Police, even though Sting went on to do well. It just wasn't the same. Edit: I didn't even get to the part in the video to know what this was about before I answered the question...
Adam, I am understanding about your father and his connection to Music. My father died yesterday and he was a big fan of the mamas and the Papas and Elvis Presley and I became fans of them because of my father’s example. I want to thank you for your channel because today I need a lot of healing and Music is healing to me
The police was my baby brother's favorite band and he loved sting. This song was his 2nd favorite withe every breathe you take being his favorite song of the police. Unfortunately for me I lost him about 10 years ago to a heart attack. But the police were his favorite band and this video professor brought a beautiful and bittersweet memory of Vernon Thomas Johnson. Rest in peace Vernon. I love you and miss you terribly 😂.
About 15 years ago, there was me and two other metal heads in a car when this song came on the local rock radio station and when the line "It's a big enough umbrella, but it's always me who ends up getting wet..." played, I said... "DEFINITELY... one of the BEST lines EVER..." and the others just said... "yup..." LOL
I was a huge fan when the album came out, and a teen who would draw my fave album covers and hang them on the wall. I did the same with this one and stared at it for years trying to find some hidden meaning. It was in the early 2000s that someone mentioned that it was their faces and one quick glance made it painfully obvious. I felt like a huge dumbass 😂😂
Stewart might not have writing credit on Every Little Thing, but as usual his playing style is so musical, unique and recognizable that his contribution is essential. The lack of bass drum on the 1s of the verse and the syncopated ride bell pattern on the chorus really add to the magic.
I’m constantly amazed at how many artists hate their best songs. Makes you wonder how many great songs have never been heard by the public because of the artist’s terrible judgement, or of their fear of being judged as too soft or poppy
Hi Professor, something you said in this post is exactly why I subscribe to your channel. You mentioned that the last minute or so of the song is joy, and that is what I thought when it first came out, and every time I've heard it since. An eruption of joy, and sometimes that is what love feels like. The Police captured it correctly, and your insights always do as well! Thank you!
That is quite a story for this fantastic song.The Police are one of those bands that made so many great songs it leaves you wondering what if the egos didn't get in the way and stayed together. They owed the 80s . Great episode professor
Back in the day (1977) there was a bar on the West Bank of New Orleans called Old Man River's. They were known for bringing in new touring acts. One evening I went to check out this new group and enjoyed their musical vibe with a catchy reggae tune called Roxanne. After the show I welcomed them to the area bought 'em a beer and helped them load up their equipment in a U-haul trailer. Yep. One of those moments of just chillin' with the band after the show. I wonder if Sting remembers me. Yeah, nah. Another memorable vid. Thanks Prof.
That's awesome! I saw them on the same tour in around 1978 in Disney world of all places at the Tomorrowland Terrace hamburger Restaurant with the small stage that comes up out of the ground they used to have special ticket events back then were they invited a lot of bands to play at several locations in the park kc and the sunshine band who was a bigger band then played main stage in front of the Castle nobody really heard of the police back then they played Roxanne it was excellent!
There’s no denying Sting’s talent as a composer and musician but my ears always tune into Copeland’s drums for the entirety of this song (and many other Police songs).
No one drums like Stewart Copeland. What he plays is unconventional and very creative. I have his solo album with The Equalizer theme and other incidental music that was used in the TV show. It is unlike anything I’ve heard before. He really is original and unique.
As man who’s teenage years were all in the 80’s, I can say honestly that the music of the police and sting saved me a number of times. This statement makes more sense when you consider that I went through extreme abuse at home. Songs like invisible sun conveyed to me that even though I was some kind of prisoner of war, there was something invisible to the rest of my family that gave me hope and strength. In those days, serial killers were always on the news. They always talked about how these kills seemed like nice and quiet boys that nobody suspected would ever be so bad. I would see some interviews with the parents of these killers and while most folks saw them as simple an innocent, I saw between the lines what they were doing to their own families that was never talked about in the news. The lyrics to invisible sun they didn’t want to end up as a statistic on a government chart. I coalesced those lyrics with the darkness being pushed on the news and I chose to be a different kind of rebellious. I chose in my late teens to be the first in my family to get a lot of therapeutic help. Not saying that I would have become another killer on the news, just saying that the right message can make sense at the right time in a life. Music saved me in many ways, or at least sustained a basic level of function until I found Christ, who is truly the one that saved me when I was very near death. Songs like invisible sun and Don’t give up from Peter Gabriel and Kate bush were songs that made a real difference in my youth. Thank you for the work you do on this channel. It’s more than interesting, it’s therapeutic and wholesome and I really appreciate it.
The Police are my favourite band of all time, and along with The Beatles and Johnny Cash are the reason why I am a musician. Got them tattooed on my biceps ... and, crazy, every time it rains I can hear Every Little Thing playing in my head. I'm a bass baritone opera singer, but I do a rendition of that song on acustic guitar, I do get a standing ovation uaually at all open mic nights I go to --- I should definetly record and upload that to my channel. Great video, as always!
#1 in my heart is a song of theirs that failed to chart at all in the US and got no local radio airplay as a single even though it hit #1 in the UK. It became a deep cut favorite of classic rock radio in the mid 90's. The haunting and catchy _Walking On The Moon_
Great song. Also has some of Stewart’s most creative drumming…the pioneering use of delay, and the fact that he only hits the snare one time in the entire song (apart from the rim shots). Amazing.
I was born in 1979, so I missed their heyday, but The Police are one of my favorite bands. When they reunited and toured for the first time in my adult life, I jumped at the chance and saw them at Madison Square Garden. I loved the show so much, I went back and saw it again! still favorite concert of all time.
Such a fantastic episode! I adored them growing up and still remember the sheer joy of getting synchronicity at our local record store, cutting the plastic off, placing it in the turntable, and listening to it over and over and over. Thanks for taking us back to those memories!
A truly great song. And yes, it does deserve to be used a heck of a lot more! (Also completely agree that "Let's Get Physical" really did not deserve the #1 spot for 10 weeks! That's the real tragic truth)
This video was magic!! ✨ ✨ The part when you say the songs that were deprived of being number #1 because of Olivia Newton's John... That's unbelievable!!
The Police WERE my 80s - then Sting's solo career ushered me into and through the 90s. There are so very few musical acts that have that kind of power. How very different life would have been without them.
Though "Every Little Thing" may be The Police's greatest love song written by Sting, there is an even better one that Sting has solo. For whatever reason, one day my wife asked me what Sting / Police song best summed up my feelings for her. I instantly said "A Thousand Years". She was very disappointed. She thought I would surely say "Every Little Thing". Then I played "A Thousand Years" and told her to really listen to the words. She cried. It perfectly summed up the way a person should feel about their mate. The story of our meeting is both magical and a story that no one would believe, if it were made into a movie. The love Sting describes in "A Thousand Years" IS our love for each other. No matter what life we meet in or what role we play in that life, I will still love HER and I would keep working at it until SHE loves ME too. Thanks for all you do Professor. Your channel is truly the greatest on UA-cam.
Fortunate enough to see the Police at all stages of their career. Dec79, June 81, Dec 83 ( eight hours of queuing to get a ticketfor that one, split with my brother...he got the early shift 2am to 6am (Brighton England) and finally at Twickenham Stadium, London, on their comeback world tour Sept 2007....where i managed to get some amazing seats , forty feet from the stage. Loads of celebs mixed in) For me, the greatest trio ever...more so even than Rush. Took me twenty five years to realise those red led graphics were their faces ! Doh ! Another great one, Adam.
Yeah. I learned today the red led cover was not a broken alarm clock, or a 'futuristic' stereotyped Native American with 2 friends, but the Police members!
