Stewart Copeland The Rhythmatist A&M Records
After five successful albums and a record-breaking 1983 world tour, the Police have taken a long hiatus from performing together as a group. Andy Summers recorded two avant-garde albums with eclectic Robert Fripp, and Sting made one of the summer's biggest-selling albums, the jazz-influenced Dream of the Blue Turtles. Now drummer Stewart Copeland has come out with his own solo album, The Rhythmatist. This is not Copeland's first solo work; while under the pseudonym of Klark Kent, he made an album in 1979. Copeland also did the sound track for Francis Ford Coppola's film Rumble Fish. However, Copeland explores African tribal rhythms in his latest effort, something that is not exactly guaranteed to sell a million copies. Surprisingly enough, despite the potential for the subject matter to become extremely avant-garde, the album is quite listenable.
Copeland's inimitable percussive style is prevalent throughout the record, providing a delicious mix of ancient rhythms and today's drumming. But then again, he has often acknowledged that living in Africa for most of his childhood greatly influenced his drumming. Strangely enough, his drumming on the record, which is basically the same as with the Police, sounds right at home with the tribal music. The songs on this album, while all sounding different, all flow nicely into each other, giving the listener the feel of being on a long journey through Africa. Some of the songs are simply instrumental interludes, some are delightfully sung by Ray Lema and others are allegedly "sung' by Stewart. I use the word "sung' in quotation marks because although Stewart may be a very talented musician (he played all the instruments on this record), he can't sing worth a damn. His singing is simply a monologue about the animals in the jungle. Although it is very funny, it shows us why Sting is the only singer in the Police. This record also shows who gives the Police their wry sense of humor. Whereas Sting's Dream of the Blue Turtles was very dark and depressing, The Rhythmatist exhibits a playful wit. Copeland used this record as the soundtrack for a short movie of the same name. On the liner notes Copeland defines the purpose of this endeavor as showing how rhythmatism as "the study of patterns that weave the fabric of life. A black-clad figure is on his way across the so-called dark continent. He meets lions, warriors, pygmies, and jungles before stumbling across the ROCK.' This record invites you to come along on this "secret journey.' I highly recommend that you join Stewart on this adventure for a pleasurable experience.
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