Classics 1: Message In A Bottle
"Message In A Bottle" - The Police - 1979
Loneliness is as old as the hills and it says much about our society that the UK Government now has a Minister for Loneliness!
One timeless song says it all about the lonely but uplifts rather than saddens... Message in a Bottle, a No 1 single from New Wave band The Police from their 1979 album, Regatta de Blanc. Its a song of hope that wraps itself around your mind...
Brilliant pithy lyrics from Sting, an iconic guitar riff from Andy Summers and sublime drumming from super human energy bomb Stuart Copeland. The song has a unique drive and energy but with a clever end message that brings you to a place of hope and realisation; you may feel alone, but in fact there are millions in the same place. A powerful song, and with today's un-precedented worldwide Lockdowns, it is even more an anthem for the Lonely and reminds us that we are alone together.
Incidentally, It is the favourite song of all three band members and encapsulates the unique magic of the band...an insightful story of the song is explained here...
The songwriter, Sting, has said:
"I think the lyrics are subtle and well crafted enough to hit people on a different level from something you just sing along to. It's quite a cleverly put together metaphor. It develops and has an artistic shape to it." (azlyrics.com)
‘Message In A Bottle’ means many things. it’s a song about alienation and loneliness, but it’s also about the realization that all of us being in this situation together makes us less lonely. (mysongsspecialedition)
Stats
Single Sales: 2.5 million Album sales: 8 million Youtube streams: 120 mill.
(source: Chartmasters 2020)
Chris Watson