How a feeling of 'guilt' inspired Sting to reunite The Police

(Credits: Far Out / Apple Music)

The breakup of a group rarely marks a definitive end. More often than not, musicians come out of the woodwork years or decades later to announce a reunion tour or greatest hits album. Sometimes the choice to relaunch a group is born out of love, from a true desire to return to performing and recording. But sometimes it’s a cash grab, an opportunity to play on nostalgia and encourage committed fans to empty their wallets one last time. When the police came together in the 2000s, it was a glaring example of the latter.

Born in London in the late 1970s, The Police were undoubtedly a product of the new wave and burgeoning post-punk scenes that surrounded them, but Sting refused to be limited by genre. He wasn’t afraid to draw inspiration from styles that seemed far removed from their own, harmoniously infusing their sound with reggae and jazz.

While this may seem strange on paper, it stuck in the studio, where The Police wrote some truly lasting hits. From the menacing story of “Every Breath You Take” to the rocking “Roxanne” to the sparkling romance of “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” the band created many future classics and enjoyed the monetary rewards that came with it. arise. But even the best-oiled success machine can’t run forever.

The Police delivered their last album in 1983, Synchronicity, which went platinum in their home country, a final statement of their mammoth impact. In the years that followed, frontman Sting would focus on his solo career, releasing his own classics like “Englishman in New York” and “Fields of Gold,” but The Police’s influence persisted.

Sting felt indebted to his former bandmates, guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland, so he put the band back together. After decades of occasional live releases but no official comeback, the makers of “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” have announced their return to the road with The Police Reunion Tour.

In a slightly condescending statement about his motives, Sting said The Guardian, “There was some guilt.” He then acknowledged that The Police had been a “vehicle” for his songs, so he felt he had to “take care of it to some extent”. Not that they were begging, they are too proud to do that. But they were very happy to do the tour.

Starting in the summer of 2007, the band took to stages around the world to perform their best-known and most beloved hits. Fans who didn’t get to see them the first time around got a second chance, while die-hard Police fans were more than willing to spend money to see them again.

“We made a ton of money,” Sting recalled, “The timing was perfect and I take all the credit for that. It was an exercise in nostalgia. We were performing trump, probably for the last time. The tour grossed hundreds of millions of dollars, which proves Sting right. Despite the enormous salary that a return to touring brings them, the group has yet to repeat this passage.

Just as Sting suggested, it appears the group’s 2007 world tour was the last time The Police would reunite. Sting has since returned to solo recording, while Copland and Summers have embarked on their own new projects.

How a feeling of ‘guilt’ inspired Sting to reunite The Police

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