I HAVE to get a computer at home! Since my last post of 11/23, look of all that has happened! To begin with, let me say to those of you that have decided to leave the list, that I am very very disheartened to see you go. Lists such as these are one of if not the only place to talk about The Police, as a group or as individuals, which I find not only refreshing but important as it is the sole outlet that I have to engage in ongoing discussion about it/them. In a time of music that is weak to say the least, people like us have to stay together. That being said, let me say that, admittedly, since BND was released, I have been very negative of Sting and have put forth that negativity here. I despise this album. Abhor it. Hate it. As I said the other day, he finally (after 20 years for me being a rabid fan) put out an album (of original material)that I do not like. Will that stop me from being a fan of his? No. How can it? I still consider him the finest singer/songwriter that I have ever heard and, in spite of his slip (at least a slip in my estimation) on BND, he remains so. And while true few would like to see a Police reunion more than me, my disappointment with BND has NOTHING to do with The Police: it has to do with what I consider to be poor solo material. I could see Sting in concert and be very happy to do an entire set of solo material - an ENTIRE set. In fact, since he plays the same Police songs over and over, tour after tour, I would rather that he play solo material exclusively. I just hate being taken advantage of and, with BND, THAT tour, now ALL THIS TIME and that resulting tour, I feel like he is trying to abuse my being his diehard fan. And I just cannot go along with it. Not when I listen to every one of his solo albums prior to BND and marvel at what outstanding albums all of them are. I listened to MF this morning - what an album, lyrically and musically. While doing that, I bought the USA Today and saw an article on him in the Life section and just rolled my eyes: like I believe that this recent "free concert" in Bryant Park was for the benefit on the people of New York, instead of a shameless way to promote this new live album. Sorry but I have lost my faith in you, Sting, at least for the time being. But I look most forward to your next studio album and will be the 1st one to get it, rooting for your return to world class form. Rich Clarissa Aykroyd <clarissa1@home.com> wrote:

I've decided tonight to unsubscribe from this list and though I don't expect to be incredibly missed or anything, I kind of wanted to explain why because I hope it might make a little bit of a difference. Sorry, this is quite long.

I should admit upfront that I have a blind spot the size of Jupiter when it comes to Sting. I have loved his music since I was eleven (half my life) and I have been slightly in love with the man himself for much of that time. My Jupiter-sized blind spot doesn't prevent me from rolling my eyes a bit when he does yet another corporate sponsorship thing, but it does make me buy every single Sting CD I can get my hands on, gaze adoringly at pictures, go to concerts (except I've only been to two--probably about thirty less than the average person on this list) and so forth. And I will also admit that I am sensitive when it comes to criticism of Sting. It's stupid, but there you are. At the same time, I don't worship his personality. Maybe that has something to do with why I don't really mind the egomania and all the rest? Because it doesn't touch me that closely? But Sting remains the only artist who I like every song by, and that includes U2, who might slip ahead of Sting in my regard if it weren't for Zooropa and Pop. Brand New Day is one of my favourite Sting albums and I don't at all see it as a falling-off for him, but that's another story.

I've been on this list for somewhat over a year and by and large I have found it kind of depressing. I was on it for a little while in the fall of 1996, and unsubscribed only because the email address I was on wasn't handling it well. It was about ten thousand times livelier and more pleasant then than now. I know that this is really a Police mailing list. I know that there are quite a few people on here who think the Police blows Sting away and who really don't like Sting solo. I don't want anyone to think that they specifically caused me to leave just because they said something I didn't like about Sting, because I've been considering it already for some months. People are completely entitled to criticise Sting. What I find depressing is what seems like the unrelenting negativity--toward Sting at any rate--and the reluctance to get into anything like an interesting discussion. Maybe other people have better things to do than hang out on a mailing list all the time, but I always thought that the idea of a mailing list was to have interesting discussions about the subject and to share in appreciation of the subject. I don't see much of that happening here and I haven't ever in the past year. It really seems like no one cares--witness the fact that I, a newbie, was the first to post anything after Sting won a Grammy or after he sang at the Oscars--and that depresses me. And I really don't see the point in adding something depressing to my life.

Thanks anyway to the people who have contributed something interesting to my appreciation of the Police and Sting, because there are plenty of you here. I may be back some time and I kind of hope things are much happier then.

Cheers,

Clarissa

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