The Soul Cages is the third full-length studio album released by English musician Sting. Released on 21 January 1991[13] it became Sting's second No. 1 album in the United Kingdom.[14] This was Sting's first album to feature guitarist Dominic Miller, who would become a regular collaborator.
Since 2010, the song "Saint Agnes and the Burning Train" became known as Lee Kwang Soo's theme across 560 episodes from 2010 to 2021 when Kwang Soo was still a member in the Korean variety show Running Man. Kwang Soo's theme song
It is estimated that the song played a total of 2,800 times or more assuming that this song played 5 or more times in every episode. Contrary to what some may think, Running Manisn't scripted and everything that is happening on screen is real. This song has been played in various situations where some kind of misfortune has happened to Kwang Soo such as getting consecutive penalties in a game or being eliminated. Other cases involve Kwang Soo getting hurt/injured for comical effect or being interrupted by Yoo Jae Suk or by another guest in the show. Because of the great impact the show had worldwide, it led to a series of running gags where fans of the show would write "Lee Kwang Soo OUT!" in the YouTube comments in Korean and English for various uploads of this song. Even the official uploads on Sting's channel received these comments thanking Sting for composing this funny song now synonymous to Lee Kwang Soo. Although Kwang Soo left Running Man in 2021, this song was commonly used in situations in which Kwang Soo was mentioned, referenced, or made a brief appearance in the show by means of a phone call.
On 15 January 2021, Sting released an expanded version of The Soul Cages to celebrate its 30th anniversary. Along with the original 9 tracks, this new edition includes 13 bonus tracks that consist of remixes, extended mixes, and a pair of songs sung in Spanish and Italian incarnations.[16]
The Soul Cages is a concept album focused on the death of Sting's father.[17] Sting had developed a writer's block shortly after his father's death in 1987; the episode lasted several years, until he was able to overcome his affliction by dealing with the death of his father through music.[18] The single, "Why Should I Cry for You", was written for The Soul Cages in 1989, and Sting has said that the rest of the album flowed quite easily after that first hurdle was overcome. Most of the songs have motifs related to sailing or the seas; Sting wrote in his autobiography, Broken Music, that his father had always regretted not becoming a sailor. There are also references to Newcastle, the part of England where Sting grew up.[17]
"I lived next to a shipyard when I was young and it was a very powerful image of this huge ship towering above the house. Tapping into that was a godsend – I began with that and the album just flowed." — Sting[18]
In an interview with Charlie Rose aired on 10 December 2010, Sting mentioned that he was working on a "mood piece", a musical project and book in collaboration with Pulitzer winner Brian Yorkey. The work would be based on an album he released many years ago concerning the loss of his father, growing up in Newcastle and witnessing the passing of the shipbuilding industry there. He admitted being scared of the prospect of pulling it all together but expressed confidence in it working out. This project has since been confirmed as the musical The Last Ship.[19]
At the time this album appeared, the music industry was starting to shift away from using CD longboxes. Sting, a committed environmentalist, wanted to eliminate the amount of cardboard waste caused by the longbox. The original packaging was a fourfold cardboard case that could be modified to look like a longbox, and folded back into a jewel box sized CD package for home storage. In Germany, the CD was sold in jewel cases as well as longboxes. The cover painting was a commissioned work by the Scottish artist Steven Campbell.
Until the release of Symphonicities in July 2010, The Soul Cages was the only studio album by Sting not to feature a photograph of himself on the front cover, although he does appear on the back cover of both albums.
^Browne, David (1 February 1991). "The Soul Cages". Entertainment Weekly. Meredith Corporation. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
^Australian Recording Industry Association. "Sting – The Soul Cages". Australian-Charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 12 November 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
^"Album Search: Sting". Offizielle Deutsche Charts (in German). GfK Entertainment. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
^"スティング-リリースミュージック" [Sting Release - The Soul Cages]. Oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
^Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. "Sting – The Soul Cages". Charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
^Swiss Music Charts. "Sting – The Soul Cages". HitParade.ch (in German). Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 2 December 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
^Stansield, David (22 February 1992). "PolyGram Leader in '91 Sales Survey"(PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 9, no. 9. p. 7. Retrieved 8 April 2020 – via American Radio History.