Once, friends of mine were out at a trendy place for a late dinner, and their table was next to Sting and his wife. Eventually he just invited them over and they spent a couple of hours kickin' it with Sting. But the best story - and if the subject of this story posts here, hey, how are you? - a friend of mine was working for a Milwaukee paper or weekly or something. One day, he gets a call from a publicist, who invites him to meet Sting before the show. He figures, what the hell, Sting! So he shows up to the venue and is escorted back to a room where Sting and his entire band is set up. But my acquaintance (also named Josh) notices a bunch of other civilians back there, too, so he gets the scoop: apparently Sting, bored a lot of the time, had (has?) a tradition of live band karaoke in every city he hits! So Sting goes around the room greeting everyone, and then, one by one, people in the room got to pick their favorite Stings/Police songs from a binder, and Sting and his band backed them up! But it gets better, because apparently after the songs were done Sting just hung around, milling about. So my pal Josh was leaning on a wall somewhere and Sting walks by, gives him a polite nod hello, and just says "Josh" in a matter of fact way. So Josh, thinking of no other alternative and unable to help himself, responds with the SNL copy guy line: "Stiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing." iiiiiTrue story.
― Josh in Chicago, Monday, 15 April 2013 02:03 (eleven years ago) link
But does that story forgive this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8YDTPnqnf4
Probably not, no.
― Josh in Chicago, Monday, 15 April 2013 02:08 (eleven years ago) link
I'd only hang with Stingo if he treated me to expensive wine.
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 15 April 2013 02:13 (eleven years ago) link
and if he threw all of his lutes down a well
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Monday, 15 April 2013 02:19 (eleven years ago) link
And if I built this fortress around your lute wellEncircled it in trenches and barbed wireThen let me light a matchFor I cannot risk the chanceThat you might dig them out and play this song again
― I have many lovely lacy nightgowns (contenderizer), Monday, 15 April 2013 02:35 (eleven years ago) link
feel like sting is a total bro, insofar as someone who goes by 'sting' can be
still better than 'mankind' tho
― mookieproof, Monday, 15 April 2013 02:35 (eleven years ago) link
OH SHIIIII
― mookieproof, Monday, 15 April 2013 02:36 (eleven years ago) link
around your heart
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 15 April 2013 02:45 (eleven years ago) link
in a dark scottish loch
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Monday, 15 April 2013 02:47 (eleven years ago) link
many miles away, something strums to the surface
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Monday, 15 April 2013 03:02 (eleven years ago) link
There's a little black spot on the sun todayThat's my lute up there
― earlnash, Monday, 15 April 2013 03:10 (eleven years ago) link
ANOTHER BOR-ING FUCK-ING LUTE SONGGGGGGG
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Monday, 15 April 2013 03:11 (eleven years ago) link
Sting throws his lute down a well, it lands on a butterfly and kills it. many miles away, a man writes a song about it, then stars in a remake of "The Bride."
― Josh in Chicago, Monday, 15 April 2013 03:12 (eleven years ago) link
"We're sending a lute down the well"
http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/4f451c4deab8ea9455000004-590/we-also-enjoyed-sting-as-himself-in-season-3-episode-13-radio-bart-after-bart-tricks-the-town-into-believing-an-orphan-fell-down-a-well-the-singer-along-with-others-performs-his-charity-single-were-sending-our-love-down-the-well-the-episode-was-nominated-for-an-emmy.jpg
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Monday, 15 April 2013 03:15 (eleven years ago) link
Regatta>Ghost>Zenyatta>Outlandos>Synchronicity
Even when I was a teenager and they were my favorite band, I loved them more for sound and texture than songs or lyrics. That's what's most unusual about them as a pop band, I think -- they made great singles out of sound and texture. And hooks, obviously, but even the hooks are as much a product of ambiance as melody. Like on "Don't Stand So Close to Me," that little nagging guitar figure that just repeats and repeats. Or the spacey, dubby middle 8 on "Message in a Bottle."
― something of an astrological coup (tipsy mothra), Monday, 15 April 2013 03:23 (eleven years ago) link
(OK that's not even a middle 8, it's the just the trailing bars of the chorus -- I exaggerated it in my head, because it creates so much space in the middle of this wired, hyper song.)
― something of an astrological coup (tipsy mothra), Monday, 15 April 2013 03:28 (eleven years ago) link
Deathwish?
― OutdoorFish, Monday, 15 April 2013 08:36 (eleven years ago) link
That's what's most unusual about them as a pop band, I think -- they made great singles out of sound and texture. And hooks, obviously, but even the hooks are as much a product of ambiance as melody.
This is otm, there are a few of their best songs (including some of the big singles) where the chorus is the least interesting part of the song because of this.
― Gavin, Leeds, Monday, 15 April 2013 11:32 (eleven years ago) link
That's probably why I don't mind the '86 rerecording of "Don't Stand So Close to Me" – I dig those washes of guitar – despite how the track sounded dated even then (it's closer to "Don't Stand So Close to Me '84").
― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 15 April 2013 13:03 (eleven years ago) link
voted zenyatta, i hated these dudes for so long (though a friend of mine in hs who was a huge sting fan meant i was very familiar w/ their catalogue) i think some weird way getting into the dinosaur acts that clearly looked to them as a means of coming to terms w/ new wave (rush, yes) is what gave me the means of coming to terms w/ the police. plus, as soto noted, the chops. love those interview quotes above. really love that dry vibe they mined, sounds so spartan on classic rock radio.
― balls, Tuesday, 16 April 2013 06:53 (eleven years ago) link
― OutdoorFish, Friday, 19 April 2013 12:30 (eleven years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Tuesday, 30 April 2013 00:01 (eleven years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Wednesday, 1 May 2013 00:01 (eleven years ago) link
Well, no complaints there. Switch Ghost In The Machine and Zenyatta Mondatta around and you'd pretty much have the order that I'd rank them in.
― The Jupiter 8 (Turrican), Wednesday, 1 May 2013 00:24 (eleven years ago) link
Damn, I should give those last couple records another try.
― Doctor Casino, Wednesday, 1 May 2013 00:59 (eleven years ago) link
For OutdoorFish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cavbeMsk5Y8
― something of an astrological coup (tipsy mothra), Wednesday, 1 May 2013 02:24 (eleven years ago) link
Why thank you
― OutdoorFish, Thursday, 2 May 2013 21:16 (eleven years ago) link
I'm not surprised by how close this was but it's a little weird that Outlandos got so few votes, I thought that was the one that the hardnosers loved the most
― frogbs, Thursday, 2 May 2013 21:19 (eleven years ago) link
I'm confused by popularity of Synchronicity. It's not bad, just not that good.
― OutdoorFish, Thursday, 2 May 2013 21:39 (eleven years ago) link
I came up with a list regardless.
― the Rain Man of nationalism. (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 27 May 2017 03:05 (six years ago) link
one of the few bands whose chops force me to reconsider the songs
Alfred otm here. also kinda surprised that Sync did so well in this poll.
― constitutional crises they fly at u face (will), Saturday, 27 May 2017 14:09 (six years ago) link
"Voices" is so dope you listed it twice!
― brimstead, Saturday, 27 May 2017 15:51 (six years ago) link
I heard voices iirc
― the Rain Man of nationalism. (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 27 May 2017 15:57 (six years ago) link