They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)
| "They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Error creating thumbnail: File missing | ||||
| Single by Sting | ||||
| from the album ...Nothing Like the Sun | ||||
| B-side | "Ellas Danzan Solas" | |||
| Released | 2 September 1988[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1987 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 7:16 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Songwriter | Gordon Sumner | |||
| Producer | Gordon Sumner | |||
| Sting singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Sting - They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" on YouTube | ||||
"They Dance Alone (Cueca Solo)" is a protest song composed by the English musician Sting and published first on his 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun; the song was the fifth and final single released from the album. The song is a metaphor referring to mourning Chilean women (arpilleristas) who dance the Cueca, the national dance of Chile, alone with photographs of their disappeared loved ones in their hands.
Sting was accompanied by Eric Clapton, Fareed Haque and Mark Knopfler on guitar, by Branford Marsalis on the saxophone, and with Rubén Blades providing additional Spanish vocals.
Song information
[edit | edit source]Sting explained his song as a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990. This song was recorded in both English (with some spoken Spanish words by the Panamanian salsa singer, Rubén Blades) and Spanish (with additional lyrics by Roberto Livi). This latter version was titled "Ellas Danzan Solas" and was released on the 1988 EP Nada como el sol.[2]
Cash Box said that the song is "one of Sting's most powerful tunes, a tribute to the Chilean women who stand in mourning and protest for their missing sons and husbands."[3]
Live versions
[edit | edit source]There are several live versions of this song, most notable from the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute (1988), from an Amnesty International concert.[4] Sting later performed the song with an extended introduction in Spanish during the Human Rights Now! concerts that took place from 2 September – 15 October 1988.[5] On 13 October 1990, Sting played the song at Estadio Nacional in Santiago de Chile (with various artists including Peter Gabriel, Jackson Browne and Sinéad O'Connor).[citation needed]
Cover versions
[edit | edit source]Mark Hall from the album Acoustic Moods of Sting,[6] the London Symphony Orchestra (1994) from the album Performs the Music of Sting,[7] Lynn McDonald (2007) from the album It's High Time,[8] Holly Near & Mercedes Sosa (English/Spanish Version) (1990) from the album Singer in the Storm,[9] Mariano Yanani (2005) from the album Babies go Sting,[10] Joan Baez (Spanish Version) (1989) from the album Diamonds & Rust in the Bullring,[11] and Birgitte Grimstad (Danish version) (1996) from the album Ord over grind, 51 Beste 1966–1994.[12]
Charts
[edit | edit source]Weekly charts
[edit | edit source]| Chart (1988–1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[13] | 35 |
| Germany (GfK)[14] | 66 |
| Italy (Musica e dischi)[15] | 24 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[16] | 29 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] | 27 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[18] | 94 |
| Chart (1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Italy Airplay (Music & Media)[19] | 9 |
See also
[edit | edit source]- "Mothers of the Disappeared" – a song by U2 that treats the same subject
References
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- ^ "Sting – They Dance Alone" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "Sting – They Dance Alone" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value). Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Sting".
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Sting" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "Sting – They Dance Alone" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
External links
[edit | edit source]- Sting: Lyrics by Sting. The Dial Press. 2007. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- Marjorie Agosín: Tapestries of hope, threads of love: the arpillera movement in Chile. Rowman & Littlefield, 2007. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- Billboard review from the From Chile... An Embrace To Hope concert in Santiago de Chile (Online)
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