Sting says he had ‘a feeling’ he would have a ‘prolonged career’ when he started

The 72-year-old revealed that his career aim had always been to write “a standard” and he wanted to get into the position where “people just keep performing your songs forever”.

Sting was speaking to BBC Radio 2 before his headline set at the station’s In The Park event in Preston’s Moor Park on Saturday night.

When asked if he ever thought he would have the “prolonged career” he has had when he started with The Police, the singer replied: “Somehow we had the confidence that we would, but I’ve no idea where that came from.

“It wasn’t based on any logic or any research. It just was a feeling.”

He added: “My ambition always is to write a song that could become a standard, you know.

“Standards really were written in the 40s and 50s, so we as songwriters, modern songwriters, try and get into that position where people just keep performing your songs forever, like My Way.

“Isn’t that a great song? I want to write songs like that.”

Sting went on to reveal that a collaboration between him and Snoop Dogg, which has seen the rapper rework The Police’s Message In A Bottle, would be coming out in November.

He said: “Me and Snoop made a recording of Message In A Bottle, which he’s called something else.

“I played the guitar and I sang on it, but Snoop also sings on this, which is quite a revelation to me.

“He’s a very nice man.”

Sting also revealed that he had never “got bored” of touring, and added that he “likes playing hits”.

The Wallsend-born singer added: “I like playing hits, I really do, but you know, it’s my job to sing a song I might have written 40 years ago with the same passion, the same curiosity, the same energy as if I’d written it this afternoon, that’s my job.

“I always manage to find some little incremental change that I haven’t explored before, discovered before that keeps me interested.

“That’s my quest, so you might hear something tonight, might be a mistake.”