Dez's Record Guides: The Police & Sting

I'll admit it. I fundamentally love the sound of The Police. There is not a song that I dislike, because even if the song itself is not that great, I can still listen intently to what three of my favorite musicians are doing. Sting on vocals and bass, Andy Summers on guitar and Stewart Copeland on drums. The Police were a trio of a different sort. Cream, Hendrix's Experience, The Who (three instrumentalists), Led Zeppelin (ditto), Rush...most rock bands with a trio of instrumentalists have a base in power (the term Power Trio was created for these bands). The Police did not steamroll you. They hit you with rhythm, space and subtlety (all of the bands I listed were also capable of subtlety, but it was not their stock and trade). It was a trio where the guitarist rarely played a straight solo, instead using textures and effects, paving the way for The Edge and other guitarists of that school. The bass often took the lead in melody. Sting's singing speaks for itself, and he proved to be one of the most intelligent songwriters of the 80's, while also hitting it out of the park time and again with classic songs.

Stewart Copeland is my favorite drummer, he fills the space masterfully. Nobody plays the hi hat like Stew. (Check out the credits on Peter Gabriel's "Red Rain" - Copeland was brought in to play the hi hat. Not drums, just the hi hat. In fact, it is the first sound you hear on the So album, Stewart Copeland's hi hat). There was also the volatility between the personalities. This was key. Sting when he is firmly in charge has proven to be complacent, creatively. Copeland never let Sting completely take charge of The Police. Copeland always viewed The Police as his band, since he put the group together initially. These guys pushed each other to a level that none has found on their own or with others. Awhile back when I listed my five star records, JMW got on me about having almost all of the Police discography at five stars (which is a benefit to having a brief discography). I took that to heart and gave a very critical look at these records this time around. You will see that I am not so fond of Sting's solo work.

Outlandos d’Amour (1978) ****
From the album cover to some of the aggression in the music, they tried to catch the punk wave, but they were faux punks at best. Why? They were too talented musicians to pull it off. No matter, the opening salvo of “Next To You,” “So Lonely” and “Roxanne” announced a major new band on the scene. There is some filler here too, but it is all entertaining at worst, and classic rock and roll at best.

Regatta de Blanc (1979) ****
Pidgin for “white reggae,” what made RdB successful, even though they were three skinny white English dudes, was that instead of trying to go to Jamaica with their sound, they successfully brought reggae elements to their own territory of British rock. This is near perfect (“Message in a Bottle,” “Bring On the Night,” “Walking On the Moon,” title track), but they obviously came up a little short to fill out a whole album, because the last third of the record is filler. Good filler, though.

Zenyatta Mondatta (1980) *****
Andy Summers once said that ZM was the “most Police of the Police albums” (I’m paraphrasing). He was right. It is a lean, minimalist masterpiece that uses space in the rock arena as masterfully as Miles Davis used to do in jazz. They play only what is necessary, therefore every element here is purposeful, nothing is superfluous. And I love how Stewart’s drums were produced.

Ghost in the Machine (1981) *****
After the minimalism of ZM, they go in the other direction and make their most sonically dense record. The Police trio liberally add horns, synthesizers and even some steel drums to the mix. It is also Sting’s most lyrically dark set of songs, addressing topics such as Northern Ireland troubles, unfulfilled spiritual quest, political cynicism and the overarching theme of technology taking over for human warmth and emotion.

Synchronicity (1983) *****
There is something to be said for going out on top. They didn’t intend for their megahit to also be their swansong, but it turned out to be just that. Four massive singles, strong album cuts around them (even Andy’s grating yet endearing “Mother”)…it made The Police the biggest band in the world for a year or two. And that was it. Five brilliant records and out.

The Police Live! (live) (1995/1979/1983) ***
Interesting two disc set, with the first disc showcasing a ragged but energetic show from ’79 and the other disc from the Synchronicity tour. The ’79 disc is awesome, but the ’83 material is pretty disappointing, the live sound on that tour was unnecessarily cluttered and bloated with synths and back-up singers.

Certifiable: Live in Buenos Aires (live) (2008) ****
Hell froze over and The Police hit the road for a reunion tour, fulfilling one of my concert dreams that I never thought would be fulfilled. I saw the tour on its Houston stop and it was fantastic. The thing is, The Police were always a little dicey live (they rarely rehearsed, and part of Sting and Stew's disagreement comes with tempo, and they would often hash this argument out in front of audiences), but they sounded stronger on this tour than in many of the more vintage live material that I’ve heard. They really did get better with age.

Compilations:
Every Breath You Take: The Singles (compilation) (1986) ***
Greatest Hits (compilation) (1992) ****
Message in a Box: The Complete Recordings (compilation box set) (1993) *****
The Very Best of Sting & The Police (compilation) (1997) **
The Police (compilation) (2007) *****
EBYT is simply too short and is missing too many key tracks to be anywhere near definitive. It is notable for containing the last studio track the band ever completed, a moody remake of “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” which is quite good in its own right (typical of their last days, Sting and Stew would go into the studio alternatively and record over each other's synthesizer part, over and over again). Message in a Box: The Complete Recordings is almost truth in advertising, it does contain all five records, b-sides, soundtrack cuts and some random live selections. The Police is the best regular compilation out there, while the Sting & The Police combo disc is an abomination. Not only is it insulting in its unspoken insinuation that the band was nothing more than backing for Sting, but it does neither group nor artist justice due to space restrictions, and it violates God's 11th Commandment, “thou shalt not mix The Police with solo Sting.”

