914. The Police / Zenyatta Mondatta. 1980. 3/5

For a band whose history from start to finish took up less time than the Beatles, here is a similar arc in the way that their albums came out in those early days, the way they were written and recorded. Their debut album had come out at the height of the punk wave in the UK and had perhaps benefitted in that way, given the mix of punk and reggae influences the band utilised on that album, but with musicianship and vocals that were far and away beyond comparison of many of those bands of the era. The follow up album “Regatta de Blanc” had lessened those tones and brought more of a mix of other sounds onto their music as well, which resulted in the album racing to #1 on the UK album charts on the back of the hit singles “Message in a Bottle” and “Walking on the Moon”. On the back of this th band began an extensive world tour in March of 1980, taking in many places they had never visited before and increased their popularity and listenership as a result.
This popularity led of course to pressure coming down from management and the record company, who not only wanted a new album to put out to the populus but for the touring to continue unabated – not something that history suggests produces good results in either situation. The band had however been writing material while on tour, often in soundchecks and on the road between gigs. It meant that by the time they were considering going into the studio, they had material that was in good shape to form into the basis of their next album. They had wanted to return to Surrey Sound, the studio where they had recorded their first two albums, to also record their new album, but for tax reasons they were unable to record anywhere in the UK, which meant relocating to Wisseloord Studios in the Netherlands. In just four weeks, between July 7 and August 7, The Police laid down and mixed the tracks that would become their next album. It was a tight squeeze for the band, as drummer Stewart Copeland said about the time pressures: "We had bitten off more than we could chew. ... we finished the album at 4 a.m. on the day we were starting our next world tour. We went to bed for a few hours and then travelled down to Belgium for the first gig. It was cutting it very fine”.
All of this resulted in The Police releasing their third studio album, and second #1 UK album and first Australian #1 album, titled “Zenyatta Mondatta”.

There is a lot about this album that combines so many different assorted song types, all of them in some way a part of the journey of the band through its short but high flamed existence. Looking back though, at how it must have appeared when it was released, and then to how it sounds today, there are a lot of questions of its structure and place in the music world.
“Zenyatta Mondatta” does sit amongst much of the way the sound was occurring in the UK during 1980. There are the merest smidgen signs left of the punk rock that influenced much of what the band had performed on their debut album. And as an extension of that, it is for the most part the last remains of both that and the influence of reggae on their music here. What we have instead are the beginning of the new wave sound the band would come to incorporate more over the next couple of years. Which really makes “Zenyatta Mondatta” a transformative album, for the band and its music, and of the music scene in the UK. The Police didn’t necessarily influence that, but they certainly took it on board.
“Don’t Stand So Close to Me” is a song that has always been a fan favourite, and often gets brought down in the modern day for its lyrical content and the story they are telling. It’s an interesting situation to have in modern music, where a song from 45 years ago that tells a story is criticised more than the language and vision shown on modern day film clips. What a world we live in. Anyway, this remains one of The Police’s most recognisable songs, and the beat throughout from Stewart Copeland is wonderul to listen to. “Driven to Tears” is the first sign of the new wave energy of the album, and one of the band’s first politically motivated songs, though perhaps it is more accurate to describe it as a world socio-economic song. The subdued musical theme throughout, with a focus on Sting’s bassline and Stewart’s technical drumming is the most ear catching piece of the track, and Andy’s reggaeish guitar strum completes the purpose. This new wave change continues into "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around". Sting imagines himself as the final single person in the post-apocalyptic world, and the song runs with a similar musical theme as the previous track as well, again the formed rhythm holding firm throughout the track, Andy’s long ringing strums on the guitar punctuate that as Sting croons his tale over the top. This is followed by the reggae flavoured “Canary in a Coalmine”, a more upbeat song than those that have come before it, though with repeating of the title of the track that does get to be a little overbearing at times. "Voices Inside My Head", really just uses one riff from Andy and the same solid drumbeat from Stewart and then meanders along for the better part of four minutes with very little change. It has been a continuing story really through the first half of the album. The Side A closer “Bombs Away” is written by Stewart Copeland, and changes things up a little, allowing Andy to play a more expansive guitar track on this song than on the previous songs, which improves things immensely.
Into the B side of the album and we are greeted with the other single release from the album, the delectably titled “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da”. The song, which speaks about how people seem to enjoy simple repetitious songs, was criticised in quarters for having simple baby talk lyrics, immediately disqualifying those people from being a part of the human race. The Andy Summers written instrumental “Behind My Camel” follows, one that has always reminded me of one of the main musical passages in Jeff Wayne’s musical version of “War of the Worlds”. Listen to it and tell me you don’t hear it. This is famous for Sting hating it so much he did not play on it, and Stewart saying the only reason he did play on it was because there was no one else who could play drums. It was Andy’s first solo written song for the band. Seems like a harsh criticism of it from his bandmates, considering other tracks here around it. It is followed by another reggae influenced song in “Man in a Suitcase”, which does come dreadfully close to being a repeat version of “Canary in a Coalmine”, though in a more bassline-oriented way. Listen to both tracks, and then sing one set of vocals over the music of the other. You will find they seem to fit together quite nicely. I do prefer this more.
“Shadows in the Rain” drags back the tempo once again, incorporating the keyboard slightly but is very much based around Sting’s bass which is high in the mix, and drags its way through beyond the five minute mark, the longest song on the album and very much one that feels its length. And the album concludes with “The Other Way of Stopping”, the second instrumental on the album, which actually ends up being a more uplifting and enjoyable way of finishing off the album. The better parts of the album still have a more marketable vibe which are highlighted by Sting getting higher in his vocal range while Andy and Stewart both throw in more of their better off-the-cuff licks and rolls which add glamour to each track. This final song showcases more of Andy and Stewart than some of the slower bass heavy tracks that are more Sting vehicles.

