The Bridge (Sting album)

The Bridge is the fifteenth studio album by British singer-songwriter Sting, released on 19 November 2021 through A&M Records, Cherrytree Music Company and Interscope Records. It is his first rock-oriented album since 2016's 57th & 9th. The album marks the return of Branford Marsalis on saxophone and clarinet, as well as Manu Katché on drums.

The Bridge
Studio album by Sting
Released	19 November 2021
Recorded	2020
Studio	Lake House (Wiltshire) Il Palagio (Italy) Hôtel Germain (Senlis) Cherrytree Recording Studio Sear Sound (New York City) Sanctuary Studios (Bahamas)
Genre	Pop-rock[1]
Length	36:25
Label	A&M Cherrytree Interscope
Producer	Martin Kierszenbaum Maya Jane Coles Sting
Sting chronology
Duets (2021) The Bridge (2021)
Singles from The Bridge
"If It's Love" Released: 1 September 2021 "Rushing Water" Released: 30 September 2021

Background

Sting wrote the album "in a year of global pandemic, personal loss, separation, disruption, lockdown and extraordinary social and political turmoil".^[1][2]

Singles

"If It's Love", the first single from the album, was released on 1 September 2021.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
The Scotsman	[4]
The Sydney Morning Herald	[5]

Lakshmi Govindrajan Javeri of Firstpost wrote "Sting's new release The Bridge has a strong pop-rock vibe that defined his Police and early solo years, but some of its best songs have Celtic and jazz influences."^[6] Mark Kennedy of the Associated Press wrote "The Bridge is a moody and varied collection in an unmoored time, with nods to Scripture, ancient allegories, and malevolent characters. It's a strong album from a singer-songwriter who sees warning signs ahead."^[7] Fiona Shepherd of The Scotsman wrote "Sting is also in sprightly mood on The Bridge, whistling along on the blithe single 'If It's Love', as decent a pop tune as he has produced in some time. This lockdown production nods to his diverse musical tastes, from mellow roots track 'The Book of Numbers' with its plangent bass twang to the slick soaring saxophone (from Branford Marsalis no less) on 'Harmony Road' to the fiddle flourish of 'Captain Bateman', which is revisited as a jazzy scat bonus track called 'Captain Bateman’s Basement'."^[4] John Shand at The Sydney Morning Herald says that the album has Sting "bundling up his established interests in pop, R&B, folk and a dash of jazz – which could also be described as treading musical water", and describes Sting as "an artist who still sounds in his prime."^[5] Michael Gallucci of Ultimate Classic Rock describes the album as "Sting's least fussy and most satisfying album in years."^[8]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Rushing Water"	Sting, Martin Kierszenbaum, Gavin Brown	3:17
2.	"If It's Love"	Sting	3:12
3.	"The Book of Numbers"	Sting, Dominic Miller	3:18
4.	"Loving You"	Sting, Maya Jane Coles	4:24
5.	"Harmony Road"	Sting, Dominic Miller	3:18
6.	"For Her Love"	Sting, Martin Kierszenbaum	3:45
7.	"The Hills on the Border"	Sting	4:16
8.	"Captain Bateman"	Sting	4:14
9.	"The Bells of St. Thomas"	Sting, Dominic Miller	4:08
10.	"The Bridge"	Sting	2:33
Total length:			36:25

Deluxe edition bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Waters of Tyne"	Trad.	2:10
12.	"Captain Bateman's Basement"	Sting	3:41
13.	"(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"	Steve Cropper Otis Redding	2:54
Total length:			45:10

Japan bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City"	Harry Nilsson	2:18
Total length:			47:28

Personnel

• Sting: Vocals, Bass Guitar (1, 5, 6, 12 and 13), Fretless Bass Guitar (3, 7 and 8), Double Bass (9), Guitar (2, 3, 5, 8, 10, 11 and 13), Keyboards (3,7 and 8)
• Dominic Miller: Guitars (1-10)
• Martin Kierszenbaum: Drum programming (1-3, 5-7 and 13), Keyboards (2, 5, 6, 8 and 13), Synthesizer (1, 2, 8, 12 and 13), Organ (1, 3 and 13), Piano (13), Guitar (2), Percussion (13)
• Frédéric Renaudin: Synthesizer (1, 7 and 9)
• Josh Freese: Drums (1, 2 and 5)
• Manu Katché: Drums (8,9 and 12)
• Donal Hodgson: Drum programming (3, 7 and 8), percussion programming (2)
• Maya Jane Coles: Drum programming (4), Synthesizer (4)
• Gavin Brown: Guitar (1)
• Branford Marsalis: Saxophone, clarinet (5)
• Peter Tickell: fiddle (7 and 8)
• Julian Sutton: Melodeon (7)
• Gene Noble: Backing vocals (1-4 and 6)
• Melissa Musique: Backing vocals (2-4 and 6)
• Jo Lawry: Backing vocals (8)
• Laila Biali: Backing vocals (8)
• Shaggy: Handclaps (2)

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for The Bridge Chart (2021) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[9] 64 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[10] 7 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[11] 23 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[12] 5 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[13] 90 Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[14] 7 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] 27 French Albums (SNEP)[16] 14 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] 5 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[18] 29 Italian Albums (FIMI)[19] 26 Japanese Albums (Oricon)[20] 21 Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[21] 21 Polish Albums (ZPAV)[22] 8 Portuguese Albums (AFP)[23] 46 Scottish Albums (OCC)[24] 17 Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[25] 50 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[26] 5 UK Albums (OCC)[27] 27 US Billboard 200[28] 101 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[29] 15

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for The Bridge Chart (2021) Position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[30] 103 French Albums (SNEP)[31] 163 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[32] 91 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 80

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Poland (ZPAV)[34]	Gold	10,000‡
France (SNEP)[35]	Gold	50,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.