The band reunited in January 2007 for a reunion tour that lasted until August 2008.
Biography
The Police formed in early 1977 in London by Stewart Copeland (drums), Gordon Sumner, better known as Sting (bass and lead vocals), and Henry Padovani (guitar). Andy Summers later joined the group, and after a very short stint as a quartet, Padovani left the band. The Police became one of the most popular bands in the late 70s and throughout the 80s.
The Police are notable as one of the first mainstream white pop groups to adopt reggae as a predominant musical form and to score major international hits with reggae-styled material. (The first all-white reggae band with permanent members and frequent recording in Europe was Peps Blodsband, lead by Peps Persson from south Sweden who changed from blues to reggae 1974/75). Although reggae was already very popular in the United Kingdom (due to the large number of Caribbean immigrants) and a number of Western European countries, reggae was little known in the United States and rejected by most black artists in U.S, and prior to the emergence of the Police only a handful of reggae songs had enjoyed any significant chart success. The Police, UB40, The Clash and Bob Marley (Jamaican, partly living in England after being shot in Jamaica, are considered with a number of new wave, rock and ska bands as one of the leaders of the Second British Invasion of the U.S.
The Police were strongly influenced by reggae (especially reggae drumming and base lines), jazz and, in the beginning, punk rock – something that came to be shifted more and more towards pop during the 80s. Their lyrics also changed from challenging, but yet somewhat politically restrained punk- and new wave lyrics, to after 1982 in some songs emphasize environmental awareness and human oneness. The biggest hits, however, had romantic or sexual themes. The Police met together with other "white" British bands which played reggae, as UB40, criticism from black English rastafarian reggae bands like Aswad (in a BBC documentary on TV) and Steel Pulse, for being accomplices in the music industry of "Babylon", stealing the Caribbean slave descendants' musical treasure. This criticism has later been withdrawn. Aswad has even made the covers of Police songs like "Roxanne".
Tension grew between the band members, because unlike most other bands, they did not share songwriting credits. They released their last album, Synchronicity, in 1983, selling over 8 million copies. Synchronicity is critically regarded as their best album, with hits such as Synchronicity II, King of Pain, and probably their best known song, Every Breath You Take. In 1984, after touring in support of Synchronicity, The Police went on hiatus while Sting pursued his acting and solo music careers. Two years later, The Police reformed and played a few concerts for Amnesty International. Soon after the band went into the studio. Sting wanted to re-record their old songs but Andy and Stewart wanted to leave the originals alone and only two songs were re-recorded during these studio sessions. Although the group is considered to have disbanded in 1984, 1986 was the last time The Police engaged in any musical activity.
In 1992 the band released "Message in a Box", their 4 CD box set, and performed at Sting's wedding to Trudie Styler. A live CD was released in June 1995. On March 10, 2003 The Police were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and performed Message in a Bottle, Roxanne and Every Breath You Take.
The Police reformed in 2007 and opened the Grammy award ceremony of that year with a performance of Roxanne. Towards the end of May the band began a world tour. In 2008 the tour ended at Madison Square Garden, New York on August 7, and The Police disbanded for good. Sting was quoted towards the end of the tour that he had achieved closure with the band and revealed that The Police would never tour or record again.
Sting has said that the material on the album Ghost in the Machine were inspired by the writings of Arthur Koestler, and that the Police's final studio album Synchronicity was influenced by the writings of Carl Jung. Sting also peppers his songs with literary allusions: the song "Don't Stand So Close to Me" mentions Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita; "Tea in the Sahara" alludes to the novel The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles; and "Wrapped Around Your Finger" refers both to the sea monsters Scylla and Charybdis, from Greek mythology, and to Mephistopheles, from the German legend of Faust .