I didn't listen to “Zenyattà Mondatta” until a number of years after its original release, and well after I had discovered the two albums that followed this, “Ghost in the Machine” and “Synchronicity”. The three singles from the “Ghost in the Machine” album were my entry point to The Police, and an album that I got from the friend who would soon become known as my heavy metal music dealer on cassette, AFTER I had bought “Synchronicity”, one of the first albums I ever bought myself. So those were my introduction to The Police, and the style of music on those albums is quite a difference from that which is on “Zenyatta Mondatta”. I do remember when I first sat down and listened to the entire album, and the feeling that came to me most was... well... disappointment. It wasn't in the least what I imagined it would be, stuck right in the middle between what the band once was, and then what the band became. A part of that disappointment definitely comes from the fact that by the time I got around to listening to this album, I was well and truly into my heavy metal obsession, and that songs of this ilk were far harder for me to get my head around now that I was trying on a different music persona as my favourite.
I have had five albums on my playlist this past week, listening to them on rotation to prepare for upcoming episodes of this podcast. Four are metal albums, and this one. And it is fair to say that this one has been the most difficult to get through on each rotation. It has continued to be played in turn, but it would be fair to say that I have been lifted each time the first track from the following album comes on. And for my own listening habits that is no surprise. I do love The Police as a band. Of their five albums I think three are top shelf, one is a level down from that, and the other is “Zenyatta Mondatta”. And listening to it again this week has not disproven that for me. It is the less engaging of their albums, the songs mixture of styles may well have been the right move for 1980 when it was released, but never for as long sa I’ve owned the album have I really felt as though I MUST put this on to listen to. I do, of course, when I’m working through the discography for instance, but it is ranked fifth out of five for me.
I struggle with “Zenyattà Mondatta” even now. Sure, I can listen to it and I enjoy about half of it as I would any other of The Police's albums, but the other half still bugs me. Meh. You can't be completely brilliant all the time, and the style of the band was evolving no doubt, and it turns out that I just don't connect as well to this part of their legacy.