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Why is there this sadness in their eyes?
Why are the soldiers here
Their faces fixed like stone?
I can't see what it is that they despise
They're dancing with the missing
They're dancing with the dead
They dance with the invisible ones
Their anguish is unsaid
They're dancing with their fathers
They're dancing with their sons
They're dancing with their husbands
They dance alone, they dance alone
It's the only form of protest they're allowed
I've seen their silent faces they scream so loud
If they were to speak these words they'd go missing too
Another woman on the torture table what else can they do
They're dancing with the missing
They're dancing with the dead
They dance with the invisible ones
Their anguish is unsaid
They're dancing with their fathers
They're dancing with their sons
They're dancing with their husbands
They dance alone, they dance alone
One day we'll dance on their graves
One day we'll sing our freedom
One day we'll laugh in our joy
And we'll dance
One day we'll dance on their graves
One day we'll sing our freedom
One day we'll laugh in our joy
And we'll dance
Ellas danzan con los desaparecidos
Ellas danzan con los muertos
Ellas danzan con amores invisibles
Ellas danzan con silenciosa angustia
Danzan con sus padres
Danzan con sus hijos
Danzan con sus esposos
Ellas danzan solas
Danzan solas
Hey Mr. Pinochet
You've sown a bitter crop
It's foreign money that supports you
One day the money's going to stop
No wages for your torturers
No budget for your guns
Can you think of your own mother
Dancin' with her invisible son
They're dancing with the missing
They're dancing with the dead
They dance with the invisible ones
Their anguish is unsaid
They're dancing with their fathers
They're dancing with their sons
They're dancing with their husbands
They dance alone, they dance alone
Okay, I can see how people find this song bland on the surface. But I can't help but hear/see it in context of the whole album when it first came out. Even though it was 87, there were still liner notes with albums, and you'd read them to find out WTF is going on with the song you were listening to.
"(This song is) a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990. (It) 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."
I couldn't quickly find the original liner notes, but that's the gist of it gleaned from Wikipedia. Also, Sting put together this album in the midst of his mother dying, and subsequently there's no much uptempo anything on that album, and the theme of "women" shows up throughout it.
ps - Turns out Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler pitched in on this track too
This song is so beautiful to me; being a teenager during the time that Pinochet was committing these atrocities, I was haunted by what was happening, the disappearing of the men within communities. The gentle protest of women gathering in groups, to dance alone, in silence, with portraits of their missing husbands, lovers, sons, grandsons -- it seemed so beautiful. A graceful protest. A protest of beauty. It might be one of those songs that has no meaning unless one knows the inspiration, and maybe that means it's not a "great song" as in, one which lives on regardless of knowledge of the subject. But for me, it's a masterpiece.
There's a live version of this by Holly Near with Mercedes Sosa that puts this version to shsme.
The original Holly Near version can't be beat.
Not the original.
I agree on your first two points, and your conclusions but Sting didn't write this song, a remarkable woman named Mercedes Sosa did.
Her English/Spanish duet with Holly Near on Near's Singer in the Storm album blows this version out of the water.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes_Sosa
(Note to self: no Holly Near on RP, must remedy!)
Okay, I can see how people find this song bland on the surface. But I can't help but hear/see it in context of the whole album when it first came out. Even though it was 87, there were still liner notes with albums, and you'd read them to find out WTF is going on with the song you were listening to.
"(This song is) a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990. (It) 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."
I couldn't quickly find the original liner notes, but that's the gist of it gleaned from Wikipedia. Also, Sting put together this album in the midst of his mother dying, and subsequently there's no much uptempo anything on that album, and the theme of "women" shows up throughout it.
ps - Turns out Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler pitched in on this track too
Just wanted to bump this to the top
Anything is an improvement on Patti Smith.
Except Cowboy Junkies. Patti rules over Cowboy Junkies.
Anything is an improvement on Patti Smith.
macadavy wrote:
There's no insult intended by mentioning that others have raised this song to new heights. As it happens Mercedes Sosa is an Argentinian woman who remembers 'the disappeared'.
Her music made people hail her as the "voice of the voiceless ones". Surely Holly Near needs no introduction, though sadly, I've never heard her on RP.
Really boring comment.
macadavy wrote:
Still sounds like a complete trainwreck with the rest of the band still playing the smooth jazz song though.
What's up with the song comment?? I thought this was a personal attack board!
Still sounds like a complete trainwreck with the rest of the band still playing the smooth jazz song though.
"(This song is) a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990. (It) 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."
I couldn't quickly find the original liner notes, but that's the gist of it gleaned from Wikipedia. Also, Sting put together this album in the midst of his mother dying, and subsequently there's no much uptempo anything on that album, and the theme of "women" shows up throughout it.
ps - Turns out Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler pitched in on this track too
Thanks for fleshing this out. The song had a feeling I couldn't put my finger on. Serious traction now.
