Top 10 Alert!
Song#: 0380 Date: 10/25/1980
Debut: 80
Peak: 10
Weeks: 21
Genre: Rock, New Wave
Pop Bits: The Police were overnight stars in the UK when their first two albums hit big. The group's blend of rock, new wave, and reggae help get them four Top 10 hits including two #1's. In the US, the albums did okay with both going Top 30 and they also managed a couple of chart singles with 1979's "Roxanne" doing the best at #32. But that changed when their third album "Zenyatta Mondatta" was issued. This first charting single from the album in the US became their first Top 10 with the album hitting #5.
ReduxReview: I've always liked this song and it was probably the first one I remember hearing from The Police. I didn't encounter "Roxanne" and other earlier songs until much later. This was such an unusual sounding song on the radio and it made the group stand out from a lot of the bland pop going on at the time. They would have bigger and better hits, but as an introduction to that specific Police sound, I think this is a darn good representation.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Sting's inspiration for the song came when he was trying to figure out why songs with nonsensical words worked as hits - like "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" or "Da Do Ron Ron." Sting has said the song is about the abuse of words and felt that the song was misunderstood by many and basically dismissed as childish. In 1986, the song was re-recorded for inclusion on a compilation album to put more emphasis on the lyrics, but the new version did not make it on the CD.
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