Reggatta De Blanc – POLICE***

Message In A Bottle/Regatta De Blanc/It's Alright For You/Bring On The Night/Deathwish/Walking On The Moon/ On Any Other Day/The Bed's Too Big Without You/Contact/Does Everyone Stare/No Time This Time

Police were a difficult band to categorise and might be described as pop-rock with reggae influences. Their quick follow up album Regatta De Blanc is, like the debut, similarly uneven. So the two UK No. 1 hit singles Message In A Bottle and Walking On The Moon place all the other tracks in the shade. (US:23 UK:1)

“The Police's second album Reggatta De Blanc is more reggae based than the debut, but still awesome. The two big hits Message In A Bottle and Walking On The Moon obviously deliver in spades; the rest comprise moody, atmospheric reggae based numbers that smoke.”

“This band has a certain something that keeps them sounding unique. Not new, though: you can definitely sense that this is an old album, but not in a bad way. There's a bit of filler here and there, and occasional cheese (even if it's intentional).”

“This album is a little more reggae influenced than their debut but still a decent mix of pop and new wave. It is essentially similar their first but done better and there isn't much to dislike. It’s before they went all pop-rock and AOR and got a little boring and cheesy.”

“Although the Police were one of the major new wave bands, it is really here, on their second outing, where they define their influential sound. They do so with virtually no modern devices like keyboards and synthesizers, which were so trendy among new wave bands. At the core of their sound, the Police are really just a great power trio, and it is on Reggatta De Blanc where the band really masters this formula.”

The title means something like ‘White Reggae’ and indeed there is a lot of reggae influence to be found. The album goes in a number of different directions, almost as if the band was struggling to find just what kind of sound that they wanted to put out there. Overall this is another strong album from the Police.”

“The punk energy of the last album has been replaced by something more sophisticated, a kind of reggae influenced pop for which the band became famous.”

“The smooth balance of instruments, the clever game play between stylish vocals, outstanding drumming and terrific guitar effects, make this a gem of the late 70s.”