Sting's third night at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles was my first Sting concert and probably my best ever. Something I've waited for for a long time. Tony Rich opened up for him, he wasn't very good, but I guess that was brought on by the anticipation to see Sting. The band didn't deviate from the known setlist that much. The renditions of the new songs were good, especially Lithium Sunset, which surprised the hell out of me. For all the women, Sting wore his usual idiotic shit that I don't understand, and overcoat and some kind of skirt thing hanging down, and black leather pants and boots, his goatee...uglier as ever (he looks like Satan, for crissakes!) and his hair, almost non-existant. His bass chops, better than ever, and the whole band was great. The two hornsmen were very energetic, and managed to get some movement out of the usually stationary Sumner. Dominic Miller is a real talent, though he's not very tactful. He's young, and doesn't have a very good ear as to when to place which riffs where...what is called for and what isn't at a certain period of time. He doesn't look very patient, and there are times when he tries to look cool more than tries to be a good guitarist. All in all, he's still one of the best in the world, and he will only get better with age and experience. Vinnie is at the top of his game. I feel his session days may be over, he's really comfortable with Sting, and can adapt to his quirky time signatures rapidly. Kenny Kirkland is one of my favorite pianists/keyboardists, but he looks like he's getting tired. I don't know if he's sick or not, but he walks on to the stage with a cane and isn't as lively as he was in the Blue Turtle days. The solo on When The World Is Running Down isn't what it used to be, either, but Kenny can still kick David Sancious' ass, and that's the final word on that.
Some of my favorite highlights was the Blue Turtles return to If You Love Somebody (Set Them Free), the chemistry between Sting and Kirkland was back. All of the new stuff was very good, but the real highlights were the old Police tunes and the old solo stuff. Case in point, Synchronicity II and Demolition Man are hard-driving pulse-pounding extravaganzas, Englishman In New York is very nice, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic is sped up and sounds like a nightclub song, but still excellent, Every Breath You Take sounds more like the Synchronicity album version than in past attempts during Sting's solo career. Roxanne, as always, excellent, Seven Days, one of my favorite songs, a flawless rendition, a nice version of If I Ever Lose My Faith In You, and to close it off, a quiet, serene Fragile. A little comedy between the songs with the now-traditional I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying. A guy named Jim came up to sing, and talked with Sting for a bit. Here's what I can remember of it.
Sting: What's your name?
Jim: Jim.
Sting: Have you ever been divorced?
Jim: I've never even been married.
Sting: Well, I've been divorced and that's something I'm never gonna go through again. Is that your girlfriend there?
Jim: Yes.
Sting: What's her name?
Jim: Rebecca.
Sting: Rebecca, that's beautiful. How long have you been going out?
Jim: About 4 1/2 years. (The crowd boos)
Sting: So you've been going out with her for 4 1/2 years and you haven't married her yet?
Jim: I'm just not ready, I'm 29, she's 23.
Sting: I think the word 'heel' comes to mind. (The audience laughs.) You've got a beautiful girl, you've been dating for 4 1/2 years, you should marry her. Hell, if I wasn't married, I'd marry her.
Jim: Well, that's easy, she talks about you all the time.
Sting: Are you ready to sing?
Jim: Yeah, but I just gotta say, I'm not really a good singer at all, so please don't laugh.
Sting: Oh, well that's okay, I'm not a very good singer either.
Jim sang horribly.
The show, for a first time Sting concert-goer, was fantastic, and I recommend anybody who's path Sting crosses to see him live, because it's a very exhilarating experience. Thanks for your time.
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