"Demolition Man" is a song written by

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-earth ...

and performed by

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...

as the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of a 1981 single. Sting's band,

the Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Polic ...

, later released their rendition of the song on their album ''

Ghost in the Machine The "ghost in the machine" is a term originally used to describe and critique the notion of the mind existing alongside and separate to the body. In more recent times, the term has several uses, including the concept that the intellectual part of ...

''.

Background

The song was originally written by

in the Summer of 1980 while living in Peter O’Toole’s home in

Connemara, Ireland Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speaking Gaeltacht, ...

for potential use on

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Polic ...

’s ''

Zenyatta Mondatta ''Zenyatta Mondatta'' (stylised as ''Zenyattà Mondatta'' on the album cover artwork) is the third studio album by English rock band the Police, released on 3 October 1980 by A&M Records. It was co-produced by the band and Nigel Gray. ''Zenyatt ...

'', but they never managed to get around to recording it. A demo was sent to

when she requested Sting for a song. The lyric "I'm a three-line whip", often assumed to be a reference to

sadomasochism Sadomasochism ( ) is the giving and receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual pleasure from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refe ...

, is in fact an allusion to the voting instructions issued to British members of parliament to cast their votes according to the party line. Sting explained this in an interview: "Whatever

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featu ...

's in power in

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

, if it's a really important vote, you get a one-line whip. If it's incredibly important, you have a two-line whip, and something monumentally important is a three-line whip." According to Sting, he never knew that his

A-level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

British Constitution The constitution of the United Kingdom or British constitution comprises the written and unwritten arrangements that establish the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland as a political body. Unlike in most countries, no attempt ...

would "bear fruit in a rock and roll lyric".

Grace Jones version

"Demolition Man" was released as the lead single from Grace Jones's 1981 album '' Nightclubbing''. The song was performed on ''

A One Man Show ''A One Man Show'' is a long-form music video collection featuring Jamaican singer Grace Jones, released in 1982. The video mainly consists of music videos, with some concert footage filmed when Jones was touring with the eponymous tour. Backgroun ...

'' tour, featuring marching "Joneses" (stand-ins wearing Grace Jones masks), and included in the documentary film. A still picture from the video was later used for the cover of 1982 singles "

Nipple to the Bottle "Nipple to the Bottle" is a single by the Jamaican singer, model and actress Grace Jones, released in 1982. Background "Nipple to the Bottle" was the lead single from Jones' sixth studio album, ''Living My Life''. The song was released in some ter ...

" and "

The Apple Stretching "The Apple Stretching" is a song by American recording artist Grace Jones, released as a single in 1982. Background "The Apple Stretching" was written by Melvin Van Peebles for his 1982 play '' Waltz of the Stork''. The song describes New York Cit ...

Track listing

*7" single :A. "Demolition Man" – 3:31 :B. " Warm Leatherette" – 4:25 *12" single :A. "Demolition Man" – 4:56 :B. "Bullshit" – 5:18

The Police version

Soon after Jones released her version as a single,

recorded their own version for their 1981 album, ''

''. Guitarist Andy Summers recalls: The Police recorded the song in a jazzy

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...

style, featuring a

guitar solo A guitar solo is a melodic passage, instrumental section, or entire piece of music, pre-written (or improvised) to be played on a classical guitar, electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. In 20th and 21st century traditional music and popular ...

by Andy Summers. Sting's roadie Danny Quatrochi played the bass.

Personnel

*Sting – vocals, saxophone *Andy Summers – guitars *Stewart Copeland – drums *Danny Quatrochi - bass (uncredited)

Use in popular culture and other media

* "Demolition Man" was performed by Sting many times during his solo career and released in 1993 on an EP of the same name in support of the film '' Demolition Man''; this version of the song plays during the end credits. * In "True Crime", the 53rd episode of ''

Beavis and Butt-head ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' is an American adult animated series created by Mike Judge. The series follows Beavis and Butt-Head, both voiced by Judge, a pair of teenage slackers characterized by their apathy, lack of intelligence, lowbrow humor, an ...

'', aired in 1993, the pair were watching Jones' video for "Demolition Man" within ''A One Man Show''. * A live version of "Demolition Man", performed by Sting and recorded at Irving Plaza in 2005, was featured in the game '' Guitar Hero World Tour'' along with an in-game representation of Sting himself, which becomes an unlockable character upon completing the song in the bass career. This recording was later remixed and released on Sting's compilation '' The Best of 25 Years''. * An excerpt of Jones' performance of the song from ''A One Man Show'' was displayed as a part of the ''Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990'' temporary exhibition at

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

in 2011 and 2012. * "Demolition Man" was included on the 1984 live album ''Budapest Live'' by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, and previously on their 1983 studio album ''

Somewhere in Afrika ''Somewhere in Afrika'' is the eleventh album by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, released in 1982. It is their last studio album recorded for their long time record label Bronze Records. They would record their next studio album, ''Criminal Tango'' f ...

References

{{Authority control 1981 singles Grace Jones songs The Police songs Songs about fictional male characters Songs written by Sting (musician) 1981 songs Island Records singles Song recordings produced by Alex Sadkin