Sting on How He Got His Nickname and Writing “Roxanne” (2016)

[@davidhooper259]

“Sophisticated” is an understatement. Sting was the hit maker but Copeland and Sommers were next level jazz musicians playing pop music

[@eily_b]

Summers

[@mykehyslop198]

Sting was ? He's not dead.

[@davidhooper259]

@@mykehyslop198 past tense is what you walked away with? Ok….when was his last hit as a solo artist or as The Police bassist. Even if it was yesterday-past tense is appropriate

[@sdafasdfasdfsda]

@@davidhooper259 "Even if it was yesterday (comma), past tense is appropriate"

[@JDAfrica]

@@mykehyslop198 he’s one crazy night of tantric away though

[@aquaIungg]

I love how after the sound of Sting hitting the piano, you can hear him chuckle.

[@thelegendaryklobb2879]

Always wondered about that chuckle, now that I know the whole story it's so much better. What a goof!

[@CelsoGattaz]

I must have heard that piano 1000 times. Just now I know the story behind it. So cool!

[@tcliff1]

Love that piano story 😂

[@steveconn]

That is funny.

[@celsosouza6779]

Amazing story 🤭🤭🤭😁😁🤣

[@da_great_mogul]

I find it odd as it's overall in key with only one or two notes possibly out.

[@SandraSchuster-ut2nk]

I had no idea how funny Sting is ...despite reading his book broken music ... what a gem of an interview- the gift of the police keeps on giving ... Stings bum sound intruiged me for years 😂😂❤it

[@bradthurkle7217]

Same 🤣

[@ThaRuralJuror]

The piano bit is so interesting... just a silly little thing they left on the record, but I remember hearing that as a kid and the strange chord, then the stately, sophisticated way that Sting laughs was so unique and mysterious to me. I didn't hear about the backstory until years later.

[@the_jcbone]

*BACK* story. I see what you did there. 🙂

[@jmm1817]

Lol make sense they left it in because it just oddly works

[@jtreut]

Stern is a brilliant interviewer. He has authentic interest in the depth of his guests.

[@QuicksilverSG]

This has to be the most down-to-earth interview with Sting I've yet heard. Good job, Howard!

[@neaituppi7306]

I think the one with Rick Beato was more so. Rick can actually talk music theory and recording with him.

[@punns643]

Go see ricks

[@PrinceBarin77]

Another vote for the interview with Rick.

[@Yakkymania]

his Letterman interview from 1982 is pretty chill

[@BCSExpress1]

Rick Beato did the best interview with Sting yet.

[@spacecan1]

Sting is introverted and funny and I don't really think he takes himself too seriously, but he get's that rap that he does. He's an emotional artist, and obviously he takes the music seriously, which anyone has to do to be successful in their profession.

[@kenaune2807]

I was in a cover band in the 80's and I remember spending so much time trying to figure out that chord! Wish I had known...

[@helloDobson3259]

Respect - Sting so down to earth. Doesn't flinch at Howard's confidence testing....

[@bicyclist2]

I have loved Sting since the early 80's. I knew about how he got his name since the 90's. Great interview. Thanks.

[@wintergarden7539]

I absolutely remember hearing Roxanne on the radio in PA in 1979. It was soooo cool and funky. One of my friends was named Roxanne, so after that every time we saw her we would go "Roooooooxaaaaaane!"

[@eleven4375]

One of the best Sting interviews I've ever seen.

[@alukuhito]

He generally doesn't do interviews, so there aren't exactly many to compare this to.

[@bobwoods1302]

Stern used to make fun of celebrities back when the show was sort of funny.

[@notintohandles]

The usual excellence that I have come to expect from a Howard Stern interview.

[@janetownley]

Haha, good joke 😅

[@huero33]

I learned how he got his nickname. What is real name is. How he came up with the song Roxanne. Why he laughs at the beginning of Roxanne. All in one short great interview clip.

[@Terp311]

Nickname- 0:45 Real name- 1:45 Roxanne- 3:02 Laugh- 4:58

[@andybaldman]

You should have known these already.

