Stewart Copeland has announced a new album called Police Deranged for Orchestra. The LP features orchestral arrangements of classic songs by the drummer’s old band the Police and is set for release on June 23.

The music veteran has been touring with orchestras since 2021, performing new versions of old Police songs. “I have to be no more than a quarter of the volume that I would be with a rock band,” he told UCR that year. “Normally, that discipline would not work on me, because I’m kind of an instinctive creature of nature on the drums. But in the case of that little violin solo, the violin lady is like 20 feet away from me and I want to hear what she’s playing on her acoustic violin.

“So that induces me since I wrote what she’s playing on that acoustic violin,” noted Copeland, who’s worked extensively on both film and television scores over the decades. “That imposes some discipline on the drummer guy. I’ve learned to play incredibly quietly.”

Those songs have now been put on record with Police Deranged for Orchestra. Copeland initially had the idea years ago when he was working on a  movie score using Super8 footage of the Police.

“Film puts capricious demands on music,” Copeland said in a press release announcing the new LP. “So I had to carve up the songs to serve the scenes in the movie – and once the scalpel was out, a whole new frenzy of inspiration from Police music began.” The album’s track listing is available below, along with the first single from the album, “Every Breath You Take.”

“Delving into the multitracks of our original recordings and live performances revealed lost guitar solos, bass lines and vocal improvisations that were just too cool to leave in obscurity,” Copeland noted. “This discovery is what brings us to this performance: Sting‘s songs, Andy [Summers]‘ inventions and my impunity – all on the page for a wild ride with orchestra and unique musicians from around the world to adapt some of the most loved hits for old and new audiences alike.”

Copeland is scheduled to perform in Europe this summer on the Police Deranged for Orchestra tour. More information can be found on his website. Additional dates are expected to be announced.

The drummer is also set to release a new book this year. Stewart Copeland’s Police Diaries includes personal diary entries from the late ’70s, plus previously unseen photographs.

Stewart Copeland, ‘Police Deranged for Orchestra’ Track Listing
1. “Don’t Stand So Close to Me”
2. “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”
3. “King of Pain”
4. “Demolition Man”
5. “Murder by Numbers”
6. “Roxanne”
7. “Tea in the Sahara”
8. “Can’t Stand Losing You” / “Regatta de Blanc”
9. “Every Breath You Take”