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 This criticism has later been withdrawn.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)
11. Murder by Numbers
The Police Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
First you make a stone of your heart
And if you find that your hands are still willing
Then you can turn a murder into art
There really isn't any need for bloodshed
You just do it with a little more finesse
If you can slip a tablet into someone's coffee
It's murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
It's murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Now if you have a taste for this experience
If you're flushed with your very first success
Then you must try a twosome or a threesome
You'll find your conscience bothers you much less
Because murder is like anything you take to
It's a habit-forming need for more and more
You can bump off every member of your family
And anybody else you find a bore
Because it's murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Now you can join the ranks of the illustrious
In history's great dark hall of fame
All our greatest killers were industrious
At least the ones that we all know by name
But you can reach the top of your profession
If you become the leader of the land
For murder is the sport of the elected
And you don't need to lift a finger of your hand
Because it's murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your A, B, C, D, E
1, 2, 3, A, B, C
1, 2, 3, A, B, C
1, 2, 3, A, B, C
Because it's murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your ABC
Murder by numbers, one, two, three
It's as easy to learn as your A, B, C, D, E
The song "Murder By Numbers" by The Police explores the topic of murder and the ease with which one can become a serial killer. The opening lyrics state that once someone has decided on killing, they must first make a stone of their heart. They then advise that murder can be turned into an art if one uses finesse instead of resorting to bloodshed. The lyrics go on to suggest that murder is easy to learn, just like learning the ABCs, and one can become habituated to it over time.
The latter part of the song talks about the possibility of becoming an illustrious killer in the history books. The lyrics suggest that even elected leaders engage in murder and that it can be a sport for them. The song ultimately becomes a critique of those in power and the ease with which they can get away with murder.
Line by Line Meaning
Once that you've decided on a killing
Making the decision to commit a murder
First you make a stone of your heart
Emotionally preparing yourself to kill
And if you find that your hands are still willing
If you're ready and able to go through with it
Then you can turn a murder into art
You can make it seem like an elegant, well-planned act
There really isn't any need for bloodshed
Murder can be done without violence
You just do it with a little more finesse
Killing someone more subtly and skillfully
If you can slip a tablet into someone's coffee
Using poison to kill someone
Then it avoids an awful lot of mess
Killing someone without causing a scene or violence
It's murder by numbers, one, two, three
Killing someone is easy to learn and follow
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Comparing the ease of killing to something taught in school
Now if you have a taste for this experience
If you enjoy the act of murder
If you're flushed with your very first success
If your first murder went smoothly
Then you must try a twosome or a threesome
Killing two or three people instead of just one
You'll find your conscience bothers you much less
Killing multiple people helps desensitize you to the act
Because murder is like anything you take to
Killing is addictive and can become a habit
It's a habit-forming need for more and more
The desire to kill becomes stronger over time
You can bump off every member of your family
Killing your own family members
And anybody else you find a bore
Killing anyone who you believe is uninteresting or annoying
Now you can join the ranks of the illustrious
Becoming a renowned killer
In history's great dark hall of fame
Being remembered as one of the most infamous murderers in history
All our greatest killers were industrious
Famous killers are known for their hard work and dedication to killing
At least the ones that we all know by name
The most famous killers are the ones who have become household names
But you can reach the top of your profession
Becoming the most successful murderer
If you become the leader of the land
Becoming a political leader to avoid getting caught for murder
For murder is the sport of the elected
Powerful people often get away with murder
And you don't need to lift a finger of your hand
You can order someone else to do the killing for you
Because it's murder by numbers, one, two, three
Killing is easy to learn and follow
It's as easy to learn as your ABC's
Comparing the ease of killing to something taught in school
Murder by numbers, one, two, three
Killing is easy to learn and follow
It's as easy to learn as your A, B, C, D, E
The simplicity of killing is emphasized by listing more letters of the alphabet
1, 2, 3, A, B, C
The ease of killing is further emphasized by listing numbers and letters in sequence
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Andy Summers, Gordon Sumner
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Daniel
on Roxanne
Algum leitor sabe a letra de Saludos Caballeros ?
Até agora não conseguí !
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