Stewart Copeland Marches to the Beat of His Own Drum

It's not everyday you get to hear the stories of a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician. Not only did The Preston & Steve Show get to have such a day, it turns out to come from one of Preston Elliot's musical heroes. The man behind the beat of The Police, drummer Stewart Copeland chatted with the gang about an event where he's telling all:

The multi-talented musician/composer was promoting his upcoming event on July 18th at The Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville. Entitled "Stewart Copeland – Have I Said Too Much" it's an intimate Q&A detailing his stories of The Police, Hollywood and other adventures. He certainly has had quite a few to say the least.

The prickly relationship between the three primary members of The Police has been public knowledge for some time. But that incendiary chemistry has led to some of the most influential music in rock and roll.

While some bands eventually realize they’re chasing the same artistic goal in different ways, Stewart made it clear: that was not the case here. According to him, Sting was crafting emotionally and intellectually layered songs, while Stewart… well, as he put it, “I just bang sh*t”.

This resulted in actual band therapy on The Police reunion tour, where the two finally laid it all out calmly, for once. No screaming, just brutal honesty. The conclusion? They weren’t competing they were just completely different artists. And somehow, that contrast became the band’s secret sauce.

When Preston brought up another of his idols, Neil Peart from Rush, being a fan of The Police's music you’d might expect Stewart Copeland to light up. Instead he felt it was a little embarrassing.

Back in the day, Copeland remembered seeing Rush headlining festivals with Peart’s absolutely massive drum setup while The Police were still playing earlier slots in daylight. To him, Rush felt like they were operating on a completely different, higher level. The two eventually became friends, even jamming together. Though Stewart joked that when Peart sat at the drums, it meant he had to pick up a guitar instead.

In one of the more unexpected turns, Copeland explained(half joking, half serious) that legendary director Francis Ford Coppola played a role in pulling him away from The Police.

At the time, the band was struggling through the recording of their final albums, with tensions running high despite the tropical studio setting. Copeland described it as paradise except for the part where the band members were driving each other insane.

So when Coppola called and offered him the chance to score Rumble Fish, Stewart didn’t hesitate.

That experience opened the door to his career as a film composer and more importantly, reminded him why he loved making music in the first place. No fighting, no tension just creativity. He even credited that chapter of his career with teaching him more about music than his time as a traditional “artist.”