Sting and Andy Summers of The Police have reunited for the first time in nearly two decades, performing on a new cover of their former band’s 1983 song “Murder by Numbers.”
Originally a bonus track on the album “Synchronicity,” “Murder by Numbers” has been given a big band treatment by bassist and bandleader Christian McBride. The track features Sting on vocals and Summers on guitar, and it serves as the opening track of McBride’s album “Without Further Ado, Vol. 1,” set for release on Aug. 29.
“I am absolutely thrilled to have Sting and Andy Summers — two-thirds of one of the most influential bands in history, The Police — join me for one of their songs,” McBride stated in a press release. “Sting continues to evolve gracefully as an artist, and Andy still plays with the sophisticated fire and grit he has always possessed.”
The new version of “Murder by Numbers” marks the first collaboration between Sting and Summers since The Police’s 2007-2008 reunion tour.
Summers played guitar on the first two tracks of Sting’s 1987 solo album “…Nothing Like the Sun.” Sting has also appeared on two of Summers’ albums: 1990’s “Charming Snakes” and 1999’s “Green Chimneys: The Music of Thelonious Monk.”
Currently, Sting is performing in Europe on his 3.0 tour, which returns to the three-piece band format of The Police. A live album from the tour was released earlier this year. He will return to the United States for more shows beginning Nov. 7 at the Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida, with the tour concluding on Nov. 24 in Chicago.
In April, Summers and Robert Fripp of King Crimson released “The Complete Recordings 1981-1984,” which includes their two collaborative albums and a third disc of previously unreleased material.