Discography
* Outlandos d'Amour (1978)
* Reggatta de Blanc (1979)
* Zenyatta Mondatta (1980)
* Ghost in the Machine (1981)
* Synchronicity (1983)
01. Can't Stand Losing You
The Police Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I guess it's all true what your girlfriends say
That you don't ever want to see me again
And your brother's gonna kill me and he's six feet ten
I guess you'd call it cowardice
But I'm not prepared to go on like this
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing you
I can't stand losing you
I can't stand losing you
I can't stand losing you
I see you've sent my letters back
And my L.P. records and they're all scratched
I can't see the point in another day
When nobody listens to a word I say
You can call it lack of confidence
But to carry on living doesn't make no sense
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I guess this is our last goodbye
And you don't care, so I won't cry
And you'll be sorry when I'm dead
When all this guilt will be on your head
I guess you'd call it suicide
But I'm too full, to swallow my pride
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing.
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing,
I can't, I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing you
"Can't Stand Losing You" is a song by The Police that was released in 1978. The song is about a man who is desperate to save his failing relationship even though his girlfriend has made it clear that she no longer wants to be with him. He is so consumed with the fear of losing her and can't seem to move on, despite the fact that she has returned his letters and records. He feels helpless and hopeless, and the only way he sees out of his situation is through suicide.
The lyrics of "Can't Stand Losing You" is a straightforward tale of a desperate man who wants to hold onto his relationship at all costs. The song is written in the first person, which gives the listener a glimpse into the singer's intense emotional state. His sense of desperation is revealed in lines such as "I can't see the point in another day when nobody listens to a word I say" and "I'm too full to swallow my pride." Through these lyrics, the singer admits that he cannot handle the pain of losing his girlfriend and is considering suicide.
The chorus of "Can't Stand Losing You" is incredibly catchy and emphasizes the repeated phrase "I can't stand losing you" over and over again. The music heightens the sense of urgency that the lyrics convey, with a driving beat and an upbeat melody that seems to contrast with the song's darker themes.
Line by Line Meaning
I called you so many times today
I have been trying to reach you all day
And I guess it's all true what your girlfriends say
I believe what your friends have told me about your feelings towards me
That you don't ever want to see me again
You have no interest in seeing me again
And your brother's gonna kill me and he's six feet ten
Your brother is threatening to harm me and he is very intimidating
I guess you'd call it cowardice
I understand if you think I am acting cowardly
But I'm not prepared to go on like this
I cannot continue living like this
I see you've sent my letters back
I have noticed that you returned my letters
And my L.P. records and they're all scratched
My vinyl records have been intentionally damaged
I can't see the point in another day
I do not see a reason to go on living
When nobody listens to a word I say
It feels like no one is paying attention to me
You can call it lack of confidence
You may interpret my actions as a lack of self-confidence
But to carry on living doesn't make no sense
I do not want to keep living like this
I guess this is our last goodbye
This is our final farewell
And you don't care, so I won't cry
You appear to have no emotions about our situation, so I will not cry
And you'll be sorry when I'm dead
You will regret your actions when I am no longer alive
When all this guilt will be on your head
You will feel guilty for the way you treated me
I guess you'd call it suicide
You may view my actions as a form of suicide
But I'm too full, to swallow my pride
I cannot bring myself to give up my self-respect
I can't, I can't, I can't stand losing you
I cannot bear the thought of losing you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GORDON SUMNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Phyllis N-S
As I get older, I've really come to appreciate The Police's early works. The vocals are so tight! Great tune!!
Danny
Phyllis N-S the harmonies between the 3 of them is just golden
Roger Burtnick
and not normal harmonies either
Granga Dang
Man sayin dis ting fire af on a real ting man grindin dis tune bruv. Man's on a big man ting u get me m8
ITSLAZERBOI
Same. Got into them in elementary school thanks to guitar hero.
Got into listening, ghost in the machine from an online friend.
and now I can't get enough of them.
Oren Sinvani
U r absolutely right
spreadthelove77
Seeing them live and hearing this just shook me through the spine man. What a night!
AnakinA1
Love the backing harmonies. Just a great song all around.
M B
I always liked this song but it really clicked with me when I actually lost someone...they nailed the feeling.
Scooby Duck
Patriarchal Shitlord hugs from OZ hope you're ok