The 30 Best Police Covers Ever

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20. Limbeck — So Lonely

As someone who first heard the Police’s debut album in 1979, a few months after its release, it was a revelation—their mix of reggae and punk, but played by talented musicians, was distinctive. Although a white guy singing with a Jamaican accent did seem strange. “So Lonely,” the third single from the debut, Outlandos D’Amour, typified the sound, alternating reggae sections with harder rock sections. Sting has said that the song was influenced in large part from Bob Marley’s “No Woman No Cry” (although I don’t hear it).

In 2004, more than 20 years after the last Police studio album was released, Militia Group, a California-based independent label, released ¡Policia! Tribute To The Police, a collection of covers that included an appealing alt-country take on “So Lonely,” by Limbeck, from Laguna Niguel, CA. It pleasantly lopes along, and includes neither reggae nor punk. — Jordan Becker

19. Chris Weisman — Miss Gradenko

Vermont outsider-weirdo folkie Chris Weisman seems to drop a new album on Bandcamp every couple months. One of those, back in 2021, was called Sumner’s Court (it’s since disappeared from Bandcamp so you’ll have to go digging). Sumner is Sting’s real last name, and Sumner’s Court was a short seven-track album of Police and Sting covers. He blended hits with deeper cuts, like “Tea In The Sahara” and “O My God.” He even tackled the rare Police song not written by Sting: The Stewart Copeland tune “Miss Gradenko.” A strange and hypnotic bedroom version, blending plucked strings and heavy ambient synths. — Ray Padgett

18. Lucybell — Sol Invisible (Invisible Sun)

We are all entitled to our view of The Police, the institution of state. In many cases it will be shaped by our own experience, and those close to us. In a country like Chile, the spectrum of experiences may be very different, and honoring a band with that name may give a moment’s pause. But when you have the Atacama desert in your country, and the singer of the band take the time to record in the language of your state, you might notice a song like “Invisible Sun.” Lucybell bring verve to build the tension, but there is always an undercurrent of threat in their version of the song. The threat from nature in the desert, or man in the town and cities. — Mike Tobyn

17. Fall Out Boy — Roxanne

This cover has no chill. Whereas the original is unhurried, with a laid-back bass and a nice-and-easy high-hat, everything in this cover is heavier, faster, more frantic. More electric guitar, more forceful percussion, more beats per minute. Patrick Stump doesn’t reach quite as high in the choruses as Sting does, but he is still giving it all he’s got with his repeated reminder for Roxanne. For fans of Fall Out Boy, this cover could easily fit in with their original, high-tempo anthems from way back. — Sara Stoudt

16. The Infamous Stringdusters — Walking on the Moon

Ska-grass? Whatever hybrid label you want to apply, this arrangement will please bluegrass fans who aren’t purists, and Police fans who don’t police musical boundaries. Unlike certain other string bands I can think of, The Infamous Stringdusters don’t reduce their covers down to a gimmick; the band has too much gusto and technique to waste on thin jokey concepts. Their respect for “Walking on the Moon” becomes clear as they get deeper into its possibilities. They transcend all the tropes—those of their own down-home style, and those of the Police; for example they don’t sing “Keep it up” a million times. Or even once. And no one sings “Ee-oh, yo-yo-yo,” either. The Stringdusters do get lunar, but always in their own original ways. — Tom McDonald

15. Tori Amos — Wrapped Around Your Finger

A lot of the most moving Tori Amos covers feature her slowing down the song, allowing you to really spend time contemplating the lyrics. With this version of “Wrapped Around Your Finger,” which Amos performed solo on late ’90s and early ’00s tours, the tale of an underling turning the tables on someone who has control over them is clear and by the end, we relish the twist. Amos makes the lyrics stand out, so in this version it’s harder to misunderstand how things end up. And you get a great sense of the resentment in the first verse in her version, which doesn’t always completely come across in the original. — Luke Poling

14. Artgeko — The Bed’s Too Big Without You

“The Bed’s Too Big Without You,” is a song about loneliness from the Police’s second album, Regatta de Blanc. Consistent with the album title, it is a mix of reggae and rock, leaning toward the reggae. It’s a great showcase for the band’s talents, individually and collectively, but while it has gotten critical acclaim, it probably has been overshadowed by “Message in a Bottle” and “Walking on the Moon,” from the same record. Artgeko, a band that is hard to find information about, appears to be from Lexington, KY, and released their cover on an album from 1999/2000 called Hurry Up and Wait. They flip the script, rocking pretty hard, with a hint of reggae, but also include a short reggae-inspired interlude, before finishing hard. — Jordan Becker

13. Uncle Earl w/ Chris Thile — Canary In A Coalmine

Before I’m With Her, there was Uncle Earl. This all-female bluegrass quartet was one of the most buzzed-about acts at Bonnaroo the year I went in 2007. Their producer, John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, was there too, and even sat in with them. Like other young bluegrass artists a la Nickel Creek or The Punch Brothers, live they would bust out covers of unexpected songs. One was this Police deep cut, “Canary in a Coleman.” And hey, speaking of Nickel Creek and Punch Brothers, this particular version features Chris Thile himself contributing mandolin. But the Bonnaroo version I saw was extra special. Why? Because guess who that year’s headliners were…The Police! — Ray Padgett

12. Shawn Colvin — Every Little Thing (He) Does Is Magic

One could argue that “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” has its feet in the same primordial stew that “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” crawled from – a jaunty tune masking lyrics about being tongue-tied. But it’s impossible not to get caught up in the joy of the chorus. Shawn Colvin knew that, and when she released Cover Girl, her 1994 cover album, she led it off with “Every Little Thing.” She maintains the song’s exuberance and adds a layer of warmth that Sting must have forgotten in all the excitement. — Patrick Robbins

11. Le Griser & dEW — Can’t Stand Losing You

Is it me, but Police covers sound so much more authentic away from the reggae rhythms that so polarise the originals? This elegantly woozy Latino bossa take here is a case in point, providing a sense of luxurious languor to the direction of flow. Le Grisser and dEW are not artists I know well, but the web suggests: “Le Griser is an artistic group whose roots are deep in house and electronic tango yet spread far and wide.” Not that far, with the only other recording I can fine being a version of “Hey Prudence,” conveyed with similar delicious lassitude. — Seuras Og

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