No band was bigger than The Police in 1983, when Synchronicity launched four hit singles and owned the airwaves, video channels and concert venues. It had been a remarkably swift rise– and conclusion – for three bottled blondes, Gordon “Sting” Sumner, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland, who rose up on the 1978 English New Wave scene with a reggaefied poppy sound and the lead singer/bassist’s good looks. Punks questioned their credibility over that, but Roxanne shot the band to fame and a tough U.S. world tour in an Econoline van. Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon, and Every Little Thing She Does is Magic meant the days of van touring gave way to international pop stardom, especially for photogenic Sting. King of Pain, Wrapped Around Your Finger, Synchronicity II and the massive Every Breath You Take made them the biggest band in the world … and brought inner-band tension to the peak that would end them. Twenty years later, the 2007-2008 Reunion Tour was the biggest thing on the rock circuit, confirming their clout hadn’t faded.