The Police
albums
rock and reggae, and it has it's own unique sound. Like any good band, they evolve throughout the
course of their five albums. Some people call that a short career, but honestly it just means they didn't
have a chance to go stale, as their last album turned out to be their best. All of the people in this band
are great unique players AND songwriters. Sting, who sings and plays bass, writes most of the songs,
but it the band would not be the same without the abstract Andy Summers on guitar and the pounding
Stewart Copeland on drums (nice sound track for Rumble Fish also). All three members of this band
are in my top list of their specific instruments, and the mix of pop, melody, reggae, and punk make all
five albums of The Police worth treasuring. Hard to say for most bands, and unlike most "singles"
bands, none of the singles collections available really do the band justice (all you people have to do is
pick the best 3 or 4 songs from all 5 records; stop including "Walking on the Moon" for goodness
sakes!). But first and foremost, The Police made great albums.
Band Members: Sting - Bass, Lead Vocals
Stewart Copeland - Drums, Vocals
Andy Summers - Guitar, Vocals
Best Album: Synronicity
Biggest Influences: The Wailers, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles
1978
Outlandous D'amour - 7/8
The first Police album is straight up punk reggae. That sounds odd, but it is true. The Clash and
some other English punk bands from the late 70's experimented with reggae, but this band really
gets it down to a science. It works to, and that is where The Police don't get enough credit: they were
the best pop reggae band ever! Some of these tunes are easy to like, like the great tale of
prostitution called "Roxanne", and hits "So Lonely", "Truth Hits Everybody", and "Can't Stand
Losing". Other songs are growers like "Hole in my Life", which at first seems to long; "Masoko Tanga"
which closes the album in some Jamaican sounding language that is very hypnotic; and "Peanuts"
with its poppy sound but strange guitar work, courtesy of the abstract master Andy Summers. A
couple of tunes are kind of lame towards the end, "Born in the 50's" and "Be my Girl Sally", and both
have story telling lyrics. Lesson? Guys, don't tell straight stories in your songs. I mean "Roxanne" is
kind of a story, but what a great tune along with it! So there, tell stories, but include great music also.
Anyways, the band in such carefree form here, it is impossible not to enjoy this great debut album.
Oh, and the title of the album is French for "outlaws of love". - Trevor e.y.
1.next to you- 3
2.so lonely- 4
3.roxanne- 4
4.hole in my life- 3
5.peanuts- 4
6.can't stand losing you- 4
7.truth hits everbody- 4
8.born in the 50's- 2
9.be my girl-sally- 2
10.masoko tanga- 4
1979
Reggata de Blanc - 7/8
'White Reggae" is the English name of this second record form The Police. About half of the
record is "more of the same", punky reggae that is very poppy, but where this album differs is its
dark mood. Songs like "Bed is too Big without You", "Message in a Bottle", "Bring on the Night" and
"Contact" are true evolution for the band, and they are all great songs, especially "Message in a
Bottle". While that song is the best on here by far, with its captivating closer and spooky chorus, the
remainder of the album is still great. "It's Alright for You" shows off Copeland's drumming like nothing
else, and proves him as a devastating force as a percussionist. Like wise, "Contact" written by
Copeland, shows off Sting's incredible bass playing, and you can tell bands like Primus took some
notes on this track. Consistency wise, there are three songs that don't work: "Does Everyone Stare",
"Deathwish" and " Walking on the Moon"; that last song is often referred as one of the best songs on
here, but that is not true in my opinion. One hardly notices the flaws on here though, with great
album tracks like "On any Other Day" and "No Time this Time" to boost the speed back up to normal.
Reggata de Blanc is another stellar record from an evolving band, but it should be noted that with
the exception of "Message in a Bottle", the album is all about Stewart Copeland.
- Trevor e.y.
1.message in a bottle- 4
2.regatta de blanc- 3
3.it's alright for you- 4
4.bring on the night- 4
5.deathwish- 2
6.walking on the moon- 3
7.on any other day- 4
8.the bed is too big without you- 4
9.contact- 4
10.does everyone stare- 2
11.no time this time- 4
1980
Zenyatta Mondatta - 8/8
Ten straight songs of complete awesomeness! The Police's third record is their best one yet, and
deserves to be called a rock masterpiece. Songs like "Don't Stand so Close to Me" and "De Do Do
Do, De Da Da Da" became hits for the band, and other album tracks such as my personal favorite,
"Canary in a Coal Mine", and "Bombs Away", written by Copeland, are also outstanding and should
have also been hits. The sound is like the last two records, just more polished. There are fast, mid
tempo, and slow numbers, and all them are beautiful reggae pop. The flow is great too, each song
from beginning to end flows perfectly into one another. The album is full of great Police moments, the
Copeland drumming in "When the World is Running Down", the Summers solo in "Driven to Tears",
the shouts of "Voices in my Head", and the dementia of "Behind my Camel". Summers probably
shows off his best guitar sound on here, just listen to that echoing guitar sound, and think about
what future guitarists use it. The band shows some branching out too, like the political lyrics of
"Bombs Away" which actually talks about 'afganisthan hills' getting bombed. How freaky is that, after
the 9/11 garbage? The words make no sense sometimes, but hey, thats alright as long as the music
is good. The instrumental "The Other Way of Stopping" lasts too long and is unnessescary, but that
is the albums only little flaw. With music like this, The Police established a huge following and with
good reason. - Trevor e.y.
