Synchronicity (The Police album)

Synchronicity
File:Police-album-synchronicity.jpg
Studio album by The Police
Released	17 June 1983
Recorded	December 1982 – February 1983 AIR Studios, Montserrat Le Studio, Quebec, Canada
Genre	New wave post-punk
Length	40:15 44:32 (CD and cassette version)
Label	A&M
Producer	The Police Hugh Padgham
The Police chronology
Ghost in the Machine (1981)Ghost in the Machine1981 Synchronicity (1983) Every Breath You Take: The Singles (1986)Every Breath You Take: The Singles1986
Singles from Synchronicity
"Every Breath You Take" Released: 13 May 1983 "Wrapped Around Your Finger" Released: 8 July 1983 "Synchronicity II" Released: 21 October 1983 "King of Pain" Released: 2 January 1984

Synchronicity is the fifth and final studio album by English rock band The Police, released in the United Kingdom on 17 June 1983. The band's most popular release, the album includes the hit singles "Every Breath You Take," "King of Pain,", "Wrapped Around Your Finger," and "Synchronicity II." Much of the album's material was inspired by Arthur Koestler's The Roots of Coincidence, which inspired the title and concept of the album. At the 1984 Grammy Awards the album was nominated for a total of five awards including Album of the Year and won three. At the time of its release and following its immensely popular tour The Police were hailed as the "Biggest Band in the World".

The album was number one on both the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200, and sold over 8 million copies in the US. Synchronicity was widely acclaimed by critics. Praise centred on its cohesive merging of disparate genres and sonic experimentation. The record has featured in numerous publications' lists of the best albums of the 1980s and the best albums of all time. Many consider Synchronicity to be the band's finest album. Rolling Stone described "each cut on Synchronicity is not simply a song but a miniature, discrete soundtrack." It has since been included on their lists of the "100 Best Albums of the Eighties" and the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".

In 2009, Synchronicity was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In the 1983 Rolling Stone readers poll, Synchronicity was voted "Album of the Year". In the US, the chart-topping hit "Every Breath You Take" was the best-selling single of 1983 and fifth best-selling single of the decade.

History

The album's title was inspired by Arthur Koestler's The Roots of Coincidence, which mentions Carl Jung's theory of synchronicity. Sting was an avid reader of Koestler, and also named Ghost in the Machine after one of his works.

The album marked a significant reduction in the reggae influences that were a part of the band's first four records, instead featuring production-heavy textures and liberal use of synthesizers that, at times, drove entire songs ("Synchronicity I," "Wrapped Around Your Finger"). The influence of world music can also be heard in songs such as "Tea in the Sahara" and "Walking in Your Footsteps."

As with their prior album, the basic tracks for Synchronicity were recorded at AIR Studios, Montserrat beginning in December 1982. The three band members recorded their parts in separate rooms: Stewart Copeland with his drums in the dining room, Sting in the control room and Andy Summers in the actual studio. According to co-producer Hugh Padgham this was done for two reasons: to obtain the best sound for each instrument and "for social reasons." Padgham also stated that subsequent overdubs were done with only one member in the studio at a time. The overdubs were done at Le Studio in Quebec during January and February 1983.

During the recording of "Every Breath You Take," Sting and Copeland came to blows with each other, and Padgham nearly quit the project.

The album was published in the UK and US on both LP and CD in 1983, and on Super Audio CD in 2003. In 1989, it was published by Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab as a remastered gold CD.

Songs

"Synchronicity I" starts the album off with a sequencer line that repeats throughout the song. Its lyrics include a term from "The Second Coming," "Spiritus Mundi" (literally "spirit of the world"), which William Butler Yeats used to refer to the collective unconscious, another of Jung's theories. "Walking in Your Footsteps" features lyrics concerning the relation between extinct dinosaurs and humans, and is followed by the jazzy "O My God". (The song recycles some lyrics from two earlier Police songs: "Three o' Clock Shit", which was never recorded on an album but was widely bootlegged from live performances, and the 1981 single "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic"). "Mother" features screamed vocals by Summers and a frantic guitar line reminiscent of Robert Fripp (with whom Summers had previously recorded), and "Miss Gradenko" is a song about a romance in the middle of a communist bureaucracy. "Synchronicity II" features extensive use of audio feedback.

"Every Breath You Take," which begins side two of the record, is possibly The Police's best-known song, with Sting's vocals on top of a steady rhythm featuring picked guitar, strong bass, and controlled drumming. Originally, the song was what Summers called a "Hammond organ thing that sounded like Billy Preston." The guitarist came up with a more interesting guitar riff which became a distinctive part of the piece. The song, released before the album, went to number 1 on both the US and UK charts, aided by a black and white video directed by Godley & Creme.

"King of Pain" features a lyrical imagery and numerous effects and instruments, while "Wrapped Around Your Finger" uses subdued keyboards. The record's "Tea in the Sahara," is a quiet, eerie song about three women who meet their death in the desert; the song is based on a story from Paul Bowles' novel The Sheltering Sky, and from its French/Italian title, "Un thé au Sahara"/"Un tè nel Sahara". "Murder by Numbers", originally the B-side of "Every Breath You Take," was added to the CD and cassette versions of the album, and has lyrics comparing political power to the development of a serial killer.

The album's original cover artwork was available in 36 variations, with different arrangements of the colour stripes and showing different photographs of the band members, which they took themselves. In the most common version Sting is reading a copy of Jung's "Synchronicity" on the front cover along with a superimposed negative image of the actual text of the synchronicity hypothesis. A photo on the back cover also shows a close-up, but mirrored and upside-down, image of Jung's book.

