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Zenyatta Mondatta

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Zenyatta Mondatta (stylised as Zenyattà Mondatta on the album cover artwork) is the third studio album by British rock band the Police, released on 3 October 1980 by A&M Records. It was co-produced by the band and Nigel Gray.

Zenyatta Mondatta
Studio album by
the Police
Released3 October 1980 (1980-10-03)
Recorded7 July – 7 August 1980
StudioWisseloord (Hilversum)
Genre
Length38:16
LabelA&M
Producer
The Police chronology
Six Pack
(1980) 		Zenyatta Mondatta
(1980) 		Ghost in the Machine
(1981)
Singles from Zenyatta Mondatta
  1. "Don't Stand So Close to Me"
    Released: September 1980
  2. "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da"
    Released: October 1980 (US)

Zenyatta Mondatta reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and number five on the US Billboard 200. It produced the hit singles "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da". The album won the band two Grammy Awards: Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and Best Rock Instrumental Performance for "Behind My Camel".

Recording

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Zenyatta Mondatta was written during the Police's second tour and recorded in four weeks (minus two days for concerts in Ireland and at the Milton Keynes festival in the United Kingdom). The band members have often expressed disappointment over the album, going so far as to re-record two songs during a brief, unsuccessful reunion in 1986. 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 traveled down to Belgium for the first gig. It was cutting it very fine."[4]

The band had wanted to record the album at Surrey Sound, the recording site of their first two albums, but could not record at any British studio for tax reasons.[4] They were, however, able to retain Nigel Gray as their co-producer, bringing him with them to Wisseloord Studios in the Netherlands. Feeling that he had played a significant part in the Police's first two albums, Gray negotiated for a £25,000 (£109,000 in 2023[5]) fee, which brought the album's total budget to £35,000 (more than twice the combined budgets of their first two albums, but still exceptionally cheap for a band who at that point had become established stars).[6]

As mentioned by Copeland, the Police embarked on a tour of the world the day of the album's completion, beginning in Belgium and finishing in Australia.

Composition

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The album is the last of the Police's early era, influenced by reggae and punk and featuring few musical elements on top of the core guitar, bass, and drums.

The record has two instrumentals, "The Other Way of Stopping" (named from a line in Bob Newhart's "The Driving Instructor" routine) and "Behind My Camel". "Behind My Camel" was guitarist Andy Summers' first entirely self-penned composition. As bassist and vocalist Sting refused to play on it, Summers recorded the bass line himself, overdubbing the guitar parts. According to Sting, "I hated that song so much that, one day when I was in the studio, I found the tape lying on the table. So I took it around the back of the studio and actually buried it in the garden."[7] Nigel Gray believed that the title was an in-joke by Summers: "He didn't tell me this himself but I'm 98% sure the reason is this: what would you find behind a camel? A monumental pile of shit."[8]

"Bombs Away" was written and demoed using a Siouxsie and the Banshees tape. Copeland said that "when he first set up his home studio he got hold of a load of second hand tape which included some stuff by Siouxsie and the Banshees. 'Bombs Away' was written on a Siouxsie and the Banshees backing track. I changed the speed and did things to the EQ to change the drum pattern. So with the desk I can get my song playing, then press a switch and there's Siouxsie singing away."[9]

Zenyatta Mondatta also saw the band's lyrics turning towards political events, with Sting's "Driven to Tears" commenting on poverty and Copeland's "Bombs Away" referring to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.[8][10] These themes became more prevalent on the Police's next album, Ghost in the Machine.

