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 This criticism has later been withdrawn.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)
When We Dance
The Police Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'd move town, I'd change my name.
When he watches you, when he counts to buy your soul,
On your hand his golden rings like he owns a bird that sings.
When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings.
The priest has said my soul's salvation is in the balance of the angels
I keep the faith in my fashion.
When we dance angels will run and hide their wings.
(I will love you more than life if you'll only be my wife.)
(I'm gonna love you night and day. I'm gonna try in every way.)
When we dance angels will run and hide their wings.
(I'm gonna find a place to live, give you all I've got to give.)
(I will love you more than life if you'll only be my wife.)
If I could break down these walls and shout my name at heaven's gate,
I'd take these hands and I'd destroy the dark machineries of fate.
Cathedrals are broken, heaven's no longer above,
And hell fire's a promise away I'd still be saying I'm still in love.
Still in love, still in love, still in love, still in love
He won't love you, like I love you.
He won't care for you this way.
He'll mistreat you if you stay.
Come and live with me.
We'll have children of our own.
I would love you more than life if you'll come and be my wife.
When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings.
When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings.
When we dance.
(I'm gonna love you night and day. I'm gonna try in every way.)
(I'm gonna find a place to live, give you all I've got to give.)
(I will love you more than life if you'll only be my wife.)
(I'm gonna love you night and day. I'm gonna try in every way.)
The Police's "When We Dance" is a haunting and emotional song that tells the story of a man who loves a woman deeply, but is unable to be with her because she is already in a relationship with someone who does not love or cherish her the way he does. The opening lines, "If he loved you like I love you, I would walk away in shame" set the tone for the rest of the song. The singer is saying that if the woman's current partner loved her the way he does, he would simply walk away and let them be happy together.
The chorus of the song, "When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings", is poignant and captures the moment of intimacy and connection between the singer and the woman. It is a moment of pure happiness and apart from that nothing else matters. The lyrics, "The priest has said my soul's salvation is in the balance of the angels and underneath the wheels of passion. I keep the faith in my fashion", is a reference to the singer's deep love and faith, and his refusal to give up on his feelings for her.
The song's final verse, "Come and live with me. We'll have children of our own. I would love you more than life if you'll come and be my wife" is a desperate plea from the singer, asking the woman to leave her current partner and start a new life with him. The passion and emotion within this song are palpable and it is clear that the man is willing to go to any extent to be with the woman he loves.
Line by Line Meaning
If he loved you like I love you, I would walk away in shame.
If he had the same intense love for you as I do, I would feel so unworthy and insignificant that I would simply leave and start afresh elsewhere.
When he watches you, when he counts to buy your soul, On your hand his golden rings like he owns a bird that sings.
When he looks at you, valuing and objectifying you based on what you can offer him, it's as if he claims full ownership of you and sees you only as something to show off like a prized possession.
When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings. The priest has said my soul's salvation is in the balance of the angels And underneath the wheels of passion. I keep the faith in my fashion. When we dance angels will run and hide their wings.
When we dance, it's as if all the beauty in the world is captivated by the intensity of our love. Despite the fact that my soul's salvation is at stake with the impulsive desires we share, I still hold onto faith in my own way. It's as if our love is so powerful that even angels hide in awe.
(I will love you more than life if you'll only be my wife.) (I'm gonna love you night and day. I'm gonna try in every way.) When we dance angels will run and hide their wings. (I'm gonna find a place to live, give you all I've got to give.)
I promise to love you more than anything else on this earth if only you'll accept my proposal. I'll dedicate myself to cherishing and serving you every moment of every day. When we dance, our love is so strong that even divine beings can't help but hide in deference. I'll find us a new home and provide everything that I have for us to thrive together.
If I could break down these walls and shout my name at heaven's gate, I'd take these hands and I'd destroy the dark machineries of fate.
I'm so desperate to declare my love to the world that I would even break down walls and scream my message at the gates of heaven itself. I would do anything to overcome the obstacles that threaten to keep us apart.
Cathedrals are broken, heaven's no longer above, And hell fire's a promise away I'd still be saying I'm still in love. Still in love, still in love, still in love, still in love
Even though the structures and institutions of faith that once anchored our world seem shattered and distant, even if the prospect of eternal torment looms if we give in to our passion, I will still declare my love for you, relentlessly and unapologetically.
He won't love you, like I love you. He won't care for you this way. He'll mistreat you if you stay.
He cannot possibly love and cherish you with the same purity and intensity that I do. He will not treat you with the same care and devotion, and in fact, he might even hurt you if you remain with him.
Come and live with me. We'll have children of our own. I would love you more than life if you'll come and be my wife.
Join me in building a new life together, one based on mutual love and respect. Let's bring children into the world and raise them in a loving and nurturing environment. I swear that I will love you more than anything else on this earth if only you'd agree to marry me.
When we dance, angels will run and hide their wings. When we dance.
When we're together and caught up in the magic of each other's company, it's like the divine beings themselves can't help but hide in shame at the depth and beauty of our shared love.
(I'm gonna love you night and day. I'm gonna try in every way.) (I'm gonna find a place to live, give you all I've got to give.) (I will love you more than life if you'll only be my wife.)
I vow to love you every minute of every day, trying my hardest to show the depth of my devotion to you. I'll find us a perfect home and give everything I have for us to prosper. If only you would marry me, I promise to love you more than anything else on this earth.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GORDON SUMNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Daniel
on Roxanne
Algum leitor sabe a letra de Saludos Caballeros ?
Até agora não conseguí !
daprendiz1@gmail.com