So Lonely
The Police, 1978, from Outlandos d'Amour. Solo by Andy Summers.
Summers mixes reggae space and punk urgency in a lean break that fits the band's early formula.
So Lonely, from Outlandos d'Amour, blends reggae space with punk urgency, and Andy Summers' lean guitar break fits that formula perfectly. His playing moves from clipped, off-beat chords in the verses to a short, energetic solo that adds a burst of intensity. His tone is clean but bright, cutting through the song's sparse arrangement. The solo is brief and focused, avoiding excess in favour of impact. Listen for how Summers shifts between rhythmic chords and melodic lead lines, and how his use of space keeps the music feeling open and airy even as the tempo speeds up and the chorus crashes back in.
So Lonely by The Police is ranked #345 in our consensus of 79 guitar-solo lists. The solo is played by Andy Summers and the song was released in 1978. It appears on 1 lists, placing as high as #97 (uDiscover Music).
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Who played the guitar solo on So Lonely?
Andy Summers played the solo on The Police's So Lonely (1978).
Where does So Lonely rank among the greatest guitar solos?
#345 in the GreatestSolos consensus of 79 published lists; it appears on 1 of them.