The Police are one of my favorite bands, and "Every Little Thing..." is one of my favorite songs, too. What you said about "the muse"* sums it up perfectly, Prof... As a preteen, the MTV video was the hook, and all I saw was them having fun. The group had such various musical influences, more a jazz prog-rock trio than punk to me, but this song was my intro to "World Music". The "Ghost in the Machine" cover also reminded me then of my digital alarm clock, the red lights illuminated beside my bed at night. Until the internet, I didn't know the images represented the three band members. Now as an adult, knowing how intensely talented they are, how much music they produced in such a short time... I don't know how any creative relationships stay together for very long, unless each is allowed to grow & change individually/separately for periods of time. *Re: "The Muse", whatever or whoever the source, take away the "m" and whaddya get? If the artist doesn't acknowledge and nuture that creative contribution or inspiration, he/she uses it up and loses it. p.s. Foreigner's "Waiting..." was a worthy competitor for the top spot, but ONJ's aerobics song taking it is just wrong!
I hear you. A scan of Top-40s in even the best of times often reveals what trite if catchy 'boosh-wha' so many listeners flock to temporarily. Luckily, as with the Police and other true, lasting Classics, those songs or stories do often get recognized enough to make a dent right away. Then carry on and grow, while the others fade away.
MTV and HBO played the living daylights out of that "Physical" video in '82. Never saw a video for "Waiting For A Girl Like You" until recently here on UA-cam. It should of had at least 4-5 weeks at #1.
Adam for another song that caused strife in The Police; look into “Behind my Camel” written by Andy Summers, and ended up winning the Grammy for best instrumental. Sting hated this song so much that he said “I hated that song so much that one day when I was in the studio I found the tape lying on the table. So I took it around the back of the studio and actually buried it in the garden“. Copeland played drums Andy played guitar and bass
I fell in love with the Police when I was a ten year old Hawaiian girl living on an American military base in Germany 45 years ago. I loved and treasured every track on every Police album. The only Sting solo album that I liked was Dream of the Blue Turtles.
You are such a library of knowledge "Professor" Adam! :) I didn't think my love for music could get any deeper, but you have somehow fanned the flame. Thank you so much, you are truly a gem.
I saw Sting once, great show! My Dad dropped me & my sister off. He went to watch a movie. Years later, he became a big fan & wished he went with us instead of the movie. I love his music, this song's lyrics are incredible. Met my wife while listening to The Police on my walkman
A boyfriend from years past dedicated this song to me when it first came out. Even now I have that nostalgic feeling whenever I hear it. It still brings a smile to my face.
"Ghost In The Machine" is my favourite album from my most favourite band of all time! It's so unique and other worldly, and so different from anything they created before and after. My close friends who like the band almost as much I do, a couple of them were never fond of the saxophone stuff that Sting played in some of the songs. I absolutely love it! "Hungry For You" and "Demolition Man" just wouldn't be the as great as they were without the saxophone. There is not one single bad song on this album. I believe it's far better than "Synchronicity", though that is most people's favourite album by them. And you reminded me of how screwed Andy was on this album with his contribution of "Omegaman", as executives at A&M wanted to push that song as the albums first single, and Sting refused. He just never cut those guys a break in those days. This single and the album as a whole is such a masterpiece! Thanks for covering it. I LOVE when you do episodes about The Police!
This has to be my favorite Police song. I always think it’s “Don’t Stand” or “Roxanne”, but while I do love them, only one puts a smile on my face and has me singing it for the rest of the day. “A thousand rainy days since we first met…it’s a big enough umbrella, but it’s always me that ends up getting wet…” The greatest outro in musical history. LOL
Also featured heavily in an episode of the barely-watched late 90's show ""Cupid" with Jeremy Piven. I had grown up aware of the song but that episode put it back on my radar for my romantically angsty late teens. I've always felt Copeland absolutely makes this song...that perfect light-touch reverby hi-hat intro almost gives me chills.
Takes me back to Stone Mountain Georgia, putting the radio on and this song comes on. Two teenagers dancing around her living room and laughing and having the best time! 🎉❤
I always felt like the police were the perfect example of LSD syndrome (lead singers disease), and your video kind of cements that theory. I really loved the first two police albums. So lively and different. You could really hear the difference between those two and the following three, and now it makes complete sense... Thanks again professor for providing insight to rock and roll 🤙🏼
The band dynamic is so fascinating, isn't it? Members usually start out as friends and equals, but then, one member will often prove to be the dominant creative contributor, leaving the others in the dust. Egos and minor conflicts combine to form a sort of toxic mix, and the band has to find a way to function while individual members grow to resent one another. Often, guys like Sting eventually launch hugely successful solo careers while the others find themselves left behind to languish in the disheartening throws of mediocrity and relative obscurity. Another great video, Adam! Cheers!
I agree with what you're saying for the most part, but I hope they found internal fulfillment with or without commercial success. Maybe they didn't languish, feel disheartened, or feel mediocre. I do think they had to break up. Sting had his path, they had theirs. From what other musicians have said, the wheels of commercial success grind some artists up.
The Police were never friends. But ego usually destroys bands. Whoever is writing the songs has the power. It's extremely rare that a band is equal with songwriting duties. It's usually one or two people
The Police are just so ahead of their times. A band and sound that is just too uniquely hard to replicate again. So interesting to see how a direction of songs and songwriting can cause divide in the dynamic of bands, the differing ideas definitely give a What-If on the established history of this iconic group. Cheers as always.
They weren't really ahead of their time. Copeland started infusing a heavy reggae percussion influence into their music which very unique. Great writing and lyrics pushed them to stardom!
Undoubtedly one of my favorites if not my most favorite Police song--"Every Little Thing She Does is Magic". The synth, the bass, the drums, the guitar, its all... magic. If you haven’t watched Rick Beato's video break down of this song, you must. There are elements of this song I never had a full appreciation for until I heard Rick share the isolated tracks. Like Andy's reggae guitar section? I had no idea it was in there--but I love it! And that square wave synth near the end? So good! And the bass? I can't even begin to describe. One of the reasons I started learning to play. I love that bass part.
As much as I love "ELTSDIM," I can't get enough of Spirits on the Material World. Haunting and killer groove at the same time... Was freaked out back then about the cover of the album as we thought it was some kind of 666 thing... Just as barcode scanners were coming into play...
@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Ha, what an awesome Mondegreme! I won't be able to hear that song without hearing it from now on. 😁 My favorite Sting solo Mondegreme: Sweet, Sweet Vasectomy🤣!
The first concert I went to was Sting, and I was in awe of him. Live he sounds like he does on record. An amazing performance. Side note: My second concert was Stevie Nicks, my third was Foo Fighters, and my fourth was Springsteen. So after these 4, I thought all concerts would be amazing. Bob Dylan ended that self delusion.
Ahhh...it hurts my heart to know that the other two guys didn't care for the song. One of my favorite things about the song is Stewart's drum work. When I was in high school I wrote a short story called A Thousand Rainy Days about a teenager in love. A friend commented that it so accurately described his relationship.
Love the hell outta this song, it was on one my Music Video Videotapes when I was younger. My mom was the shit when it came to epic mixtapes. She would always sit there watching vh1/mtv with a blank tape in the vcr to record videos for me. Loved working for the police on their last tour so amazing :)
This was the song that made me a Police mega-fan. I loved Zenyatta Mondatta, wore that LP out, but when I heard this song, it changed everything. Bought their old albums, a couple Ghost In The Machine shirts, etc. Never got to see them live until their reunion tour.
This has been my all-time favorite Police song since it dropped and played on local radio. I had no idea about its history until now. Thanks Professor!👍
If you deconstruct the lyric, it';s not quite as jolly as you might imagine. There is a lot of heartache and frustration in the verses. Guy is infatuated by girl but cannot express how he feels apart from telling US, not HER, that everything she does is magic which is a simple statement of yearning.
Awesome episode! The Police are one of my favorite bands and "Every little thing she does is magic " is one of, if not the favorite song of mine they ever did! I have their box set on CD that has every song in every iteration they ever recorded in my collection! Zenyatta Mondatta is still my favorite album by them though because I had the 8 track in high school and have all the cruising memories with it! Thanks for keeping the music alive Professor!
I've known people like Sting, people super talented, talent which refuses to be corralled; talent which created masterpieces. Problem is sometimes the talented person just runs over team members and closes his ears to any suggestions. No wonder Sting and the Police broke up. Maybe that was a good thing. Great talent refuses to be constrained or hogtied. Imagine what we would have lost if they haven't gone their separate ways.
Sting was always going in a more Adult Contemporary direction when Stewart and Andy were more Rock. I have all The Police albums but only the first few Sting solo albums due to that fact.
I agree Adam, “Every Little Thing She does is Magic” is my favorite Police song as well! So good in so many ways, every way. I cannot pin it to a muse either, she’s out there, somewhere. I don’t think i have ever changed the station or turned the car off when this song is on; better chance that i turned it up or hit replay first! I can’t say what exactly it is i love so much about it, I’ll have to say it’s all of it! The chords, the lines, the chorus, the dance i do when i hear it…no song like it! Sad, the end of the police, but for a moment it all came together in perfection!
It was magic for me from the first time I heard it back in junior high. It still is magic. It deserves a #1 slot like a lot of songs do that didn't get the slot. Some songs got the slot that didn't really match that #1 quality. Those other songs you featured deserved the slot much more than Physical. It's a shame this song was in part the reason for the break up.
I was 14 in the US when this climbed the charts. The age when I started hanging out with older roguish teenagers and learning about life and music. The Police were new wave gods to us and this song with its arpeggiated synth always takes me back to that early 80s adolescent nirvana when the world ahead of us was magic.
I don’t know how Sting pulled off an iconic hit like Dee Doo Doo Dee Daa Daa Daa (nonsensical song title 😅) - evidence of his lyrical and compositional genius in all the songs he made with The Police
Maybe that says more about the music consumers than the song makers! LOL 😂 That song goes on my list with the likes of "Chewy, Chewy" (Ohio Express-1969) Still, Sting and the Police are some of my all-time favorites. I could happily live in a timeline when Ohio Express never existed.🤣
I remember it for when I was about six years old. This is one or two years after the single was released. I remember it being summer, I was very joyful. I don't remember why. What I do remember is this song suddenly blasting out the radio and I felt the music and me connect. It was a perfect representation of how I felt at that moment.
I loved the song because there was a girl in high school that I was in love with and I could never tell her . The song told my story and it was released right after I graduated. So I bought the album.
Great video. That takes me back. I was listening to Kate Bush the other day and thought it would be great to do a video on her “non-commercial album” The Dreaming. The most original album from one of music’s most original artists.
The Police were way different then everything that was going on at that time. When a song would start, you instantly knew it was them. Rick Beato has a great interview with Sting that’s a must see. Great band.
@@WhiteCamry Just put his name, RICK BEATO, in the search engine. It'll show up. You won't be sorry you did. So much amazing stuff on there, esp. "what makes this song great" where he breaks down songs.
I had tickets to see the Police in ATL on their Synchronicity tour. A girl offered to take me to the beach for the weekend with her instead so I told a friend to sell my ticket to the concert and I went to the beach instead. The beach weekend wasn't that much fun and soon after the concert the band broke up. Heartbroken, I never saw the Police play and my friend said he "forgot" to sell my ticket, so I ate it. Borrowing lyrics from "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", now THAT was tragic.....
STEWART COPELAND!! The drumming in this song is absolutely perfection! When ever it comes on, I tell everyone listen to his drumming! Its like listening to when the levee breaks! Perfection!
Favorite Police song is Does Everyone Stare? off Regatta de Blanc. What this band did is sing about mental health before it was considered acceptable. Sting and the Police were ahead of their time
I was aware of everything mentioned here - except for how "Every Little Thing" predated the creation of The Police. I always thought it was about Trudie Styler. I remember hearing this and "De Doo Doo Doo De Daa Daa Daa" on the radio after *Synchronicity* had arrived. I was so proud of myself for being able to recognize the Police' sound at age 4 without hearing the DJ mention their name. I honestly think there would've been no other outcome than the one we got. Sting did not see The Police as a long-lasting act. From what's in his memoir, he always had it in mind to branch out exactly the way he did.
That doesn't always happen with me, @@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980. Meet with parents I can't be sure how long I was conscious of "Hungry Heart" until I properly learned that it's a Bruce Springsteen song. To my ears, it doesn't sound typical of his material.
Saw The Police in concert in Melbourne Australia back during the Synchronicity Tour. At the time and ever since, I wondered why they never played “ Every Little Thing “ at the concert. Now I think I know. 2 outvoted 1 on what the set list would be !!!! Thank you Professor I great insights. You’ve solved a nearly 40 year mystery for me. Have fun. 🕺🎸😎
I think you meant “The exSTINGtion of The Police”!!! 😆 This is one of my favorite songs from them. In fact, my band plays it at every gig, pretty much, and I get to sing it while playing the drums. Not easy.
It was one of my first crush songs… it always reminds me of that Kathy and she was the girl Back then… from elementary school right through to junior high. I thought everything she did was magic! Sadly she never agreed to go out with me… but everything in life happens for a reason.
Your real magic awaits! Believe it 🙏🏽 I did: I recently found mine after 3 divorces from hard, cold women. She is absolute MAGIC in every little way. No other woman can even begin to compare. 🌹
Me too. I had a crush from 3rd grade into 8th. Betsy. We did dance some... But she made me nervous, so it was hard to talk with her. Another girl, classmate, met in 7th, Sara Greenwood; we were much more comfortable together. Had excellent times. Unfortunately her family moved away after 8th.
As a huge music buff, I truly enjoy learning new insight into bands, albums, and songs that I’ve loved. Thanks for all the insight in this episode! I also never knew the characters on Ghost in the Machine album cover were meant to be the band members. To me as a kid in the 80’s it simply represented an electronic machine glitch (or ghost.) Like the different electronic devices I had back then such as hand held video games as their batteries were starting to die.
If you’re ever discussing deep cuts on an album, I think you should have a whole video devoted to “Secret Journey“ … one of the most magic songs I’ve ever heard.
Every Breath You Take. Biggest #1 of 1983. One of the very first songs I put on a playlist for a math teacher born that year who is throwing a party in June.
The very first time I heard of _The Police_ was when _Ghost In The Machine_ was released. A Saturday afternoon kids version of *60 Minutes* called *30 Minutes* announced a story on the police. I had no clue it was the name of a rock band. I was still into country music then. This introduction paved the way for my ears to perk up when the song _Spirits In The Material World_ started getting airplay.
Yes the song ended up being the launching point for Stings solo career, which is absolutely amazing. But for those of us that have followed the police closely as fans since the beginning, there are many statements from Sting early on that he sought to be a solo artist and that the police was just a steppingstone. Sting turned out to be the first and best example of an artist going solo and actually being successful; so many other frontman from bands going solo and failing… David Lee Roth, Steve Perry, etc. etc.
its interesting that David lee Roth's solo album sales would be considered a failure. comparing to Van Halen's sales during and after his tenure that may be fair, but still : 1) eat em and smile : 1,156,680 2) skyscraper : 1,122,100 3) crazy from the heat : 1,037,440 4) a little aint enough : 646,690 5) your filthy little mouth : 24,360 these are US sales, and except for the last 2, which was in the grunge era, these sales aren't what most artists would consider failure. then there are solo artists that go on to make huge sales from solo albums; such as Sting, Phil Collins
Nope, that particular award goes to Phil Collins who was both a solo and band member, outsold just about everyone in the 80's. Peter Gabriel was also pretty successful after he left Genesis. I'm sure there were others but can't be arsed to look...