[@ianbauer4703]

Greatest band of that New Wave era...or whatever it was called.

[@schrodingerscat8621]

I remember in the early 80s some girl that I liked in school wore a police T-shirt. My friends and I were all listening to early hip-hop and Motown stuff, so this band almost slipped by me. It was a very interesting time for music in general. Metal, the power ballad, beautiful love songs, and some fantastic Motown stuff. The 80s was just an amazing time for music!

[@robfromvan]

I listened to early hip-hop too during the Breakdancing era; 83-84.

[@Everettel]

I have listened to Roxanne a million times, cool interview.

[@atravelerofbothtimespace4172]

He’s a phenomenal wrestler

[@Me-qp8vz]

Nah just a sook.

[@AngelaTheDoll444]

And he can still do a 5 minute side plank!

[@atravelerofbothtimespace4172]

@@AngelaTheDoll444 LOL !!!

[@anakina1]

I was impressed with the way Stern did the interview. Been a long time since I've seen him.

[@TWayneD1020]

Woo oh, woo oh oh oh oh 🎶 !! The first time I heard The Police, I knew they were going to have a magnificent future !!! Thank you for the interview !!

[@Trainy2]

I've always wondered about that piano sound at the beginning of Roxanne

[@MatisseStLaurent]

This interview is so great!

[@treborretsnom6186]

Love beyond expression for the music

[@jamescpotter]

The best rock trio!

[@scottmcclure4153]

We do have the winery dogs. New album today . It's there 3rd . Calling it 111. It's a great album. Check it out all over UT. The whole band

[@larrydanadavid2435]

Cream, Nirvana and a personal favorite James Gang

[@CorneiliusLibowitz]

ZZ Top.

[@adriantrusca1245]

Pop trio. Nothing rock about them. And they are nowhere near the best.

[@joeblog2672]

Rush, Cream, ZZ Top all brilliant but are not as good as the Police!

[@timweaver7826]

What a great story. Wish I had kept all my albums.....especially theirs.

[@gh-vi9tk]

My fave bassist Sting, along with Jack Bruce.

[@jeniferallan6693]

Wow. That took me back. I bought a 10inch version of that wonderful song way back in 78. ROXANNE!!!

[@perrindixon8482]

"Only things on the radio were Sultans of Swing by Dire Straits and Roxanne"... couple a good ol Geordie classics!

[@MetaFootballTV]

Scottish are the Straits, but anyway. I guess it's up to them to say whether they feel more Scottish of Geordie.

[@sammaddison2085]

@@MetaFootballTV nah mark is from Newcastle

[@MetaFootballTV]

@@sammaddison2085 born in Scotland.

[@anilachar323]

Ah...Sting and The Police of the late 1970s and early 1980s, was the sound that so many of us grew up with in our college years. 'Sophisticated' is a fair term to define their music : the intense and taut percussions of Copeland, the classically trained Andy, and the jazz internship of Sting. Why would The Police not be one of the defining bands of the 1980s? Though I was a little disappointed when they broke up post Synchronicity, Sting, without missing a beat, started his solo career and kept the sentiments and nostalgia going on for decades thereafter...

[@joeblog2672]

Oh, if they had only continued together. It should have been illegal for them to break up so early! Sting still could have had his brilliant solo career (just as Phil Collins did along side Genesis). Such a climactic conglomeration of exceptionally talented individuals coming together. Still an amazing 5 years that had a big impact on my musical appreciation.

[@Labyrinth1010]

Wasn’t Andy trained in jazz (not classical)?

[@anilachar323]

@@Labyrinth1010 As per the biography of The Police, a book that I had bought in the 1980s, he was trained as a classical guitarist, taught students, while being a sessions musician too. Till The Police happened. Post the breakup of the band, he indulged in his passion for photography and had had a few exhibitions, books, etc Sting played in jazz bands early on his career.

