The Police - Message in a Bottle "Reggatta De Blanc 1979" "Live in Concert" at Baseball Stadium "Tokyo Dome" 2008 Japan Sting - Vocals, Bass Andy Summers - Guitar Stewart Copeland - Drums
Yeah I'm starting to try learn it atm as my first more advanced riff. It's quite an awkward stretch for the fingers & you need to change positions quickly!
The riff on the record starts at concert pitch Dflat ( on fourth fret) and its just a semi tone jump from there to second part of it ( in Amajor 5th fret), you,ll then have a full 3 fret slide down from there to Bmajor ( second fret) and then up ( on same fret) to F sharp. I,ve played the riff live at every type of gig on and off for 40 years, and people never get sick of hearing it. @@ash_530i
p.s. Yes the riff played properly is an awkward 5 fret stretch from start to finish, once you,ve practised it to death and put your digits in spasms and cramps in the process it is worth it though. @@ash_530i
This is my first time watching a live performance of the Police, and I never knew he played with traditional grip. Any other mainstream pop/rock bands with a traditional grip player?
Hey kids……this other worldly sound you’re hearing is coming from the instruments of 3 people. Yes…..3 people. No rhythm guitar. No keys. No backup singers. NO AUTOTUNE. I count my blessings each day that I was able to grow up with actual artists that perfected their craft. This is incredible
ANDY SUMMERS!!! everyone’s talking about sting and copeland who are legends in their own right but the way summers is able to fill up the space and pull the whole sound together is just as important as what the other two guys are doing - remember, for a three piece band to ever sound as massive as the police do, all three members need to play their instruments larger than life itself, which summers handily does in my opinion
Andy Summers + Sting (Gordon Sumner) + Steward Copeland = The Police. Not only 1 or 2 but all of them together, doesn't matter they are successful even in their own projects.
Stewart Copeland manages to make this version of this song even harder to play than the studio version. One of the greatest of all time. What a talent.
Yeah!I also adore his power. He manages to be precise and tasteful, but also very powerful. Much more than just hitting the drums hard, it's a crazy amount of control.
Yes. He is a god Damn fucking machine. Being tall is a definite blessing. He rules that set. That groove. For me, I would like to hear a lower sounding snare and longer crash cymbal delays though. His hats cut nicely though, as does his kick
31lafouine Neil Peart is the greatest if you ask me, but Copeland is right up there. I would love to see those two on the same stage. Copeland is scary good.
I prefer Copeland. I think his precision is a tiny bit superior to Peart (on the fast hi-hat for example). And his choice of drums his perfect, the plus that he gives to Police songs is, to me, unmatchable
If The Police had any other drummer not named Stewart Copeland, they’re just another good trio-but his drumming-the fills, the spaces, the backbeat-makes all the damn difference and gives the band its massive sound with an almost frenetic force driving the songs forward.
Agreed, I think Copeland makes a huge difference in the total sound. I've heard other bands do ok with the bass and guitar, but never a drummer who could nail this
Yep Japan’s crowd are known for being really quiet and respectful. I wished they had a video of another live performance somewhere else. At least we’ll see a real crowd!
You can see the focus, intensity, and intelligence in Stewart's eyes. As much as he and Andy resent Sting's ego and past transgressions, they compliment each other sooo well musically on stage. Like Rush, Led Zeppelin, etc. you couldn't replace a member of The Police and it be the same.
3 mature musicians who really mastered the live creation of a "wall of sound" As much as I respect Sting's decision to go solo more often than not (and he also gets the good ones like Vinnie, Manu, Miller, McBride, Morelenbaum etc.), I still prefer the Police "wall of sound", Andy's eerie guitar against Sting's grooving bass punctuated by Stu's frantic snares and hats.
One of the greatest fillers of space with a guitar. He truly is/was the missing piece for this band. Having someone’s chops like him on the guitar helped pave the way for their catalog to be what it was.
