When We Dance

"When We Dance" is a song by English musician Sting. It was released as a single on 17 October 1994 by A&M Records and is one of two new tracks included on his first greatest hits album, Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting 1984–1994 (1994), alongside "This Cowboy Song". The song was co-produced by Sting with Hugh Padgham, and became his only solo top 10 hit in his native UK and reached the top 40 in five other countries. It was promoted with a music video directed by Howard Greenhalgh.^[1]

"When We Dance"
Single by Sting
from the album Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting 1984–1994
Released	17 October 1994 (1994-10-17)
Studio	Lake House (Wiltshire)
Length	5:59
Label	A&M
Songwriter(s)	Sting
Producer(s)	Hugh Padgham Sting
Sting singles chronology
"Nothing 'Bout Me" (1994) "When We Dance" (1994) "This Cowboy Song" (1995)
Music video
"When We Dance" on YouTube

Background

Described by Sting as a "generic ballad", "When We Dance" was written specifically to be included as a new track for the Fields of Gold compilation.^[2] The song reportedly took a year to write: "I had the melody around for a whole year before I thought of what to do with it... Then it just fell in place. It wasn't one of those songs written in five minutes."^[1]

Upon its release, "When We Dance" peaked at number 9 in the UK, becoming Sting's only top ten solo single in his home country.^[3] It also reached the top ten in Canada (number 10)^[4] and Ireland (number 9).^[5] The song was less successful in the US, peaking at number 38.^[6]

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard magazine complimented the song as a "lovely pop ballad, which rides a wonderful contrast between poignance and romance. Sting has rarely sounded so warm and engaging, swirling around lilting keyboards and delicate acoustic strumming. Comfortably deep in the pocket of current radio trends without sounding contrived, richly produced single will likely meet with instant and ardent approval at several formats."^[7]

Track listing

All tracks written by Sting.

• CD1

1. "When We Dance" (Edit) – 4:55
2. "Fortress Around Your Heart" (Hugh Padgham Remix) – 4:10
3. "When We Dance" (Album Version) – 5:59
4. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Mix) – 7:00

• CD2

1. "When We Dance" (Edit) – 4:55
2. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Radio Mix) – 4:34
3. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Deep Dub) – 8:19
4. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Hip Hop Mix) – 5:37

• Maxi–single (Europe)

1. "When We Dance" (Edit) – 4:55
2. "Fortress Around Your Heart" (Hugh Padgham Remix) – 4:10
3. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Mix) – 7:00
4. "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free" (Soulpower Deep Dub) – 8:19

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1994) Peak position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 35 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[4] 10 Europe (European AC Radio)[9] 1 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[10] 9 Germany (GfK)[11] 51 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[12] 12 Ireland (IRMA)[5] 9 Italy (Musica e dischi)[13] 11 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[14] 32 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[15] 50 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 34 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 42 UK Singles (OCC)[3] 9 UK Airplay (Music Week)[18] 6 US Billboard Hot 100[6] 38 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[19] 12

Year-end charts Chart (1994) Position UK Singles (OCC)[20] 139

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United Kingdom	17 October 1994	12-inch vinyl CD1 cassette	A&M	[21]
Japan	2 November 1994	Mini-CD		[22]
	1 January 1995	Maxi-CD		[23]