Other VG BOOK review - no spoilers, tantalizing last words..
Posted: 30 Aug 2009 18:49No drummer jokes, please
If you are looking for a standard memoir from a member of the legendary rock group The Police, keep on looking. In Strange Things Happen: A Life with the Police, Polos and Pygmies ($19.99, HarperStudio, 322 pages), drummer Stewart Copeland proves he has always been unconventional, whether it's his playing with the so-called "traditional grip" (which is, oddly enough, one of the least traditional) or his post-Police work composing quirky soundtracks and operas. The autobiography jumps decades back and forth but still manages to reveal who he is and how music is made. From growing up as the child of a CIA officer in Lebanon to the recent triumphant Police reunion tour, Copeland is an engaging, frank author with an eye for characterization and an ear for the outrageous. And yes, there are plenty of behind-the-scene anecdotes about Sting.
-- David Burger
If you are looking for a standard memoir from a member of the legendary rock group The Police, keep on looking. In Strange Things Happen: A Life with the Police, Polos and Pygmies ($19.99, HarperStudio, 322 pages), drummer Stewart Copeland proves he has always been unconventional, whether it's his playing with the so-called "traditional grip" (which is, oddly enough, one of the least traditional) or his post-Police work composing quirky soundtracks and operas. The autobiography jumps decades back and forth but still manages to reveal who he is and how music is made. From growing up as the child of a CIA officer in Lebanon to the recent triumphant Police reunion tour, Copeland is an engaging, frank author with an eye for characterization and an ear for the outrageous. And yes, there are plenty of behind-the-scene anecdotes about Sting.
-- David Burger