Title

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Stewart Copeland said that the group arrived at the album's title after deciding it should roll off the tongue. Zenyatta and Mondatta are invented words, hinting at Zen, at Jomo Kenyatta, at the French for 'the world' (le monde), and at reggatta, from the title of the previous Police album, Reggatta de Blanc. As Copeland explained:

It means everything. It's the same explanation that applies to the last two. It doesn't have a specific meaning like "Police Brutality" or "Police Arrest", or anything predictable like that. Being vague it says a lot more. You can interpret it in a lot of different ways. It's not an attempt to be mysterious, just syllables that sound good together, like the sound of a melody that has no words at all has a meaning. Miles (Stewart Copeland's brother and group manager) came up with "Trimondo Blondomina". Very subtle. Geddit? Like three blondes and the world. Then somebody thought of "Caprido Von Renislam". That rolls off the tongue. It was the address of the studio.[9]

Jerry Moss, co-founder of A&M Records, named the champion racehorse Zenyatta (born 2004) after the album.[11] Blizzard Entertainment also named a character Zenyatta (and his brother, non-playable character – Mondatta) in the video game Overwatch. Additionally, in the English translation of the manga Stardust Crusaders published by VIZ Media, the characters Oingo and Boingo are renamed Zenyatta and Mondatta due to copyright laws.[12]

Release

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Zenyatta Mondatta debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and stayed atop the chart for four weeks.[13] The album also charted at number one in Australia.[14] In the United States, it spent almost three years on the Billboard 200 chart and peaked at number five.[15] The album produced two singles, "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da". On the UK Singles Chart, the former became the band's third number one, while the latter reached number five.[13] The two singles also became the band's first top ten hits on the US Billboard Hot 100, with both peaking at number ten on the chart.[16][17]

A&M Records first remastered the album for release in compact disc format in the US in 1990.[18] Frank DeLuna and Marv Bornstein mastered the original 1980 vinyl LP, but it is unclear if they also remastered the CD.[18]

Sting would later perform his own version of "Shadows in the Rain" on his 1985 debut solo album The Dream of the Blue Turtles. In 1986, the Police re-recorded "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da". The former was released on Every Breath You Take: The Singles, while the latter was released on the DTS version of Every Breath You Take: The Classics. "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around" was remixed by the production duo Different Gear and released as a single in 2000, credited to "Different Gear vs. The Police". It reached number 28 on the UK Singles Chart.[13]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [19]
Chicago Tribune    [20]
Christgau's Record GuideB[21]
Rolling Stone     [22]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide     [23]
The Sacramento Bee    [24]
Smash Hits8/10[25]
Sounds     [26]
Tampa Bay TimesA[27]
Uncut     [28]

In a 1980 review for Rolling Stone, David Fricke praised Zenyatta Mondatta as "near-perfect pop by a band that bends all the rules and sometimes makes musical mountains out of molehill-size ideas", complimenting the band's "elastic" interplay.[29] Phil Sutcliffe of Sounds wrote that he initially viewed the album as inferior to the band's earlier material, but came to recognise its strength, despite still finding it somewhat unadventurous: "By word and note it's as articulate and literate as you might hope. It avoids a whole catalogue of megastar pitfalls. Zenyatta is not pretentious, not bombastic, not lazy."[26] In Smash Hits, David Hepworth opined that Sting had particularly improved as a vocalist and songwriter, describing his compositions as "tougher, more concerned, but no less melodic."[25]

Zenyatta Mondatta was voted the 28th best album of 1980 in The Village Voice's year-end Pazz & Jop critics' poll.[30] At the Grammy Awards in 1982, "Don't Stand So Close to Me" won for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, while "Behind My Camel" won for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, marking the Police's second consecutive win in the latter category.[31]

Retrospectively, AllMusic critic Greg Prato cited Zenyatta Mondatta as "arguably the best Police album" and "one of the finest rock albums of all time."[19] In 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide, J. D. Considine highlighted the more pronounced groove of the music: "The emphasis on rhythmic intensity made the songs catchier (as 'Voices Inside My Head' shows, the band certainly knew how to work a vamp), and the rhythmic dynamics add a singular punch to the material."[23]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Sting, except where noted

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Don't Stand So Close to Me" 4:04
2."Driven to Tears" 3:20
3."When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around" 3:38
4."Canary in a Coalmine" 2:26
5."Voices Inside My Head" 3:53
6."Bombs Away"Stewart Copeland3:06
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" 4:09
8."Behind My Camel"Andy Summers2:54
9."Man in a Suitcase" 2:19
10."Shadows in the Rain" 5:04
11."The Other Way of Stopping"Copeland3:22
Total length:38:16

