Sting Supports ‘Best of ‘ Albums With ‘Back to Bass Tour’

Over the weekend, one of Sirius XM’s music stations, Classic Vinyl, counted down the Top 26 British artists of all-time. Topping their list, of course, are The Beatles. The Fab Four are followed by The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, and Paul McCartney. Two more Beatles, John Lennon (#8) and George Harrison (#19), also made the list. The only other two-timer was Eric Clapton. He came in at #6 and at #10 as a member of Cream.

I have several disagreements with the list. Elton John (#13) and Rod Stewart (#19) are way to low and Electric Light Orchestra (#14), Moody Blues (#15), and Traffic (#16) are way too high.

Nevertheless, my problems with the Anglophile directory aren’t going to stop me from giving it praise. Classic Vinyl’s contrived countdown has the three things you need when making a good list: a bona fide number one (The Beatles are the top Earth band of all-time much less Great Britain), a few well researched selections to show everyone that you “know your stuff” (Jethro Tull [#17], released back-to-back number one albums in the early 1970’s ), and at least one really dumb pick to get people mad (Fleetwood Mac at #9 even though half the band [the good half] is American).

The list in question is especially easy to accept if you realize that the selected artists are also on the satellite radio station’s playlist. That’s why the list includes Deep Purple (#18), Bad Company (#23) and Peter Frampton (#25) and excludes The Clash, The Smiths, Black Sabbath and Paul Weller (for those playing along at home U2 are Irish).

I started to think about what the list would look like if it included British artists from every generation not just the classic rock era of the 1960’s and early 1970’s. In particular, where would Sting be on the list of Top 26 British artists of all-time? Would he make it as both a solo performer and as a member of The Police?

I mention Sting because he’s slated to perform all over North America this fall as part of his “Back to Bass Tour.” The trek has Sting returning to his bass guitar and playing with just five other musicians. It’s a far cry from his last outing which had him singing in front of the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra.

Sting kicks off his outing Oct. 21 in Boston, Massachusetts at the Wang Theater. He’ll wrap his odyssey on Dec. 8 in Vancouver, B.C. at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Sting tickets will be sold to venues in Toronto, Houston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles—just to name a few.

The tour celebrates Sting’s 25th anniversary as a solo artist as well as supports two of his new “best-of” releases. “Sting 25 Years” is a three-disc box set detailing his insanely successful solo career. That collection drops Sept. 27. A single-disc compilation, called “Sting: The Best of 25 Years,” hits proverbial store shelves Oct. 18.

Obviously, you have to be very good to put together a solo career of 25 years (not to mention another eight years fronting the iconic post-punk band, The Police). During that time Gordon Sumner has sold tens of millions of albums, hundreds of thousands of concert tickets, and won more than two dozen Grammy Awards.

The question isn’t whether or not Sting is a legend but is he legendary enough to be included on a list of the 26 greatest British artists of all-time?

The answer is yes.

Sting should definitely be included on the expanded list and you can also make a strong case for the inclusion of The Police. After all, if the Jeff Beck Group can make it to #26 with nary a top ten album or hit song, then The Police are shoo-ins.

Sting certainly has enough hits as a solo artist to be mentioned in the same breath as Elton John, Rod Stewart, David Bowie (#12), and Joe Cocker (#24). Unlike many of the artists on the list, Sting is a pioneer. He successfully combined rock music with elements of worldbeat, reggae, and jazz. The argument can be made that without Sting’s contributions, popular music would sound a lot less diverse than it does today.

I don’t think Sting would crack the top 10, but he would definitely make the top 12. I would probably slot his before Bowie but after Queen (#11). I would have the Police in the early 20’s, sandwiched between The Kinks (#21) and Yes (#22).

Where would you put Sting on the list of the 26 greatest British artists of all-time? Where would you put The Police?

If you were keeping track, you would have noticed that I mentioned all 26 positions but #7. The British artist at that spot is Pink Floyd.

”Sting: Back to Bass Tour”
Oct. 21 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Boston, MA @ Wang Theater
Oct. 26 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Darby, PA @ Tower Theatre
Oct. 29 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Washington, DC @ DAR Constitution Hall
Nov. 1 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
Nov. 5 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Rosemont, IL @ Rosemont Theatre
Nov. 6 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Detroit, MI @ Fox Theatre
Nov. 12 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Miami Beach, FL @ Jackie Gleason Theater
Nov. 16 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Grand Prairie, TX @ Verizon Theatre
Nov. 17 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Houston, TX @ Verizon Wireless
Nov. 20 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Denver, CO @ Wells Fargo Theatre
Nov. 22 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre
Nov. 28-29 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
Dec. 2 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in San Francisco, CA @ Nob Hill Masonic Center
Dec. 5 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
Dec. 8 - Sting: Back to Bass Tour in Vancouver, BC @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre