Syncronicity Shm

Over the last 20 years I've had in my mind that I hated the Police. I think I just hated what happened to them. The other day I was grooving on the bass and doing lines from "So Lonely", Message" and "Walking on the Moon". All good stuff, and it reminded me just how important the Police were when they came out and I was in high school and my band was looking for fresh stuff. The Police, the Jam, English Beat, to Bostonians that stuff had a European stink on it and it grooved! The first LP with Roxanne was more than half good (we hated the radio play of Roxanne) and hated Zenyatta, with the exception of a few tracks, but Regatta was so well produced with such space between the instruments and Ghost was a very coherent and mature album. Then comes 1982, Junior Year. Both the Clash and the Police have "big" albums coming out, and with each we knew that was the death knell of both bands. For the Clash, the radio-friendly Rock The Casbah clashed against Bankrobber, but for the Police, Synchronicity felt disjointed at best, pretentious at worst. The Walking in Your Footsteps lyrics may have been cutting edge Amazonian at the time, but man, they don't hold up and it sounds like a fourth grader set the words to music on that one. I think it was really the "Every Breath You Take" one that poisoned us against the band, it was just so slick, and I don't know how we didn't hear it on the radio first (maybe we were ignoring radio) but we knew that this would overshadow everything else they did. Yeah, when this one came out, we knew it was the end for them, and within 18 months Sting had a solo LP out. I like him much better as a quieter older man who appears is Guy Ritchie films about London gang wars. So bottom line here, the album is disjointed, the tracks have no flow to them like they did on Regatta or Ghost, and some stuff is just embarrassing. But I guess it was the 80s and the GoGos were opening for them...

The music you like or not the most important thing is the quality of the vinyl produced. This is produced in Germany. Very good cut, and very clean.

Another great album for my childhood I grew up with the police Nostalgia nostalgia mastalgia

One of the greats from the Police with Every Breath You Take, King Of Pain, Wrapped Around Your Finger etc.

It's hard to believe that the Police put out only 5 regular studio releases, but with Synchronicity they went out at the top of their game. Over the the span of those five collections, they had gone from a punk/white reggae outfit, to groove power pop, to a fully developed and uniquely identifiable sound. Synchronicity laid the groundwork for the beginning of Sting's successful solo career, as well as the future work of bandmates drummer Stewart Copeland drums and guitarist Andy Summers.With the title in mind, the song and album theme borrows from and elaborates on Jung's psychology work. Sometimes two parallel events do collide at an opportune time. How else does one explain "Every breath You Take" as a popular romance ballad?"Synchronicity I" leads off, an up-tempo number with excellent intensity, powerful drums and guitar washes. "We share this nightmare.""Walking in Your Footsteps" is full of atmospheric guitars and primal drumming to explore themes like dinosaurs and early hominids...and modern ones. Spare yet full of sound."O My God" has a groove that harkens back to "Zenyatta Mondatta" and is notable for an instance of Sting recycling lyrics from "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic.""Mother" is a bizarre, irritating song featuring Andy Summers on vocals, with a Norman Bates type theme. One could imagine this being played over and over during a fraternity hell week to drive pledges bonkers."Miss Gradenko" is Stewart Copeland's contribution, with his usual wry lyrics. "They were in a policy meeting, planning new ways of cheating..."With "Synchronicity II" the disk really takes off. The instrumental dynamics are superb and there are dual stories of a nightmare suburban/corporate existence and something happening 'many miles away...' Great vocals by Sting."Every Breath you Take" is the track that sent this one skyrocketing, along with the famous black and white video. Spare guitar and keyboard lines along with pulsing bass and drums, with lush dynamic choruses make this a classic. The funny thing is that this is basically a song about a stalker, but people play this at their weddings. More great vocals by Sting."King of Pain" features some of Sting's best lyrical imagery yet, excellent instrumental dynamics and a memorable chorus."Wrapped Around Your Finger" is another gem, full of atmospheric guitars and keyboards, and Copeland's best drumming on the disk."Tea in the Sahara" is an underrated gem, featuring more cool guitar work and references to "beneath the sheltering sky" and exotic desert landscapes."Murder By Numbers" is a darkly comic song about committing the perfect murder, even taking out your entire family, and turning it into art.Buy this one as your introduction to the band and work backward, or move forward through the solo work of Sting, Copeland and Summers.

To my ears this is the pinnacle of The Police's recorded output. I really think every song here is great and the title track "Synchronicity II" remains my all time favorite Police composition, and some of the best lyrics Sting has ever written. Everything comes together on this disc as The Police don't stick to a formula but continue to evolve their sound into what would unfortunately become their final album. More huge, huge hits came from this one including one of their biggest "Every Breath You Take", a song that many people took for a love song, but really contains a much darker sinister plot. The Police had become a football stadium band by the time this album came out and could literally play any size venue that they wanted. They truly went out at the top of their game with their best album and most successful tour. It is good to have them back on the road again in 2007.

