This compilation album was released in 1992 and features most of their singles in chronological order.
Due to this track order, it is interesting to see the band's development over the years. Throughout their career, they seemed to alternate between trying new approaches and pandering to the masses with songs very similar to their early hits.
As far as recording quality goes, the band's signature sound consists of high-pitched vocals, light-touch bass guitar and sparse lead guitar in the verses. While it may be sacrilegious to criticise this characteristic sound, many of the songs off the first two albums (eg Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You, Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon) do suffer due to the lack of a punchy bottom end. I wouldn't normally describe myself as a "bass head" but I found these songs much more enjoyable after a clockwise twist of the bass knob.
Roxanne is a timeless classic classic in my book. The sparse verses with twangy reggae guitar perfectly contrast the catchy upbeat chorus. And while the upbeat mood of the music doesn't really suit the sad tale of the lyrics, they work together brilliantly to create an artwork which is both enjoyably and poignant.
This fantastic recipe is repeated, with just enough variation to keep things interesting, for Can't Stand Losing You, So Lonely (adding some punch to the bass guitar and kick drum- hallelujah!) and Walking on the Moon.
Don't Stand Too Close to Me would have been on the above list, if it weren't for the very creepy Lolita-esque lyrics. While I'm whingeing, De Do Do Do is spoiled by woefully inane lyrics for the chorus and Spirits in the Material World smells strongly like a cynical crowd-pleasing rehash of their early style.
Message in a Bottle is one of my favourite Police songs, due to the stronger "pulse" in the verses. I get the feeling the chorus is a bit tacked on, although perhaps it's more that the song jumps around a bit in general.
Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is also a highlight of this album for me. In isolation, it's probably a bit twee, but within this brooding album its chirpy nature provides some great feelgood contrast.
Invisible Sun and Tea in the Sahara show a sparse, industrial sound used towards the end of their career. These songs are a bit dark for me, but on the other hand, Synchronicity II is brilliant. I find it has a great balance of pop accessibility and interesting experimental bits. Also, the lyrics have great imagery yet remain nicely obscure. For example, the following leitmotif scattered throughout the song:
Many miles away
Something crawls from the slime
At the bottom of a dark
Scottish loch
I have no idea how this relates to the other scenes described in the song, but this tale of Scottish evolution certainly brings a grand scale to the song!
At 16 songs long, there's certainly plenty of material here. Still, it's interesting to note the omissions of the title tracks Synchonicity (with it's interestingly upbeat tempo) and the instrumental Reggatta de Blanc. But these are no great loss, in my opinion.
Finally, Every Breathe You Take is absolutely brilliant. Where other Police songs venture into creepy territory with the lyrics, somehow they made the stalker-esque lyrics not seem creepy at all, rather a beautiful tale! A classic rock ballad.
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