If the multi-platinum success of The Police is assessed by apublic guided only by the singles the trio released- ones that routinelycharted in the UK and the U.S. in the Top 20- it’s easy to overlook the factthat the band also made really great albums. The five studio records they did make were loaded with tracks thatshowed a remarkable depth of musical, lyrical, and sonic personality andcharacter. Boxed together, and includedwith a bonus sixth CD of compiled outtakes and singles, Every Move You Make is an essential collection not only for anyfan, but for all to assess properly the true impact of this legendary group.
The presentation of the collection is clean, conscientious,and compact; the albums are housed in individual gatefold CD sleevesre-creating the original layout and art of the vinyl LPs. They have all been remastered as well, atAbbey Road Studios, and done so with great attention to illuminating therecordings without any conspicuous rise in overall volume that has plaguedreissues from other artists. For apurist that remains devotional to and defensive of vinyl as king, these CDs areeasily on par.
The five albums cover the five years of the band as a majorlabel artist- 1978-1983- with the bonus disc gathering other recordings madeduring that same span. As a result, thebonus slab, titled here as FlexibleStrategies, plays like a timeline of the group’s development frompost-punk, reggae-inflected new wavers to the sophisticated rock engineersdabbling in world music and looping synth tech. As for the five albums, they resonate as energetically and sonically asthey did when it all began over 40 years ago.
One thing that becomes obvious, in addition to how the bandevolved and how masterful they became at combining respected musicianship withpop sensibility, is how The Police always left space on their albums forsomething different or, to some, strange. Start with Synchronicity, inarguablythe band’s pop rock zenith, and hear the fourth track, “Mother.” In context, it’s dark and bizarre and, evenif tongue-in-cheek, risky. Isolated,it’s hard to imagine it’s from the same pot as “Every Breath You Take,” thatmega-single about stalking, forever misinterpreted and subsequently on mostwedding couple’s lists. It’s the samewith something as haunting as “Darkness,” the last song on the group’s mostvaried album- Ghost in the Machine- thatrivals anything from the emo-pop or grunge movements that would emerge a decadelater.
This is the ultimate attraction of having all the albums ofThe Police here in one place: the ability for a listener to hear them as theywere intended to be heard as a whole; to dive down into the contrasting moods,the innovative arrangements, and the scope of the records as complete thoughtsbeyond the Top 20. With the release ofthis terrific set, these albums, in spite of the massive commercial success ofthose singles, are what The Police can and should be recognized for as theirultimate legacy.