I wanted to buy a Police album and this is (mostly) the one that tops many lists online. Apart from 'Every Breath You Take,' I was oblivious to all of the other tracks, 'King Of Pain' sounded pretty familiar. I was half expecting 'Roxanne' or 'Message In A Bottle' to be here too, but alas no!This was their last album and it sounds very mature for a band that is often (bafflingly after listening to this album) labelled Punk! Melody is king here, and experimentation a close second. There are guitars, there are synths, there are lots of instrumentation, but they are all mostly in the background and there are also some weird effects that pop up every now and then, see 'Walking In Your Footsteps.'The highlights are of course 'Every Breath You Take,' 'King of Pain,' and, well, take your pick. There isn't a bad song here really, though 'Mother' is very much a black sheep here and quite a jarringly weird one at that. It's totally at odds with the rest of the tracks and sounds like King Crimson soundtracking a man with Oedipus Complex having a meltdown! Which is pretty close to what it is, so I guess...that makes it a success story!?'Synchronicity,' has a cool electronic synth riff that leads the song and its sequel is also great and are among the most upbeat songs on the album.'Murder By Numbers' is a cool, laid back, almost bluesy closer with (like most of the songs) deceptively dark, twisted subject matter.Production is flawless, as are the vocal lines/melodies carrying each song. The lyrics book has all the lyrics and the packaging is very tasteful indeed and iconic to most. The album is also surprisingly short, and there is absolutely no excess fat/filler, nothing drags on longer than it should.Only loses one star because of my personal taste. I feel it lacks tempo sometimes and all the songs are pretty close to being the same bpm, or at least it feels that way to me. I would've liked them to give their more upbeat past a nod, but that's just my opinion. Fantastic and classic album though, and one I may just give back it's missing star with more listens.

If possible I'd give this 4.5 stars - dropping 1 star (20%!) from "I love this" to "I like this" is too harsh for me to do so although I don't love the entire album all tracks except Mother are enjoyable. I'm not sure why or how Mother made the final cut of Synchronicity - it stands out like a sore thumb. The songs I absolutely love are (no surprise really!) Every Breath You Take and Wrapped Around Your Finger, the latter of which has a similar sound to Dire Straits' Ride Across The River.The album opens explosively with the title track (part 1) them immediately slows down for the 'tribal' sounding Walking in Your Footsteps. The next 3 tracks are the low point of the album with Mother being the lowest point in my opinion. Synchronicity II brings us back on par - it's a stonking good track that pumps its slick guitar lick down your throat and makes you want to dance and sing. The other three singles from the album follow and these 4 tracks are the highlight before the album closes off with the pleasant but not wonderful Tea in the Sahara and Murder by Numbers. I have a 1987 CD not the remastered version, and having heard the remaster I'll happily stay with my old 'original' CD.

Recently replaced my vinyl of this with CD, along with other Police albums.I remembered this as my least favourite of their albums, and it certainly has some (for me) forgettable tracks - I could certainly live without the title track, and Mother is just a mess. But "Walking In Your Footsteps" is wonderful, as is "King of Pain". Add to that the hits "Every Breath You Take" and "Wrapped Around Your Finger", there is far more to enjoy here than not.A nice surprise was the old B-Side "Murder By Numbers", which my vinyl copy did not have. This actually sounds far more like contemporary Sting than the rest of the album, although I know it was recorded around the same time as the rest of the album.

This was another really good Police album... I love the sound these guys could generate together... And this album is packed full of gems... The sound is as tight and as interlocking as ever... Dare I say that Stewart Copeland is as accomplished a percussionist as Neil Peart? I think he might be... And dare I say also, that Andy Summers is a better guitarist than The Edge even though when he uses some delay, there are some similarities? I think that is true too... Worth owning... but then all their albums are...

great album

The CD is good. The SACD is better overall, though it lacks some drive on tracks like Synchronicity II. but the SHM SACD is streets ahead of either. The drive is there, the transparency is better than analogue, and there's nothing between you and the group. Sting's voice is raw and alive, the drums have real punch. I only wish everything was sold in this format. It's a pity about the price - but it's worth it.

Arrived in as new condition, perfect.

One of their finest albums.

Excellent album but just needs one track removing from it........obvious if you listen to all of them.Don't know why they left this one track on the album must have been the stress.

OUTSTANDING

Only just discovered this and it’s brilliant

Thanks!!

excellent item - great price - quick delivery - A+++

top cd - partner has it on in car all the time

Great item. Many thanks.