Song: Englishman in New York, by Sting

“Englishman in New York” is a song about New York City by English artist Sting, which is from his second studio album “Nothing like the Sun,” released in October 1987.

 

Surprisingly, the “Englishman” referred to in the song is not Sting, but is in fact the famously eccentric gay icon Quentin Crisp; the song was written and released shortly after Crisp moved from London to an apartment in the Bowery.

 

Sting greatly admired Quentin Crisp, calling him “one of the most charming, witty and courageous men he knew.” He greatly admired that Crisp was openly gay when it was not only looked down upon, but also illegal. It was for this reason that Crisp became significantly happier when he finally moved to the somewhat more-accepting, albeit rough, New York City at the age of 71.

The interesting mix of rock, jazz, and pop elements in this song makes it very unique, but is also the result of a deliberate choice by Sting. He recalled that New York is very multicultural place, where you may hear jazz on one block and hip hop on another. It is said that the record company tried to talk Sting out of this stylistic choice, by he insisted that this song captured his authentic opinion of New York City.

 

One line from the song, “It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile/Be yourself no matter what they say” shows Sting’s respect for the icon this song is about, and also for others who were similarly unafraid to share a poorly-accepted identity.

 

Another notable passage from the song is

“Modesty, propriety can lead to notoriety
You could end up as the only one
Gentleness, sobriety are rare in this society
At night a candle’s brighter than the sun”

In these lines, one can see that Sting is encouraging persons, no matter their identity, to refrain from being meek and modest. I particularly like the last line  – “At night a candle’s brighter than the sun,” because it demonstrates that there are times in which a single, unafraid, enchanting person may stand out more than a mass of generally compliant people.

Lastly,

“Takes more than combat gear to make a man
Takes more than a license for a gun
Confront your enemies, avoid them when you can
A gentleman will walk but never run”

In this verse, Sting discusses cultural ideas of masculinity, and the idea that to be “a man” or to maintain one’s pride, one is required to be combative, defensive, and occasionally hostile, and implies that he thinks this is untrue.  These lines are particularly significant to me, because I am naturally a very cool-headed person, and absolutely despise being defensive and holding grudges, as I have seen many times that, the vast majority of the time, the “bigger” person is the one who is able to brush off anything without getting offended.

 

In terms of the video, the video depicts The video was shot in black and white and was directed by David Fincher and featured scenes of Sting and his band in New York, as well as the elusive Crisp. The video also shows many archetypes of New York City residents. The video is filmed somewhat as a “walking tour” of New York City, and contains many scenes of Sting or Crisp walking, including shots of their shoes. The clip doesn’t seek to over-beautify or romanticize New York City, and shows that Sting was in love with it for the way it genuinely is: multicultural, nonuniform, and with many intriguing flaws.