I have both his signature ride and his signature snare. Both make my band mates' ears bleed. Not cheap. The ride was $570 and the snare is near $500. Not cheap but they are the real deal.
It's hilariously ironic how utterly mistaken your comment is. His voice is in a much deeper range than it was thirty-five years ago (obviously, you genius). It is still fantastic, however.
I'm an old baby boomer who took my Gen-Y kids to see Police live in Brisbane a few years back. And my son (who was about 14 at the time) loved the show and couldn't get over how three guys could hold a show in their hands the way Police ie, 3 guys did. Nuff said. xxxx
Just 3 guys, their equipment, and no auto tune in sight, just pure talent and energy. They don't make bands like this anymore, and if they do, its a rare occasion.
The thing is, they actually likely still do, but it's just that the world has obviously heavily changed ever since the late twentieth century and this century's first decade. Now we are to the point where we have to struggle and dig deep to find genuinely talented/good/original!/interesting music just like that of the previous decades, because "everyone" does music nowadays, and there are now so many different genres, and I'm under the impression that there's also some sort of disinterest about music now compared to before, where great bands and solo artists that were active back then and who were basically all mainstream were already achieving mass success and becoming iconic in their own right, and for very good reasons too, and they still are today. Now music just sounds great at best, but doesn't really sound like it has the potential to become timeless and iconic just like the older songs that still are to this day, and I think that's mainly because many other artists and bands from nowadays who could pretend to such a status are somehow being overwhelmed by the more mainstream plain stuff, almost relegated to some sort of underground/private status. Seems like some sort of cultural thing, with the advance of technology, social media and streaming platforms and all... Now there might be a few exceptions to that, like maybe The Week-End, whom my mother knows about (yeah I have a tendency to measure an artist/band's actual renown/fame through the knowledge of my parents about them, I know it doesn't necessarily work like that lol).
I'm so glad that the band was able to reunite to bring us Copeland on modern drums. His intensity and endurance cannot be overstated. You cannot accurately describe in words how amazing this guy is. His abilities are beyond human comprehension, outside of witnessing it for yourself.
Stu Copeland is up there with the best to ever sit behind a kit. His wrists are so strong that it makes me think he has extra muscles and titanium steel oiled and warm in them. He is a lefty playing right handed. I think that is why he hits that snare, it sounds like a friggin gunshot. As a guitarist of 40+ yrs., I wish I pated more attention to early police tunes. Ghost in the Machine was their last good album imho. What a trio! Rush and Cream be damned. The only other tro that has that much talent is ZZ Top as far as I am concerned. At least that is what comes to mind for me right now. ELP just popped in my mind as well. Pure originality and professionalism on that stage.
Not enough "thumbs-up" for that statement. I agree 100%. I've always believed that and always will. So many people automatically default to Sting as the be-all end-all of The Police, but if you listen to each member's songwriting contributions to The Police, then listen to each member's solo work away from The Police, it's quickly apparent The Police's trademark sound--and I'm not talking about just drums; I'm talking drums, guitar, *and* bass (Stewart can play all three instruments expertly, plus many more)--originated completely from Stewart. Of course, Andy Summers is a tremendously gifted guitarist with his own fantastic style--a very warm, jazzy style; however, his immediately identifiable guitar style and tone with The Police was largely an imitation of Stewart's guitar playing. And Sting? Well, to me, he's more or less the lyricist and bass player/lead singer in Stewart's band.
if you listen to each member's songwriting contributions to The Police, then listen to each member's solo work away from The Police, it's quickly apparent The Police's trademark sound, and all the musical talent, belongs to Sting. Copeland IS a great drummer, though.
Completely agree. Even if I'm a drummer, few people understand Robert Fripp and Summers way of playing. Andy poured of Fripp way of playing, they had albums altogether when The Police was altogether, and this are big words.
Thumbs up for Andy Summers - a very recognizable riff. Most people know the song by the first 4 bars - before the drums and vocals start. Now that is talent.
