The Police: Synchronicity

I first heard the band as a teenager. I’m not sure which songs were the first on local radio playlists but I know the first album I bought by them was Ghost in the Machine mostly because I really liked “Everything She Does is Magic” when it came out. I think I probably bought that from Grapevine records and tapes in Charlotte where I bought most of my music during my teenage years. I wasn’t a die-hard fan but I really liked the band. I think I eventually owned four of their five albums. For some reason I never bought the first one, which included Roxanne, one of the best songs. One of the albums disappeared “mysteriously” at one point so I only had three in the end. Actually these days I don’t think I have any of them as they were all vinyl and I got rid of most of those when I came to Australia. It’s on my to-buy list to replace some of those with cd versions.

I graduated high school on June 3rd, 1983. A few days later I boarded a plane for Europe for my high school graduation present. I spent about five weeks there, visiting pen pals in France, Germany and the UK. It was in the middle of this trip that Synchronicity was released but I will admit that it doesn’t form a part of my European memories. It was after I returned home in July and during those weeks before I started college that I mostly remember it becoming a part of my summer. But mostly I remember this from my early days as a college student.

There are a few songs that often remind me of those hot August days when I moved into the dorm. I remember having to clean the blinds and standing on the window sill to reach the top. They were pretty tall windows so there was a lot to clean. “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler was on the radio along with “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” by the Eurythmics and “Every Breath You Take” by the Police. This was the era of watching Friday Night Videos on the dorm television. I remember the black and white video of the band playing this song with Sting playing an upright bass.

“Every Breath You Take” is essentially a ballad and I love the song but it’s not exactly the comforting love song it sounds like at first. I mean, really, it’s rather dark and sinister when you think about it. Even Sting admits it’s not a gentle love song but thoughts of an obsessed person on the one “loved”.

“Wrapped Around Your Finger” is another classic ballad that wasn’t quite the love song it sounds like at first. The mythological references of this song are the highlights for me.

“Synchronicity II” (yes, there is a Synchronicity I to start the album) is a pop-new wave song that speaks of some of the domesticities of life as they become too much. The music does well to reflect the impending crisis one reaches, building and building till ready to burst.

“King of Pain” is a somewhat reflective song for Sting, about his feelings after separating from his first wife. Like so many of his songs, it’s filled with metaphor and the music is a sort of slow and reflective song.

“Walking in Your Footsteps” is a strongly percussive ode to the dinosaur while “Miss Gradenko” is a catchy tune about forbidden love in a military regime written by Stewart Copeland. Then there’s “Murder by Numbers”, a jazzy number about the evil deeds of politicians. There are a lot of good songs on this album and it’s great to sit back and listen with earphones.

This brings me back again to early 1984 and going to see the band on the tour for this album in February. I went with a friend and her boyfriend at the time and it was a great show. In hindsight, I think I was lucky to have been able to go as the flu had rapidly spread through the dorm and I was one of the few who hadn’t got it at that time. Alas, I did finally succumb to the illness after this show. It was my first time having the flu so I guess I had a good run before then.