Bring on the Night

AMG Review of Bring on the Night

Stephen Thomas Erlewine
All Music Guide

Sting really got carried away with the idea that his supporting crew for Dream of the Blue Turtles was a real jazz band. He plucked them straight out of Wynton Marsalis' backing band (thereby angering Wynton and emboldening his anti-ock stance, while flaring up a sibling rivalry between the trumpeter and his saxophonist brother Branford -- a veritable hat trick, that), and since he was initially a jazz bassist, it seemed like a good fit. At the very least, it seemed like a monumental occasion because he documented the entire development of the band and making of Dream with a documentary called Bring On the Night, releasing a double live album as its soundtrack just a year after the debut hit the stores. Arriving as a second solo album, it can't help but feel a little unnecessary, even if the loose, rather infectious performances show what Sting was trying to achieve with his debut. Even so, this is a record for the cult and will satisfy them.