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Roxanne (The Police song)
1978 single by the Police
1978 single by the Police
| Field | Value | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| name | Roxanne | |||||||||
| cover | Roxanne - The Police (Original UK Release).jpg | |||||||||
| caption | Original 1978 UK sleeve | |||||||||
| type | single | |||||||||
| artist | the Police | |||||||||
| album | Outlandos d'Amour | |||||||||
| B-side | Peanuts | |||||||||
| released | ||||||||||
| genre | {{hlist | Reggae rock | new wave{{cite book | title= Night Moves - Pop Music in the Late 70s | first1=Don | last1=Breithaupt | first2= Jeff | last2= Breithaupt | date= July 17, 2000 | chapter= |
| A Flock of Haircuts: New Wave | page | 152 | publisher=St. Martin's Griffin | isbn=978-0-312-19821-3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kh04AwAAQBAJ&pg=PT95}}}} | |||||
| label | A&M | |||||||||
| writer | Sting | |||||||||
| producer | The Police | |||||||||
| prev_title | Fall Out | |||||||||
| prev_year | 1977 | |||||||||
| next_title | Can't Stand Losing You | |||||||||
| next_year | 1978 | |||||||||
| misc | {{Extra chronology | |||||||||
| artist | Sting | |||||||||
| type | single | |||||||||
| prev_year | 1997 | |||||||||
| prev_title | I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying (with Toby Keith) | |||||||||
| year | 1997 | |||||||||
| title | Roxanne '97 | |||||||||
| next_year | 1999 | |||||||||
| next_title | Brand New Day | |||||||||
| header | Alternative cover | |||||||||
| type | single | |||||||||
| cover | Roxannesingle.jpg | |||||||||
| caption | UK 1979 reissue | |||||||||
| type | single | |||||||||
| file | Roxanne by The Police.ogg | |||||||||
| type | single |
| B-side = Peanuts A Flock of Haircuts: New Wave|page= 152|publisher=St. Martin's Griffin|isbn=978-0-312-19821-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kh04AwAAQBAJ&pg=PT95}}}}
- 3:02 (single version)
- 3:15 (album version)
"Roxanne" is a song by the British rock band the Police. The song was written by lead singer and bassist Sting and was released as a single on 7 April 1978, in advance of their debut album Outlandos d'Amour, released on 3 November. It was written from the point of view of a man who falls in love with a prostitute. When re-released on 12 April 1979, the song peaked at on the UK Singles Chart. "Roxanne" is also their second single to be released and their first single on A&M Records.
The song ranked No. 388 on the Rolling Stones "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and was voted No. 85 by VH1 on its list of the "100 Greatest Rock Songs".
"Roxanne" was the first song the band performed live at the 2007 Grammy Awards to kick off their 30th Anniversary Reunion Tour. In 2008, "Roxanne" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Background
Police lead singer Sting wrote the song inspired by the prostitutes he saw near the band's seedy hotel in Paris, France, where the Police were lodged in October 1977 to perform at the Nashville Club. The song's title comes from the name of the character in the play Cyrano de Bergerac, an old poster of which was hanging in the hotel foyer.
Sting had conceived the song as a bossa nova, although he credits Police drummer Stewart Copeland for suggesting its final rhythmic form as a tango. During recording, Sting accidentally sat down on a piano keyboard in the studio, resulting in the atonal piano chord and laughter preserved at the beginning of the track. The Police were initially indifferent about the song, but Miles Copeland III was immediately enthusiastic after hearing it; he became their manager and got them their first record deal with A&M Records.
According to Andy Summers:
Release
"Roxanne" became the band's debut single for A&M Records. However, despite the praise given by Miles Copeland, the single did not chart upon its initial release. Writing in Record Mirror, singles reviewer Bev Briggs declared "This must be the big breaker for the Police .... what the hell, go out and buy it immediately".
The band released two further singles in the UK that year: "Can't Stand Losing You", which charted at number 42, and "So Lonely", which did not chart. Then, in early 1979, "Roxanne" was issued in North America as the group's first single there. In the US, "Roxanne" entered the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1979 and peaked at in April. In Canada, the single peaked one rung higher on the charts at . Cash Box said it has "fast slashing rhythm guitar work, spacious arrangement and good singing." The Fort Worth Star Telegram rated it the 5th-best single of 1979.
The song's international success spurred a UK re-release in April 1979 of "Roxanne", which reached in the UK Singles Chart. A live solo version performed by Sting from the 1982 album The Secret Policeman's Other Ball received moderate airplay on album-oriented rock radio and reached on the Billboard Top Tracks chart. The song went on to become a staple of Sting's performances during his solo career, and The Police performed it when they reunited in 2003 for their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 1997, "Roxanne" was remixed by American rapper and producer Puff Daddy for the compilation The Very Best of Sting & The Police. The remix, titled "Roxanne '97", featured raps from Pras and samples from UTFO's "Roxanne, Roxanne". "Roxanne '97" peaked at on the Billboard Hot 100.
