Sting records tribute to Prince on his first pop album for 17 years

'57th & 9th' also includes songs on climate change and the refugee crisis

Sting has recorded a tribute to Prince as part of his first pop album for 17 years.

Sting is finishing ‘57th & 9th’, which will include ’50,000’, a ballad written the week Prince died.

Sting told Rolling Stone of the song: “Mortality does rear its head, particularly at my age; I’m 64. It’s a comment on how shocked we all are when one of our cultural icons dies. Prince, David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Lemmy: they’re our gods, in a way. So when they die, we have to question our immortality. Even I, as a rock star, have to question my own. It’s the bittersweet realisation that hubris doesn’t mean anything in the end.”

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The album is named after the intersection in New York where Sting is recording ‘57th & 9th”, which is produced by Sting’s new manager, Martin Kierszenbaum.

Since 1999’s ‘Brand New Day’, Sting has recorded albums of lute music, classical music and Christmas carols, as well as reforming The Police for a two-year tour and writing Broadway musical The Last Ship.

The new album includes ‘Inshallah’ about refugees travelling to Europe and ‘One Fine Day’ about climate change. Sting said: “The biggest engine for migration will be climate. Millions of people will be looking for somewhere safe. I’m still in a bit of a depression about Britain leaving the EU for no good reason. At least the EU has a program to tackle climate change.”

The album will be out before the end of the year, and its guests include Jerry Fuentes and Diego Navaira of Tex-Mex band The Last Bandoleros as well as drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and guitarist Dominic Miller from Sting’s live band.

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