Personnel

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Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[32]

The Police

Production

  • Nigel Gray – production, engineering
  • The Police – production
  • Ronald Prent – assistant engineer (uncredited)[33]
  • Marv Bornstein – mastering
  • Frank DeLuna – mastering
  • Watal Asanuma – back cover and inner sleeve photography
  • Janette Beckman – front cover and inner sleeve photography
  • Adrian Boot – inner sleeve photography
  • Miles Copeland – back cover and inner sleeve photography
  • Anton Corbijn – inner sleeve photography
  • Danny Quatrochi – back cover and inner sleeve photography
  • Michael Ross – art direction, design, inner sleeve photography
  • Simon Ryan – design
  • Gabor Scott – inner sleeve photography
  • Akihiro Takayama – inner sleeve photography
  • Kim Turner – inner sleeve photography

Charts

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Certifications and sales

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Certifications and sales for Zenyatta Mondatta
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[53] Platinum 100,000[54]
Canada (Music Canada)[56] Platinum 300,000[55]
France (SNEP)[57] Platinum 400,000*
Germany (BVMI)[58] Gold 250,000^
Italy — 300,000[59]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[60] Platinum 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[62] Platinum 1,000,000[61]
United States (RIAA)[64] 2× Platinum 3,000,000[63]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Brown, Charles T. (1992). "Punk, New Wave, and Alternative Music". The Art of Rock and Roll (3rd ed.). Prentice Hall. p. 253. ISBN 0-13-044892-3.
  2. ^ Cordas, Alexander. "'Ghost In The Machine' von The Police". Laut.de (in German). Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  3. ^ Cioe, Crispin (January 1982). "The Police: Third World Rock & Roll" (PDF). High Fidelity. Vol. 32, no. 1. p. 84. Retrieved 27 November 2020 – via World Radio History.
  4. ^ a b Sutcliffe, Phil; Fielder, Hugh (1981). L'Historia Bandido. Proteus Books. p. 77. ISBN 0-906071-66-6.
  5. ^ United Kingdom Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth "consistent series" supplied in Thomas, Ryland; Williamson, Samuel H. (2024). "What Was the U.K. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
  6. ^ Sutcliffe, Phil; Fielder, Hugh (1981). L'Historia Bandido. Proteus Books. p. 79. ISBN 0-906071-66-6.
  7. ^ Garbarini, Vic (Spring 2000). "'I think if we came back ...'". Revolver. Archived from the original on 30 August 2018. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  8. ^ a b Campion, Chris (2009). Walking on the Moon: The Untold Story of the Police and the Rise of New Wave Rock. Wiley. pp. 139–140, 144. ISBN 978-0-470-28240-3.
  9. ^ a b Welch, Chris (October 1980). "There's nobody between us and the Beatles now!". Musicians Only. Archived from the original on 15 February 2003. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  10. ^ Gable, Christopher (2008). The Words and Music of Sting. ABC-Clio. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-275-99360-3.
  11. ^ DeRosa, Ed (8 February 2011). "Driven To Tears suggested as name for Bernardini–Zenyatta foal". Thoroughbred Times. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  12. ^ Ahmad, Suzail (23 February 2022). "JoJo: Why Are Stand Names Changed in the Localization?". Game Rant. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  13. ^ a b c "Police". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  14. ^ a b c d Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. pp. 235–236, 432–433. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  15. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1985). The Billboard Book of Top Pop Albums 1955–1985. Record Research Inc. pp. 290, 493. ISBN 0898200547.
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  19. ^ a b Prato, Greg. "Zenyatta Mondatta – The Police". AllMusic. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  20. ^ Kot, Greg (7 March 1993). "Feeling A Sting". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  21. ^ Christgau, Robert (1990). "The Police: Zenyatta Mondatta". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. pp. 319–320. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  22. ^ Fricke, David (22 January 1997) [25 December 1980 – 8 January 1981]. "The Police: Zenyatta Mondatta". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 17 March 2007. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  23. ^ a b Considine, J. D. (2004). "The Police". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 644–645. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  24. ^ Macias, Chris; Barton, David (30 July 2000). "On the Sting beat: The Police and beyond". The Sacramento Bee.
