King of Pain

"King of Pain"
European 7-inch sleeve
Single by the Police
from the album Synchronicity
B-side	"Tea in the Sahara" (live) (UK) "Someone to Talk To" (US)
Released	August 1983 (1983-08) (US) 6 January 1984 (1984-01-06) (UK)[1]
Recorded	December 1982, January–February 1983
Studio	AIR, Salem, Montserrat (basic tracks) Le Studio, Quebec, Canada (overdubs and mixing)[2]
Genre	New wave
Length	4:59
Label	A&M
Songwriter(s)	Sting
Producer(s)	The Police Hugh Padgham
Police UK singles chronology
"Synchronicity II" (1983) "King of Pain" (1983) "Don't Stand So Close to Me '86" (1986)
Police US singles chronology
"Every Breath You Take" (1983) "King of Pain" (1983) "Synchronicity II" (1983)
Alternative covers
North American 7-inch sleeve
Audio
"King of Pain" on YouTube

"King of Pain" is a song by British rock band the Police, released as the second single from their fifth and final studio album Synchronicity (1983). Written by the band's lead singer and bassist Sting as a post-separation song from his wife, "King of Pain" conjures up symbols of pain and relates them to a man's soul. A&M Records released "King of Pain" as the album's fourth single in the UK, while in many other countries it was released as the second single.

The song received acclaim from music critics, many of whom praised Sting's lyrics and cited the song as a highlight from Synchronicity. It reached No. 3 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in October 1983, and No. 1 on the Billboard Top Tracks chart for five weeks in August 1983. In the United Kingdom, it reached No. 17 in January 1984, becoming the band's last UK Top 20 hit.

Multiple artists have covered "King of Pain". Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette covered the track for her MTV Unplugged album (1999) and released it as the second single from the album.