[@DanielBoonelight]

@@anilachar323 if you read summers' memoir, 'one train later' you will find that he was much more interested and involved mentally in jazz at the time than traditional classical guitar. he more grew up with the classical paradigm as a stepping stone, but sought and loved jazz.

[@anilachar323]

@@DanielBoonelight Quite possible! - I must confess I haven't read the 'One Train Later', only having read about it in bits and trivia on Summers...

[@d-mack7053]

Wow!!!!!!! I always thought that was the bass in the intro before the msong kicked in.

[@williwombat1066]

Howard Stern is a superb interviewer.

[@imalwaysright]

Very cool stories about the piano and how the song went “viral”. He looks so handsome.

[@DoppelgangerShockwave]

So that's where the brown note came from. Great playing on the piano, Sting. 😉🤣

[@essbee2316]

I thought it was a… bum note! 😂

[@NoNo-ks4gg]

Wow! That was great info and I ain't even a Sting fan --- but I love Roxanne and respect his talent! Good job Howie . . . you didn't over talk him!

[@wyskass861]

A great advantage of only being publicly known by an unofficial nickname is the privacy it affords on public records and other lists where your name must appear.

[@JNC1973]

I can't say I ever noticed that sound of his butt hitting the keys after all the years I've heard this song before until just now. I have however heard his laugh at the beginning just not the keys being struck. Weird after all these years I now know what that laugh was all about. Just when you think there was no story behind it you find out otherwise because you decided to listen to a Howard Stern clip while browsing You Tube.

[@devastaterx]

Stern reminds me of the late, great Barbara Walters in the way he asks fascinating and personal questions that we all wanted to know but may not have known that we did until after they're asked.

[@players7686]

Too me The Police were the best band of the 80's. Seen them playing in Winnipeg then seen them playing in Toronto on the Reunion Tour. So good!

[@EndoftheTownProductions]

Howard interviewing Howard about Sting with Sting in the studio.

[@JamZorro]

I liked The Police (band)... Always felt a sense of urgency in their music... (could be just me)

[@srfoy6493]

Reading. "...sense of urgency..." , and that is the perfect description !

[@neverhit17]

Howard is so great

[@rollomaughfling380]

Sting talking about sharing the airwaves with Dire Straits. Geordie Revolution!

[@TheSateef]

that's what i was thinking, probably a few Brian Johnson AC/DC songs on the radio at that time too

[@kathrynmoll86]

Sorry but Eddie Murphy singing in his cell in "48 Hours" always comes to my mind! I do love Sting!

[@robfromvan]

Nick Nolte actually calls him the n-word after releasing him from jail, or was that 48 Hours 2?

[@TalkingWithBob]

Sting seems to be exactly rightly rated by most people

[@markstevens1729]

KZbin needs this.

[@civlyzed]

Well earned thumbs up, Bobs.

[@denisefreitas6727]

He looks fantastic!

[@jldonnell1]

Indeed - it was called "New Wave".

[@tomlichnofsky.7048]

Legend!!! 😎👌👍🍁♈🍁

[@demonicsweaters]

I've always wondered about that piano clam in the beginning, hahaha. Great stories!

[@DonLeist]

Sting does a very good Imitation of Billy Idol,good job Sting!

[@stevengrieco5269]

A TRUE Virtuoso 👍

[@eilishella]

Howard always talks more than his guests do.

[@DidactDude]

Howard does the best interviews!

[@davidsnyder2000]

Lots of good history and information 👍🙂

[@just-sayin67]

Great interview!

[@ENGlishJELLo-yk7up]

The Police were musically a mix of Punk Rock meets Reggae meets Jazz meets Pop

[@jamesheath7601]

The Police 🖤

[@JuneH-j8p]

what tools they were

[@chrisgarcia9629]

$100 million in album sales…unimaginable 😮

[@skipbadger]

Not $100 million in album sales. 100 million albums sold! In dollars, that has to be somewhere around a billion. It's even MORE unimaginable to me. 🙂

[@chrisgarcia9629]

@@skipbadger that’s what I meant, typed it incorrectly

[@pamelabonaparte9383]

Brilliant 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻❤

[@shoWbitz]

Sting, the legendary pro wrestler, approves! 👍

[@ukanchumee3446]

The Police Cars would've made a great super group!

