The Police - "Every breath you take"

Recently ranked 79th in Radio 2's Songs Of The Century it allegedly still earns Sting about a 1000 bucks daily from US airplay alone.

While the song sounds like a sedate and seemingly harmonious love ballad (some people even used it as their wedding song), it was actually written during the collapse of Sting's marriage ; the lyrics describe not well-meaning love but the motivations of a stalker, who is watching "every breath you take/every move you make". Many saw it as a possessive reaction to the split.

The lyrics to the song are very simple and it is on repeated listens that the mood becomes more sinister as you realise that this love is of an obsessive nature. Michael Stipe of REM particularly enjoyed this underlying subtext : "It was beautiful and creepy. So I wanted to write a song (Losing My Religion) that was better" [you are the judge].

The simplicity of the lyrics is also reflected in the uncomplicated melody, and apparently a synth-driven instrumental was dropped for not fitting in with the song's overall tone.
The simplest of chord sequences (in essence C/Aminor/F/G), forms the basis of this song. But the subtleties begin with the hypnotic Michael Nyman-like guitar riff, weaving in extras like added ninths, and echoing the obsessive lyric. The first bridge ("Oh can’t you see ...") is largely driven by Sting’s vocal, but it's the second ("Since you’ve gone ...") which is more innovative, and really seals the song’s originality.
The song is an example of compound AABA form. Steve Huey of allmusic.com says: "Guitarist Andy Summers picks a nearly identical arpeggio pattern on each chord he plays, and Sting's bass line keeps a steady eighth-note pulse without much rhythmic variation."

The middle of the song was finished last. They didn't know what to do with it until Sting sat at a piano and started hitting the same key over and over. That became the basis for the missing section.

The recording process created a great deal of tension in the studio. Sting was very particular about his song and would not let the other members of The Police (Andy Summers and Stuart Copeland) do much with it. Sting had to fight to get the song onto the album. He knew this would be the band's biggest hit when he wrote it but The Police broke up after this album.

The song's hook was the basis for Puff Daddy's collaborative tribute to slain rapper The Notorious B.I.G., entitled "I'll Be Missin' You". Sting was credited on the record, however Andy Summers, who provided the distinctive guitar riff, received money from the sample being used but didn't receive a writing credit. The song was performed with Sting himself at the Grammy Awards. As with many of Puff Daddy's releases, his song was criticized for a perceived over-reliance on the original.

Available on the album "Synchronicity"