades. Together, the duo performs along with an ensemble of talented international vocalists and musicians who bring an appreciated authentic acoustic sound to the album.
The instruments of the guest artists enhance the overall quality and purity of the songs. The traditional trumpet and percussion sounds are juxtaposed with the metal string Scottish harp as well as the fiddle and violin, creating pacifying harmonies.
Sting’s decision to go old school on sound is further highlighted with a respected absence of synthesized tones on the album, which allows the raw notes of the instruments to compliment his vocals and those of his background singers, The Webb Sisters.
Although much of the album is composed of traditional British Isle melodies redefined through Sting, he also re-released two of his own songs, “Lullaby for an Anxious Child” and “The Hounds of Winter,” which served as the first track on his 1996 solo album, Mercury Falling.
Among the historical ballads and carols, Sting also ambitiously translates Franz Schubert’s “Der Leiermann” to “Hurdy Gurdy Man,” a haunting German melody that wistfully lingers on each connecting phrase.
Though the album may not include many recognizable holiday favorites, it contributes a fresh sound to a season that hasn’t yet been exploited by nauseating pop stars and even weaves in a holiday melody of “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen” on the track “Soul Cake.”
This musical coincidence lends the upbeat number that holiday familiarity listeners have been trained to crave while also exposing an innovative take on secular songs for the upcoming season.
“The Burning Babe” and “There Is No Rose of Such Virtue” are the two most download-worthy songs on the album. Their innovative background instrumentals softly balance the subtleties of Sting’s voice while still remaining melodically strong, creating two ear-pleasing tracks.
If you’re still convinced Lil Wayne and Ms. Cyrus offer the appropriate sounds of the season, and that traditional British Isle tunes won’t really get the winter shindig underway, this album is still a great gift idea for Mom, Dad, or any pronounced Sting fan.
4 stars out of 5.
