Reggatta de Blanc is the second studio album by British rock band the Police, released on 2 October 1979 by A&M Records. It was the band's first release to top the UK Albums Chart and features their first two UK number-one singles: "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon". In early 1980, the album was reissued in the United States on two 10" discs, one album side per disc, and as a collector's edition with a poster of the band. The music features the Police's distinctive appropriation of reggae and frontman Sting's Caribbean vocal inflections. The album's title loosely translates in French to "White Reggae". It was the band's second album to bear a Franglais title, after their 1978 debut album Outlandos d'Amour. Reggatta de Blanc proved more popular and successful than its predecessor. The title track earned the band their first Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. In 2003, Reggatta de Blanc was ranked at number 369 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
fuck the police... but not THESE police. Who knew that their non-hits were so... quirky?? An enjoyable time. Sting knows how to sing and how to structure a song. Not sure if the album lives up to its promise of "White Reggae", but maybe the white reggae was the friends we made along the way. It's a high 3 for me, but I've been giving out too many 4s lately, so a 3 it shall be.
Official Police Fan club, member number 606 and stayed up late to watch them on Old Grey Whistle test. Great days! Every track on this is a classic- they were huge at the time but time moves on, although it still makes me turn up the volume. Listening back now Stewart Copeland's drumming is particularly noteworthy, the vibe with bass and Sting's vocals were so influencial. I can't believe this has only just made it to the list. Shame on you Robert.
I hadn’t heard this album in ages and wow it hasn’t aged a bit. Really great album.
4.1 - Lots of energy, lots of snap. For just three guys, they create a ton of sound. They're also incredibly tight - there's not a missed note or beat in the recording. I love the dreamy reggae-infelected interplay of bass and guitar on "Bring On the Night" as well as the trippy guitar sonics on "Walking On the Moon."
I liked The Police a lot in the 80s and I saw them during the Synchronicity tour. I haven't listened to them very much since then, but when I hear any of their songs in recent years, I am increasingly impressed with Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland as musicians. Love the complexity they bring to their craft. It's hard for me to separate all the public image stuff around Sting from the music he was part of with this band and in later years, but when I set that aside and just listen to the work, I usually like it. His voice sometimes is a bit much for me, but ignoring what I might think of his public persona I do hear some great stuff from him from time to time. He's also put out some music as a solo artist that doesn't interest me, but that's probably something I'd say of any musician who has recorded so many albums over decades. This is a solid album even today and very much brings me back to some fun memories.
These guys are TIGHT. 3 guys who compliment each other really well. Every part is so perfectly precise. I don't normally care much for reggae but I love how they mix it in with rock and pop stuff. Cool subtle use of guitar effects like delay & chorus. Drumming is so good.
The adoration for The Police continues to elude me. They're great musicians (and I'm not even counting out Sting himself here), but the record has occasional flits of greatness (seriously, even I enjoy "Message In a Bottle"), but never really nails it: some songs feel half-finished, and it switches between serious and almost-Offspring-level of jokey ("On Any Other Day"). I will say, I never noticed their post-punk tracks before, but those aren't the ones that usually play. Favorite tracks: "Message In a Bottle", "Deathwish", "No Time This Time"
Let's be real: true black reggae is fucking boring. There's a reason you only hear it in seedy bars in Thailand that cater to cooked westerners: if you listen to reggae with a clear head you notice very, very quickly that there is ZERO variation in tempo, chords, themes, etc. If you've heard 30 seconds of real reggae, you've heard it all. Not exaggerating there. Is what The Police did appropriation? Probably... but who cares. It's not like The Police took their kazillion dollars out of some starving Jamaican's mouth. True reggae sucks too much to have ever been pop chart big. People idolise the IDEA of Bob Marley, not his music. Reggae only became palatable on a large scale once The Police mixed it with new wave. And that's worth noting: they mixed it with something as shit as new wave to improve it. 2/5 because message in a bottle is a legitimately good song.
Somebody call the police...to tell then this album is shit.
A regrettable experience. Torture to my young ears. A real abortion of melody and lyrics that should have never seen the light of day. A festering wound in the back of your eye.
Lovely punky pop reggae. Of course covering topics like depression, isolation, prostitution, suicide. I don’t think we’ll ever get a band like The Police ever again.
Brilliant at the time.
