Police are a great band, but I love much of Sting's post-Police output, as well as Andy's. Instead of a pop-song, we are treated to a dramatic monologue through the sincerity of a beautiful, young voice. This performance might be Sting's finest moment, so maybe, no music will ever match this level of perfection. There's so much great music. We have been blessed. Thank you for your comment on this RU-vid "video"
Feel exactly like you do. I found the tape back in 83 or 84 at the Student Union at the U of Maryland and I believe this is the first song on it. The entire Secret Policeman’s Ball or Concert was very special!
Instead of a pop-song, we are treated to a dramatic monologue through the sincerity of a beautiful, young voice. The Police are a great band, but I love much of Sting's post-Police output, as well as Andy's. This performance might be Sting's finest moment, very little music will ever match this level of perfection. Thankfully, there's so much great music in the world and we have been blessed.
For years I couldn't listen to the studio version of this song after hearing it played this way. That's the mark of a great song when it can be played and sung alone with just one person and it resonates just as much as a whole band playing with studio tricks added.
Sting is known for a lot of things, but this performance shows what a truly GREAT vocalist he was during his prime. Other than some slight "echo", it's all him; pitch-perfect and unassisted, unlike some of the performances of today's artists.
Dating myself but I’ve been into The Police since Outlandos came out. I’ve seen every clip imaginable. But this right here was Sting’s finest performance of all time. The layers are peeled off Message In A Bottle and it’s so dark and beautiful. Just kills it.
1981. What a year. One of the best solo performances of all time. I can remember watching this on MTV as a kid. Remember when MTV was subversive and not lame?
I worked at MTV in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Magic memories. It was a special time and place. Surprisingly small scale at first but it grew. I started as a tape operator in the studio and later as a transmission controller, playing music video’s live on air, mixing sound and vision. Then the industry changed and the music stopped being important. So sad. But I will never forget the amazing family that I called colleagues and the madness that happened daily 😊
@@GlennFordism Bless you man. It was a great time to be 10 years old. I have a 12 year old now and I wish the kids of today had something like MTV. Something just for them that parents "didn't get".
I can't imagine putting myself out there so intimately with anything as Sting does with these two performances. I so appreciate people who can do this and affect others so much.
Gordon Sumner was an teacher in an English primary school I guess, who played jazz music, and wore a yellow and black striped horizontal sweater. He looked like a bee to his friends, so his nickname became ‘Sting’. The rest is history.❤
Sting and the Police were so far out in front of other bands, their sound and their lyrics presaged our broken Western culture and even the internet. The loneliness, isolation, misanthropy, voyeurism; even the pretentiousness of some of their songs spoke volumes. They were very Brechtian and to this day I don’t think most people really understand how on-the-nose those guys were. That being said one of the 1st tapes I ever had, had this and Landlord on it from “The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball.” I must listened to this a few thousand times as a teenager. It is perfect and so much better than the band’s cut from “Outlandos D’Amour.”
Best version I've ever seen! Saw it in the theaters in 1981, Secret Policeman's Other Ball. The acoustics and tempo of this song really capture the emotions of the song, in a way that earlier versions by the Police did not. Seeing this song sung solo by Sting gave me a higher appreciation of him as an artist. The grass is not greener on the other side. We're all in the same boat. "Seems like I'm not alone in being alone, A hundred billion castaways, Looking for a home"
TSPOB (1981), as you know, was an event to benefit Amnesty International (AI), an organisation dedicated to fight governmental injustice in its many forms globally; one of its many concerns is in helping to free individuals unlawfully imprisoned for exercising their basic human rights to run for office, express their voice, and to speak, create, educate, perform, and publish freely. And one of the ways that AI fought to free these political prisoners was thru coordinated letter-writing campaigns to the leadership of the governments repressing these individuals who for the most part languished in solitary confinement with no clue as to the progress of their cases, if any. Message In A Bottle, a forcefully compelling song about isolation, longing, and of not losing hope, is made more powerfully haunting with this version, and fits so properly with the mood and vibe of that evening’s worthy cause.
With the really great ones they can do things like this and completely mesmerize the audience. There aren't more than a half dozen people in the field that can cast the spell this man has for the last 40 years. So fantastic to have this performance captured.
I was present in year 1979 - The Police live in Reggio Emilia at Palasport I was present in year 1983(?) - The Police live in Rome at Palaeur I was present in year 1995(?) - Sting live in Bolzano You are always and simply....THE BEST !!!! There are not words to describe your talent... Ricky
Yo have to be an idiot if you put your finger down hearing this song. Until now 8 idiots. Amazing. Although we are luky. They are begining to get out from their caves where they live for years. And now they are exposed to the sun light. We reconize their faces. Good luck dear people. Still alive. Best wishes from Spain.
It was summer 1985 when I first heard this version and I never forgot it! Man that was a special time for me as a 16 year old kid. I was coming into my own...
I saw the movie in the theater and immediately bought the album at a used record shop in Salem, MA. I used to blare it on my headphones. I loved The Police but this rendition mesmerized me. Still does.
I knew this was epic when I was a teenager. Would this come out today, what teenager would love it? The poor, poor teens of today. Music is not that important to them anymore.
"Meneer Sting zingt hier op 'n manier zoals je nooit eerder hebt gehoord: zo verstild, zo sereen, zo a-capella bijna, zo allerdelikaatst gestuwd door slechts een flard gitaar en bas, dat alles naar je hoofd stijgt ..." (Akamas Auriga)
Him and Pete Townsend have great abilities as performers They can put out a great song for all of us to buy then enjoy Later they can make a solo version that gets lost in the archive that only a few of us will ever listen to again primed with vocal and guitar embellishments I feel so privileged PS Sting on this song in particular ends almost every phrase with - “oh” me oh sea oh Almost every word except home lol 😂 I wonder why?….🤔
He sings it on a higher tone, and the guitar is also tuned a tone higher. Apparently so intended. If you compare with the album version, you'll understand what I meant. And sting is clearly stoned)))) I know