The best band ever since the Beatles! They were so original and such brilliant musos! Stewart Copeland and Sting were one of the best rhythm sections in rock history!
He actually has an even more unique way of holding the left stick than almost any other drummer.He uses a form of traditional grip but regular traditional grip is with two fingers over the stick and two under. He has just one finger over and three under which actually feels really awkward to most drummers but it works great for him!😊👍🏻
@Joe Momma, oh yea. The "professor" is my favorite drummer of all time. He took lessons to get even better in the 90's and learned traditional grip. Used it in his AMAZING solo's on the snare. Neil was the GOAT, in my opinion. He could do it all. As great a player as he was his composition was utterly brilliant. RIP Professor !!!!! We miss you !!!!
Copeland's improvizational mastery exists on a razor's edge. His genius of blurring fantasy and reality is one of the rarest things I've seen in any drummer or band.
I recently revisited Ten Summoner's Tales and I gotta say there's a lot of brilliant stuff on it. It doesn't hit as hard as The Police, but it's really great imho.
The Police were incredible because they were one of those rare bands where, at every instrument and in every member, they were each exceptionally gifted. Really, there is a VERY short list of bands in which EVERY every member was so talented. AND the music they made was exceptional - it REALLY holds up - and it transcended typical pop standards astoundingly. How many other bands so seamlessly blended rock, reggae, blues, pop, and jazz. How cool how different their records are, how they evolved, musically, as songwriters. Thing is, someone - often the singer / this case sting - becomes the focal point, the star. People so individually talented don't want their output and creativity to be diluted. They want THEIR specific vision for songs and music to go forward. In a band, there can't be multiple individualists, each having their own way. So, this is why it is rare for a band to hang together for decades - like the Stones or U2. This only works if individuals within are satisfied that their output is recognized, or they are fine with whatever is accepted by the entire band. But talents with ambition quickly grow disillusioned if their talent or genius feels slighted or not allowed to shine, have reasonable attention. Truth be told, The Police ended things JUST right - before they lost total respect for each other, and before being dragged down into the morass of the fickleness of popular musical tastes and record company stupidity. Which is why they were able to briefly re-unite so successfully. They all had to set free, so as to mature and individually prosper their talents.
Too many great bands even before Police can make the same claim. Cream, Rush, Jimi Hendrix Experience, all had amazing drummers, bassists, and guitarists as a 3 piece band. Not to take away from The Police of course.
Certainly one of those drummers that mere mortals like me just can't emulate; he is always on the front edge of the beat, which is tough to do for a number of reasons, and which works perfectly to create the driving and seemingly frenetic sound of The Police.
Hands down, the drums make this song. So much sound and feeling coming from out of that kit. With that said, for a 3 piece band to push out that much sound is incredible
As a 9yr back in 79 just really getting into music Message in a bottle was the first single i ever bought and Reggatta the first album and still have to this day. For me the Police are and always will be my favorite band.
They sound as they should. Good to see that some tings never change. Rock solid playing. Andy Summers really impressed me. Copeland sounds like a ferrari still and Sting still got it, What beautiful bass playing he lays down.
I saw these guys in July, '07 at Fenway Park on their reunion tour. My first concert. I was 11 years old, and it fucking changed my life. Had a newspaper route that I did, and I paid for the tickets entirely with my tip money. Never before had I experienced such energy and volume before. It was stellar. I'll never forget that show.
You witnessed something legendary! That memory is worth a thousand times over. I'm in awe seeing them through the screen, I can't even fathom how it must be live!
Some of my favorite bands now that I think of it are 3 people on instruments. Maybe the sound is less muddled that way ? idk.. I liked watching the Netflix movie about Motley Crue. They had some guy on rhythm and were trying out guitarists. Mick Mars came in and they started playing .He pulled the rhythm guys plug out after a few seconds and said a band only needs one guitarist!
