Jools Holland interviews Sting (The Police)

[keeelane]

sting's got great legs

[bbender1975]

Great to see Sting just open up and share how he works his magic. Many consider him to be arrogant, but in this interview he comes across as modest and open about his craft.

[MLuminary]

4:31 Itchy sweat in interviewer's axillary

[robertk2007]

sting wrote the outline for about 99 percent of the police songs. His background was jazz so he songs had a jazz sound to them. It was up to stewart and andy to "Police-ifize" the songs and arrangement. I think Andy did come up with every breath you take guitar. it was andy who broke up the chord sequence of the police songs.

[tubeyhamster]

What is this clip from? I'd like to have the whole interview on DVD. I know there are other parts with Copeland and Summers.

[WhiteWolfDief]

@tubeyhamster - It's part of the bonus material on the "The Police - The Videos" DVD.

[tubeyhamster]

Sting's hat is on backward.

[gorfjorf2112112]

Sting was 90% of the Police. He even came up with the ingenious guitar parts. He did everything really. The other guys just added energy.

[UnforgettableDolphin]

Sting... In short shorts... Those legs... O-o *dies*

[sysrq120]

Did sting write all the guitar parts for police songs?Bit like Hetfield from metallica.

[promotah17]

Sting is a brilliant guy - lots of comments allude to his attitude or ego and perhaps rightly so, particularly early on. I think he was royalty born into working class and always felt he needed to climb out - his body of work eclipses all that in my opinion. I was very lucky to get to be a friend to one of his bandmates from the early 90's era and have had many chats re: Sting - fact is he's a very good guy.

[lydianflatseven]

his nose is so chubby here!

[ritter89]

@lydianflatseven Nose job a few months after this interview

[quiverbuzz]

Yep, Sting was a prick even back in the day..

[BaneOfXistence4]

I have listened to the Police for years and I never knew what chords were really going on beneath "Message In A Bottle". My favorite guitarist, Joe Satriani, made a song called "Solitude" and it sounds close to what Sting is playing @2:04-2:20.

[JJAAHH]

WOW, THOSE SHORTS!!!

[bababoum]

Sting is one of the greatest living musicians.

[crazysocks524]

This is so funny......a great many guitarists wouldn't even know how to grip a Dm9 chord (or even an A9) and it almost comes across as if he's trying to impress Jules Holland....Jules on the other hand is just humming and nodding, secretly thinking, yeah Sting, but what would it have sounded like as a Dm7#9b5. Great interviewer who has just gotten better over the years !!

[TheReilly8]

sting tryin to do a london accent :(

best stick to music eh sting

[eikels]

Interesting to see where it all went downhill.

Like Keith Richard is explaning he is the Stones.

[paulstearne]

You can tell from this that Sting's ego was HUGE at this point.

[Kimmocheck]

nice shorts!

[Greesovith]

HOLY CRAP .. I didn't knew he was such a skinny dude back in the day.. the interviewer

[silverspiels]

this is so cool!

[fivestarmichael]

Sting was such a brilliant songwriter... what happened?

[trulysarcastic]

@fivestarmichael he said goodbye to two great musicians, became extremely rich, got remarried. He became to happy and content. Most people don't write great music when they absolutely love their life. Their was a lot of tension in The police and I think that helped, plus everyone eventually starts writing crappy songs or become parodies of themselves

[Eltroim]

fuck invisiblesun is a cool song i get the beginning but then i cant make out what he's playing :<

[parisianUK]

:( reverse hat.

[mrsoundwave]

the Police had good beats,good guitar and good singing and bass

[brajtnerinjo]

Yes, The Edge played one just like that

[Nigelxman]

Wow. They were doing lot's and lots of coke then. Guess that was par for the course.

[buopako]

this interview is spinal tappy..sting reminds me of Nigel

[ccy2]

I totally agree...

[eurobaby460]

I doubt half of today's "artists" understand what the hell arpegio, and D,B etc even are!

[buildgod93]

@eurobaby460 I doubt half the people who liked that comment ever got their asses off of the radio.

[Bohja1]

@eurobaby460 As you said... ''artists'', in my eyes they arent even artist

[eurobaby460]

Cute legs!

[WhiteWolfDief]

great insight into the head and work of one of the most talented artists ever!

[LEdERkEPS]

I have that boombox, found it yesterday :)

[thomascrown559]

WRONG. That was a list of chord progressions if anything at best. Andy has admitted it several times.

[thomascrown559]

Andy Summers can't even READ music!

Sting is a classical musician trained to read, write, play and perform.

[evilempire96]

well maybe back then they did, but now im pretty sure there is no such thing available, i just love that colour scheme.

[JosephCorrosive]

is Jools Holland on crack in this video? lol

[kafcin]

Sting is just genius

[evilempire96]

I want a strat like his one, like all black body and maple neck, I've never seen one with that colour scheme.