Punchy. I love the Police but early Police most of all, just so raw yet clear. I listened to this album recently because I remember buying it as a kid and ... really not getting into it right away. Often a sign of a deep album for me, and yeah - there's so much I love about it now. They were such a *band* on this album: Stewart Copeland's ridiculous precision especially on the hi hat; Andy Summers' best album - weird/odd yet tasteful chords, shimmering chorus on songs like "Walking On The Moon" and the (I think) underrated bass lines from Sting. Not a ton of hits here but that might be why I ended up liking it more as the years went on. Songwriting noticably tails off a bit near the end but it's still not enough for me to knock it down, I love it... 9/10 5 stars
I didn’t have to listen to this to know it’s a 5. Every song is crafted amazingly. Even the songs I don’t know incredibly well are still so good sounding. Iconic album.
This band has no bad albums
Such a good album front to back
What an excellent group of musicians and strong group of songs, including a few I’ve never heard before. Two absolute bangers: Message In a Bottle, Walking on the Moon. The only “bad” song is “On Any Other Day” with the poorly aged line about his son being gay. Observation: The beginning of “Bring on the Night” sounds like “edge of seventeen”.
Love this album. No sophomore slump here. Kickass opening track that sucks you in as you sing along. Bring on the Night, Bed’s too Big, It’s alright for you are also standouts. Great blend of reggae vibes and excellent rock and roll.
Good album! Obviously we got the hits but there's loads of stuff I've never heard, and there's some interesting tracks there too! Saved songs: Does Everyone Stare, Bring On The Night, The Bed's Too Big Without You
Love the reggae rock vibes
The Police are one of the greatest bands of all time. Three piece that Copeland and Summers filled out to sound amazing. Sting is "a hell" of a songwriter. He was throwing out hits for fun in this period. Message in a Bottle is one of the greatest songs of all time and I never tire of hearing it. I remember this as being a bit patchy but with some real songs. Listening to it again in the middle of this exercise, I realise the difference between good bands and a great band. I've been a bit mean on the 5 stars and wouldn't have given this at the start of listening but this is is as good an album as anything else on this list.
the blend of reggae and 80’s rock is awesome. definitely coming back to this one
Classic! Really great album. Rock is fun
Really liked it. Great musicians. And you gotta love Sting
My favourite Police album by far. As far as I'm concerned, this reggae of the white album is one of those rare beasts where each track is a masterpiece in its own right. Message in a Bottle is album's most famous track, yes, but the album is full of unique moments. Whether it's that unique sound of Walking on the Moon or The Bed's Too Big Without You, or that opera singer I can hear in the background in Does Everyone Stare, this album is the result of the hard work of three very competent musicians striving very hard to avoid their era's common "rock" sound. They were highly successful in this endeavour of theirs. P.S. I used to love the album's back cover, featuring the back of the trio's heads (basically, the opposite of the front cover's photo). We don't get to experience these things in this age of streaming.
Song for song, this is probably my favorite Police album. I love their crisp yet atmospheric sound, with nice separation of the instruments. That's the beauty of a trio I guess. Their songs have these amazing internal dynamics, both in in terms of their structures, and the interplay of the parts. I especially enjoy the drumming and percussion of Stewart Copeland, but I also love Sting's melodic basslines, and the way Andy Summers is able to use his guitar to support everything with such subtle texture without overdoing anything. There are some fun rockers here, but I think it's the more subdued tracks that I gravitate towards, especially "Walking On The Moon."
I was 10 years old when Synchronicity came out. I was enthralled and The Police were my first favorite band. Once I got a Walkman for a gift, I acquired the entire Police catalogue ASAP. Regatta De Blanc was never among my favorite, but when I'm in a certain mood, it's perfect. The litmus test is the first song Message in a Bottle. Play the album, if it sounds like same old classic rock radio, put on something else. If. this song makes you queazy with it's awesomeness then proceed. If Message In A Bottle with Stewart's impeccably tight and characteristic drumming, Sting's mesmerizing bass and vocals, and Andy's sensuous guitar accents doesn't move you... Move on, cause that's all you're gonna get here.
Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Message in a bottle, It’s alright for you, Walking in the moon
fairly decent, fairly police, fairly good listening. was impressed.
Fedt!
Not my favourite Police album but still good.
FIRE
Good bit of fun
This was great
I mean, I guess you could say the fell to the sophomore slump. This one isn't as packed with hits and seems a little laid back for the band, but its still the FUCKING Police and it still rules. It's still better than like 85% of all music ever made.
4 Fantastic album. I give it a solid 4/5 for now.
Sting can really croon you know? That was great. Message in a Bottle is a classic and Reggatta De Blanc was cool. Loved contact too.
Classic Album. Message in a bottle and Walking on the Moon have been around my playlist forever. Some different influences, like Reggae
Love this one.