[@demetriuscooksey7147]

Lol... Agreed!

[@marielaynufioconsuegra9410]

es una entrevista excelente y aportadora

[@mikekisonu6825]

My intro to The Police? Eddie Murphy belting out “Roxanne” while in jail in “Trading Places.” For the longest, I asked myself, “WTF was that song Eddie sang?,” til I ultimately found out it was The Police, and became a LIFELONG fan. 😍☺️

[@wbmarceloz]

More sophisticated indeed. Boss

[@Me-on1tq]

Ily sting you the best

[@alukuhito]

I new the naming story, but not the piano chord one. That's cool.

[@dE3Lov]

Can't believe I just now learned that weird piano chord and laugh was accidental.

[@morningsidedriverock]

Holy shit. I always wondered where those notes from the piano came from.

[@joncamp9126]

KLBJ actually, I remember those were my first memories

[@catmom1322]

I really didn't care for "Roxanne" at first. Love anything the Police does now.

[@vinzanity68]

Stern loves hearing himself more than his guests.

[@smalltownreviews]

🔥🔥🍻🍻

[@johnhedley831]

Micheal Caswell in the background. RIP Micheal

[@privatepenguin3137]

Wow - this interview was from 2016. Had to be only months later that he died.

[@pamr4040]

❤

[@Terp311]

You’re looking for 0:45-2:01

[@MrBertreynolds]

I've always pictured him telling his mates and the band members etc. From now on call me "Sting" please? Ya, OK STING Hahahaha. Bloody hell at least you don't want us to call you Captain or Chief...of Police!

[@DaveW_GuitarStuff]

Trev & Simon "STINGGGGGGGGGGGGG!"

[@andrewgonzalez6208]

“Get me a beer, Gordy”

[@ConglomerationCat]

"Would you mind calling...me....Sting?"

[@TomMarvan]

4:45 Dire Straits alert.

[@neuvisean1739]

4:49 and Sting would later sing with them on 'Money for Nothing'

[@GDuncan8002]

That ain't workin'

[@donaldpriola1807]

"Phantom fascination for the seedy part of town..."

[@jamesheath7601]

🐝

[@TMoody]

The Police = best band in the history of rock n' roll.

[@hollowpoint45acp]

Ha, no

[@QuicksilverSG]

I think of them as The Beatles of the 80's. On that note, Andy filled the role of Ringo, Stewart was George, and Sting combined both John and Paul in one ego.

[@HailAnts]

I hope Howard asked him what he thought of Eddie Murphy's version of _Roxanne._

[@neaituppi7306]

The bathroom. Which is probably as big as a small town.

[@unclebob7937]

STING! The STINGANATOR! making copies! STINGORINO!

[@jackotheclown89]

Sting is so great, music even comes from his arse..

[@mikegrand4181]

Best cover of Roxanne?: Eddie Murphy in 48hrs.

[@nathueil1]

STANG

[@wintergarden7539]

LOL. I call him that, too!!! Can't remember where I first heard it but it was so funny.

[@MarkThrive]

KLBJ ... AUSTIN ROCK!

[@charlesallan6978]

He was caned so much in school that everyone called him Sting.

[@pjmichaelsrocksyou]

Freeborn Hall in UC Davis!

[@BEACHDUDE71]

I thought the piano part was on purpose 😂

[@mrdeafa25]

I met Fish once and asked him how he got his nickname. That was a mistake.

[@ruthcruz6239]

Ross can!!

[@fooel7630]

1:43

[@TheBent139]

Sting "I played for the WEF in Davos for lots of money."

[@Mung1983]

I didn't know David Spade played guitar

[@davidcoen9021]

I am no fan of Howard Stern and his antics. Nevertheless, his voice sounds INCREDIBLE on this recording! I think that's a Neumann microphone he's using.....

[@MichaelGranado]

UC Davis! Go Ags!