Acclaim
"Roxanne" has appeared on all of the Police's greatest hits albums. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 388 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
In 2000, VH1 ranked the song on its list of the "100 Greatest Rock Songs", then in 2003 ranked it on their list of the "100 Greatest Songs of the Past 25 years". It is one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. In 2008, "Roxanne" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Track listing
7-inch: A&M / AMS 7348 (UK)
- "Roxanne" – 3:00 (Sting)
- "Peanuts" (single edit) – 2:52 (Stewart Copeland, Sting)
Personnel
- Sting – bass, vocals, piano
- Andy Summers – guitar
- Stewart Copeland – drums
Charts
Weekly charts
| Chart (1979–1980) | Peak | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| position | Australia (Kent Music Report) | US Billboard Hot 100 | US Cash Box | US Record World | |
| 34 | |||||
| 32 | |||||
| 31 | |||||
| 39 |
| Chart (1982) | Peak | |
|---|---|---|
| position | US Billboard Top Tracks | |
| 28 |
| Chart (1997–1998) | Peak | |
|---|---|---|
| position | US Billboard Hot 100 | |
| 59 |
| Chart (2012) | Peak |
|---|---|
| position |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1979) | Position | Canada (RPM) | New Zealand (RIANZ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 195 | |||
| 43 |
Certifications
Cover versions
In 1999, English singer-songwriter George Michael covered the song for his fourth solo studio album, Songs from the Last Century. In 2006, singer Dilana performed "Roxanne" on the CBS reality television show Rock Star: Supernova and subsequently released the cover as a single. In 2012, the song was covered by singer Juliet Simms for the reality television show The Voice. Her cover reached No. 86 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"{{lang|es|El Tango de Roxanne}}"
For the 2001 jukebox musical romantic drama film Moulin Rouge! directed, produced, and co-written by Baz Luhrmann, the song "El Tango de Roxanne" was composed as a fusion of "Roxanne" with "Tanguera" by Mariano Mores. The message is, as stated by one character: "Never fall in love with a woman who sells herself." The song was performed by Jacek Koman, Ewan McGregor, Nicole Kidman, and José Feliciano. In the film, the song shows a combination of locations, memories and characters, anchored by the ensemble cast dancing tango.
"Redlight" by Swedish House Mafia
In 2022, the song was interpolated by lead singer Sting and Swedish house music supergroup Swedish House Mafia as "Redlight". It was released on 25 February 2022 as the fourth single from the group's debut studio album Paradise Again.
References
Bibliography
References
- Gable, Christopher. (2009). "The Words and Music of Sting". [[Greenwood Publishing Group.
- Prince, David J.. (23 December 2009). "The Decade in Music: Top 50 Moments page 3 > The Police Rock the Grammys".
- Falcon, Jimmy. (August 12, 2012). "Treble’s Top 200 Songs of the ’70s".
- Piccoli, Sean. (5 July 2007). "The Police adjust to touring in the 21st century". [[PopMatters]].
- [[Mojo (magazine). (2007). "The Mojo Collection: The Ultimate Music Companion". [[Canongate Books]].
- "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (1–500)".
- Greene, Andy. (16 May 2013). "Flashback: The Police Reunite in 2007".
- "GRAMMY Hall Of Fame – r". [[Grammy Hall of Fame Award]]. [[National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
- Sting. (2003). "Broken Music". [[Simon & Schuster]].
- Hodgson, Peter. (10 December 2010). "Oops! 10 Great Rock and Roll Bloopers". [[Gibson Guitar Corporation]].
- "The Police: Roxanne, 7".
- "Release Details: Roxanne, 12".
- Briggs, Bev. (15 April 1978). "Singles".
- (10 February 1979). "Singles Reviews > Singles to Watch".
- Kaye, Roger. (January 13, 1980). "The best albums, singles and concerts of 1979". Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- Whitburn, Joel. (2002). "Rock Tracks". Record Research.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Sting / The Police – The Very Best of Sting & the Police". [[AllMusic]].
- Diehl, Matt. (28 November 1997). "Roxanne '97 Puff Daddy Remix".
- "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien.
- (28 April 1979). "Billboard Hot 100".
- "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending APRIL 28, 1979".
- (14 April 1979). "Record World Singles".
- "1979 Top 200 Singles".
- "End of Year Charts 1979". Recorded Music New Zealand.
- [[Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique]] (SNEP). "TOP – 1980". 40 ans de tubes : 1960–2000 : les meilleures ventes de 45 tours & CD singles.
- (28 April 2012). "Hot 100".
- (2017). "The Cambridge Companion to the Musical". Cambridge University Press.
- Spilsbury, Jack. (24 January 2022). "Sebastian Ingrosso announces next Swedish House Mafia single 'Redlight' will feature Sting".
- Ewan, Amelie. (25 February 2022). "Swedish House Mafia, Sting cement legendary crossover on fourth 'Paradise Again' single, 'Redlight'".
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