Ghost In The Machine: 1981/82

Police well received...

The Police held off a wild throng of 9,000 last night at the Five Seasons Center in Cedar Rapids.

No, it wasn't the cops trying to quell a riot. In this case it was The Police, an English rock-music trio, whose fans last night bordered on fanatics during the 90-minute performance.

The concert missed by a couple hundred of being a sell-out but you'd have thought twice that number was at the Five Seasons by the reaction to their heroes. I can't remember seeing a concert at the center where so many people were dancing and gyrating to the music for practically the entire evening.

The Police, who are "Sting" on bass and vocals, Andy Summers on guitar, and Stewart Copeland, drums, wasted no time in getting on the crowd's good side. As soon as they hit the stage, they launched into two of their better-known tunes, 'Message in a Bottle', and 'Every Little Thing She Does is Magic'. The latter is from the band's 'Ghost in the Machine' album, which topped the charts a few months ago. The band treated the crowd to a considerable helping of material from that package, as well as tracks from their blockbuster album of a couple years ago, 'Zenyatta Mondatta'.

Summers describes The Police's material as "modern music." Their brand of rock doesn't hit you over the head with driving guitars, an all-out animalistic beat and maniacal wail. Instead, inventiveness with multi-textured melodies and electronic gimmicks build upon their trio sound. Also at last night's concert, a three-piece brass section, two saxophones and a trumpet added depth. Lyrics of many of The Police's song can also be very biting and political, something that's refreshing and rare these days in mainstream pop music.

While I wasn't as enthralled as the crowd, it was a good concert. But the volume was excessive, resulting in unnecessary voice and music distortion at times. Copeland's drums were amplified to the max and overpowered the rest of the sound on occasion, especially the foot-pedal base drum.

All three members of the group demonstrated they're very capable musicians during the evening, as did the brass sidemen. Sting's plucking of the standing bass was especially enchanting during one of the best numbers of the night, 'Shadows in the Rain'. The song had a mystic sound to it with both Sting's voice and the band's instruments aided by electronics. And multi-coloured stage and back lighting with a light fog enhanced the auditory enjoyment.

The rest of the band's hits, 'Spirits in the Material World', 'De Do Do Do, De Da Dan Da', 'Don't Stand So Close to Me', which was played during an encore, all met with lusty approval. But a soulful rendition of 'Roxanne', a song about a prostitute, probably was the crowd's favourite.

I also found 'One World (Not Three)' outstanding. The lyrically hopeful tune featured a Memphis soul feel from the brass sidemen, then stepped-out into a reggae beat. Sting and one of the lead vocalists from the opening band shared the enthusiastic vocal.

Opening the show with about a 45-minute set was "English Beat." This seven-man outfit also delighted the crowd with a mixture of new wave, reggae and a touch of punk. The audience insisted on an encore and the group complied with three spirited numbers.

(c) The Cedar Rapids Gazette by Dick Hogan