Video chat: Rock Hall of Famer Stewart Copeland

He roadied for Wishbone Ash.

As one of the most successful bands to emerge from the punk/new wave tsunami of the late 1970s and beyond, The Police have a legacy of respect and admiration that continues to this day, some 40 years after the three musicians went in three different directions. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

Dummer Stewart Copeland was the lone American Police-man; his British bandmates were guitarist Andy Summers and, as most of the world knows, the singer/songwriter and bass player Sting.

Copeland will be onstage Friday (June 5) at the Capitol Theatre in Clearwater, with a program called “Have I Said Too Much?” In two 45-minutes sets (although he says they’ll mostly likely run an hour each) he’ll tell stories from every angle of his remarkable career (among other things, he’s composed for symphonies, operas and the movies).

The Police: Andy Summers, left, Sting, Stewart Copeland Publicity photo.

In this Catalyst video interview, the verbose and often hilarious Copeland is asked if he believe people come to his spoken-word “evening with” just to hear him rag on Sting, whose career as a solo artist eclipsed those of both Copeland and Summers.

Famously, the friction that led to the demise of the Police was between the two of them (and it carried on, to some extent, during the monstrously profitable 2007-2008 reunion tour).

It’s all water under the bridge, he swears. “I’ve learned so much from that guy, as an artist and as a musician. He’s a very important figure in my life. And we are so close. The three of us are; we went through a hell of an adventure together.

“We are so bonded, so close, so fraternal, in fact that we can take the piss out of each other. At will. Stingo fortunately does have a sense of humor, and can survive. And unfortunately he’s also got a very comprehensive defense mechanism, so he can handle my most pointed barbs. He can take it.”

Tickets for Friday’s 8 p.m. event are at this link.