Alright and it has Message in a Bottle. 7/10
7/10. Ah, yes, the reggae cops
8/10
Firstly, he drumming - Stewart Copeland is an absolute genius! I love what he's doing on the hi-hat, especially on Message In a Bottle, which is also the best song on the album. The rest of it is good too, the highlights include Walking on the Moon, Bring On the Night (oh how I love this subtle guitar riff in the background) and The Bed's Too Big Without You. The rest of it is a bit of hit and miss, which I've found to be the usual within the new wave genre. Regarding the accusations of cultural appropriation - I don't know, I read somewhere that Sting grew up in a neighbourhood with immigrants from the Carribean and that made him fall in love with the music and this is sort of a tribute. I want to believe that. Also, the reggae inspired instrumentation is fantastic. It only gets a bit weird when Sting tries to do the accent too hard. The lyrics are smart and amusing (as is the title of the album). I like it a lot, just a few filler tracks but overall 4/5
Not usually into white man's reggae but this was an exception
Two fantastic songs, a few good ones, some kooky tunes that don't even sound like The Police. A very good album.
heh tunnistan bändin.. ja joitain biisejä.. tarkoittaa että yläkanttiin heh!! siis vaikuttaa se enemmän, että muut muut paitsi minä vaikuttaa tähän mielipiteeseen.. no hyviä biisejä kuitemkin. vaihtelevat mielipiteet hiteistä, parhaita ja paskimpia albumissa ja loput keskelle.. heh.. biisit tykkäävät toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään toistaa itseään ja fade out hiljalleen tuota hiljemmaksi menee se ääni mutta se ääni sinällään on sama, mutta vain hiljaisempi walking on the moon
Was interesting to listen to it more intently, because the police certainly have pretty interesting/unusual music... seems pretty percussion focused, odd time signatures, and very distinct instrument sounds. Really good album.
I guess I should get away from the political aspects of music, where it came from, etc... But I wonder if mainstream radio would have played this without context of the support behind it from the power players? Is it a good album? Would I listen to it again?
Supremely cool album name but also equally hilarious when it essentially translates to "white boy reggae". Appropriation questions aside it all adds up to a pretty strong musical offering. Especially love the take no prisoners intro track, just bang straight into a sharp as shit (and pretty famous) riff. Minus one star for Sting calling himself Sting.. get it together GORDON.
I Stan Sting
From the police albums so far I got this has actually been a good one - less of the creepiness - still some of the hits - with Message in a Bottle still holding up, and Walking on the Moon being awesome - as well as a few other good ones. It’s not a perfect album - but it’s short enough to keep you consistently interested. And oh those Stewart Copeland drums …
less funk and more rock than their previous one which made the difference in enjoyment
Very weird to go back to this when you know their later hits, but good album overall. Solid performances from all 3. Mega hit to begin with and remains entertaining throughout. Some silly songs keep it from a 5.
Very good, was delighted to discover which album Message In A Bottle came from
I was always aware of The Police as a band but not their music style so I was expecting some classic rock/rock and roll style music which I would’ve welcomed too but I was pleasantly surprised to hear the reggae and jazz influences throughout this record. I’ll be honest I do find the lyrics to be slightly derivative at times with a lot of religion, however the instrumentation and style of this record is great. The opener ‘Message In A Bottle’ does have a bit more classic British rock band style but Sting’s vocal inflections really give that reggae undertone. Compare this to track such as ‘Walking On The Moon’ and you can see how parts of this record really embrace that reggae tone, it is a much more laid back track which gives focus to this spaced out guitar sounds. Then there’s the jazz influence which is clear as day on ‘Does Everyone Stare’ with the piano leading the way and some light percussion to accompany. Now I don’t think this album is perfect but it was a damn great listen, wouldn’t mind another Police album on this list if they’re gonna be more like that.
i honestly wasn't expecting too much and because of that ngl it gave a lot. loved the rock steady and funk influences. did not expect that from "commercial classic rock" at all
New wave, reggae rock. Dos megahits. Un 4.
A massive step from their debut less than a year before. There were signs on the debut, but things really begin to gel here. Better production, songs and focus results in an album that paves the way for their superstardom. Is this The Police album that goes on the list. I don't think so, but there is some very fine music and Message In A Bottle and the title track are tremendous.
Message in a Bottle gets this to a 4. Rest of the album is good enough.
Are the Police a reggae band? This album says yes. Everyone knows the title track and it slaps but everything about it's been said. I think the real star of this album, for me on this listen through, is Copeland's drumming, it really elevates my connection with the material. Can you honestly say It's Alright For You is an interesting song without the momentum he injects? And for the rest of the album, where the songs stand on firmer shoulders, it adds an extra element. On deathwish its so locked in with the guitar it feels like one instrument.
