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[Off The Record]
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Sting
. . . ALL THIS TIME
(INTERSCOPE)

Recorded on September 11, Sting’s career-spanning live album is an instant relic. Good as it is — and even casual fans will like it just fine — I can’t imagine he’ll ever play these songs again. Recorded at his Italian villa with his reliably expert band, the disc is occasionally grim but mostly hums with a commendable, show-must-go-on sense of purpose. And drawing from his vast body of Police and solo work, Sting gets the song selection mostly right. With the exception of the jubilant, almost funky title track, most of the songs here are slowed down from their original versions, and sparer, despite the addition of upright basses and cellos and the like. His increasing fascination with jazz is well attested to: many of the tracks have a jazzy flavor whether they need it or not. "Don’t Stand So Close to Me" is the worst offender, having morphed from a danceable pop-ska offering into a ponderous, airless dirge.

BY ALLISON STEWART

Issue Date: December 27, 2001 - January 3, 2002

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