Outlandos d’Amour is the debut studio album by English rock band the Police, released on 2 November 1978 by A&M Records. Elevated by the success of its lead single, “Roxanne”, Outlandos d’Amour peaked at No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart and at No. 23 on the Billboard 200. The album spawned two additional hit singles: “Can’t Stand Losing You” and “So Lonely”.
Despite Outlandos d’Amour receiving mixed reviews upon its release, it has since been regarded by many as one of the strongest debut albums. Rolling Stone ranked it as the 38th best debut album of all time and the 428th greatest album of all time.
Outlandos d’Amour, while at times incorporating reggae, pop and other elements of what would eventually become the band’s definitive sound, is dominated by punk influences. This is evident on the opening track “Next to You”, despite it essentially being a love song. Stewart Copeland and guitarist Andy Summers initially felt the lyrics were neither aggressive nor political enough for their style at the time, but bassist and vocalist Sting was adamant about keeping the song as it was. “Next to You” includes a slide guitar solo by Summers, which Copeland initially dismissed as “old wave”.
The international success of “Roxanne” spurred a UK reissue of the single in April 1979, which went to No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart. A subsequent reissue of “Can’t Stand Losing You” in June 1979 nearly topped the chart, surpassed only by “I Don’t Like Mondays” by the Boomtown Rats. “So Lonely” was also reissued, reaching No. 6 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1980.
Listen to the iconic song, Roxanne, here.
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