Goed album, lekkere mix van reggae, pop, en rock.
This album was so entrenched in my brain as an 80s album, I was surprised it was 79. Not a big difference but still.
The A side to the record was a solid 5, the B side was a low 3... so 4 stars it is lol.
Reasonably good air, but nothing groundbreaking despite the hit singles. Highly enjoyable.
just some fiine regular old 80s
Three brilliant musicians, love the bass. Poppy but not cheesy.
I liked it. ‘Message in a Bottle’ is predictably the best one, but I also really enjoyed ‘Bring on the Night’. Not as good as their one I’ve heard before this generator, Synchronicity, but still great.
classics
Punchy and energetic
I have listened to every album by The Police, but it's been a while since I last listened to Reggatta De Blanc. I like this album in part because of some of the music that was not released as a single ("Regatta De Blanc"), but my next favorite track ("Walking On the Moon") was a single. The second half of this album is less enjoyable than the first half. Regatta De Blanc is similar to every album from The Police. There are a string of stellar tracks, but at least one or two tracks on each album that don't fit in to the overall listening experience, and leave me wondering what to do with that (those) track(s) (e.g., "On Any Other Day", "No Time This Time"). Often the oddities come from Copeland or Summers, who may have not tuned in to the pop-music vibe as easily as Sting. I don't want to downplay Copeland or Summers, because combined they made some great music. Every album has something to keep in your collection, and Reggatta De Blanc is worth keeping.
The Police's whole discography is great, and this is just another example of the pop sensation. Reggae-fused New Wave, there's a smooth and cool groove with the singer Sting who can be both mysterious and energetic. On the production front, it's a really clean album. I'm listening to "Walking on the Moon" and hearing just how clear the chorus guitar, bass groove, and drums are. The tracklisting is fantastic too. Two hits, which some high-energy tracks and many accessible pop tracks. Super consistent in sound and mood, with hardly any forgettable tracks. I guess the 3 tracks felt more like bonus tracks but had their merits.
Bon allez pour les tubes je vais quand même mettre 4 parce que je suis de pas trop mauvaise humeur, mais attention The Police.
Pretty good 👍
Some great instrumentation, but Sting’s vocal style I never seemed to warm towards. Title track is probably the standout for me.
A serviceable Police LP – gives away the ghost by letting its best track ('Bottle' by a long shot) up front, with not much achieving that high bar for the rest of the runtime. That being said, even a ho-hum Police album is a solid listen, as Sting and co. pilot their way through the standard mix of chorus-drenched guitar + unconventional rhythms to great effect.
I Like The Police so I was glad this showed up. It's fine but they have better albums I'd even go so far as to say that Zenyatta Mondata, Ghost in the Machine and Synchronicity are all better and I'll be lucky if even one more of those is on the list. Best tracks: Message in a Bottle, It's Alright For You, Walking on the Moon. Stewart Copeland of course is amazing on the drums.
Pretty fun album. Never listened to much Police before. Knew the 2 most popular tracks. Theyre pretty good. Can't pin down his accent though. Album ended kinda flatly. Just a fade out? But entertaining throughout
Not so interesting, a couple nice ones tho
Es repetitivo, pero nunca llega a ser tedioso. Al menos no es muy difícil saber que canción escuchas, pues no hay mucha diversidad en la letra fuera de repetir el titulo 30 veces por pieza. A pesar de esto, es completamente disfrutable. No siento la necesidad de saltar alguna canción y, personalmente, me gustó mucho
Brisk paced.. Definitely popular back in the day.
I didn’t like this as much as I thought I would. Other than message in a bottle, which is great, nothing else really stood out to me
Great singles, and some reasonably good album tracks.
The spiky new wave is largely good, you know the singles. Less said about Sting's fake Jamaican accent the better. On Any Other Day is terrible
reminder of my youth a good album to start my journey. The tracks released as singles are fabulous. The album tracks a little bit samey. Copelands drum beats too fast for me in some of their songs sounds like they are rushing to finish the song and makes the lyrics indistinct.
Didn't hate this anywhere near as much as I expected to. Aside from the cringe in the opening song it was actually pretty punky.
Good solid new wave album, well deserving of its place on the list. Message in a bottle the stand out song. On any other day the low point.
It's a good album. Like The Weather Report the other day, and Jacob's bass, this album lives and dies by Stewart Copeland's amazing drumming. Propulsive, rigid but off kilter, sharp and beautiful. You can see the marked difference between these exciting, jittery songs and the shoes off new age bollocks that defined Sting post 1985, and know that without that drumming, Sting is adequate at best.
