The Police were a British rock band formed in London in 1977….and for most of their history, the group consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion)….as The Police became globally popular in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s….while emerging in the British new wave scene….where they played a style of rock influenced by punk, reggae and jazz. Considered one of the leaders of the Second British Invasion of the U.S….as a 1983 Rolling Stone issue labelled them “the first British New Wave act to break through in America on a grand scale, and possibly the biggest band in the world.”
Their 1978 debut album, Outlandos d’Amour, reached # 6 in the UK Albums Chart….as their second album Reggatta de Blanc in 1979….became the first of four consecutive # 1 studio albums in the UK and Australia with its lead single, “Message in a Bottle”, their first UK # 1….while their next two albums, Zenyatta Mondatta in 1980…..and Ghost in the Machine in 1981, featuring “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” and “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”, both UK # 1 singles, saw further critical and commercial success. Their final studio album, Synchronicity in 1983, was # 1 in both the UK and the US….while selling over 8 million copies in the US alone. Its lead single, “Every Breath You Take”, became their fifth UK # 1 and first in the US.
The Police won a number of music awards, including six Grammy Awards, two Brit Awards while winning Best British Group once, an MTV Video Music Award and in 2003 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame….as four of their five studio albums appeared on Rolling Stone‘s list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”. The Police were included among both Rolling Stone‘s and VH1’s lists of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”.
The Police disbanded in 1986, but reunited in early 2007 for a one-off world tour that ended in August 2008. They were the world’s highest-earning musicians in 2008, due to their reunion tour. The Police have sold over 75 million records….which makes them one of the world’s best-selling artists of all time.
