"Dead Man's Rope," too, found its spark while Sting was writing the book of his life. "That song to me is about death," he says plainly. "I had the image of a man suspended on a rope between heaven and hell, suspended in a 'well of memory.' Having fallen into the well of memory when I was working on my book, I know how it feels, and it's not all pleasant.
"The other image in the song," he continues, "is of a man walking, day after day, a lifetime of walking away from responsibilities, from his pain, hoping it will go away. But at some point you have to be in one place and deal with reality, and that's where 'Dead Man's Rope' is. Once you've accepted that, then comfort arrives. You can't walk away from everything. I've tried."
"Dead Man's Rope," too, found its spark while Sting was writing the book of his life. "That song to me is about death," he says plainly. "I had the image of a man suspended on a rope between heaven and hell, suspended in a 'well of memory.' Having fallen into the well of memory when I was working on my book, I know how it feels, and it's not all pleasant.
"The other image in the song," he continues, "is of a man walking, day after day, a lifetime of walking away from responsibilities, from his pain, hoping it will go away. But at some point you have to be in one place and deal with reality, and that's where 'Dead Man's Rope' is. Once you've accepted that, then comfort arrives. You can't walk away from everything. I've tried."