The original vinyl release was pressed on audiophile vinyl which appears black like most records, but is actually purple or brown when held up to the light.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Chicago Tribune
Rolling Stone
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
Smash Hits	9/10
The Village Voice	B+

Synchronicity topped the album charts in both the UK, and US (interrupting the dominance of Michael Jackson's Thriller in the U.S.). It won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

In 2013, the album Synchronicity reached No. 13 in BBC Radio 2's "Top 100 Favourite Albums", a poll voted by over 100,000 people. In 2001, the TV network VH1 named it the 50th greatest album of all time. In 2000, the Virgin All-Time Top 1000 Albums rated Synchronicity at No. 91. In 2005, Channel 4's 100 Greatest Albums ranked the album at No. 65. In 2010 Consequence of Sound composed a list of the Top 100 Albums Ever listed the album at No. 37.

In 2003, the album ranked No. 455 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time while in 2012 Synchronicity was ranked No. 448; one of four of the band's entries on the list.

In 1989, the album was ranked No. 17 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 greatest albums of the 1980s". Pitchfork Media ranked it No. 55 in their list of The 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s. In 2006, Q magazine placed the album at No. 25 in its list of "40 Best Albums of the '80s".

In 2009, Synchronicity was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame compiled a list of The Definitive 200 Albums of All Time in 2007, listing Synchronicity at No. 119.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Sting, except where noted. 

Side one
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Synchronicity I"	3:23
2.	"Walking in Your Footsteps"	3:36
3.	"O My God"	4:02
4.	"Mother" (Andy Summers)	3:05
5.	"Miss Gradenko" (Stewart Copeland)	2:00
6.	"Synchronicity II"	5:00

Side two
No.	Title	Length
7.	"Every Breath You Take"	4:13
8.	"King of Pain"	4:59
9.	"Wrapped Around Your Finger"	5:13
10.	"Tea in the Sahara"	4:11
11.	"Murder by Numbers" (Summers, Sting – bonus track on cassette and CD versions only)	4:36

Personnel

• Sting – bass guitar, keyboards, lead and backing vocals, oboe, drum machine on "Synchronicity I", saxophone on "O My God"
• Andy Summers – electric guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, lead vocals on "Mother"
• Stewart Copeland – drums, xylophone, miscellaneous percussion, co-lead vocals on "Miss Gradenko"

Production

• Hugh Padgham – production, engineering
• Dave Collins, Bob Ludwig – mastering
• Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff, Norman Moore, Vartan – art direction
• Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff, Norman Moore – design
• Duane Michals – photography

1984 Grammy Awards

Category	Nomination
Wins
Song of the Year	"Every Breath You Take"
Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal	Synchronicity
Nominations
Album of the Year	Synchronicity
Record of the Year	"Every Breath You Take"

Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1983	"Every Breath You Take"	UK Singles Chart	1
		Adult Contemporary	5
		Club Play Singles	26
		Mainstream Rock	1
		The Billboard Hot 100	1
	"King of Pain"	Adult Contemporary	33
		Mainstream Rock	1
		The Billboard Hot 100	3
	"Synchronicity II"	UK Singles Chart	17
		Mainstream Rock	9
		The Billboard Hot 100	16
	"Wrapped Around Your Finger"	UK Singles Chart	7
		Mainstream Rock	9
1984		Adult Contemporary	13
		The Billboard Hot 100	8
	"King of Pain"	UK Singles Chart	17

Charts

Peak positions

Chart (1983/84)	Position
Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart	1
Austrian Albums Chart	11
Canadian RPM Albums Chart	1
Dutch Mega Albums Chart	2
French SNEP Albums Chart	6
Italian Albums Chart	1
Japanese Oricon LPs Chart	17
New Zealand Albums Chart	1
Norwegian Albums Chart	3
Swedish Albums Chart	4
Swiss Albums Chart	17
UK Albums Chart	1
US Billboard 200	1
West German Media Control Albums Chart	4

Year-end charts

Chart (1983)	Position
Australian Albums Chart	9
Canadian Albums Chart	3
Dutch Albums Chart	23
French Albums Chart	18
Italian Albums Chart	6
UK Albums Chart	8
US Billboard Pop Albums	3

Chart (1984)	Position
Australian Albums Chart	52
Canadian Albums Chart	26
US Billboard Pop Albums	8

Sales and certifications

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)	Platinum	100,000
France (SNEP)	Platinum	472,100
Germany (BVMI)	Gold	250,000
Japan (Oricon Charts)		175,000
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)	Gold	15,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	Platinum	300,000
United States (RIAA)	8× Platinum	8,000,000
*sales figures based on certification alone ^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

Preceded by The Number Ones by The Beatles	Australian Kent Music Report number-one album 11 June – 31 July 1983	Succeeded by Keep on Dancing by Various artists
Preceded by Thriller by Michael Jackson	UK Albums Chart number one album 25 June – 8 July 1983	Succeeded by Fantastic by Wham!
Preceded by Thriller by Michael Jackson	Canadian RPM 100 number-one album 16 July – 27 August 1983	Succeeded by Let's Dance by David Bowie
Preceded by Thriller by Michael Jackson Thriller by Michael Jackson	Billboard 200 number-one album 23 July – 9 September 1983 17 September – 25 November 1983	Succeeded by Thriller by Michael Jackson Metal Health by Quiet riot
Preceded by Faster Than the Speed of Night by Bonnie Tyler Escapade by Tim Finn	New Zealand Chart number-one album 7–14 August 1983 28 August 1983	Succeeded by Escapade by Tim Finn Fantastic by Wham!