I have been a great Sting fan for a very long time — both from his years with The Police and later as a solo artist. But if I had to name the moment when his music opened up for me in a completely different way, it would be “…Nothing Like the Sun” from 1987.

That record had something I find hard to describe. The songs seemed mysterious, with a special aura, sometimes almost magical. Sting had finally stepped away from the Police sound and was creating music that moved between pop, jazz, soul and world music, yet still sounded unmistakably like him.

Almost forty years later, a surprising amount of that feeling remains. Only now Sting needs even less to bring it out.

Sting among the old masters

“The Night Watch – Live at the Rijksmuseum” was released on 26 June 2026 and grew out of a very special concert recorded at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam on 19 January 2026. It is part of ARTE’s “Sounds Like Art” series. I really like the idea behind it: musicians are invited to play among the artworks in a European museum of their choice. For Sting, it became an encounter with Rembrandt, Vermeer and Judith Leyster — and much more than a concert with an extraordinary backdrop.

The timing fits too: Sting was touring with his musical The Last Ship, his deeply personal story about his home in north-east England and the vanished shipbuilding industry of his birthplace, Wallsend. That is why this evening brings together Police classics, solo songs and pieces from The Last Ship. His long-standing guitarist Dominic Miller accompanies him.

When the room joins in

No grand spectacle, no huge band. At the centre are his voice, bass or guitar, Miller’s guitar — and these rooms. You can almost hear the air between the notes.

The place itself becomes part of the story. Sting plays among the old masters in the Gallery of Honour and in the Rijksmuseum’s spectacular historic library. And because Rembrandt’s famous “The Night Watch” is being restored, he was even allowed to play in the normally screened-off glass enclosure directly in front of the painting.

There is a wonderful story behind it too: for this concert, Sting was given access to a rare seventeenth-century guitar, originally built for the circle around the court of Louis XIV, the Sun King. An instrument several centuries old, Rembrandt’s The Night Watch and songs spanning decades — it is hard to imagine a better way to tell the story behind Sounds Like Art.

Sting does not need new songs here. He travels through his own history: “Roxanne”, “Message in a Bottle” and “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” from the Police years, then “Fields of Gold”, “Fragile”, “Shape of My Heart”, “All This Time” and “Island of Souls”, alongside pieces from The Last Ship.

That voice is still there

Perhaps what fascinates me most is this: Sting is now 75; he was still 74 at this concert. With many artists of his generation, you inevitably hear that the decades have left their mark on the voice. With Sting, I sometimes have to stop and remind myself how old he actually is. That voice is still instantly there: unmistakable, clear and remarkably powerful. A recording as stripped back as this leaves nowhere to hide behind a large band or elaborate production. To me, Sting really does still sound like Sting.

Album and concert film: two perspectives

Interestingly, the album does not contain the complete concert. The ARTE film, just under 68 minutes long, includes sixteen songs, while only twelve made it onto the released record. The film also includes “Ghost Story”, “I Was Brought to My Senses”, “Mad About You”, “August Winds” and “When We Dance”; the record, meanwhile, contains “What Say You, Meg?”, which does not appear in ARTE’s chapter list. If you enjoy the album, do watch the concert film as well — there really is more to discover.

Watch the complete concert at ARTE Concert

That is precisely what I like about this record. It is not a greatest-hits concert that simply runs through the old songs as faithfully to the originals as possible. Sting takes something away from them. And, surprisingly, that leaves even more behind.

The old Sting magic

Perhaps it even brings me full circle to …Nothing Like the Sun. Even then, it was not just the melodies that fascinated me. It was that elusive atmosphere behind the songs. Something mysterious, a certain darkness, plenty of space — that particular aura. On The Night Watch it is back, only stripped down even further.

In connection with this concert, Sting expressed a lovely thought: a good painting does not reveal itself completely at first glance. The longer you stand before it, the more you discover. A good song, he said, works in much the same way.

Being able to play “Roxanne” or “Message in a Bottle” again after more than forty years in a way that makes us really listen anew may be the best confirmation of that.

What stays with me

A quiet moment with Sting

So this time my suggestion is: give it your full attention. Your system or a good pair of headphones, a little quiet, and simply put on “Island of Souls”. That voice, a guitar, the room’s lingering resonance — it does not really need anything more.

And suddenly that old Sting magic is there again.

Sources for this article

• Sting’s official album announcement
• ARTE Concert · Sounds Like Art – Rijksmuseum (19 January 2026)

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