 | The PoliceA Retrospective: 1977-1986 |
Overview:
Formed: 1977 Where: Newcastle, England Disbanded: 1986 Reunited: 2007-08 tour “Nominally, the Police were punk rock, but…only in the loosest sense of the term. The trio’s nervous, reggae-injected pop/rock was punky, but it wasn’t necessarily punk.” A-P “The Police brought bristling energy and musical sophistication to the New Wave movement. They were among the first post-punk success stories, applying the succinct and speedy strictures of that genre to more challenging material that appealed to listeners of all ages and musical persuasions.” RH “All three members were considerably more technically proficient than the average punk or new wave band. Andy Summers had a precise guitar attack that created dense, interlocking waves of sounds and effects. Stewart Copeland could play polyrhythms effortlessly. And Sting, with his high, keening voice, was capable of constructing infectiously catchy pop songs. While they weren’t punk, the Police certainly demonstrated that the punk spirit could have a future in pop music.” A-P “On the punk-rock scene, too much musical acumen was almost a liability, but the Police compensated for their abundant chops by adopting a stripped-down sound. Their original songs were short and concise, and their lean, uncluttered approach disciplined them in beneficial ways.” RH “As their career progressed, the Police grew considerably more adventurous, experimenting with jazz and various world musics. All the while, the band’s tight delivery and mastery of the pop single kept their audience increasing, and by 1983, they were the most popular rock & roll band in the world.” A-P Though they were at the height of their fame, internal tensions caused the band to splinter apart in 1984, with Sting picking up the majority of the band’s audience to become an international superstar” A-P and “viable solo artist, one obsessed with expanding the boundaries of pop music. Sting incorporated heavy elements of jazz, classical, and worldbeat into his music, writing lyrics that were literate and self-consciously meaningful, and he was never afraid to emphasize this fact in the press. For such unabashed ambition, he was equally loved and reviled, with supporters believing that he was at the forefront of literate, intelligent rock and his critics finding his entire body of work pompous. Either way, Sting remained one of pop’s biggest superstars for the first ten years of his solo career, before his record sales began to slip.” A-S The Beginnings (The Police):Bassist Gordon Sumner (aka Sting) and drummer Stewart Copeland formed the Police in 1977. Sting, who got his nickname because of a black-and-yellow jersey he wore, used to be a teach and ditch digger while also playing in jazz-rock bands on the side. One of those was a group called Last Exit. Copeland grew up in the Middle East where his father was a CIA field officer. He attended college in California before moving to England, where he played with a progressive-rock band called Curved Air. Sting was living in Newcastle, England in 1976 when Copeland met him at a local jazz club. They formed a progressive-pop band with Corsican guitarist Henri Padovani. They gigged at local London pubs for a few months as the Police – a name which Copeland had already come up with. RH When they were hired to be a bleached-blonde punk band in a commercial for chewing gum, they got exposure but drew the scorn of genuine punk rockers. A-P Still, the look gave the group “an aura of New Wave hipness that intimated they were younger than they really were.” RH In 1977, the trio recorded its first single, Fall Out, for the indie-label IRS, which Copeland founded with his brother Miles (who also managed the Police). It sold 70,000 copies, which was a big hit for an independent release. A-P Padovani was replaced by guitarist Andy Summers. He was nearly a decade older than his bandmates and had played with Neil Sedaka, as well as “rhythm & blues (Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band), psychedelic rock (Eric Burdon and the Animals) and progressive rock (Soft Machine, Kevin Ayers).” RH The Players
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Awards
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Studio Albums
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Compilations
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Outlandos D’Amour (1978) |
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About the Album:With the lineup of Sting, Stewart Copeland, and Andy Summers in place, The Police were signed to A&M Records. In the spring of 1978, they released Roxanne, “a Sting-penned paean to a prostitute” RH noted for “its intriguing start-stop rhythms.” RH It failed to chart.The group then launched a tour of America that summer despite not having an album to support yet. Among their appearances was a performance at New York’s famous CBGB’s club on October 20, 1978. The group’s debut album, Outlandos D’Amour (“Outlaws of Love”), was released in November. It was “filled with the economical, reggae-accented New Wave pop that became the group’s stock in trade.” RH The group toured in support of Alberto y los Trios Paranoias and released So Lonely. In the spring of 1979, the rereleased “Roxanne” reached #12 on the UK charts and the Outlandos D’Amour album got to #6. “Miles also had the group tour parts of the world, including India and Argentina, that were unaccustomed to having rock bands pass through…This groundwork eventually helped the Police become a global sensation.” RH Go to the DMDB page for more about this album including chart data, sales, awards, and information on individual songs.