Paul McCartney did alright as a solo artist... Clyde Mcphatter, Ben E King, Sam Cooke, Diana Ross had also managed to have solo careers that were arguably more successful than their group careers. Was suprised to see how Steve Winwoods solo career hits outweighs Spencer Davis Group and Traffic.
What makes the song so great for me is two-fold. One, it resonates with pretty much every male of a certain age who at some point will inevitably fall utterly head over heels for some girl practically at random and at the same time completely panic at the thought of even talking to her. This recipe for epic failure is equally inevitable due to the same mix of hormones that make his feelings of infatuation so intense also ratcheting his self-conscious anxiety through the roof. It's a practically universal experience, and this song speaks to it brilliantly. The other thing is that, like many of my other favorites of the era, it is musically upbeat with a light chorus but lyrics that are pretty damned dark. I mean, it's a song about love yes but it's a DOOMED love cursed with utter futility. He says in the chorus that his "life before was tragic" but the verses make very clear that he's clinging to a false hope and it's not going to be getting any better. In fact, this feeling he's riding high on is merely setting him up for a hard crash and burn and it's not going to be even remotely pretty. The bouncy energy of the song conveys the false euphoria he's experiencing while the verses clearly and evocatively foreshadow the agony soon to come. That is true art.
Such a cool band. They were the first concert I ever went too. I saw the Synchronicity Tour when I was 14 a few months before they broke up and immediately bought all their other cassettes. I regularly argued with a coworker in the 00's that the Police should have kept going and that Sting was holding them back. It's a tough case to make, but never underestimate the power of sour grapes.
@@RBS_ Hell to the Yes. The Solid Gold dancers were on the British version of So You think you can Dance 💃 or British so you have talent. It was before the plague I want to say 2018. Check it out and tell me what you think! It brought a tear to my eye 👁
I definitely had a Levi's jacket with band pins and buttons all over it!!! We used to steal all our friends buttons from theirs and wear them and they'd steal ours- it was a mutual kind of fun theft game!!!
Poll: What is your pick for the most devastating band break up of the rock era?
The Beatles
Police, even though Sting went on to do well. It just wasn't the same.
Edit: I didn't even get to the part in the video to know what this was about before I answered the question...
Rainbow with Dio
The Cars... Still had a lot in their tank
The Clash
Adam, I am understanding about your father and his connection to Music. My father died yesterday and he was a big fan of the mamas and the Papas and Elvis Presley and I became fans of them because of my father’s example. I want to thank you for your channel because today I need a lot of healing and Music is healing to me
I'm so sad to hear this Michael. Peace my friend.
God Bless you Michael. At some point your pain will be turned into cherished memories.
I lost my father at 23. I’m now 60 and I think of him every day still. I’m so sorry for the loss of your Dad.
OH NO! Condolences Michael 💐
@@TinCupChalice40 I'm sorry for your loss.
The police was my baby brother's favorite band and he loved sting. This song was his 2nd favorite withe every breathe you take being his favorite song of the police. Unfortunately for me I lost him about 10 years ago to a heart attack. But the police were his favorite band and this video professor brought a beautiful and bittersweet memory of Vernon Thomas Johnson. Rest in peace Vernon. I love you and miss you terribly 😂.
About 15 years ago, there was me and two other metal heads in a car when this song came on the local rock radio station and when the line "It's a big enough umbrella, but it's always me who ends up getting wet..." played, I said... "DEFINITELY... one of the BEST lines EVER..." and the others just said... "yup..." LOL
I agree!
I was today-old when I learned that the cover of Ghost In The Machine was NOT the face of an alarm clock. Thank you Professor!
Ha, yeah, I thought it was 999 broken up. (999 being the number you dial to call the police in the UK).
I was a huge fan when the album came out, and a teen who would draw my fave album covers and hang them on the wall. I did the same with this one and stared at it for years trying to find some hidden meaning. It was in the early 2000s that someone mentioned that it was their faces and one quick glance made it painfully obvious. I felt like a huge dumbass 😂😂
Stewart might not have writing credit on Every Little Thing, but as usual his playing style is so musical, unique and recognizable that his contribution is essential. The lack of bass drum on the 1s of the verse and the syncopated ride bell pattern on the chorus really add to the magic.
It’s unlike anything any other musician could come up with.
💯💯💯💯💯 absolutely
I’m constantly amazed at how many artists hate their best songs. Makes you wonder how many great songs have never been heard by the public because of the artist’s terrible judgement, or of their fear of being judged as too soft or poppy
Hi Professor, something you said in this post is exactly why I subscribe to your channel. You mentioned that the last minute or so of the song is joy, and that is what I thought when it first came out, and every time I've heard it since. An eruption of joy, and sometimes that is what love feels like. The Police captured it correctly, and your insights always do as well! Thank you!
Sting captured the spirit of Neil Sedaka's _Laughter In The Rain_ in his ending rant.
That is quite a story for this fantastic song.The Police are one of those bands that made so many great songs it leaves you wondering what if the egos didn't get in the way and stayed together. They owed the 80s . Great episode professor
Thanks My Name!
Sometimes it's better to go out at the apex too...
One of my favorite songs from this tragically tumultuous band.
@@paulwalsh2344 true
Tell me that Stew would not be the perfect drummer for Sting's solo stuff.
SC is an amazing drummer! He’s what made The Police different IMO.
One of the best ever.
Tell me that Stew would not be the perfect drummer for Sting's solo stuff.
Love the way he played the hi-hats.
Absolutely! He is my favorite drummer. Although it is very unique, I love Stewart Copeland's album, "The Rhythmatist".
Awesome drummer, my favourite, but The Police and their sound was due to all 3 of them and their individual brilliance. 👍
Back in the day (1977) there was a bar on the West Bank of New Orleans called Old Man River's. They were known for bringing in new touring acts. One evening I went to check out this new group and enjoyed their musical vibe with a catchy reggae tune called Roxanne. After the show I welcomed them to the area bought 'em a beer and helped them load up their equipment in a U-haul trailer. Yep. One of those moments of just chillin' with the band after the show. I wonder if Sting remembers me. Yeah, nah. Another memorable vid. Thanks Prof.
You’re lucky!
Great memory!
That's awesome! I saw them on the same tour in around 1978 in Disney world of all places at the Tomorrowland Terrace hamburger Restaurant with the small stage that comes up out of the ground they used to have special ticket events back then were they invited a lot of bands to play at several locations in the park kc and the sunshine band who was a bigger band then played main stage in front of the Castle nobody really heard of the police back then they played Roxanne it was excellent!
@@magiccheeseball lucky you!
I'm sure he does.😊
There’s no denying Sting’s talent as a composer and musician but my ears always tune into Copeland’s drums for the entirety of this song (and many other Police songs).
He was a fine drummer
@@arribaficationwineho32 Still is.
@@thomasbell7033 agree
Me too, I absolutely LOVE the drumming in this song.
I'm surprised that he didn't like this song since his drum work is so amazing in this song.
No one drums like Stewart Copeland. What he plays is unconventional and very creative. I have his solo album with The Equalizer theme and other incidental music that was used in the TV show. It is unlike anything I’ve heard before. He really is original and unique.
"Don't Box Me In" by Stan Ridgway and Copeland, great drumming and good song, for Rumble Fish soundtrack.