[bbender1975]

@evilempire96 1980 CBS Stratocaster; last year of CBS era. I think they called these "blacktop" models." This was a pretty new guitar when this interview took place. They made hardtails and tremolos then, but Sting's is a trem model (you can see the arm). Three bolt micro tilt on the neck. Probably get one about $2,500. Hope this helps!

[dockaiser]

Sting wrote the guitar riff to "message..."?

[thomascrown559]

Sting wrote most guitar and bass riffs for the police. He is by far a stronger guitar/lute player than Andy Summers.

[gigisdad]

You really think Sting is a better guitarist than Andy Summers?? I think you're way off. You obviously don't know much about AS.

[DrPunkin]

Yeah he wrote the majority of the police's songs.

[dockaiser]

Well I know that, but I thought Andy Summers would write his guitar parts himself, what ever

[SNARELL02]

they seem to be a little pedantic, specially holland.

[hazor777]

Can your comments be anymore CLUELESS !? Im guessing yer all under27, b/c 'short shorts' were anorm in the early 80s -- go back & look at old NBA footage, soccer magazine ads etc... it was the style at the time & the 80's were a great time to be alive

[bds1167]

You're so right. I wore short short Ocean Pacific shorts in the '80's. Chicks dug seeing a guy's legs, unlike the rap, baggy pants fucks who look like nothing but hoodlums in the last 20 years.

[USTUBE4000]

Shorts were just that in the 70s and 80s. They were short. Everywhere you looked shorts were short. Basketball, soccer, everywhere. In fact men wearing them were seen as masculine. That was just the social and cultural realities and normality of the time. Now of course shorts and not really shorts. They are really just short pants.

[pazzensutra]

For those of you who don't know, this is off of the Police video hits DVD, and on it there is a documentary that Jools did with the Police while they recorded their album in Monserrat at George Martin's AIR studios. If you're a Police fan you have GOT to have this! Also, the footage of the studio is cool too, sad considering that the building was demolished when the volcano erupted and destroyed most of the island, including the studio: it no longer exists.

[solar7]

cant believe all those comments on shorts and cocaine..

. hey ,folks, in life people do stuff, sometimes wearing short shorts AND doin coke at the same time,.ooh shock n wow.

petty gossipin shame shames, dont miss the wood for the trees ..

[GoodDharma5]

there's no one more full of themselves.

[liljonfunk]

Jools has always been such a rubbish presenter

[shadspreiter]

could his shorts be any shorter?

[amphibianTEEF]

lol, i think at one point, they always wear short-shorts. especially copeland.

[777klo]

he could take em off....

[itkapatanka]

could the beatles pants be any tighter?

[shwilly]

Also, you really miss Friends, dont you?

[Charlieparliee]

@shadspreiter Yeah they could be, but then they would be undies. I mean seriously, I didnt live back then but I'm not surpisded by his shorts, I mean, it was just fashion. The point of this vid is not his shorts, but the interview. I mean, no offense, but get over it XD.

[ScaperSteph]

Great interview!

[SK8ERBoixxxx]

Wow this was very inspiring. :) Thanks.

[coreystewart]

What a brilliant insight into Sting's songwriting process. Dennis the Drum Machine would be pleased.

[NotOrdinaryInGames]

Video taken from...where?

[eladbari]

joining the question!

btw..for me it feels like a mansion somewhere in africa\jamaica :]

[antoinne1]

Just listen at how good he plays, Listen at what cords he uses.Message in a bottle He writes in the back of the Bus. D-9th a minor

, b , then F sharp this is so cool

[MrMathematical]

LOOK! at those shorts hahaha

[micromacromolecula]

i'll send an s.os. to he world

i hope thata someone gets my...

message in a bottle

[weedipikia]

so inspiring

[damidob]

Kitty Baroque is correct -it was on the BBC in, I believe, October 1980. I remember it well cos I had just been to my first ever gig - the Clash at Bingley Hall in Birmingham! Saw the Police the following year. The programme also had footage of them being mobbed in Japan earlier.

And the accent? Yes, hardly Wallsend original but this is what happens when you move away - so says the voice of experience.

Copeland is a fan of Grieg - cf his tomtom routine.

Wish they would do another album.

[roxsta95]

Happy birthday Sting! (which was on Thursday)

i love you so very much!

Roxsta

xoxo

[bsidesbaby]

cool clip! And the shorts don't bother me. Nope, not at all ;)

[evilempire96]

I really want that tape recorder/drum machine Sting uses, looks well fun.

[solar7]

secong that. cant spot the brand..handy item for the bus..

[gaae2000]

shit, so actually Sting is involve not only in the writin but the SOUND too!!!...kind of knew it, but thought Andy created the guitar bits...

[bbriff22]

Great insight into the Police, top stuff

[srbajdza]

Unforgetable, I love it, The Police rock!!!

