Rock of Ages: The Police - "So Lonely" (1979)

Here we are at the end of the 70's, the one era on this list that had the most entries. Almost half of the entire list fell inside this decade. The end of an era, you might say. Anyway, here we are with The Police. A band that was only around for five years and had just five albums in this timespan seem unlikely to make such a huge impact on music. But The Beatles did 13 in 7 years so I guess its no biggie. Anyway, The Police's debut, Outlandos d'Amour, is a tour de force record of reggae infused new wave. "Roxanne" was the smash hit, but "So Lonely" is what gets me going. It bounces back and forth between a funky, groovy verse with jangly impressive guitar work from underrated guitarist Andy Summers. It then kicks into a punky fast paced riff fest with the lyrics "So Lonely" harmonized to the max care of sting. All the while, the impressive drumming of Stewart Copeland keeps everything jazzy and rocking.

The Police did a lot in their short time together for pop music. Their first record is ferocious and filled with great riffs and fast drumming and groovy bass workouts. Sting croons over the tracks and keeps everything fun and easily sing-alongable. The three peice is easily one of the best live acts too. Although they only toured together reunion style for over a year, it was worth seeing them live. "So Lonely" ripped live as they jammed out the funky bridge for a good amount of time. It's a song that needs to be blasted and rocked out to.



Up Next: The Clash ring in 1980's