The Police also nochmal. Die Platte kommt nicht recht in die Gänge, wenn man mit konventionellen Pop-Erwartungen rangeht und kriegte mich erst beim vorletzten Song. Eher Musik für Musiker, insgesamt solide hörenswert. Im Übrigen ist da noch das bekannte Message In A Bottle drauf, was einfach mal ein geiler Song ist.
Combing the usual sound I know as The Police and the sound before I knew them as The Police. Definitely progressive new wave.
Starts with a classic. It was hard to keep up after that. Not a bad driving album.
My unconscious dislike of Sting and The Police (with a few exceptions) is pretty much confirmed by this album. I feel as though every song has moments I really like, but then really irritating vocals and white reggae (which is just plain embarrassing at points) rear their heads, and repeat ad nauseam. The opening track and Bring on the Night are very enjoyable. The rest, however, is not. 13/04/23
liked some, didn’t like some 3.5
I've always said that The Police really do new wave in their own way, and this second album, which helped launch them into stardom, really shows that fact off. The ways in which they saw that white reggae could fuse with punk and new wave (and before new wave was even really a thing) was a fascinating and well-received discovery that really led them to standing out from the crowd. This probably wouldn't be my first choice album of The Police to include in this project, but it is very likely among their most influential and defining moments for them in setting their unique tone. And who can say no to immediately coming out of the gate with "Message in a Bottle" as an album opener?
Classic Police. Nice to hear an album with some hits, but also some different sounds and a different singer than Sting (or Mr Sting). Didn’t hear him let out a little tummy squeak though.
For each album by The Police, it's more or less the same drill. The major singles are legendary, but the deep cuts are... well... very very *deep* sometimes. This one is no exception, even though I readily admit that "Bring On The Night", " On Any Other Day" and "This Bed's Too Big Without You" are good songs. Conversely, the instrumental title track, "Deathwish" or the last tunes closing the proceedings are sort of a borefest to me. And in between you have "It's Alright For You", not so bad but very derivative of former rhythm'n'blues hits, oddly enough. I'm not familiar with *everything* the Police has released, yet I feel like this album is indeed the one to select for those sorts of lists compared to the others, even though it only has two super-famous singles, "Message In A Bottle" and "Walking On The Moon". The debut *Outlandos D'Amour* has three of them, it's true: "Roxanne", "So Lonely" and "Can't Stand Losing You". Unfortunately it also has very awkward stuff such as "Hole In My Life", " Born In The 50s", "Be My Girl" or "Masoko Tanga", so I guess it's not an "ideal" candidate either. And no, don't get me started on *Synchronicity*. As much as I like "Every Breath You Take", that last album, often quoted in best-of lists, leers too much towards the sort of eighties pop Sting would soon release for his solo career. And here another story begins, I guess... To be honest with you, I have a "greatest hits" collection from The Police at home, and I'm perfectly happy with it. With their mixing of post-punk and reggae, coupled with great performances and Sting's songwriting at its best, The Police had every card in their game to help them become a legendary band. But sometimes, legendary bands are better for the singles format than they are for the one of albums. That's life. Number of albums left to review: 574 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 205 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 99 (including this one--it's a 8/10 LP for purposes that are more general than the ones of this list--but when it comes to "essential" albums, it's only a 3/5 one) Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 126
Weird week for this list. Seems like only yesterday we got our first album from the The Police, but it was actually four days ago. Here we are, round two of, hopefully, not too many more. I said it before, I'll say it again: these guys are overrated. Doesn't mean they're bad; in fact, they are quite good. But if we're considering the competition (see Echo & the Bunnymen album we had yesterday, released the following year) they had in the UK, I guess I can start to see why people would think Sting is a godsend. "Message in a Bottle" goes stupid hard, one of my absolute favorites from them. These guys have the hitmaking ability, no doubt. But this one's not got too much for me. Definitely not as enjoyable as Synchronicity, but still decent. Favorite tracks: Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon. Album art: Photo of the lads, blue filtered. I only saved two songs in my playlist, and they were both already in my iTunes library from the greatest hits album, so I won't even see this in the playlist which I think is pretty funny. 3/5
The album really lives up to it's name - white reggae. Before this I would never have thought that The Police was a reggae band, but this album definitely begs to differ. It effortlessly straddles the line between post-punk, new-wave and reggae rock. Best: Message In A Bottle Worst: Contact
Enjoyed it but wasnt my favourite
EH
sort of fun but mostly just background music