Don't be surprised if the sound of Sting [ tickets ]'s voice starts to conjure up images of hard drives and RAM this fall. Compaq Computer has signed on as presenting sponsor of Sting's upcoming 18-month, 80-date world tour in a deal that also allows Compaq to use the title track of his upcoming album, "Brand New Day," in its advertising.

Compaq's $20 million marketing campaign is scheduled to be unleashed on television and in print on Sept. 28, the same day Sting's new album is released. Compaq will serve as IT partner for the tour, providing Sting's crew of musicians and technicians with the latest Compaq hardware and software, including sequencing and sampling applications. Meanwhile, his road management team will be issued Compaq laptop computers to help them with the tour's day-to-day details.

Compaq has also launched a web site devoted to the tour at sting.compaq.com. It will feature a Sting electronic multimedia scrapbook, live chat sessions between Sting and his fans, webcasts of select concerts and an e-commerce Sting store featuring exclusive items.

Before heading into large venues next June, July and August, Sting will begin his tour modestly with a string of 24 theater shows in 15 cities. The tour's first leg gets underway Oct. 14 with a three-night stand at the Hard Rock Hotel's The Joint in Las Vegas. Other multiple engagements include the Community Theatre in Berkeley and Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles in October, and New York's Beacon Theatre in November.

Following a Celebration 2000 New Year's Eve show in New York (with Andrea Boccelli, Aretha Franklin, Chuck Berry, Tom Jones and Enrique Iglesias), Sting will embark on a European tour Jan. 7-March 21, followed by a U.K. leg March 23-April 7 that includes a 10-date engagement at London's Royal Albert Hall.