Highlow
American Net'Zen
He never gives you a thought.
I do hope this is humour. Kenny who?
- Sting / Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
- Renée Geyer / Background Vocals
- Dollette McDonald / Background Vocals
- Janice Pendarvis / Background Vocals
- Vesta Williams / Background Vocals
- Kenwood Dennard / drums
- Manu Katché / Drums
- Andy Newmark / Drums
- Gil Evans & His Orchestra (on "Little Wing")
- Mino Cinelu / Percussion, Vocoder
- Rubén Blades / Vocals, Guitar (on "They Dance Alone (Gueca Solo)")
- Mark Egan / Bass
- Hiram Bullock / Guitar
- Eric Clapton / Guitar, Background Vocals
- Fareed Haque / Guitar
- Mark Knopfler / Guitar (on "They Dance Alone (Gueca Solo)")
- Andy Summers / Guitar
- Kenny Kirkland / Keyboards
- Ken Helman / Piano
- Branford Marsalis / Saxophone
Wow! I knew that I loved this song, one of Sting's most beautiful and meaningful creations, but never knew how many greats appear on it. Thanks for the list.
Why is he an awful human being? Has he sent innocent boys to war, or kept a child in his basement? Have I missed something?
No...you didn't miss anything but don't let it get to you. H8r just gotta h8 and they have no need to buttress their ridiculous claims with reasoning or examples. Fire and forget is their motto. They criticize those that achieve though they have not done squat.
So... we rise above.
"(This song is) a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990. (It) 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."
I couldn't quickly find the original liner notes, but that's the gist of it gleaned from Wikipedia. Also, Sting put together this album in the midst of his mother dying, and subsequently there's no much uptempo anything on that album, and the theme of "women" shows up throughout it.
ps - Turns out Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler pitched in on this track too
Why is he an awful human being? Has he sent innocent boys to war, or kept a child in his basement? Have I missed something?
The Last Ship (2013)
What about?
.
prickelpit96 wrote:
Horrible. Unbelievable how awful music can be.
- Sting / Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
- Renée Geyer / Background Vocals
- Dollette McDonald / Background Vocals
- Janice Pendarvis / Background Vocals
- Vesta Williams / Background Vocals
- Kenwood Dennard / drums
- Manu Katché / Drums
- Andy Newmark / Drums
- Gil Evans & His Orchestra (on "Little Wing")
- Mino Cinelu / Percussion, Vocoder
- Rubén Blades / Vocals, Guitar (on "They Dance Alone (Gueca Solo)")
- Mark Egan / Bass
- Hiram Bullock / Guitar
- Eric Clapton / Guitar, Background Vocals
- Fareed Haque / Guitar
- Mark Knopfler / Guitar (on "They Dance Alone (Gueca Solo)")
- Andy Summers / Guitar
- Kenny Kirkland / Keyboards
- Ken Helman / Piano
- Branford Marsalis / Saxophone
Horrible. Unbelievable how awful music can be.
Did he collaborate with Kenny G on this one? Yikes
Will the Stingophiles encourage more of this?
Papernapkin wrote:
TonySkiens wrote:
Sting is a pretentious self rightoues pain in my life....
I would take Ozy 100 times over that very talented but very pretentious above us all Sting...
Never-was and two-thumbs-Don (thanks Shat) are going to tell us how self righteous Sting is. Sting being pretentious isn't really an old, tired, boring, and overused cliche. Is it?
Sorry he pained your lives children. I'm sure that his goal in life, other than making music that millions of fans enjoy for 3+ decades, was to annoy a couple of trolls.
His fans are getting older!
Please, do not throw your panties on stage!
His fans are getting older!
But it was still the same song.
Yuck.
TonySkiens wrote:
Sting is a pretentious self rightoues pain in my life....
I would take Ozy 100 times over that very talented but very pretentious above us all Sting...
Yes, Kudos for Sting for trying to shine a little light on that subject. I'm not sure if it had any positive results but at least he tried.
some things are better left forgotten...
Les Claypool is the man.
SweTex wrote:
He did?
Sting is a pretentious self rightoues pain in my life....
I would take Ozy 100 times over that very talented but very pretentious above us all Sting...
And about a very important subject: los Desaparacidos, or "disappeared" of Latin America.
He did?
yeah but it gets hopeful. c'mon
Many journeys taken via Sting.
Yea.....so?
I agree on your first two points, and your conclusions but Sting didn't write this song, a remarkable woman named Mercedes Sosa did.
Her English/Spanish duet with Holly Near on Near's Singer in the Storm album blows this version out of the water.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes_Sosa
(Note to self: no Holly Near on RP, must remedy!)