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Reggatta De Blanc (1979) |
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About the Album:Sting tried out his acting chops in the summer of 1979 with a part in the film Quadrophenia, based on the Who’s album of the same name. He also acted in Radio On. That fall, the Police released their second album, Reggatta De Blanc, which loosely translates to “White Reggae.” It was preceded by the single Message in a Bottle, which topped the UK charts. The band went on to hit #1 with Reggatta De Blanc in the UK and it reached #25 in the United States. They also stoked their international following with tours in countries such as Thailand, India, Mexico, Greece, and Egypt, that rarely saw concerts from foreign performers. A-P “By tour’s end, the Police were budding superstars.” RHGo to the DMDB page for more about this album including chart data, sales, awards, and information on individual songs.
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Zenyatta Mondatta (1980) |
About the Album:“Now on an extremely tight schedule, the in-demand band finished recording in the wee hours of August 9 and kicked off the first gig of a world tour in Belgium that evening.” RH “Constant playing further refined the trio’s less-is-more approach, and there were few wasted or extraneous notes even as they offered much to digest rhythmically, musically and philosophically.” RHThe song’s on the Police’s third album, Zenyatta Mondatta, showed Sting turning “his attention to subjects beyond the self, resulting in more philosophical songs like Driven to Tears, When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What’s Still Around and Canary in a Coalmine.” RH The album also saw the group achieve their breakthrough in North America, reaching the top 10 with Don’t Stand So Close to Me (a #1 in the UK) and De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da. The album hit #5 in the United States. Go to the DMDB page for more about this album including chart data, sales, awards, and information on individual songs.
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Ghost in the Machine (1981) |
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About the Album:By the onset of 1981, the group had sold out Madison Square Garden. Later that year, they recorded their fourth album, Ghost in the Machine, on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. Hugh Padgham produced the album and the sessions were filmed for a BBC documentary hosted by Jools Holland. The album was completed in a couple of months and released that fall.It found them “expanding their sonic palette by judiciously incorporating keyboards and saxes into the matrix. Much of the material – notably Spirits in the Material World, One World (Not Three) and Rehumanize Yourself – found Sting tapping into a spiritual vein that preached and yearned for global unity. Invisible Sun lamented violence in Northern Ireland with an almost metaphysical grace.” RH However, it was the “celebratory love song Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” RH which gave the Police their biggest hit to date. It was yet another #1 in the UK and reached #3 in the United States. The album hit #1 in the UK and #2 in the U.S. Go to the DMDB page for more about this album including chart data, sales, awards, and information on individual songs.
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Synchronicity (1983) |
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About the Album:After being named Best British Group at the first Brit Awards and winning three Grammys, the group took a break. Sting acted in the movie Brimstone and Treacle. He and the Police also provided music for the soundtrack. Copeland provided the score for Francis Ford Coppola’s Rumble Fish and the San Francisco Ballet’s King Lear. He also played on sessions for Peter Gabriel and released an album under the name Klark Kent. Summers recorded I Advance Masked, an instrumental album, with Robert Fripp. A-PThe Police headed back to Montserrat again and recorded a new album over six weeks. “Synchronicity “was exotic yet accessible, and its hauntingly soulful leadoff single, a href="https://davesmusicdatabase.blogspot.com/2011/06/polices-synchronicity-turns-28.html#every_breath_you_take">Every Breath You Take, topped the American charts for eight weeks.” RH With two more top-10 hits and a top-20 hit in the U.S., the album was propelled to a whopping 17 weeks atop the charts and sold over 10 million worldwide. The Police also set precedents for tours for the remainder of the ‘80s with their record-breaking world tour, including a performance to 70,000 fans at Shea Stadium on August 18, 1983. RH They also won three Grammys in 1984, including Song of the Year for “a href="https://davesmusicdatabase.blogspot.com/2011/06/polices-synchronicity-turns-28.html#every_breath_you_take">Every Breath You Take.” Go to the DMDB page for more about this album including chart data, sales, awards, and information on individual songs.
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Every Breath You Take – The SinglesThe Police |
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Released: October 27, 1986 Covers: 1978-1986 Peak: 7 US, 12 UK, 11 CN, 4 AU Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 1.2 UK, 13.6 world (includes US and UK) Genre: new wave/rock |
Tracks: (1) Roxanne (2) Can’t Stand Losing You (3) Message in a Bottle (4) Walking on the Moon (5) Don’t Stand So Close to Me ‘86 (6) De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da (7) Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic (8) Invisible Sun (9) Spirits in the Material World(10) Every Breath You Take (11) King of Pain (12) Wrapped Around Your Finger Total Running Time: 40:26 |
Rating:  4.443 out of 5.00 (average of 21 ratings)
Awards: (Click on award to learn more).
