Invisible Sun (song)

From PoliceWiki
"Invisible Sun"
UK 7" cover
Recorded by The Police
Released: 1981-09-18
Recorded: 1981-06-20 - 1981-07-26
Length: 3:43
Album(s): Ghost In The Machine
Label(s): A&M
Writer(s): Sting
Producer(s): Hugh Padgham & The Police
Studio(s): AIR Studios, Montserrat
Released as single? YES

"Invisible Sun" is a song written by Sting and recorded by The Police in 1981.

About the song

According to the Spring 2000 edition of Revolver magazine Sting wrote the song in Ireland "during the hunger strikes in Belfast" - he certainly refers to Bobby Sands' hunger strike that went from 1981-03-01 until his death on 1981-05-05 (as specified for One World).

The song is about that, but with some light at the end of the tunnel.

Sting composed it on a keyboard.

The original 7" and LP version didn't feature a coda with Sting singing bits from Wouldn't It Be Loverly. This could be heard in a longer Invisible Sun video mix and in the shorter mix from the Ghost In The Machine picture disc from 2022.

Personnel

This section needs more information.

Release History

Albums

Invisible Sun appears on the following album releases:

Cover art Album title Release date Release country
Police-album-ghostinthemachine.jpg Ghost In The Machine 1981-10-02 UK
Police-album-messageinaboxthecompleterecordings.jpg Message In A Box: The Complete Recordings 1993-MM-DD UK
Every Move You Make.jpg Every Move You Make: The Studio Recordings 2018-11-16 UK
Ghost picture disc.jpg Ghost In The Machine (picture disc) 2022-11-04 worldwide

Singles

CD Singles

Cover art Catalog no. Songs Release date Release country
Stub.gif Catalog no. "Song"(s) YYYY-MM-DD Release country

7" Singles

Cover art Catalog no. A-side song/B-side song Release date Release country
Invisible Sun 01.jpg Invisible Sun 02.jpg AMS 8164 "Invisible Sun"/"Shambelle" 1981-09-18 UK
Stub.gif AMS 9203 "Invisible Sun"/"Flexible Strategies" 1982-MM-DD The Netherlands
Stub.gif K-8562 "Invisible Sun"/"Flexible Strategies" YYYY-MM-DD Australia

12" Singles

Cover art Catalog no. A-side song(s)/B-side song(s) Release date Release country
Stub.gif Catalog no. "A-side song"/"B-side song" (add more songs as necessary) YYYY-MM-DD Country

Video

"SONG TITLE" appears on the following video and dvd releases:

Cover art Video title Release date Release country
Stub.gif Video or dvd title YYYY-MM-DD Country


Awards, nominations, and certifications

Awards

This section needs more information.

Year Winner Award Category
YYYY WINNER (album, song, producer, etc.) AWARD (Grammy, People's Choice, etc.) CATEGORY

Nominations

This section needs more information.

Year Nominee Award Category
YYYY NOMINEE (album, song, producer, etc.) AWARD (Grammy, People's Choice, etc.) CATEGORY

Certifications

This section needs more information.

Country Certifier Classification Certification
COUNTRY CERTIFIER (RIAA, IFPI...) CLASSIFICATION (Album, singles, foreign artist...) CERTIFICATION (Gold, Platinum, Diamond...)

Lyrics

Lyrics are property and copyright of their owners, and provided here for educational purposes only.

I don't want to spend the rest of my life
Looking at the barrel of an Armalite
I don't want to spend the rest of my days
Keeping out of trouble like the soldiers say
I don't want to spend my time in hell
Looking at the walls of a prison cell
I don't ever want to play the part
Of a statistic on a government chart

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

It's dark all day and it glows all night
Factory smoke and acetylene light
I face the day with me head caved in
Looking like something that the cat brought in

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

And they're only going to change this place
By killing everybody in the human race
They would kill me for a cigarette
But I don't even wanna die just yet

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

Reviews

  • Record Mirror - September 19, 1981 review by Sunie:

1981 09 19 Record Mirror Sunie Invisible Sun review.jpg

  • NME - September 19, 1981 review by Adrian Thrills:

1981 09 19 NME Adrian Thrills Invisible Sun review.jpg

  • Melody Maker - September 19, 1981 review by Paul Colbert:

1981 09 19 Melody Maker Paul Colbert Invisible Sun review.jpg

  • Sounds - September 19, 1981 review by T-Benn:

1981 09 19 Sounds T-Benn Invisible Sun review.jpg

  • Smash Hits - October 1, 1981 review by Ian Birch:

1981 10 01 Smash Hits Ian Birch Invisible Sun review.jpg

Quotations and trivia

The UK 7" release had two slightly different covers (a "clear" sun and a "blurred" sun) and labels (Shambelle spelling).

Alternative and cover versions

See also

This section needs more information.

External links

References

  • Police, The. Ghost In The Machine. (1981) [Audio recording], A&M Records.
  • Guitar World - July 1982
  • Revolver - Spring 2000