[paulstearne]

did he fart at 1:49

[jazzmanbob1]

what a good musician!

but... the shorts... :(

[lurholm]

Well... they're in the Bahamas here, aren't they? That would explain the shorts, I suppose.

[ajittffcure]

Wow! Simply amazing! Good demo, Sting!!!!

[scifitim]

Very cool......!

[paij75]

a musical genius at work

[rock2208]

really amazed at his creativity...amazing..!

[TheNeNeRockstar]

ah , i also used the TASCAM 244 recorder. And Casio keyboards. Nice

[Ratchicken78]

Anyone know what company made Stings tape recorder/drum machine?

[Kylefulmet]

ha ha who cares if they were doing drugs. can you imagine how they lived? its insane. and btw i love his shorts but he stole them from stewart cuz thats what stewat always wore at the old concerts

[LIONEL1033]

BTW: my comment was in response to the skiing guitarist's.

[monkeytrousers]

He does seem a tad stoned here (think a bit more casual like pot as opposed to coke). By their own admissions in various interviews, they used to get stoned (via pot) all throughout the Ghost sessions. Which is where this interview is from.

[skiingguitarist]

What an amazing clip! Usually a musician isn't that candid and interesting when talking about the writing process (and actually demonstrating it). Sting seemed very humble, almost self-effacing, as he casually discussed how these incredible songs came into existence. Great footage!!

[LIONEL1033]

You hit the nail on the head. Sting's very relaxed and matey in this video. The arrogance which he's so frequently (and often erroneously) accused of displaying is nowhere to be found.

[sleestack]

sting names his instruments. Dennis the drum box? Good luck looking that one up.

[KittyBaroque]

I think this was from a TV special in England called "The Police in Monserrat". Can you get this anywhere?

Flippin' AWESOME, thanks for posting up and bringing back cool memories. I can remember doing an audio cassette tape of this show and listening to it often. Can't WAIT to see them in Melbourne in Jan!

[EdenSongs]

Its a DVD extra on their hits DVD.

[stringbini]

Do you recognize what he's wearing as his "Every Little Thing" video clothes? His voice was so much higher then than now.

[terribleyouth]

Yeah, this is bizarre. He's just a dude here, so natural. The mask he's wearing by the time we get to "Bring On The Night" is evidently nearly completely phony. This is the weirdest music clip on YT beside the one of McCartney coming out of the studio on the morning after Lennon's death and acting as uncharacteristically as Sting is doing here.

[EdenSongs]

Cor Blimey! Not only is he hyper but he's become a Londoner with Dick Vandyke chim-eney sweep accent!

[caudillo1]

Oh, yeah? And what was McCartney SUPPOSED to do? Someone he's known his a good portion of his life dies. How is he supposed to act? Is there a blueprint somewhere? How else do you deal with the media hounds? And as far as Sting being phony, he clearly stated in many 80s interviews that he created a mask by design when dealing with the media. You do need to have a strategy when dealing with the hounds... Not that he isn't an asshole. Just not phony..

[pioenroos67]

I have never seen any interview with Sting where he is so relaxed, normal, he's like for example James Martin explaining to a mate how to cook a favourite dish. Lovely! It makes a nice change from the big attitude he usually puts on during interviews. Did Sting even know there was a camera on him?? ;-) Not that I'm not a huge fan of his, by the way. I just think he can be a real asshole.

[dalymc]

The thing is ,that he was under the influence of coke cola (if u know what I mean). He admits he had problems at this time in the Police.Watch the interview,also from 82,in Chile where he cannot stop jumping around-Posted by "cacaorock".I saw the Police last night in Birmingham-they were fantastic-(& he didn't speak "mockney")!

[pioenroos67]

What a load of bollocks. I'm sure he has used cocaine but I don't see any signs of him being under the influence during this interview.

[dalymc]

Thankyou for your kind words- He is a little revved up doing a hundred things at once, which I've noticed in the 1982 interviews,& the gigs.He is not like this in the previous years.

[EdenSongs]

I agree. Have had this on DVD for a while now and was amazed at first at how fast he spoke, how fast he moved and how agitated he is. Compare it to solo interviews and later interviews (or even earlier interviews) and you'd have to say at this Ghost period Sting was under the influence (of something).

[dalymc]

Thanks for backing me up mate. Much appreciated.

[jeyesacks]

Let's review....Reagan..Thatcher...8­0's..greed is good...cocainecocainecocaineco­caine....

[DanMcCaffrey]

This is NOT a posh accent. Geordie neither. But hardly posh.

[lexxter]

My god, that far back and Sting was already "tawking pawsh"... he's a GEORDIE! There's cinematic evidence... *sigh* this a great interview thanks for sharing.

[Ionlyhavanhour]

Thank you so much for putting this up!