Sting's Solo Work
When The Police imploded, all three embarked on successful solo careers. Andy Summers released some experimental records and recorded extensively with Robert Fripp, amongst others. Copeland worked with some jazz groups, and scored many films and TV shows. But it was Sting, of course, who had the biggest impact as a solo artist. Sting frustrates me so. His first three studio records are wonderful. But then...

The Dream of the Blue Turtles (1985) ****
Bring on the Night (live) (1986) ***
This is exactly what a solo record from a member of an iconic band should be. Sting does not try to recreate Police music, instead he goes his own new and bold direction. Enlisting an impressive group of young jazz musicians for his band (Branford Marsalis, Kenny Kirkland, Daryl Jones), they add class, skill and nuance to some solid new compositions that sound like Sting certainly, but also are hard to imagine as Police songs. It has a really unique feel to it. Knowing this group was a temporary thing, he wisely released a double live record from the tour to capture more of this line-up. BOTN has quite a few impressive moments (check out Kirkland’s jawdropping piano solo on The Police tune “When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What’s Still Around”), although it could have been substantially stronger with better song selection.

…Nothing Like the Sun (1987) ****
Some critics complained at the time that this was too subdued, but that ends up being its strength, actually. It has a remarkable consistency of mood and sophistication (from the Shakespeare quoting title to the classy saxophone that Branford Marsalis provides throughout to the witty songwriting/credo of “Englishman in New York”).

ABOVE: …Nothing Like The Sun. Or Nothing Like Sting's Ego. I remember a review at the time (I think it was in Rolling Stone), complaining that Sting was so concerned with showing off his intelligence and so unwilling to share the spotlight that the record suffered. I disagree, Sting has always been at his best when trying to he the smartest kid in the class (I object, as you will see below, more when he is lazy and tries to please the masses). Go back to the Police, with him namechecking Nabokov, or this line from "Wrapped Around Your Finger": "Caught between the Scylla and Charibdes," or writing two hit songs trying capture the theories of Carl Jung...Sting's always been a pompous ass. Who else writes that sh*t in rock and gets away with it, much less has huge hits doing it? His fans embrace it. But the review was funny in pointing out that in the song “They Dance Alone,” Sting has Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler on guitars, yet on the track you cannot hear any guitar at all. And he has Ruben Blades as a guest vocalist, one of Latin America’s finest singers, and Sting gives him only a spoken interlude in the song.

The Soul Cages (1991) *****
Is this really a better record than two of the Police's records? Well, uh, not really. But here is where subjectivity comes in, I've just always loved this album and really connected with it. Like NLTS, it is somewhat subdued but with a real consistency in tone and feel. TSC is the last record where Sting sounded like he had something at stake artistically. Much of it is a reflection upon his youth, as it was written and recorded in the wake of his father's passing. TSC is the most personal Sting has ever gotten as a songwriter. It did not sell well, and you can tell that after TSC, he pulls back and coasts on his skills as a pop songwriter. His commercial fortunes improved after 1991, but he has not been as interesting since.

Ten Summoner’s Tales (1993) ***
Fields of Gold: The Best of Sting 1984-1994 (compilation) ****
Mercury Falling (1996) **
Brand New Day (1999) **
…All This Time (live) (2001) **
Sacred Love (2003) *
Songs From the Labyrinth (with Edin Karamazov) (2006) NR
If On a Winter’s Night… (2009) NR
Symphonicities (2010) *
Live in Berlin (live) (2010) NR
25 Years (compilation box set) (2011) ***
The Last Ship (2013) *
Ten Summoner's Tales was the turning point. Sting could continue to create artistically satisfying records to dwindling commercial clout, or he could reach for the AOR charts and coast. Unfortunately, he chose the latter. Here I must acknowledge the wisdom of my friend ANCIANT. I recall when TST was released, we were discussing it and I got caught up in Sting's way with a pop song and melody and thought the record was just fantastic. ANCIANT immediately saw it for what it was, and TST has proven to be the harbinger for things to follow. This stuff, by and large, is dull, formulaic and safe (with the insipid hit "Let Your Soul Be Your Pilot" serving as the absolute nadir, it is so generic in its sentiment that I get angry when I hear it). It is not worthy of an artist of Sting's capabilities. That is not to say there are not good songs here or there ("I Hung My Head" from Mercury Falling, "Desert Rose" from Brand New Day), but they are rare. Songs From the Labyrinth features Sting and lutenist Karamazov recording songs by John Dowland, and If On a Winter's Night... is traditional holiday music (not "Jingle Bells", but more traditional English songs). Symphonicities features Sting performing his Police and solo compositions with a symphony. Could have been interesting with some daring arrangements, but alas, it is unbearably dull and predictable.

Bottom Line: The Police have the benefit of a short career, so there was not any time for a decline. All five of their studio records are more or less excellent, but pay special attention to the latter three. The Police compilation is the best one available. Sting's first three solo studio records are all worthwhile, the rest of his solo work is more or less worthless.