As man who’s teenage years were all in the 80’s, I can say honestly that the music of the police and sting saved me a number of times. This statement makes more sense when you consider that I went through extreme abuse at home. Songs like invisible sun conveyed to me that even though I was some kind of prisoner of war, there was something invisible to the rest of my family that gave me hope and strength.
In those days, serial killers were always on the news. They always talked about how these kills seemed like nice and quiet boys that nobody suspected would ever be so bad. I would see some interviews with the parents of these killers and while most folks saw them as simple an innocent, I saw between the lines what they were doing to their own families that was never talked about in the news. The lyrics to invisible sun they didn’t want to end up as a statistic on a government chart. I coalesced those lyrics with the darkness being pushed on the news and I chose to be a different kind of rebellious. I chose in my late teens to be the first in my family to get a lot of therapeutic help. Not saying that I would have become another killer on the news, just saying that the right message can make sense at the right time in a life.
Music saved me in many ways, or at least sustained a basic level of function until I found Christ, who is truly the one that saved me when I was very near death.
Songs like invisible sun and Don’t give up from Peter Gabriel and Kate bush were songs that made a real difference in my youth.
Thank you for the work you do on this channel. It’s more than interesting, it’s therapeutic and wholesome and I really appreciate it.
The Police are my favourite band of all time, and along with The Beatles and Johnny Cash are the reason why I am a musician. Got them tattooed on my biceps ... and, crazy, every time it rains I can hear Every Little Thing playing in my head. I'm a bass baritone opera singer, but I do a rendition of that song on acustic guitar, I do get a standing ovation uaually at all open mic nights I go to --- I should definetly record and upload that to my channel. Great video, as always!
Mine too! What a great story!
Yes, you should. I just subscribed. It might have been the wink. Just saying.
I am a piano prodigy. I could have played the riff on Every Little Thing She Does is Magic! I would love to improvise with you.
Copeland's drum fill right before the E-O-Os is my favorite fill of all time. Amazing that he was playing it in frustration!
Me too ! 😮 I thought I was the only one 😅
I believe it remains his favorite too. He references it on his YT channel.
#1 in my heart is a song of theirs that failed to chart at all in the US and got no local radio airplay as a single even though it hit #1 in the UK. It became a deep cut favorite of classic rock radio in the mid 90's.
The haunting and catchy _Walking On The Moon_
One of my favorites.
_I hope my legs don't break..._ I can just hear his voice. It's a favourite of mine too
Love that one also. Now I have to go listen to it.
My favorite all time song of theirs, on my least favorite Police albums. That song always seemed to me like the quintessential Police.
Great song. Also has some of Stewart’s most creative drumming…the pioneering use of delay, and the fact that he only hits the snare one time in the entire song (apart from the rim shots). Amazing.
My favourite Police’s song is “Wrapped Around Your Finger” with a memorable music video
“Wrapped around your finger is a great song:). I also like “King of Pain”..
One of my favorite lines ever comes from this song, "it's a big enough umbrella, but it's always me that ends up getting wet".
Great song
It's the perfect lyric
Me too. What a line.
@Professor of Rock so perfect that Sting used it again in multiple other songs
I was born in 1979, so I missed their heyday, but The Police are one of my favorite bands. When they reunited and toured for the first time in my adult life, I jumped at the chance and saw them at Madison Square Garden. I loved the show so much, I went back and saw it again! still favorite concert of all time.
At lease you lived to see the juggernaut of Every Breath You Take.
Such a fantastic episode! I adored them growing up and still remember the sheer joy of getting synchronicity at our local record store, cutting the plastic off, placing it in the turntable, and listening to it over and over and over. Thanks for taking us back to those memories!
A truly great song. And yes, it does deserve to be used a heck of a lot more!
(Also completely agree that "Let's Get Physical" really did not deserve the #1 spot for 10 weeks! That's the real tragic truth)
Yeah, I’m sorry ONJ. Physical oozed enough cheese…
If anything _Make A Move On Me_ was the better song.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 I Think Olivia knew Physical was a silly song and she was just having fun with it LOL
This cut is a production masterpiece. I never get tired of hearing it
This video was magic!! ✨ ✨ The part when you say the songs that were deprived of being number #1 because of Olivia Newton's John... That's unbelievable!!
My favorite Police song is Synchronicity II. To me, the album and the song were the Police at their best.
That song rocks
Agreed.
That's one of those rare songs where the music transfers me into the artists world.
Brilliant song.
Absolutely.🎱🎯
Hell yeah!!!
The Police WERE my 80s - then Sting's solo career ushered me into and through the 90s. There are so very few musical acts that have that kind of power. How very different life would have been without them.
Though "Every Little Thing" may be The Police's greatest love song written by Sting, there is an even better one that Sting has solo. For whatever reason, one day my wife asked me what Sting / Police song best summed up my feelings for her. I instantly said "A Thousand Years". She was very disappointed. She thought I would surely say "Every Little Thing". Then I played "A Thousand Years" and told her to really listen to the words. She cried. It perfectly summed up the way a person should feel about their mate. The story of our meeting is both magical and a story that no one would believe, if it were made into a movie. The love Sting describes in "A Thousand Years" IS our love for each other. No matter what life we meet in or what role we play in that life, I will still love HER and I would keep working at it until SHE loves ME too. Thanks for all you do Professor. Your channel is truly the greatest on UA-cam.
Fortunate enough to see the Police at all stages of their career. Dec79, June 81, Dec 83 ( eight hours of queuing to get a ticketfor that one, split with my brother...he got the early shift 2am to 6am (Brighton England) and finally at Twickenham Stadium, London, on their comeback world tour Sept 2007....where i managed to get some amazing seats , forty feet from the stage. Loads of celebs mixed in) For me, the greatest trio ever...more so even than Rush. Took me twenty five years to realise those red led graphics were their faces ! Doh ! Another great one, Adam.
Yeah. I learned today the red led cover was not a broken alarm clock, or a 'futuristic' stereotyped Native American with 2 friends, but the Police members!
The Police are one of my favorite bands, and "Every Little Thing..." is one of my favorite songs, too. What you said about "the muse"* sums it up perfectly, Prof...
As a preteen, the MTV video was the hook, and all I saw was them having fun. The group had such various musical influences, more a jazz prog-rock trio than punk to me, but this song was my intro to "World Music". The "Ghost in the Machine" cover also reminded me then of my digital alarm clock, the red lights illuminated beside my bed at night. Until the internet, I didn't know the images represented the three band members.
Now as an adult, knowing how intensely talented they are, how much music they produced in such a short time... I don't know how any creative relationships stay together for very long, unless each is allowed to grow & change individually/separately for periods of time.
*Re: "The Muse", whatever or whoever the source, take away the "m" and whaddya get? If the artist doesn't acknowledge and nuture that creative contribution or inspiration, he/she uses it up and loses it.
p.s. Foreigner's "Waiting..." was a worthy competitor for the top spot, but ONJ's aerobics song taking it is just wrong!
Man, the fall of 1981 was an exciting time to be sure.
I hear you. A scan of Top-40s in even the best of times often reveals what trite if catchy 'boosh-wha' so many listeners flock to temporarily. Luckily, as with the Police and other true, lasting Classics, those songs or stories do often get recognized enough to make a dent right away. Then carry on and grow, while the others fade away.
MTV and HBO played the living daylights out of that "Physical" video in '82. Never saw a video for "Waiting For A Girl Like You" until recently here on UA-cam. It should of had at least 4-5 weeks at #1.