1.don’t stand so close to me- 4
2.driven to tears- 4
3.when the world is running down, you make the best of what’s still around- 4
4.canary in a coalmine- 4*
5.voices inside my head- 4
6.bombs away- 4
7.de do do do, de da da da- 4
8.behind my camel- 4
9.man in a suitcase- 3
10.shadows in the rain- 4
11.the other way of stopping- 2
1981
Ghosts in the Machine - 5/8
The group goes all experimental on their 4th record, Ghosts in the Machine. For three tracks, it
kinda works. The opener "Spirits in the Material World" is good, but "Invisble Sun" is pretty much the
same song with a better chorus and better point. "Every Little Thing she does is Magic" is like
"Message in a Bottle", one of those great, great songs that is perfect in every way, though I
personally like "Invisiable Sun" a tad better. Now on to the garbage. The next five songs are real
lame, and I mean the band has never sounded this bored. "Demolition Man" is the longest Police
song yet, and the worst: just the same thing over and over for six minutes. "One World" and
"Rehumanize Yourself" are equally repetitive, it is really dreadful. "Too Much Information" repeats the
shouting trick of "Voices in my Head" from Zenyatta Mondatta, and it is also super boring.
Fortunately, the last of the album picks up a bit, with the sci-fi tribute of Summers', "Omega Man" (his
greatest song), and the Copeland closer "Darkness" has a nice synth part. It is good The Police
changed their sound, but this album has transsssitionaaaallll written all over it. Still, the other albums
are all worth getting so the die hard fan might as well get this one too (since the singles collections
do not do the band justice). But get it cheap, or you may feel ripped off, 'cause it bites man!
- Trevor e.y.
1.spirits in the material world- 3
2.every little thing she does is magic- 4
3.invisible sun- 4
4.hungry for you- 2
5.demolition man- 1
6.too much information- 1
7.rehumanize yourself- 2
8.one world- 2
9.omegaman- 4
10.secret journey- 2
11.darkness- 3
1983
Synchronicity - 8/8
It is crazy to think that this album sounds so revitalized, but it does. From the pounding opener
title track on, Synronicity is a ever shifting, life altering, masterwork. It also contains two of my
personal, all time favorite songs. "O My God" is an incredibly emotional song, with a bass line to DIE
FOR, and gut-wrenching lyrics about a man's desperate cry to God: "everyone i know is lonely/and
god's so far away/and my heart belongs to know one/so now sometimes i pray/take the space
between us/fill it up some way". "Synchronicity II" is a superbly constructed song, with dark imagery
about the Lock Ness Monster and pollution, or something. Whatever its about, that is still my favorite
Police song. Though no one ever agrees with me, i also totally get into "Mother", Summers'
demented account of a Psycho like character. It still impresses me that the band put this song on
here this insane sounding, as it is the most experimental the band ever got. "Walking in Your
footsteps" almost halts the album in its tracks, and I have no idea if the jazzy "Murder by Numbers"
was on the original album or not (it may have only been on the cd version), but both of those are still
good songs. "Miss Gradenko" is right up there with "O my God" as an overlooked, great album track.
As Reggata de Blanc was Copeland's album, this one is all dominated by Sting, with the
impressive streak of "Synchronicty II", the bands biggest hit "Every Breath you Take" (emotional
song about governament/relationship?), "King of Pain" (great ending!), "Wrapped around your
Finger" (mysterious mood), and "Tea in the Sahara" (great album closer). Each one of those five
songs is a masterful pop song, and that alone would cement a band's long lasting reputation. But the
Police were an exceptional band, putting all their hits at the end of the album like that, it helped a lot
of people that usually wouldn't listen to a whole album do so, and it was a smart move. This was the
best and most successful album of the band career to date...so they broke up soon after. What?!? I
don't know, maybe they need to just be apart, and each write their own songs, who knows. It was
maybe the best breakup album ever though, and a fine last word from an all time great band. No one
out there were quite like The Police. Much like The Who before them, they were overall always
themselves. - Trevor e.y.
1.synchronicity I- 4
2.walking in your footsteps- 3
3.o my god- 4*
4.mother- 4
5.miss gradenko- 4
6.synchronicty II- 4*
7.every breath you take- 4
8.king of pain- 4
9.wrapped around your finger- 4
10.tea in the sahara- 4
11.murder by numbers- 3
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