Sting and his 'muse' Jimmy Nail talk exclusively to Sharuna Sagar

Tyneside rock star Sting released his first album in nearly a decade today. Called "The Last Ship", it features songs from his musical of the same name - and it's inspired by the Swan Hunter shipyard in Wallsend. Sting has enlisted a host of North East musicians to feature on the album - including his old pal, Jimmy Nail. Sting and Jimmy spoke exclusively to arts reporter Sharuna Sagar about the songs, the memories and their special relationship for tonight's Look North report.

[@juliemulligan8473]

Jimmy Nail is a legend❤

[@krmoore1000]

i miss you jimmy nail

[@MissTootle]

I'm proud to be born & bred in the same area as these two :)

[@MissTootle]

I live in Washington & even if I moved away I'll always be proud of my roots.....the North East is in my blood ;)

[@krmoore1000]

Nicola Blackie im from hull, i love my city

[@nulanula5302]

"I'm very proud of where I come from". As a fellow Geordie, that is nice to hear. What a proud and privileged place to have live one's childhood (1950-60s). And as to the "Whatever happened to the accent, Gordon" comment below...I understand the sentiment. I hate it when obvious Geordies try pathetically to hide the accent, but how many outside Tyneside can get it? If you move away, inevitably, you have to modify it.

[@garrycraig2095]

He’s not a Geordie he is from Wallsend.

[@finckel2682]

Geordie is any individual from the Tyneside area, not Newcastle-upon-Tyne alone. Wallsend is in the Tyneside area and literally only about 4 miles east of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, therefore, Sting is a Geordie. Now his accent is not that thick anymore because he moved south to find success and was forced to "moderate" his accent once in London, as people from outside Tyneside would hardly understand him. The same thing happened to the Knopfler brothers, who are also Geordies, but moved to London to find success. Curiously, both The Police and Dire Straits were formed in 1977, with one or two Geordies having moved south. Nail, on the other hand, retains his thick Geordie pronunciation with some dark Ls (which is quite unusual to the Geordie accent, that usually has a light L) either because he probably lived in Tyneside longer than Sting or just because he does not mind not being understood by non-Geordies. Brian Johnson seems to follow this very same pattern. During his interviews with fellow Geordies Sting and Mark Knopfler, it is quite noticeable that Johnson has the purest Geordie accent, whereas Knopfler's and Sumner's accents apparently mingled with RP and many "southernisms", but still sound like northeasterners to an extent.

[@guineagirl5078]

Love Jimmy. Still broard geordie

[@garrycraig2095]

Great end comment by the interviewer.

[@clintriker1]

Wye eye

[@jannejoensuu896]

Geordies are alreet !

[@elinortumelty8355]

Which comes first, the lyrics or the melody? Or does the intonation of dialect dictate the melody? Old topic, see Wagner etc

[@prideofdurham4776]

Lyrics? How many times does he say "walking on the moon" "message in a bottle" or "stand so close to me"? Must have took months to write those songs!

[@andr3wbr1dg3s]

I worked in those yards and I fail to see the romance.

[@jimmorrison3756]

Because you're not a multi-Millionaire selling musical artist. You're obviously a fool who thinks he knows everything and has done nothing with his sad virgin lit life. And also an embarrassment to true geordies everywhere.

[@HugoHome67]

whatever happened to the accent Gordon, you not proud to be geordie ?