Welcome to Music Friday, when we bring you great songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, Sting and The Police take us on a darkly hypnotic journey involving a band of gold, Greek mythology and a control-hungry master whose apprentice ultimately turns the tables.
In “Wrapped Around Your Finger” the jewelry connection arrives immediately. Sting sings about being “hypnotized” while staring at the ring around his master’s finger. Later, he sees a destiny that was supposedly sold transformed into a “shining band of gold.” The precious metal traditionally associated with wealth, permanence and commitment takes on a new meaning here — a glittering symbol of a bargain in which the apprentice has surrendered his freedom in exchange for knowledge.
The narrator’s predicament becomes even more perilous when Sting compares himself to sailors caught between Scylla and Charybdis, who, in Greek mythology, were once beautiful maidens, but were turned into horrific monsters. Scylla was a multi-headed sea monster and Charybdis a deadly whirlpool, positioned on opposite sides of a narrow strait. Sailors attempting to navigate between them faced danger whichever way they turned.
Sting layers that mythology with references to Faust and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, creating a story about an inexperienced student serving a mysterious, almost devilish master. He later described the song as “vaguely alchemical,” explaining that it was inspired in part by a professional psychic who was his tarot tutor, with elements of Doctor Faustus (whose main character makes a tragic deal with the devil) and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (whose main character mistakenly believes he is equal to his master) mixed in.
But the apprentice is learning more than magic. By the song’s conclusion, the relationship’s power dynamic has been completely reversed. The promise of being “wrapped around your finger” becomes the declaration that the master will be “wrapped around my finger.” The ring and finger that once represented control now symbolize the apprentice’s newfound mastery.
Some music critics have interpreted the relationship described in the song as being between a young man and his controlling lover.
“Wrapped Around Your Finger” appeared on The Police’s blockbuster 1983 album Synchronicity, the British trio’s fifth and final studio album. In the United States, it was released as the album’s fourth single and climbed to #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Born Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner in England in 1951, Sting became the lead singer, bassist and principal songwriter of The Police before launching his solo career in 1985. With The Police and as a solo artist, he has become one of the world’s most successful recording artists, earning 17 Grammy Awards (six with The Police and 11 as a solo artist).
Synchronicity became The Police’s biggest commercial success, topping the US and UK charts and selling more than eight million copies in the United States. It earned five Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year, and won three awards at the 1984 ceremony. The album was later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
More than four decades later, Sting is still at the top of his game. His current STING 3.0 World Tour features longtime guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Chris Maas, with North American dates continuing into fall 2026. “Wrapped Around Your Finger” remains part of the live repertoire.
Please check out the video of Sting and The Police's live performance of “Wrapped Around Your Finger” in 2007 at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires. The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…
“Wrapped Around Your Finger”
Written by Sting. Performed by The Police.
You consider me the young apprentice
Caught between the Scylla and Charybdis
Hypnotized by you if I should linger
Staring at the ring around your finger.
I have only come here seeking knowledge,
Things they would not teach me of in college.
I can see the destiny you sold
Turned into a shining band of gold.
So, I’ll be wrapped around your finger.
So, I’ll be wrapped around your finger
I’ll be wrapped around your finger.
Mephistopheles is not your name
I know what you’re up to just the same
I will listen hard to your tuition,
And you will see it come to its fruition
So, I’ll be wrapped around your finger
Yes, and I’ll be wrapped around your finger
So, I’ll be wrapped around your finger.
Devil and the deep blue sea behind me,
Vanish in the air you’ll never find me.
I will turn your face to alabaster,
When you’ll find your servant is your master.
You’ll be wrapped around my finger
And, you’ll be wrapped around my finger
Yes, and you’ll be wrapped around my finger.
Credit: Photo (cropped) by Nikita, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
