Sting has revealed that "Murder by Numbers", a standout track from The Police's 1983 album Synchronicity, was written on the volcanic island of Montserrat while the band recorded there, with the singer recalling the "strong smell of sulphur" that later clung to the song's atmosphere. Despite its dark, jazz-inflected menace and Stewart Copeland's driving drum work, the track was left off the final album and relegated to a B-side, a decision Copeland has since described as a mistake given the song's electrifying effect when performed live.

Sting wrote the lyrics after being given jazzy, sophisticated records by bandmate Andy Summers, crafting a satirical meditation on the psychology of a murderous mind that was famously misread by TV evangelist Jimmy Swaggart as an endorsement of the devil's work. Copeland told Drumeo that when the band compared "Murder by Numbers" against "Miss Gradenko" for inclusion on Synchronicity, the latter's brighter sound made it an easy choice, pushing his preferred track to the B-side. Copeland says he has since performed both songs with a full orchestra, and insists "Murder by Numbers" reliably "burns down the house" every time.