"I Hung My Head" is a song written by the singer-songwriter

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

and released on the 1996 album ''

Mercury Falling ''Mercury Falling'' is the fifth studio album by Sting, released in 1996. The album begins and ends with the words " mercury falling." In 1997, the album earned Sting two Grammy nominations for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Male Pop Vocal Pe ...

''. It reflects Sting's childhood fondness for TV Westerns, as well as his avowed interest in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

, but also tackles deeper and more philosophical themes of life, death, justice and redemption. It tells the story of a boy who shoots a stranger, the resulting shame, and the consequences he faces.

Blue Highway Blue Highway is an American contemporary bluegrass band formed in 1994 and based in Tennessee. The band's albums include ''Wondrous Love'' (2003), ''Marbletown'' (2005), and '' Original Traditional'' (2016). Background After helping found th ...

released a bluegrass version of the song in 1999 on their self-titled album ''Blue Highway''. In 2002,

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

covered the song in the album '' American IV: The Man Comes Around''. Sting re-recorded the song in an orchestral version for his 2010 album ''

Symphonicities ''Symphonicities'' is the tenth studio album by English musician Sting, released on 13 July 2010 on Deutsche Grammophon. This is his first studio album featuring new recordings of existing songs (the second one to date being the 2019 studio al ...

''.

Theme

The story is told from the point of view of a young man who takes his brother's rifle out with him one morning. He points the rifle at a man who is riding a horse in the distance ("I drew a

bead A bead is a small, decorative object that is formed in a variety of shapes and sizes of a material such as stone, bone, shell, glass, plastic, wood, or pearl and with a small hole for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under ...

on him; to practice my aim.") The rifle discharges by accident, killing the rider. The man runs to the salt lands, throwing the rifle into a stream. (The Cash cover changes "salt lands" to "south lands", and "stream" to "sheen". Sting supposed the latter was due to a misprint in the lyrics Cash was using. ) He is discovered by a sheriff, and is struck by the realization of what he has done. He is brought before a judge and jury, where he begs forgiveness and wishes he were dead. In the start of his answer to the judge he states “I felt the power of death over life” which could possibly reveal that it was not an accident. Awaiting execution on the

gallows A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended (i.e., hung) or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sacks ...

, he sees as a "trick of the brain" the rider return, so that they will ride together "till

kingdom come " Kingdom come" is a phrase in the Lord's Prayer in the Bible. Kingdom Come may also refer to: Film * ''Kingdom Come'' (1919 film), a Western short featuring Hoot Gibson * ''Kingdom Come'' (2001 film), a comedy starring LL Cool J * ''Kingdom ...

". The man prays to God for mercy.

Compositional structure

The song is one of very few popular tunes written in . The 9/8 is subdivided into 2 + 3 + 2 + 2, counted as “1-2, 1-2-3, 1-2, 1-2”; this is emphasised by the general bass line on beats 1, 6, 8, and the drums on beats 1, 3, 8. (This time signature is reminiscent of the Bulgarian

aksak In Ottoman musical theory, ''aksak'' is a rhythmic system in which pieces or sequences, executed in a fast tempo, are based on the uninterrupted reiteration of a matrix, which results from the juxtaposition of rhythmic cells based on the alternati ...

rhythm

Grancharsko horo Bulgarian folk dances are intimately related to the music of Bulgaria. This distinctive feature of Balkan folk music is the asymmetrical meter, built up around various combinations of 'quick' and 'slow' beats. The music, in Western musical notat ...

which is counted in the same way.) In the cover by

(and, later, by

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

), the time signature of the song was simplified to a standard time, which naturally abbreviates the pauses between the phrases of the melody. In Sting's original version, the key is B♭ Major. The guitar part by

Dominic Miller Dominic James Miller (born 21 March 1960) is an Argentine-born guitarist. With much of his career as a sideman and guitarist for singer Sting (musician), Sting, he has also released several solo albums. Career Miller was born in Hurlingham, Bue ...

is played with a capo on the 1st fret.

Appearances

Johnny Cash's cover version of the song was used in the Season Six premiere of ''

The Shield ''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt poli ...

'', and was played over the opening and closing of the episode. The episode dealt with the aftermath (guilt, recriminations and anger) of the murder of a central character by his partner, who mistakenly believed that the victim had betrayed him.

covered the song at the 2014

Kennedy Center Honors The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in a gala celebrating five hono ...

where Sting was one of the honorees.

References

{{authority control Sting (musician) songs Johnny Cash songs Country ballads Rock ballads 1996 songs Songs written by Sting (musician) Murder ballads