Adam for another song that caused strife in The Police; look into “Behind my Camel” written by Andy Summers, and ended up winning the Grammy for best instrumental. Sting hated this song so much that he said “I hated that song so much that one day when I was in the studio I found the tape lying on the table. So I took it around the back of the studio and actually buried it in the garden“. Copeland played drums Andy played guitar and bass
God I love these type of Police stories. So hilariously dysfunctional 😅
Can't believe "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" didn't get to # 1-It was definitely one of their best songs!
A lot of songs should have beaten Physical to the top.
@XxLilly_playsXx Kiz Like Waiting For A Girl Like You. It just wasn't going to get past either of those unfortunately.
This was almost our first dance song when my dude and I got married, it’s been his song for me for almost 20 years. I’ll always treasure it 💚🖤💜
I fell in love with the Police when I was a ten year old Hawaiian girl living on an American military base in Germany 45 years ago. I loved and treasured every track on every Police album. The only Sting solo album that I liked was Dream of the Blue Turtles.
The Dream of the Blue Turtles is amazing. Saw Sting live for that tour. Never saw The Police on tour.
Sting has a lot of good solo songs.
You are such a library of knowledge "Professor" Adam! :) I didn't think my love for music could get any deeper, but you have somehow fanned the flame. Thank you so much, you are truly a gem.
I saw Sting once, great show! My Dad dropped me & my sister off. He went to watch a movie. Years later, he became a big fan & wished he went with us instead of the movie. I love his music, this song's lyrics are incredible. Met my wife while listening to The Police on my walkman
What movie was it? A can’t turn away movie?
WHOA! That list of songs that were denied by "Physical" is INSANE!
A boyfriend from years past dedicated this song to me when it first came out. Even now I have that nostalgic feeling whenever I hear it. It still brings a smile to my face.
It's a sensational song!
Look him up. I looked up my first love she has two girls now and we had a nice conversation.
🥹
Every time I hear this song, I'm back in the 80s...in my mind, at least.
"Ghost In The Machine" is my favourite album from my most favourite band of all time! It's so unique and other worldly, and so different from anything they created before and after. My close friends who like the band almost as much I do, a couple of them were never fond of the saxophone stuff that Sting played in some of the songs. I absolutely love it! "Hungry For You" and "Demolition Man" just wouldn't be the as great as they were without the saxophone. There is not one single bad song on this album. I believe it's far better than "Synchronicity", though that is most people's favourite album by them. And you reminded me of how screwed Andy was on this album with his contribution of "Omegaman", as executives at A&M wanted to push that song as the albums first single, and Sting refused. He just never cut those guys a break in those days. This single and the album as a whole is such a masterpiece! Thanks for covering it. I LOVE when you do episodes about The Police!
This has to be my favorite Police song. I always think it’s “Don’t Stand” or “Roxanne”, but while I do love them, only one puts a smile on my face and has me singing it for the rest of the day. “A thousand rainy days since we first met…it’s a big enough umbrella, but it’s always me that ends up getting wet…” The greatest outro in musical history. LOL
Also featured heavily in an episode of the barely-watched late 90's show ""Cupid" with Jeremy Piven. I had grown up aware of the song but that episode put it back on my radar for my romantically angsty late teens. I've always felt Copeland absolutely makes this song...that perfect light-touch reverby hi-hat intro almost gives me chills.
Takes me back to Stone Mountain Georgia, putting the radio on and this song comes on. Two teenagers dancing around her living room and laughing and having the best time! 🎉❤
I always felt like the police were the perfect example of LSD syndrome (lead singers disease), and your video kind of cements that theory. I really loved the first two police albums. So lively and different. You could really hear the difference between those two and the following three, and now it makes complete sense... Thanks again professor for providing insight to rock and roll 🤙🏼
LSD... Many bands suffer from it.
I need to steal this term, lead singer’s disease.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 I wish I could claim as mine, but I think I first heard it over 30 years ago 🤷♂️
@@machwal4464 I get multiple results for it on Google.
Honestly, if you look at the writing credits, Sting wrote most of the great songs on the first two albums as well. At least that's my opinion.
The band dynamic is so fascinating, isn't it? Members usually start out as friends and equals, but then, one member will often prove to be the dominant creative contributor, leaving the others in the dust. Egos and minor conflicts combine to form a sort of toxic mix, and the band has to find a way to function while individual members grow to resent one another. Often, guys like Sting eventually launch hugely successful solo careers while the others find themselves left behind to languish in the disheartening throws of mediocrity and relative obscurity. Another great video, Adam! Cheers!
I agree with what you're saying for the most part, but I hope they found internal fulfillment with or without commercial success. Maybe they didn't languish, feel disheartened, or feel mediocre. I do think they had to break up. Sting had his path, they had theirs. From what other musicians have said, the wheels of commercial success grind some artists up.
You just perfectly described the history of The Jam.
@@juliao1255 Well said!
It’s all a big, huge mess. I’m glad they moved on peacefully.
The Police were never friends. But ego usually destroys bands. Whoever is writing the songs has the power. It's extremely rare that a band is equal with songwriting duties. It's usually one or two people
The Police are just so ahead of their times. A band and sound that is just too uniquely hard to replicate again. So interesting to see how a direction of songs and songwriting can cause divide in the dynamic of bands, the differing ideas definitely give a What-If on the established history of this iconic group. Cheers as always.
Great comment.
@@ProfessorofRock Thank you so much. Great video as always
They weren't really ahead of their time. Copeland started infusing a heavy reggae percussion influence into their music which very unique. Great writing and lyrics pushed them to stardom!
They slowly drifted apart.
Undoubtedly one of my favorites if not my most favorite Police song--"Every Little Thing She Does is Magic". The synth, the bass, the drums, the guitar, its all... magic.
If you haven’t watched Rick Beato's video break down of this song, you must. There are elements of this song I never had a full appreciation for until I heard Rick share the isolated tracks. Like Andy's reggae guitar section? I had no idea it was in there--but I love it! And that square wave synth near the end? So good! And the bass? I can't even begin to describe. One of the reasons I started learning to play. I love that bass part.
As much as I love "ELTSDIM," I can't get enough of Spirits on the Material World. Haunting and killer groove at the same time... Was freaked out back then about the cover of the album as we thought it was some kind of 666 thing... Just as barcode scanners were coming into play...
Great songs on that album for sure.
Um I believe it's called Spirits in My Cereal Bowl
I love Spirits too.
IKR?
@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Ha, what an awesome Mondegreme! I won't be able to hear that song without hearing it from now on. 😁
My favorite Sting solo Mondegreme: Sweet, Sweet Vasectomy🤣!
This album came out during my freshman year of college. It’s like a time machine.
The first concert I went to was Sting, and I was in awe of him. Live he sounds like he does on record. An amazing performance. Side note: My second concert was Stevie Nicks, my third was Foo Fighters, and my fourth was Springsteen. So after these 4, I thought all concerts would be amazing. Bob Dylan ended that self delusion.
Bob Dylan is a dud in concert. He doesn’t interact with audience at all. I saw him twice. He didn’t even face the crowd. It was so weird!
I lost my shine for him after he twice admitted on camera that he had sold his soul vto the Devil.
I saw Dylan + Willie Nelson. Willie was much much better. As mentioned Dylan didn’t interact with his audience at all. Very very disappointing!!
Went to a Dylan concert. It was horrible. He was shitfaced, and could barely talk, let alone sing.
Bob Dylan’s not a perfect concert man, it’s just not his strong suit.
The masses would agree with Stings rendition of every little thing she does is magic! Thanks for the video 😎👍
Ahhh...it hurts my heart to know that the other two guys didn't care for the song. One of my favorite things about the song is Stewart's drum work. When I was in high school I wrote a short story called A Thousand Rainy Days about a teenager in love. A friend commented that it so accurately described his relationship.