  25. ^ a b Hepworth, David (2–15 October 1980). "The Police: Zenyatta Mondatta". Smash Hits. Vol. 2, no. 20. p. 29.
  26. ^ a b Sutcliffe, Phil (4 October 1980). "Police maintain low key presence". Sounds. p. 36.
  27. ^ Vivinetto, Gina (20 April 2003). "Living in the '80s; or when did we get this old?". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  28. ^ "Toppermost of the coppermost". Uncut. No. 71. April 2003.
  29. ^ Fricke, David (25 December 1980 – 8 January 1981). "Zenyatta Mondatta". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  30. ^ "The 1980 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 9 February 1981. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  31. ^ "Police". The Recording Academy. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  32. ^ Zenyatta Mondatta (liner notes). The Police. A&M Records. 1980. SP-4831.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  33. ^ Q&A WITH IMMERSIVE TRAILBLAZER RONALD PRENT
  34. ^ "Austriancharts.at – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
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  37. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  38. ^ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 4 June 2022. Select "Album" in the "Tipo" field, type "Zenyatta Mondatta" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
  39. ^ Okamoto, Satoshi (2006). Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Oricon. ISBN 978-4-87131-077-2.
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  41. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  42. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
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  45. ^ "Top 100 Albums". RPM. Vol. 34, no. 6. 20 December 1980. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
  46. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jaaroverzichten – Album 1980" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  47. ^ "Chart Archive – 1980s Albums". Everyhit.com. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  48. ^ "Top 100 Albums of 1981". RPM. Vol. 35, no. 22. 26 December 1981. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  49. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jaaroverzichten – Album 1981" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  50. ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  51. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1981 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  52. ^ "Albums". Billboard. Vol. 93, no. 51. 26 December 1981. p. YE-8. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  53. ^ "International Certifications" (PDF). Cashbox. Vol. 42, no. 50. 2 May 1981. p. 39. Retrieved 13 November 2020 – via World Radio History.
  54. ^ Baker, Glenn A. (12 June 1982). "Market Leaders Surveyed: Majors Fight Economics with Quirky Rock Originals". Billboard. Vol. 94, no. 23. pp. A/NZ-4, A/NZ-8, A/NZ-12. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  55. ^ "A Distinct North American Market Cuts Its Own Gooves" (PDF). Billboard. 24 January 1981. p. C-5. Retrieved 10 May 2021 – via World Radio History.
  56. ^ "Canadian album certifications – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". Music Canada.
  57. ^ "French album certifications – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 18 November 2020. Select THE POLICE and click OK. 
  58. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (The Police; 'Zenyatta Mondatta')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  59. ^ Caroli, Daniele (13 June 1981). "CBS-Dischi Distrib Center Bows; Wants Diversity Into New Lines And Midprice Disks" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 93, no. 23. p. 66. Retrieved 11 December 2019 – via World Radio History.
  60. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  61. ^ Caroli, Daniele (14 February 1981). "Police find success by breaking all the rules" (PDF). Music Week. Vol. 93, no. 23. p. 4 Awards Supplement (Awards Supplement page starts after pages 15–16). Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via World Radio History. Last year Zenyatta Mondatta went to Number One, and sold a million copies in the UK...
  62. ^ "British album certifications – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". British Phonographic Industry.
  63. ^ Murrells, Joseph (1985). Million selling records from the 1900s to the 1980s : an illustrated directory. Arco Pub. p. 496. ISBN 0668064595. The album was an instant No 1 on both sides of the Atlantic, selling over 500,000 in Britain and over three million by March 1981 in the U.S.A.
  64. ^ "American album certifications – The Police – Zenyatta Mondatta". Recording Industry Association of America.
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