It’s been a little while since I last posted. Oops! I guess I should first say: Happy New Year! 2023 was a long goddamn year with a lot of ups and downs. But so far 2024 has been (kind of) making up for 2023. Anyway, to make up for the lack of videos/posts, I’m releasing a good’n. For this edition of Jon’s Drum Cam, it’s “Message in a Bottle” by The Police!

   In the past year, Joshua Jones (The Fab Four), Christian Hernandez (Wild Child), and I have been working on a new project that, quite honestly, started as a joke. Now we present The Police Academy! No, not the movie, but America’s greatest tribute to THE POLICE! 

   Stewart Copeland is easily in my top 3 favorite drummers. He’s even one of the reasons I learned traditional grip. So I’m thrilled that this band formed and that we get to perform these great songs. It took some getting used to playing in golf gloves, but it is so much fun playing nothing but Police songs. So I’ll get over it. Not to mention the wardrobe of a t-shirt and jeans is pretty easy to play in. Short shorts may or may not be coming soon…

   This clip is from our 2nd show ever, filmed live at Campus Jax in Newport, CA. The whole show was a blast, and we SOLD OUT!!! What made the show even more special was our special guest. The incredible Gwen Stefani tribute artist from the No Doubt tribute act, No Duh, Andrea Martinez! 

The Police Academy:
Joshua Jones as Sting
Christian Hernandez as Andy Summers
Jon McCracken as Stewart Copeland
SPECIAL GUEST: Andrea Martinez as Gwen Stefani

The Police Academy’s full performance of “Message in a Bottle” from Campus Jax in Newport, CA. Filmed live on 1/19/2024.