The Very Best of Sting & the Police [1998]

Personnel includes: Sting (vocals, guitar, bass); Cheb Mami (vocals);
Andy Summers (guitar); Branford Marsalis (saxophone); Kenny Kirkland,
David Sancious (keyboards); Darryl Jones (bass); Stewart Copeland, Vinnie Colaiuta, Omar Hakim (drums); Mino Cinelu (percussion).
Producers include: The Police, Nigel Gray, Hugh Padgham, Sting, Kipper.
Import pressing of 2002 compilation substitutes "So Lonely" with "Roxanne '97" (Puff Daddy Remix).
During two decades in the music business, Sting has always been about genre-busting. The Police imbued their reggae-influenced brand of rock music with a truly literary lyrical sensibility, distancing themselves from the Tolkien-tinged meandering which tended to pass for "thoughtful lyrics" in the seventies. The ill-advised sci-fi garb of SYNCHRONICITY notwithstanding, they brought vibrancy, imagination, and intelligence into the dumbed-down world of arena rock. THE VERY BEST OF STING & THE POLICE represents their work with unquestionably classic cuts such as "Message In A Bottle," "Can't Stand Losing You," and "Every Breath You Take."
On his own, Sting moved into the even headier realms, assembling a supergroup of young jazzers and further indulging the bookworm within. "If I Ever Lose My Faith In You" and "Englishman In New York" display the mellower, calmer Sting. You want erudite? The album's only co-writing credit is "Russians," based on a little something by Prokofiev. Closing with the hugely successful Puff Daddy remix version of "Roxanne," THE VERY BEST OF STING & THE POLICE provides an overview of his progression from schoolmaster to rock icon and back again.