Concert Reviews Home Page

February 12, 2000

Galaxia - Metz, France

by Thomas Loy on February 13, 2000

The good news at the beginning: Sting's back. The bad news in consequence: with the same setlist.

A telephone-call to the Galaxie on the afternoon brought me the good news: The concert will be in Metz as scheduled. So I got into my car and drove to Metz. After being in such big venues like Cologne (Kölnarena), Oberhausen (Arena) or Mannheim (Maimarkthalle) it was a pleasure to be in the Galaxie - a nice, not so big music hall.

The concert began very on time at 20.30 - as stated on the ticket (not with the delay of over an half hour to 20.00 in germany). Sting seemed to be recovered very well from his flu. After ATY he dropped off his jacket of course, shaked his body and rubbed his arms as feeling cold - but he played warm himself on this evening. When he introduced the band, Manu Katche and Jason Rebello got the most applause from the audience (remember: I'm in France here). After introducing Manu he said something into the shouting and whistling like "Vive la France" (I could be wrong - I don't speak French) and Jason he introduced as the "enfant terrible" of his band. And after that he introduced himself: "Je'm appel Sting", what made himself and the audience laughing.

The songs they played were these in this order:

A Thousand Years
If You Love Somebody Set Them Free
After The Rain Has Fallen
We'll Be Together
Perfect Love...Gone Wrong
All this time
Mad about you
Seven Days
Fill Her Up
Fields Of Gold
Every little thing she does is magic
Moon Over Bourbon Street
Tomorrow We'll See
Englishman In New York
Brand New Day
Roxanne
Desert Rose
Bring On The Night / When The World Is Running Down...

---- 1st encore ----

If I Ever Lose My Faith In You
Every Breath You Take

---- 2nd encore ----

Message in a bottle
Fragile

Some notes to some songs:

A Thousand Years - the always stretched "you" on the chorusses "I still love you" sang Sting very short this time - as if he had to save his voice. But he was in a very good mood and his voice was in a very good shape this evening.
Englishman In New York - after his little solo on the end of the song Jason Rebello came in front of his keyboard and made a little dance like a belly dance. In between he stroked Sting's cheek, what made Sting laughing. He laughed so much that he couldn't sing along, so he asked the audience to sing for him, what the people did. After the song Jason got an extra handshake of him. Was that the first time this episode took place - I don't remember to have seen this a time before (... there are so many things in the show seeming spontaneous but beeing very exactly learned and planned, like the throw of the mute from Chris to Kipper)???
Roxanne - and a sign of Alzheimer once more. From the first note of Roxanne I thought: this one you haven't heard yet in this way!!! Domininc began very faint (most of the audience didn't recognized the song until Sting began singing). And somewhere in the song Sting started a famous and quick bass-playing he hold on up to the end of the song (I thougt he have to get a cramp in his fingers). This bass-line seemed to animate him to some vocal experimentations (the usual Roxann-O's and E-Yeah-Oh's in alternation with the audience were very reduced). Wow, this was a very great version that took me very enthusiastic - a version of this song that have to be on a live-recording like "Bring on the Night" (you know - many list-members want Sting to come back to this roots...). Dear God! Give me a tape of this show only because of this song - and give me some tapes of the shows before to deserve me from the fear I haven't heard that great version of this song before!!!
Bring On The Night / When The World Is Running Down... - also on this song I had the impression it placed particular emphasis on Sting's bassplaying. Jason's solo was IMO okay but not very spectacular.

Dominic seemed to be drowned out a little bit - technical problems on some songs, forgotten by the lights (only enlighted on his solos)...

It was a very funny night. I whish I would be in Genf now - not sitting here writing this lines.

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