THEY'RE BACK... The Police Return
- Posted on March 9, 2007 9:10 AM
- 1 comment
There's the sound of a siren on the wind...
We've been chatting about The Police today in the office. What exactly makes them so popular? Why do we all like them so much? The majority can't put their finger on it; they say The Police were just always there and their songs were on the tip of our tongues. You couldn't escape them, event if you wanted to. But did you, really?
Let's face it... some bands seep into our consciousness whether we want them to or not. The Police are one band that crossed the barriers that usually divide music fans. Some people in the office remember loving them as children; others remember an Police-obsessed aunty while others just sit there with a smile as they hum "Roxanne" with a nostalgic grin across their face.
The Police are summed up in the media as Reggae/Ska but fans would probably be inclined to throw a bit of Pop and Rock into the mix. They were the brainchild of American-born drummer Stewart Copeland back in early 1977. Singer-bassist Sting and guitarist Henry Padovani joined the ranks, followed by guitarist Andy Summers. Padovani eventually left and the rest is, as they say, history. Well... not quite.
After ten years of music industry masterminding, the men had a backlog of top hits and adoring fans. Whack on a mixed tape (‘cos that's what we did in the 80s right?) and you'll be treated to "Fall Out", "Roxanne", "Can't Stand Losing You", "So Lonely", "Message in a Bottle", "Bring on the Night", "Fall Out", "Walking on the Moon", "Six Pack", "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" . See, you know them all don't you? And that's just side A. Flick the tape around and you'll hear the likes of "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da", "Invisible Sun", "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", "Secret Journey", "Every Breath You Take", "Wrapped Around Your Finger" and "King of Pain". Phew!
The band managed to become the first mainstream white band to bring Reggae to the fore, especially in foreign countries. Australians will proudly tell you that The Police were first embraced there (via non-commercial station Triple J) but the English; well... they're national treasures aren't they?
But, all good things come to and end (except clichés funnily enough) and after the Synchronicity tour in March 1984, the trademark blondes called it quits. Well, they went their separate ways - which is much the same thing. Sting had been following his own silver-lined fame path for awhile and Summers and Copeland had their own musical fish to fry. Fans were forced to go without their 'Police' live fixes... until now.
After 23 years apart, they reunited to perform as the opening act of the 49th Annual Grammy Awards. The day after (February 12 2007) they announced they will be touring together in 2007. Which brings us to now... and boy, ain't it a great feeling? The masters are back... and a new generation will reap the benefits too. The Police may not carry handcuffs or guns but this is one musical frisking we all want to have.
Are you a fan of The Police? Have you seen them live? We want to hear about it... go on, give others a taster of what we can expect in from the upcoming tour. Post your messages and comments here.
Comments (1)
Garth Oelofse
Hi I saw Sting live in South Africa at the Ellis Park Stadium .
I think todays prices for tickets are crazy as they have such a huge following how about getting them to do a Concert in the Park !!!!!
We already missed out on getting tickets in South Wales and we feel they would be reaching a bigger audience by doing a Concert in the Park.
Posted on March 11, 2007 7:21 AM
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