If on a Winter's Night...

If on a Winter's Night...
Studio album by
Released26 October 2009 (2009-10-26)
GenrePop, folk, classical
Length50:18
With Bonus Tracks: 59:16
LabelDeutsche Grammophon
Cherrytree
ProducerRobert Sadin, Sting
Sting chronology
Songs from the Labyrinth
(2006)
If on a Winter's Night...
(2009)
Symphonicities
(2010)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic43/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Billboard(favorable)[3]
The Boston Globe(positive)[4]
The Guardian[6]
The Independent[7]
NU.nl[5]
Q[1]
The Times[8][9]
Uncut[1]

If on a Winter's Night... is the ninth studio album from British musician Sting.[10] The album is a collection of Christmas and winter-themed songs mostly written by others, including folk songs, madrigals and religious hymns from past centuries. Dozens of musicians appear on the album in various configurations, including jazz, folk and classical players.

It was released in most countries on 26 October 2009,[11][12] on 27 October 2009 in the United States[13] and 2 November 2009 in the United Kingdom.[citation needed] The album was released in several formats: vinyl LP, a single-disc CD, a limited edition CD and making-of DVD entitled The Genesis of 'If on a Winter's Night...' in Six Chapters in hardback book packaging, an Amazon exclusive version, as well as various import editions (of note is the Japanese edition). The limited edition and Amazon exclusive both include bonus songs; the Japanese edition include them as well but adds "The Coventry Carol." The album includes a reworking of "The Hounds of Winter" from his album Mercury Falling.

The title of the album is based on the novel If on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino.[14]

  1. ^ a b c "Critic Reviews for If on a Winter's Night...". Metacritic. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen. "If on a Winter's Night..." AllMusic. Retrieved 3 December 2009.
  3. ^ Wood, Mikael (13 November 2009). "Sting, "If on a Winter's Night..."". Billboard. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  4. ^ Rodman, Sarah (26 October 2009). "Sting relishes a bleak and beautiful season". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  5. ^ Oitmann, Pierre. "Review: If on a Winter's Night...". NU.nl. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
  6. ^ Simpson, Dave (11 December 2009). "Sting: If on a Winters Night". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  7. ^ Gill, Andy (30 October 2009). "If on a Winter's Night..." The Independent. London. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
  8. ^ Paphides, Pete. "If on a Winter's Night..." The Times. London. Retrieved 30 October 2009.[dead link]
  9. ^ Paphides, Pete. "Jingle sells: A-list Christmas albums".
  10. ^ Daniel Kreps (18 June 2009). "Sting to Return This Fall With If on a Winter's Night... | Music News". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 19 June 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
  11. ^ "STING If on a Winter's Night... – 1 CD". Deutsche Grammophon. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  12. ^ "If on a Winter's Night..." Discography. Sting.com. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  13. ^ "Sting announces winter album for fall". Billboard. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  14. ^ "Sting The Traveler – Classical TV interview". Classicaltv.com. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2011.