So Lonely
"So Lonely" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by the Police | ||||
from the album Outlandos d'Amour | ||||
B-side | "No Time This Time" | |||
Released | 17 November 1978[1] | |||
Recorded | 1978 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:50 (album) 3:10 (single/video) | |||
Label | A&M – AMS 7402 | |||
Songwriter(s) | Sting | |||
Producer(s) | The Police | |||
The Police singles chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Music video | ||||
"So Lonely" on YouTube |
"So Lonely" is a song by British rock band the Police, released as the third and final single on 17 November 1978 from their debut studio album Outlandos d'Amour (1978), and again on 4 February 1980 as a re-release.[4] The song uses a reggae style, and featured Sting on lead vocals.
"So Lonely" has since been covered by a variety of artists, such as Limbeck and the Militia Group.
Background
Sting admitted that he used Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry" as the basis for this song:
"People thrashing out three chords didn't really interest us musically. Reggae was accepted in punk circles and musically more sophisticated, and we could play it, so we veered off in that direction. I mean let's be honest here, 'So Lonely' was unabashedly culled from 'No Woman No Cry' by Bob Marley & the Wailers. Same chorus. What we invented was this thing of going back and forth between thrash punk and reggae. That was the little niche we created for ourselves."
Sting recycled the lyrics in the song's verses from his earlier Last Exit song "Fool in Love". The lyrics themselves, about someone who is lonely after getting his heart broken, were thought to be "ironic" to large audiences.[6] Sting denied this claim, however, saying, "No, there's no irony whatsoever. From the outside it might look a bit strange, being surrounded by all this attention and yet experiencing the worst lonely feeling...but I do. And then suddenly the attention is withdrawn a half an hour later. You're so isolated..."[6]
"So Lonely" was released as the third and final single from Outlandos d'Amour in November 1978, following "Roxanne" and "Can't Stand Losing You." The single did not chart on the first occasion but reached No. 6 with its second release.[7] The other singles from Outlandos d'Amour followed a similar pattern of not charting very high in 1978, but doing very well on a re-release.
The video for the song depicts the band walking around the streets of
The B-Side "No Time This Time" was originally a non-album track, but the same recording later appeared on their album Reggatta de Blanc to pad out the short running time.
The song is known for a famous
Other appearances
- The song has been covered many times, including a version by Limbeck on the album ¡Policia!: A Tribute to the Police (2005)[10] put out by the Militia Group.
Personnel
- Sting – bass, lead and backing vocals, harmonica
- Andy Summers – guitars
- Stewart Copeland – drums
Track listing
7-inch: A&M / AMS 7402 (UK)
- "So Lonely" – 3:10
- "No Time This Time" – 3:30
Charts
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References
- ^ "BPI".
- All Media Network. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- ^ Sullivan, Jim (25 August 2018). "10 More Songs That Defined New Wave Music". Best Classic Bands.
- ^ "Police singles".
- ^ Garbarini, Vic (Spring 2000). "I think if we came back..." Revolver. Rogier van der Gugten. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
- ^ a b c "'So Lonely' / 'No Time This Time'". sting.com.
- ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
- ^ "The Police – So Lonely". 21 April 2008. Archived from the original on 18 June 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2014 – via YouTube.
- ^ Wilson, Fraser N. (17 August 2020). "What chanters in East Kilbride are guilty of this? A brilliant top 10 of wrongly sung lyrics". Daily Record. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
- All Media Network. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – So Lonely". Irish Singles Chart.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – The Police – So Lonely" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
- ^ "The Police – So Lonely" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
- Les classement single. Retrieved 21 January 2014.