Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out
Fans of The Police have been excited about Stewart Copeland's new documentary every since word got out about it's premiere at Sundance in January. Complied from Super 8 footage shot by Copeland during the band's rise to fame, it chronicles The Police from its first American tour promoting Outlandos D'Amour in 1978 through their appearance at the 1982 US Festival.
The film begins a little slowly, with Copeland narrating still shots from the bands days on the London punk scene, and finally takes off once Stewart buys his camera on the eve of their American tour. Live footage of the band alternates with various antics shot at in store appearances, backstage dressing rooms, press conferences, hotel rooms, and wherever else the band's travels brought them. The soundtrack is a mix of live and studio tracks, and what Copeland calls "derangements," clever reconstructions of Police songs that fall somewhere between a remix and a mashup.
It's interesting to see the live footage of the band shot from the side and back of the stage by roadies, and for what it was the audio quality is often surprisingly good. The bonus commentary track featuring Copeland and Andy Summers is enlighting, and on it Stewart explains some of the movies shortcomings. The film does suffer from having most of the performances focusing on songs from the band's first album, so there isnt a whole lot of variety. While hardcore fans will no doubt enjoy this DVD, it pales in comparison to The Police: Around The World, an excellent 1982 film with a similar vibe shot on the band's 1980-1981 world tours.
The Police - "Fall Out" (mp3)
"Fall Out" was The Police's first single, predating the arrival of Andy Summers. Released in 1977, when they were still pretending to be part of the punk scene, it features Henri Padovani on guitar. It, along with almost every other recording the Police ever released, is available on Message In A Box: The Complete Recordings (there are a couple of live b-sides and a remix of "Don't Stand So Close To Me '86" that were not included).
post title by Peter Murphy
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