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About Every Breath You Take – The Singles: On June 11, 1986, the Police got back together to play a five-song set at an Amnesty International concert in Atlanta. RH Then they reconvened to record together. Sting didn’t have any intention of offering up any new songs, so the trio decided to re-record some songs for a greatest-hits album. Thanks to Copeland suffering a polo injury, even that plan was thrown off and the sessions only produced re-recordings of “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” and “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da.” The former was released on Every Breath You Take – The Singles while the latter wouldn’t surface until Every Breath You Take – The Classics. The compilation was the group’s fifth straight #1 in the UK and their fourth top-ten album in the United States. |
Greatest HitsThe Police |
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Released: September 1992 Covers: 1978-1983 Peak: -- US, 10 UK, 24 CN, 16 AU Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.6 UK, 1.66 world (includes US and UK) Genre: new wave/rock |
Tracks: (1) Roxanne (2) Can’t Stand Losing You (3) So Lonely (4) Message in a Bottle (5) Walking on the Moon (6) The Bed’s Too Big Without You (7) Don’t Stand So Close to Me (8) De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da (9) Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic (10) Invisible Sun (11) Spirits in the Material World (12) Synchronicity II (13) Every Breath You Take (14) King of Pain (15) Wrapped Around Your Finger (16) Tea in the Sahara Total Running Time: 67:46 |
Rating:  4.188 out of 5.00 (average of 14 ratings)
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About Greatest Hits: This is essentially an expanded version of Every Breath You Take – The Singles with all of those cuts here except for the 1986 re-recording of “Don’t Stand So Close to Me.” This set uses the original instead and also adds “So Lonely,” “The Bed’s Too Big Without You,” and “Synchronicity II.” The latter two were top-20 hits in the UK and “So Lonely” hit #6. “Synchronicity II” was also a top-20 hit in the United States. Given the running time, there was still room to include the 1986 version of “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” and “I Burn for You.” The latter, from the Brimstone and Treacle soundtrack, was a minor hit, but belongs alongside other Police classics. |
Message in a Box: The Complete RecordingsThe Police |
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Released: September 28, 1993 Covers: 1978-1986 Peak: 79 US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU, 11 DF Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, -- UK Genre: new wave/rock |
Rating: 4.601 out of 5.00 (average of 18 ratings)
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About Greatest Hits: This 4-CD box set contains all 5 of the Police’s studio albums, the B-sides they released throughout their career, their debut non-album single, and cuts from the 1982 Brimstone and Treacle soundtrack. |
Every Breath You Take – The ClassicsThe Police |
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Released: September 12, 1995 Covers: 1978-1986 Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: new wave/rock |
Tracks: (1) Roxanne (2) Can’t Stand Losing You (3) Message in a Bottle (4) Walking on the Moon (5) Don’t Stand So Close to Me (6) De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da (7) Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic (8) Invisible Sun (9) Spirits in the Material World (10) Every Breath You Take (11) King of Pain (12) Wrapped Around Your Finger (13) Don’t Stand So Close to Me ‘86 (14) Message in a Bottle (new classic rock mix) Total Running Time: 59:20 |
Rating: 4.360 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings)
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About Every Breath You Take – The Classics: This included all of the same songs as Every Breath You Take – The Singles, but added the original “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” and a remix of “Message in a Bottle.” The DTS/SACD edition also included the ’86 version of “De Do Do Do, De Da Da.” |
Flexible StrategiesThe Police |
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Released: November 16, 2018 Covers: 1978-1983 Peak: -- US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU, 12 DF Sales (in millions): -- Genre: new wave/rock |
Tracks: (1) Dead End Job (2) Landlord (3) Visions of the Night (4) Friends (5) A Sermon (6) Low Life (7) Flexible Strategies (8) Low Life (9) Murder by Numbers (10) Truth Hits Everybody (remix) (11) Someone to Talk To (12) Once Upon a Daydream |
Rating:  2.832 out of 5.00 (average of 9 ratings)
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About Flexible Strategies: While this collection of B-sides is unnecessary to anyone who owns the 1993 box set Message in a Box, this is a perfect collection for Police fans who already owned the five studio albums and didn’t want to plop down the cash for the box set. It would have been even better if this collection included the 1977 non-album single “Fall Out” / “Nothing Achieving” and the Police songs from the 1982 Brimstone and Treacle soundtrack. |
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Related DMDB Pages:
First posted 3/31/2008; last updated 8/13/2025. |
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