Posted on 04/15/2023 2:25:05 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Stewart Copeland ruled out another Police reunion for “honorable reasons,” saying the trio will remain great friends as long as they don't try to work together again.
Frontman Sting, guitarist Andy Summers and Copeland split in 1986 after a hugely successful nine-year stint, reconnecting in 2003 and 2007. In a new interview with the Daily Express, the drummer surmised that the Police's original run lasted longer than it might have without Sting’s loyalty to his bandmates.
“It was poisonous,” Copeland said of their ‘80s experience. “We were as big as a band could be, and everyone thought we were three golden gods with heavenly lights shining from our eyes. But in that studio, we were three pricks with no respect for each other. We were abusive and we drove each other nuts.”
He clarified: “It wasn’t physical, it was icily silent between us. We were mourning the friendship and camaraderie we’d once shared.”
Copeland, who recently announced the Police Deranged for Orchestra remake album, said the band's belief in the music kept everybody's standards high. “What I’ve learned studying these songs for orchestra is that Sting is one heck of a songwriter," he enthused. "I didn’t pay attention to that back in the day. I was just banging stuff at the back of the stage. All I ever saw was the back of Sting’s head, so I wasn’t really aware what he was singing about. Now, I realize the depth those songs carry, which is down to Andy’s sophisticated contributions too.”
The drummer said intraband relationships began to fray as early as 1980, when Sting became their lead writer. “When he brought [his songs] to the band, he had to suffer compromise, because me and Andy might have ideas too," Copeland reflected. “That became less and less easy for Sting to deal with.
"In fact, we were very fortunate we kept Sting in the Police for as long as we did," he continued. "By the end of Zenyatta Mondatta, we were playing stadiums and were already as big as you could get. We only got another two albums of Sting suffering me and Andy messing with his perfect songwriting creations, because he’s extremely loyal.”
While Copeland still has love for his old bandmates and their music, he said it's best for them to enjoy it separately. “For entirely honorable reasons, mine, Sting and Andy’s approach to music is different now," he explained. "It means we get along great, so long as we don’t have to share a stage or a studio. We’ve all said to each other how much fun we’re having playing the Police’s music without having to deal with the other two pricks.”
Still, Copeland would never say never to working with his ex-bandmates again. “More Police shows together? I’m optimistic," he quipped. "I’d totally give it a one-in-a-million chance.”
they were terrible... a good enough reason not to get back together
I liked them although they were somewhat mediocre. Sting was the talent and the other guys were just there.
Maybe that's not rare in successful musical groups. Interesting.
Yep. That must be why almost everyone thought they were great and bought all their music.
“But in that studio, we were three pricks with no respect for each other. We were abusive and we drove each other nuts.”
I saw the Police play during the Reggatta de Blanc, Zenyatta Mondatta and Ghost in the Machine tours and they seemed to be having fun. At a Synchronicity show, I turned to my girlfriend and told her “These guys hate each other.”
At that moment, I knew the Police were finished and knew to never be in a band with people you did not like.
It’s like a bad marriage, you hate every moment.
Some egos never deflate. Sad. Might have worked better to think of the fans, as people in other bands with greater longevity did/do . . . just my 2¢.
Ummm, Copeland is one of the best drummers ever and Sting is, well Sting! Andy... Meh, but Sting and Copeland are two very talented guys.
Guitarist Andy Summers in 80 years old. As far as I can tell, he’s comfortably retired.
Drummer Stewart Copeland is often ranked in the top 10 of the best rock drummers of all time . After rising to international stardom with the Police, he largely rejected his pop music past to pursue a career as a composer, authoring a prolific series of film scores, operas, and ballets. Just there ? You don’t get it my friend .
So this isn’t about some cops having a reunion?
Sure they sold a lot of records but so did the Partridge Family. Doesn’t mean they don’t suck.
The Police suck, have always sucked and you know nothing about good music
ha ha ha!
They went on to achieve incredible success by defying expectations and creating a sound all of their own, one that would inspire generations of musicians and artists to follow. The band's story, too, is a fascinating one: three very unlikely musicians drawn together, with unusual clothing and sometimes roller skates, in a tumultuous combination which produced incredible music yet could not be sustained for more than five studio albums culminating in "Synchronicity" in 1983.
and they sucked!
I didn't really pay attention to them as a little kid, but later thought his music was better than so-so, but his lyrics were head and shoulders above the rest of their contemporaries. Leonard Cohen's lyrics were way better, however he was more from my older brothers' generation rather than a contemporary.
Cohen was great.
and yet they still sucked!
He does a lot. He just published a book two years ago. He had a documentary, and many other projects.
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