Fantastic write up! Ghost in the Machine is still my favorite by the band, but that takes nothing away from this record. The first few seconds of "Synchronicty I" still give me goosebumps, and can only be played with the voume all the way up. If it weren't for "Mother" (easily the worst song they ever released), it would be a no skips record.
Thanks Kevin! Yes, totally agree, a no-skips record for sure. “Mother" probably should’ve been left off the tracklist but, if you read about how contentious the recording sessions were, I can see how it maybe got forced through too.
Oh wow! I could and should write a whole post about it! In a nutshell, I was introduced to The Police a few years earlier by my cool high school friend Mauro. By the time Synchronicity came out we hadn't seen each other in a while but I still associated the Police with him. Then I just fell for each of the tracks AND was studying psychology in college. I became pretty interested in Carl Jung and his concept of synchronicity. In graduate school I created a concept for a music video for the song "Walking in Your Footsteps." As the years have gone on I've never tired of the album and find so many of the songs still very relevant.
This is just great (I've just restacked it). It captures Synchronicity's brilliance and emotional complexity. It’s fascinating how creative tension can drive an album to timeless greatness! Thanks for this.
I remember vividly when we would all compare which album cover we got and which pictures in the three colors of each band member. Such an amazing collection of music and really a benchmark of their talent. It also broke the band in the end.
Great memories of blasting this album as a kid. They were my first favorite band and I was so distraught when they broke up, but blissfully delighted when I managed to catch them at MSG in 2007 on their reunion tour.
It’s such a fantastic album, although not quite up there with Ghost In The Machine and Zenyatta Mondatta which are my top two. Side two of Synchronicity is incredible with Tea In The Sahara being my favorite track.
Big fan of this album. Nice to know I'm not the only person who hates Mother. I recently sang Synchronicity II at karaoke and it really made me appreciate the structure and narrative thrust of the song. It truly is a great one.
And now I'm thinking I need to write about that song on my stack.
I really enjoyed this post. I listened to this album (the LP) when I was in high school over and over, and I recall some kind of hype that they had released a number of different album covers. I never listened again--not once, in decades--until a year ago, when I put it on and was reminded of what a great album it is. Your line about how some tunes as "as catchy as they are patronizing" is perfect: when I was 15, I didn't get the now-obvious editorializing in "Synchronicity 2"--I just thought the Loch Ness Monster was cool. But that's still a terrific song. Thanks for this reminder.
Awesome! Always happy to see such a positive reaction when I do these retro 80s weeks in my content calendar. I guess they’re popular for a reason :) Cheers Daniel
Fantastic write up! Ghost in the Machine is still my favorite by the band, but that takes nothing away from this record. The first few seconds of "Synchronicty I" still give me goosebumps, and can only be played with the voume all the way up. If it weren't for "Mother" (easily the worst song they ever released), it would be a no skips record.
Thanks Kevin! Yes, totally agree, a no-skips record for sure. “Mother" probably should’ve been left off the tracklist but, if you read about how contentious the recording sessions were, I can see how it maybe got forced through too.
This is my favorite Police album and one of my Top Ten albums of all time! Thanks for covering it.
It’s my pleasure Dan! What makes it such an important album in your life?
Oh wow! I could and should write a whole post about it! In a nutshell, I was introduced to The Police a few years earlier by my cool high school friend Mauro. By the time Synchronicity came out we hadn't seen each other in a while but I still associated the Police with him. Then I just fell for each of the tracks AND was studying psychology in college. I became pretty interested in Carl Jung and his concept of synchronicity. In graduate school I created a concept for a music video for the song "Walking in Your Footsteps." As the years have gone on I've never tired of the album and find so many of the songs still very relevant.
Would definitely read an entire post about this, Dan. :) Super interesting, thanks for sharing!
Thanks for asking Matt!
This is just great (I've just restacked it). It captures Synchronicity's brilliance and emotional complexity. It’s fascinating how creative tension can drive an album to timeless greatness! Thanks for this.
Much appreciated Jon, as always. Thanks for your support!
i used to listen to this daily.
I remember vividly when we would all compare which album cover we got and which pictures in the three colors of each band member. Such an amazing collection of music and really a benchmark of their talent. It also broke the band in the end.
Yes I’ve read about all the different colours but the original release was before my time, unfortunately. How many different ones were there?
Not sure, but rumor has it there were multiple and no two were alike supposedly.
Great memories of blasting this album as a kid. They were my first favorite band and I was so distraught when they broke up, but blissfully delighted when I managed to catch them at MSG in 2007 on their reunion tour.
It’s such a fantastic album, although not quite up there with Ghost In The Machine and Zenyatta Mondatta which are my top two. Side two of Synchronicity is incredible with Tea In The Sahara being my favorite track.
I’ll agree with Ghost in the Machine, that’s still my favorite album, but Synchronicity is up at No. 2 for me. Tea in the Sahara is incredible.
Big fan of this album. Nice to know I'm not the only person who hates Mother. I recently sang Synchronicity II at karaoke and it really made me appreciate the structure and narrative thrust of the song. It truly is a great one.
And now I'm thinking I need to write about that song on my stack.
Wow, what a karaoke choice! Thanks for commenting :)
I really enjoyed this post. I listened to this album (the LP) when I was in high school over and over, and I recall some kind of hype that they had released a number of different album covers. I never listened again--not once, in decades--until a year ago, when I put it on and was reminded of what a great album it is. Your line about how some tunes as "as catchy as they are patronizing" is perfect: when I was 15, I didn't get the now-obvious editorializing in "Synchronicity 2"--I just thought the Loch Ness Monster was cool. But that's still a terrific song. Thanks for this reminder.
Awesome! Always happy to see such a positive reaction when I do these retro 80s weeks in my content calendar. I guess they’re popular for a reason :) Cheers Daniel