Love the hell outta this song, it was on one my Music Video Videotapes when I was younger.
My mom was the shit when it came to epic mixtapes. She would always sit there watching vh1/mtv with a blank tape in the vcr to record videos for me.
Loved working for the police on their last tour so amazing :)
This was the song that made me a Police mega-fan. I loved Zenyatta Mondatta, wore that LP out, but when I heard this song, it changed everything. Bought their old albums, a couple Ghost In The Machine shirts, etc. Never got to see them live until their reunion tour.
It's great album to be sure.
I’ve seen countless folks wearing Ghost in the Machine shirts.
This has been my all-time favorite Police song since it dropped and played on local radio. I had no idea about its history until now. Thanks Professor!👍
I never knew those digital markings were represented as the band. The things you find out decades later.😂
Pretty cool!
....I thought It was busted CLOCK! ....someone told me this, Years ago, but I forgot.....
Me neither! 😯
Professor, you are the king of the nostalgic preamble....brilliant and heartfelt.
Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic is their Super-Ultra-Happy™ song. A wonderful counter to the darkness of their other songs.
A feel good song for sure.
If you deconstruct the lyric, it';s not quite as jolly as you might imagine. There is a lot of heartache and frustration in the verses. Guy is infatuated by girl but cannot express how he feels apart from telling US, not HER, that everything she does is magic which is a simple statement of yearning.
Not really.
@@kingofallwhites A thousand apologies , oh great analyst.
Awesome episode! The Police are one of my favorite bands and "Every little thing she does is magic " is one of, if not the favorite song of mine they ever did! I have their box set on CD that has every song in every iteration they ever recorded in my collection! Zenyatta Mondatta is still my favorite album by them though because I had the 8 track in high school and have all the cruising memories with it! Thanks for keeping the music alive Professor!
I've known people like Sting, people super talented, talent which refuses to be corralled; talent which created masterpieces. Problem is sometimes the talented person just runs over team members and closes his ears to any suggestions. No wonder Sting and the Police broke up. Maybe that was a good thing. Great talent refuses to be constrained or hogtied. Imagine what we would have lost if they haven't gone their separate ways.
It's sad.
It’s the “holier than thou” mental complex.
Sting was always going in a more Adult Contemporary direction when Stewart and Andy were more Rock. I have all The Police albums but only the first few Sting solo albums due to that fact.
I agree Adam, “Every Little Thing She does is Magic” is my favorite Police song as well! So good in so many ways, every way. I cannot pin it to a muse either, she’s out there, somewhere. I don’t think i have ever changed the station or turned the car off when this song is on; better chance that i turned it up or hit replay first! I can’t say what exactly it is i love so much about it, I’ll have to say it’s all of it! The chords, the lines, the chorus, the dance i do when i hear it…no song like it!
Sad, the end of the police, but for a moment it all came together in perfection!
It was magic for me from the first time I heard it back in junior high. It still is magic. It deserves a #1 slot like a lot of songs do that didn't get the slot. Some songs got the slot that didn't really match that #1 quality. Those other songs you featured deserved the slot much more than Physical. It's a shame this song was in part the reason for the break up.
It lives up to its name!
I was 14 in the US when this climbed the charts. The age when I started hanging out with older roguish teenagers and learning about life and music. The Police were new wave gods to us and this song with its arpeggiated synth always takes me back to that early 80s adolescent nirvana when the world ahead of us was magic.
I don’t know how Sting pulled off an iconic hit like Dee Doo Doo Dee Daa Daa Daa (nonsensical song title 😅) - evidence of his lyrical and compositional genius in all the songs he made with The Police
Right?
Maybe that says more about the music consumers than the song makers! LOL 😂 That song goes on my list with the likes of "Chewy, Chewy" (Ohio Express-1969) Still, Sting and the Police are some of my all-time favorites. I could happily live in a timeline when Ohio Express never existed.🤣
Haha, great song as well.
You realize that Dee Doo Doo and Everything She Does have the same theme right?
The Rolling Stones had a song title not so different. (Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Heartbreaker)
Synchronicity II, Wrapped around your/my finger: two of my all time favorite songs, that whole album rocks!
I remember it for when I was about six years old. This is one or two years after the single was released. I remember it being summer, I was very joyful. I don't remember why. What I do remember is this song suddenly blasting out the radio and I felt the music and me connect. It was a perfect representation of how I felt at that moment.
I loved the song because there was a girl in high school that I was in love with and I could never tell her . The song told my story and it was released right after I graduated. So I bought the album.
Sorry you lost her.
Love soo many Police/ Sting songs ! Pleased you reminded us of one of the best.
The bass line in this song is really... cool, as is the bass in "Spirits in the Material World".
He’s a great bassist.
Great video. That takes me back. I was listening to Kate Bush the other day and thought it would be great to do a video on her “non-commercial album” The Dreaming. The most original album from one of music’s most original artists.
The Police were way different then everything that was going on at that time. When a song would start, you instantly knew it was them. Rick Beato has a great interview with Sting that’s a must see. Great band.
They were awesome.
Terk - 131 *Rick Beato
His name is actually Rick Beato. Just want to make sure you find him because the interview with Sting is great...and his channel has so much more
Link?
@@WhiteCamry Just put his name, RICK BEATO, in the search engine. It'll show up. You won't be sorry you did. So much amazing stuff on there, esp. "what makes this song great" where he breaks down songs.
I had tickets to see the Police in ATL on their Synchronicity tour. A girl offered to take me to the beach for the weekend with her instead so I told a friend to sell my ticket to the concert and I went to the beach instead. The beach weekend wasn't that much fun and soon after the concert the band broke up. Heartbroken, I never saw the Police play and my friend said he "forgot" to sell my ticket, so I ate it. Borrowing lyrics from "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", now THAT was tragic.....
Ouch
Ouch, so sad.
STEWART COPELAND!! The drumming in this song is absolutely perfection! When ever it comes on, I tell everyone listen to his drumming! Its like listening to when the levee breaks! Perfection!
Like listening to pretty much every song Neil Peart drummed on. lol
Favorite Police song is Does Everyone Stare? off Regatta de Blanc. What this band did is sing about mental health before it was considered acceptable. Sting and the Police were ahead of their time
I love this channel.Combines two things I love.Great music and history.
I was aware of everything mentioned here - except for how "Every Little Thing" predated the creation of The Police. I always thought it was about Trudie Styler.
I remember hearing this and "De Doo Doo Doo De Daa Daa Daa" on the radio after *Synchronicity* had arrived. I was so proud of myself for being able to recognize the Police' sound at age 4 without hearing the DJ mention their name.
I honestly think there would've been no other outcome than the one we got. Sting did not see The Police as a long-lasting act. From what's in his memoir, he always had it in mind to branch out exactly the way he did.
You always guess correctly who they are when you hear them on the radio.
That doesn't always happen with me, @@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980. Meet with parents I can't be sure how long I was conscious of "Hungry Heart" until I properly learned that it's a Bruce Springsteen song. To my ears, it doesn't sound typical of his material.
@@ericbgordon1575 Springsteen always tried a different style.
Saw The Police in concert in Melbourne Australia back during the Synchronicity Tour. At the time and ever since, I wondered why they never played “ Every Little Thing “ at the concert. Now I think I know. 2 outvoted 1 on what the set list would be !!!! Thank you Professor I great insights. You’ve solved a nearly 40 year mystery for me. Have fun.
🕺🎸😎
Every little thing she does is magic is one of my all time favorite songs.
Driven to Tears/When the World is Running Down is my fav all time songs by Police. Perfect back to back. Magic is super song though
The word magic easily rhymes with nostalgic as well. It took me five seconds to come up with it. :)
Now fit that into the song😉
Thank you for the “pyrrhic victory” reference. A real gem.
