‘Don’t Stand So Close To Me ’86’ by the Police – Classic Hit or Miss

The song was re-recorded in 1986 in a new, brooding arrangement with a different chorus and a more opulent production. The new version appeared as "Don't Stand So Close to Me '86" on the album Every Breath You Take: The Singles, and was released as a single, reaching number 24 in the British charts. It also reached number 11 in Ireland, number 14 in New Zealand, number 19 in Netherlands MegaCharts Singles Chart (number 20 on Dutch Top 40), number 27 in Canada and number 46 on Billboard Hot 100 (number 10 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks). This single was reportedly one of the first commercial CD singles ever produced.

Because drummer Stewart Copeland broke his collarbone and was unable to play the drums, Copeland opted to use his Fairlight CMI to program the drum track for the single. While singer/bassist Sting pushed to utilize the drums on his Synclavier instead, the group's engineer found the Synclavier's programming interface difficult—and took him two days to complete the task.

As The Police had already disbanded by the time the 1986 single was released, this was the last recording before the band's reunion and the most recent studio recording the band has released to the present day.

#46 back in 1986 - How about today?