Posted on 06/05/2024 8:30:39 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The album will be massively expanded in a deluxe box set, marking 40 years since its release.
The Police – Sting, Andy Summers, and Stuart Copeland – became one of the greatest and most successful bands to emerge from the frenetic 1980s, off its deeply danceable sound, buoyed by Sting’s deeply heartfelt and literary instincts.
The Police were at their peak when the trio hit the studio to record Synchronicity, having arrived to the new decade with the massive 1979 hit “Message in a Bottle” under its belt, then continuing through the early years of the decade with three follow-up No. 1s – “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” and “Every Breath You Take.” As well, the band’s previous three albums had all reached No. 1 on the U.K. charts. What emerged from the Synchronicity sessions was yet another triumph, with the aforementioned “Every Breath You Take” as the lynchpin of a record that stands as one of their most beloved.
On July 26, the group will release various editions of the LP, including a 6-disc Limited Edition Deluxe Boxset containing 55 previously unreleased tracks, new liner notes and interviews, rare archival memorabilia, and unseen photographs. The boxset has been in the works for more than three years, with the band’s involvement and endorsement. As the boxset arrives, each band member has various projects that they’re also focusing on: Stewart Copeland recently published his Police Diaries and toured the world with his Police Deranged concerts. Later this year, he will perform across the UK with his new spoken-word show Have I said Too Much? Andy Summers, meanwhile, has published several photography books focusing on the Police era. He is currently touring his Cracked Lens + A Missing String show across the US. Finally, Sting continues to tour extensively: his current US and European Tour runs throughout 2024 and features many Police songs among his solo work.
Among the extras from the boxset are 19 live recordings, all previously unreleased, from an epic September 1983 live show at Oakland-Alameda Coliseum, as well as alternate studio takes of every Synchronicity song. Capping things off are unreleased Police songs, including an early version of Andy Summers’ track “Goodbye Tomorrow.”
Synchronicity is a good but not great album. However, it has great sentimental value for me since it was the first album I ever bought with my first paycheck from my first job. I was working in a mall restaurant and when I first got paid I went to the record store (remember those?) in the mall and bought Synchronicity on a cassette (remember those?).
That entire mall (remember those?) has since been demo'd.
(On the bright side, REM opened for them - they were a pleasant surprise).
'On Any Other Day' by The Police
"Hey, the other ones are complete bullshit
You want something corny?
You got it"
There's a house on my street and it looks real neat
I'm the chap who lives in it
There's a tree on the sidewalk, there's a car by the door
I'll go for a drive in it
And when the wombat comes, he will find me gone
He'll look for a place to sit
My wife has burned the scrambled eggs
The dog just bit my leg
My teenage daughter ran away
My fine young son has turned out gay
Cut off my fingers in the door of my car
How could I do it?
My wife is proud to tell me of her love affairs
How could she do this to me?
My wife has burned the scrambled eggs
The dog just bit my leg
My teenage daughter ran away
My fine young son has turned out gay
And it would be okay on any other day
And it would be okay on any other day
Throw down the morning papers and spill my tea
I don't know what's wrong with me
The cups and plates are in a conspiracy
I'm covered in misery
My wife has burned the scrambled eggs
The dog just bit my leg
My teenage daughter ran away
My fine young son has turned out gay
And it would be okay on any other day
(Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you)
And it would be okay on any other day
(Happy birthday, dear daddy, happy birthday to you)
Ha! But if you add a Y to the end of his name he becomes Stingy.
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