Sting - The Secret Marriage

Sting - The Secret Marriage (Nothing like the Sun - 1987) In my opinion “Nothing Like the Sun - is one of the best albums by Sting. Each song has very strong aspects to it from the melody, lead guitar parts, vocals, bridge transitions, harmonies, to rhythm and pace of various songs. Each song is quite different from one another. Thus, each song takes on its own life, movement, and feel. In fact, “Nothing like the Sun“ is itself a greatest hits album; 5 of the 12 songs are included on “Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting. One of my favourites on the album is “ The Secret Marriage“. Sting explains in the insert of the album that the song is based on a melody from Hanns Eisler - a colleague of Bertold Brecht. Eisler fled to America from the Nazis who apparently hounded him for rest of his life in various disguises. Sting: “the song is about the inner joining of two people without the official sanction of the church or state. The Secret Marriage is my way of trying to justify or rationalize why I wasn’t married to the woman I had lived with for 10 years. My justification was that we were already married in a way that we expressed our vows to each other every day, but not in a big public ceremony. It was until our kids got to around the age of 9 or 10 that they needed to have some sort of public demonstration that we were married, and it was their idea that we got married in a public way. Our marriage is a secret no longer“. In 2010 I saw this haunting picture of a young woman lying on the grave of Lance Corporal Noah M Pier who died in Afghanistan. He was engaged; a summer wedding had been set. The secret marriage vow is never spoken. It reminded me to one of Lord Tennyson famous - but hard to understand - words: “T’ is better to have loved and lost Than never to have loved at all“ I wish for her - and everyone who ever lost a loved one - that these words, accompanied by the music and lyrics of Sting, will bring soothing comfort. We may regard death as an unmitigated evil, the last enemy: and yet Christ came to defeat sin, to conquer death. “O Death where is thy sting, O Grave where is thy victory,“ wrote St Paul in 1 Corinthians 15: 54-57. The whole story of Lance Corporal Noel. M Pier: Sting: vocals Ken Helman: piano Lyrics: The Secret Marriage No earthly church has ever blessed our union No state has ever granted us permission No family bond has ever made us two No company has ever earned commission No debt was paid no dowry to be gained No treaty over border land or power No semblance of the world outside remained To stain the beauty of this nuptial hour The secret marriage vow is never spoken The secret marriage never can be broken No flowers on the alter No white veil in your hair No maiden dress to alter No bible oath to swear The secret marriage vow is never spoken The secret marriage never can be broken