Monday, January 15, 2007
Sting, Police to Reunite for 30th Anniversary Tour
Sting and the Police are giving every indication that they will reunite for a 30th anniversary tour, reports Roger Friedman, except actually announcing that they’re reuniting. Apparently, the band members no longer hate one another and Sting’s ego is assuaged after a successful solo career.
It’s looking more certain than ever that Sting is about to reunite with his original band, The Police.
The signs are strong, with enough clues available so that even Colonel Mustard could figure it out. Here’s one: Yesterday, former Policemen Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland were guests, with their families, at a Malibu birthday party for Sting’s better half, Trudie Styler. Their appearance caused quite a stir.
And on Thursday night at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Sting dedicated a lute version of “Message in a Bottle” to the pair of former comrades who happened to be seated in the auditorium.
Further investigation: Although Sting and his camp remain mum on the subject, sources do tell me that the Police will reunite this summer to celebrate their 30th anniversary.
Such a tour makes sense for everyone, since a reunited Police would probably mean sold-out stadiums and arenas around the world. An announcement could come at any time.
And think of it: With U2 and the Rolling Stones having exhausted their audiences by now, the Police would have a clear shot this summer for record-breaking box-office numbers.
The Police only recorded five albums before breaking up in 1982, but their greatest hits remain radio staples a quarter century later. Since then, Sting has gone on to have an unparalleled hit solo career, while Summers and Copeland have concentrated on jazz and soundtrack composing.
Still, the group’s songs are widely known even to a new generation. “Every Breath You Take,” “Roxanne” and “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” are known to many different age groups.
If the Police do reunite — and there’s every reason to think they will — the impetus may have come from a documentary Copeland showed last year at the Sundance Film Festival called “Everyone Stares.” Icy relations among the three thawed when Sting attended a screening of the film.
This brings to mind two questions:
1. Sting has had a solo career? I vaguely remember buying some album about blue turtles and dreaming some years back, but I thought that was Chris Gaines.
2. It’s been thirty years?! I was in high school when they were at the height of their popularity. It simply can’t have been that long ago.
