Sting

Sting, born Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner on 2 October 1951 in Wallsend, spent the late '70s and early '80s singing, playing bass and writing most of the songs for the Police. When he struck out on his own in 1985, he took the chance to stretch out: jazz, reggae, classical, new age and worldbeat all found their way into his music, alongside the rock and pop that made him famous.

The Dream of the Blue Turtles, his 1985 solo debut, brought "If You Love Somebody, Set Them Free" and "Fortress Around Your Heart". ...Nothing Like the Sun, in 1987, brought "We'll Be Together" and "Englishman in New York", and The Soul Cages, in 1991, was darker and more brooding, with "All This Time", "Mad About You" and the title track.

Ten Summoner's Tales, in 1993, is his most relaxed and tuneful record, with "Fields of Gold", a gorgeous, drifting ballad, and "Heavy Cloud, No Rain", and "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You" arrived the same year, sleek and catchy. Mercury Falling, in 1996, had "This Cowboy Song", and Brand New Day came in 1999.

Sacred Love followed in 2003 and 57th & 9th in 2016. With more than 100 million records sold between his solo career and the Police, 17 Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe, an Emmy, four Academy Award nominations, the Polar Music Prize and Kennedy Center Honors, Sting has built a career of remarkable range and longevity.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.