The Bed's Too Big Without You

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

"The Bed's Too Big Without You"
Single by the Police
from the album Reggatta de Blanc
B-side"Truth Hits Everybody" (live)
Released30 May 1980[1]
Genre
Length4:26
LabelA&M (AAMPP 6001/E)
Songwriter(s)Sting
Producer(s)
The Police singles chronology
"
Bring on the Night
"
(1979) 		"The Bed's Too Big Without You"
(1980) 		"Don't Stand So Close to Me"
(1980)
Vinyl 45
Audio
"The Bed's Too Big Without You" on
YouTube

"The Bed's Too Big Without You" is a song by British rock band

Six Pack in conjunction with the re-release of the Police's earlier singles "Roxanne", "Can't Stand Losing You", "So Lonely", "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon".[2]

It has been covered by a number of other artists, including Sting as a solo artist, Ranking Roger and Sheila Hylton.[3]

Background

The themes of the song are loneliness and the pain of the end of a relationship.[4] The lyrics were inspired by an incident in which Sting's first girlfriend, after being heartbroken upon their break-up, committed suicide.[5]

"The Bed's Too Big Without You" was first released on Reggatta de Blanc in 1979. However, the following year, the song saw a single release as a bonus single in the Six Pack box set, which featured the band's five previous British singles (excluding "Fall Out"). Said box set peaked at No. 17 in Britain. The song was also released as the B-side to "So Lonely" in Germany.

A promo video for "The Bed's Too Big Without You" was performed by the band on The Kenny Everett Video Show. It featured the band members miming to the song in a suburban house.

"The Bed's Too Big Without You" was included on a number of Police compilation and live albums. The original album version was included on Greatest Hits and the UK deluxe version of The Police, while the alternate mono version was included on Message in a Box: The Complete Recordings.[6] A live version is included on Live!.[6]

Reception

AllMusic critic Chris True regards "The Bed's Too Big Without You" as a classic example of the Police's ability to merge reggae with new wave music.[6] He also praises the musicianship of all three members of the band, Stewart Copeland's "brilliant" drumming, Andy Summers' "trebly" guitar playing and Sting's "rolling" bass line.[6] He notes that the song never gets boring, even when only the drums and bass are playing.[6] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Mike Duquette also praised Copeland’s "off-kilter backbeat."[7] Authors Chris Welch and Ken Micallef and Donnie Marshall also praise Copeland's drumming, particularly on the snare drum.[4][8] Micallef and Marshall specifically describe Copeland's snare drum rhythms as "ricocheting" and "dub-heavy".[8]

Welch regards "The Bed's Too Big Without You" as the third great hit from Reggatta de Blanc, along with "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon", particularly praising the fact that it is "a simple phrase, a neat concept".

Bring on the Night", and "Walking on the Moon" from the Reggatta de Blanc album.[12]

Track listing

7-inch – A&M / AMPP 6001/E (UK)
  1. "The Bed's Too Big Without You" – 3:30
  2. "Truth Hits Everybody" (live) – 2:27
7-inch – A&M / AMRS 1318 (Zimbabwe)
  1. "The Bed's Too Big Without You" – 4:24
  2. "
    Bring on the Night
    " – 4:16

Personnel

References

  1. ^ "News" (PDF). Record Mirror. 17 May 1980. p. 4. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  2. ISBN 978-0-8793-0848-3
    .
  3. ^ "Top search results for "the bed's too big without you"". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  4. ^ a b c d Welch 1996, pp. 10, 41, 52.
  5. ISBN 978-0-4702-8240-3
    .
  6. ^ a b c d e True, Chris. "The Police – The Bed's Too Big Without You". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  7. ^ Duquette, Mike (6 May 2022). "All 70 Police Songs Ranked Worst to Best". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  8. ^ a b Micallef & Marshall 2007, pp. 29–32.
  9. ^ Pato, Greg. "The Police – Live!". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  10. ^ a b c Harris, John. "Reggatta de Blanc". Mojo. Archived from the original on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  11. ISBN 978-1-8419-5615-2
    .
  12. ISBN 978-0-3123-7481-5
    .

Bibliography
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Bed%27s_Too_Big_Without_You&oldid=1196594206"