Synchronicity, The Police

Promo

The Police – Synchronicity

Artist: The Police

Title: Synchronicity

Album Type: Fifth and Final Studio Album

Original Release Date: June 17, 1983

Label: A&M Records

Genre: New Wave / Pop Rock / Art Rock

ackground & Production Synchronicity is the monumental final statement from The Police, an album that saw them transcend "band" status to become the biggest rock act in the world. Recorded at AIR Studios in Montserrat, the production was famously volcanic; tensions between Sting, Stewart Copeland, and Andy Summers reached a breaking point, resulting in the trio recording their parts in separate rooms to avoid physical confrontation. Despite—or perhaps because of—this friction, the album is a sonic masterpiece. Produced by the band and Hugh Padgham, it replaced the band's earlier reggae-rock foundations with sophisticated synthesizers, complex textures, and a dark, intellectual atmosphere.

Musical Composition & Themes Inspired by Arthur Koestler’s The Roots of Coincidence and Carl Jung’s theory of synchronicity, the album is divided into two distinct halves.

• Side One (Experimental/Art Rock): Features high-energy, polyrhythmic tracks like "Synchronicity I" and the frantic, world-music influenced "Mother" and "Miss Gradenko."

• Side Two (The Hits): Contains the band’s most commercially successful material, including the haunting, obsessive "Every Breath You Take"—which spent eight weeks at #1—the atmospheric "King of Pain," and the jazz-inflected "Wrapped Around Your Finger."

• Sonic Detail: The album is noted for its high-fidelity production, utilizing the Fairlight CMI synthesizer and a more prominent use of piano and saxophone, pushing the band far beyond the "power trio" format.

Legacy & Performance Synchronicity was a global phenomenon, reaching #1 on both the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200, famously ending Michael Jackson’s Thriller's long reign at the top. It won three Grammy Awards in 1984 and is frequently cited as one of the greatest albums of the 1980s. For vinyl collectors, original pressings are highly sought after—particularly those on "Quiex II" translucent purple vinyl (which appears black until held up to light), known for its superior audio quality.

• Keywords: The Police, Sting, Synchronicity, Every Breath You Take, A&M Records, 1983 Vinyl, New Wave, Stewart Copeland, Andy Summers, Quiex II Vinyl.

• Collection Ideas: 80s Blockbusters, Audiophile Pressings, Final Studio Albums, Grammy Winners.

• Related Artists: Peter Gabriel, U2, Tears for Fears, Genesis, Dire Straits.

MINT - sealed

NM - likely never played - almost perfect

VG+ - light scuffs, light scratches wont effect play

VG -  signs of wear, light scratches you can feel

GOOD -  surface noise, visible groove wear

POOR / FAIR- some damage, causing issues like skipping & distorted audio

OIS - original inner sleeve