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Writer: Sting
Producers: The Police
Recorded: Early 1978, Surrey Sound Studios, England
Released: April 1979
Players:
Sting -- vocals, bass
Andy Summers -- guitar
Stewart Copeland -- drums
Album: Outlandos D'Amour (A&M, 1978)
Also On:
The Secret Policeman's Other Ball (Rhino, 1982) (Sting)
Every Breath You Take: The Singles (A&M, 1986)
Message In A Box: The Complete Recordings (A&M, 1993)
Live (A&M, 1995)
and other live albums and compilations
The U.S. got its first glimpse of the Police in a Wrigley's Chewing Gum commercial in February 1978, for which the group bleached their hair blonde. The blonde tresses got the more pop-oriented band mistaken as part of the punk explosion.
The reggae-tinged "Roxanne," singer-bassist Sting's ode to a prostitute, was first released in the U.K. in April 1978. It failed to chart.
It wasn't until the full album's release five months later that the song began to garner any real notice, eventually peaking on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at Number 32.
"Roxanne" was featured in the 1982 movie 48 Hrs. when Eddie Murphy loudly squawked the chorus while listening to the song on his Walkman in his jail cell.
FAST FORWARD:
The Police broke up in 1984, with all three members pursuing solo careers.
The group reunited in June 1986 to play shows on the Amnesty International "Conspiracy Of Hope" tour.
Of the three members, Sting's solo career has been the most successful. He's also pursued acting, with several film roles and live theater performances.
Sting is involved with benefits for human rights, Amnesty International, and rain forest preservation. Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has named Sting a CBE, or Commander Of The British Empire, an honorary title that ranks just below knight.
Sting has guested on some recordings by guitarist Andy Summers, who has concentrated primarily on jazz and classical music since the Police broke up.
Besides his work with the Police, the jazz-fusion group Animal Logic, and the jam band Oysterhead, drummer Stewart Copeland is well known in the industry as a film composer, having worked on movies including Wall Street and 9-1/2 Weeks.
The Police were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.
The band reunited in 2007 and is now on a tour, which is scheduled to end this summer with the band's final concerts ever. |
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