“Invisible Sun” by The Police

The Police in “Invisible Sun” present a setting of despair in a troubled society, while attempting to provide a sense of hope.

As the song begins, Sting expresses how he does not want to live a life of horror in a prison or die and be remembered as part of the statistics collated in the aftermath of destruction. In the chorus, he anticipates the presence of an invisible sun which sheds light and heat on each person, signifying the hope and light at the end of all their woes.

The singer is of the view that evil will continue to take over and claim innocent lives including his, unless all perpetrators are wiped out entirely. In the end however, he relies on the thought that there must be a symbolic sun, possibly love, religion or a general hope that people can hold on to and believe that there are better days ahead.

Sting revealed to Revolver Magazine in a 2000 interview that the song was written when he was living in Ireland during the Belfast hunger strikes with the intention of bringing a ray of hope. This song was released on September 25, 1981. It was the third track on The Police’s 1981 album. The said album is titled “Ghost in the Machine“. The hit song “Spirits in the Material World” also appeared as a single on this project.

The Belfast Hunger Strikes

The strike started in 1980 when seven Irish republican hostages in Northern Ireland decided to fast to express their displeasure about some decisions taken by the British government. After 53 days, the initial hunger strike was called off but was intensified the following year. After the death of ten prisoners as a result of the strike, the protest was called off.

One notable victim of the hunger strike was Bobby Sands who served as a parliamentarian during the period of the strike. The fasting by the prisoners was one of three types of protests that they used against the British government during the conflict period which is termed as The Troubles.