This song came out a year after another Magic Olivia Newton John and they reminds me of special people special places and special occasions.
Magic-al songs.
My sentiment exactly and probably the best comment ever...
7 years after Magic by Pilot as well.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 Am 1 year before Americas You can do Magic!
@@constipatedinsincity4424 Oh yes!
I still have one of those alarm clocks on my night table. LOL Absolutely excellent album. Thanks for this episode, Adam!
Funny that Copeland had to get really mad, to play the love song track with that great feel... Poppin!!
Sting wrote all over it.
I think you meant “The exSTINGtion of The Police”!!! 😆
This is one of my favorite songs from them. In fact, my band plays it at every gig, pretty much, and I get to sing it while playing the drums. Not easy.
It was one of my first crush songs… it always reminds me of that Kathy and she was the girl
Back then… from elementary school right through to junior high. I thought everything she did was magic! Sadly she never agreed to go out with me… but everything in life happens for a reason.
Your real magic awaits!
Believe it 🙏🏽
I did:
I recently found mine after 3 divorces from hard, cold women.
She is absolute MAGIC in every little way.
No other woman can even begin to compare. 🌹
You lost her?
Me too. I had a crush from 3rd grade into 8th. Betsy. We did dance some... But she made me nervous, so it was hard to talk with her. Another girl, classmate, met in 7th, Sara Greenwood; we were much more comfortable together. Had excellent times. Unfortunately her family moved away after 8th.
As a huge music buff, I truly enjoy learning new insight into bands, albums, and songs that I’ve loved. Thanks for all the insight in this episode! I also never knew the characters on Ghost in the Machine album cover were meant to be the band members. To me as a kid in the 80’s it simply represented an electronic machine glitch (or ghost.) Like the different electronic devices I had back then such as hand held video games as their batteries were starting to die.
If you’re ever discussing deep cuts on an album, I think you should have a whole video devoted to “Secret Journey“ … one of the most magic songs I’ve ever heard.
"Invisible Sun" too
@@chipdamutt108 “Invisible Sun” gives me chills every single time, right up my spine. Another incredible song!
You're not going to find a greater song of love and passion than this one.
The Police were one of my favorite bands in the 80s.
Great choice.
Me too. I jam to them regularly. 😊
@@fslayer1290 I haven't listened to the Ghost and the Machine record in a while. I will listen to it tonight.
Every Breath You Take. Biggest #1 of 1983. One of the very first songs I put on a playlist for a math teacher born that year who is throwing a party in June.
@XxLilly_playsXx Kiz Song Of the year on the Grammys. Sting beat Michael Jackson Billy Jean. It was an amazing moment.
The very first time I heard of _The Police_ was when _Ghost In The Machine_ was released. A Saturday afternoon kids version of *60 Minutes* called *30 Minutes* announced a story on the police. I had no clue it was the name of a rock band. I was still into country music then. This introduction paved the way for my ears to perk up when the song _Spirits In The Material World_ started getting airplay.
Yes the song ended up being the launching point for Stings solo career, which is absolutely amazing. But for those of us that have followed the police closely as fans since the beginning, there are many statements from Sting early on that he sought to be a solo artist and that the police was just a steppingstone. Sting turned out to be the first and best example of an artist going solo and actually being successful; so many other frontman from bands going solo and failing… David Lee Roth, Steve Perry, etc. etc.
its interesting that David lee Roth's solo album sales would be considered a failure. comparing to Van Halen's sales during and after his tenure that may be fair, but still :
1) eat em and smile : 1,156,680
2) skyscraper : 1,122,100
3) crazy from the heat : 1,037,440
4) a little aint enough : 646,690
5) your filthy little mouth : 24,360
these are US sales, and except for the last 2, which was in the grunge era, these sales aren't what most artists would consider failure. then there are solo artists that go on to make huge sales from solo albums; such as Sting, Phil Collins
Nope, that particular award goes to Phil Collins who was both a solo and band member, outsold just about everyone in the 80's. Peter Gabriel was also pretty successful after he left Genesis.
I'm sure there were others but can't be arsed to look...
Paul McCartney did alright as a solo artist... Clyde Mcphatter, Ben E King, Sam Cooke, Diana Ross had also managed to have solo careers that were arguably more successful than their group careers. Was suprised to see how Steve Winwoods solo career hits outweighs Spencer Davis Group and Traffic.
@@daveys1756 couls also add Ozzy he did ok outside of Black Sabbath
@@daveys1756 you are, of course, absolutely right. I was commenting more on the era than the first ever...
Wow what a song. It was magic. The album was everywhere. You should do a show on the album alone. Everything of this album was legendary.
See ProRo, 🤓👋 I knew we got along for some reason. Because you like I feel this is our favorite police tune! Great Minds Think Alike 😉
That's right!
For me it is high up there.
What makes the song so great for me is two-fold. One, it resonates with pretty much every male of a certain age who at some point will inevitably fall utterly head over heels for some girl practically at random and at the same time completely panic at the thought of even talking to her. This recipe for epic failure is equally inevitable due to the same mix of hormones that make his feelings of infatuation so intense also ratcheting his self-conscious anxiety through the roof. It's a practically universal experience, and this song speaks to it brilliantly.
The other thing is that, like many of my other favorites of the era, it is musically upbeat with a light chorus but lyrics that are pretty damned dark. I mean, it's a song about love yes but it's a DOOMED love cursed with utter futility. He says in the chorus that his "life before was tragic" but the verses make very clear that he's clinging to a false hope and it's not going to be getting any better. In fact, this feeling he's riding high on is merely setting him up for a hard crash and burn and it's not going to be even remotely pretty. The bouncy energy of the song conveys the false euphoria he's experiencing while the verses clearly and evocatively foreshadow the agony soon to come. That is true art.
This is a funny story because Every Little Thing sounds to me like the definitive Police sound, at least of their less reggae influenced music.
Great story. :)
I'm kind of surprised to hear this was their biggest hit. I always thought "Every Breath You Take" was bigger.
My all-time favorite Police song is Don't Stand So Close to Me.
Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is a close second.
Thanks Jamal!
I like _On Any Other Day_ because the singer is understandably upset that his fine young son has turned out gay. lol
MY favorite song by them? When the World is Running Down, You Make the Best of What’s Still Around.
It was honestly hilarious to watch!
My 2 faves too, but there are so many good ones!
Such a cool band. They were the first concert I ever went too. I saw the Synchronicity Tour when I was 14 a few months before they broke up and immediately bought all their other cassettes. I regularly argued with a coworker in the 00's that the Police should have kept going and that Sting was holding them back. It's a tough case to make, but never underestimate the power of sour grapes.
I remember Darcel Winn the lead dancers for Solid Gold! Dancing to this song when it went to #1
....who DIDN'T!??? ....saw her dancing on "SG" to "Union Of The Snake" Nov., 1983....I wasn't the same, SINCE! ....grrrrrrowl! ...ha-HAAA!!
@@RBS_ Hell to the Yes. The Solid Gold dancers were on the British version of So You think you can Dance 💃 or British so you have talent. It was before the plague I want to say 2018. Check it out and tell me what you think! It brought a tear to my eye 👁
@@constipatedinsincity4424 ....hell, Darcel STILL brings a tear to my eye...amongst OTHER places! ...ha-HAAA!! >jus'kiddin'
Darcel Winn!
@@RBS_ No your not kidding she still looks great are you going to watch the video I just mentioned?
I definitely had a Levi's jacket with band pins and buttons all over it!!! We used to steal all our friends buttons from theirs and wear them and they'd steal ours- it was a mutual kind of fun theft game!!!