Sacred Love: 2003/05

Sting nailed his sting to his 12,000 fans at the Palacio de los Deportes...

Former Eurythmics member Annie Lennox, one of the stars of the night, had the crowd nodding their heads and toes. The expressions of joy nearly brought down the arena. Every breath you take, apotheotic.

Sting nailed his proven sting to the 12,000 attendees who celebrated the first date of the 'Sacred Love' World Tour, which the former Police offered last rainy Monday at the Palacio de los Deportes. A night of frenetic/overflowing music. A night of rhythmic/sophisticated light shows. A night of lascivious images wrapped in black, red, and pastel blue. A night of a dope show, at two precise moments, and of humility from the star as he introduced his excellent opening act: Annie Lennox.

Before the star musicians, Dominique Miller appeared; The guitarist delighted the few attendees who arrived at the scheduled time for about 30 minutes. Six lights surrounded the musician, who received thunderous applause at the end of each song. But when his time in front of the audience was up, he invited his friend Sting to sing "Shape of My Heart." The furious audience then launched its first standing ovation of the night, roaring with an acoustic version of one of the most famous ex-policeman's best solo songs.

After a pause, the copper dome darkened again. Sting reappeared, took the microphone, and said, "It's an honor to introduce my friend, an extraordinarily talented person: Annie Lennox." Lennox then sang "Legend in My Living Room" as the black curtain fell, revealing a silver curtain. The venue looked like it had a lot of holes, but the audience, made up of young and old alike, in pairs and groups, was ready to have a good time, as evidenced by the standing ovation they received for the lady with the four Ns, guarded by enormous cinematic lights.

Lennox, with her 80s post-Eurythmics musical reminiscences and contemporary sound, had the audience moving their heads and feet. Furthermore, with her slender figure and powerful movements of her legs, hands, and hips, she led the audience through luminous paths, lifting them off their feet when she took her song to the stratosphere. The audience thanked her with raised hands.

Ms. Lennox argued with "Little Bird," the mellow "No More I Love You," with which couples melted and those who didn't took out their lighters to spice up the song; as well as "Pavement Cracks" and "Cold."

Lennox's intense vocals and frenetic changes continued to parade through the Palace, while luminous textures accompanied her and irrigated the red and silver stage in colours ranging from white to blue. Lennox addressed the audience before concluding with two classic Eurythmics songs: "Sweet Dreams" and "Why." She said, "I'm happy to be here in Mexico, in Mexico City, which is fantastic. Thank you all."

For half an hour, the stage was bustling with activity, but the wait was rewarded when Mister Sting appeared in immaculate black with a guitar in his hand. He began with his new post-disco single, "Send Your Love," from the new album that gives the title to his world tour. Three screens, sometimes divided into six, eight, or 16 sections, launched computerized images at will to the ecstatic audience, blasting with Sting's voice, a thumping piano, synthesizer, percussion, drums, and two black backing singers, who then tested/demonstrated their instruments for the audience. The robotic lights began their dance from top to bottom and from one end to the other.

This was followed by "Synchronicity II" and "Magic," which was one of the highlights of Sting's performance. The entire audience chanted along, and the widespread joy caused the entire structure of the Palacio de los Deportes to shake. No one paid much attention to it, except for those in the back rows, who stared, but continued jumping.

Another moment when the audience lost its composure was in song five, "We'll Be Together," when Annie Lennox came out with a bang, and the Spanish chorus of this song, which was also covered in that language, sounded beyond wonderful: "If we're together and if you say yes to meeee."

Sting continued with a fine repertoire to the delight of the fans who professed their insane affection for him throughout the evening: "Seven Days"; "Fragile," the second great moment; "Fields"; "Sacred Love"; "Englishman," another of the most celebrated and emotional songs, as well as two or three more.

Before the encore, the apotheosis came with the extended/deconstructed version of "Roxanne." For the second time, the Palace seemed to be collapsing, but for the second time, no one paid much attention, as they were enjoying one of the 80s anthems.

Just when it seemed things couldn't get any better, Sting came out and the audience raved about "Desert Rose," celebrated everywhere, but the true apotheosis came with "Every Breath You Take." Nothing and no one could tarnish that moment.

The performance of two of the most important musicians in the history of world rock was summed up by an overflowing fan, Gerardo Avilés, who opined: "With Sting, there's a guarantee of quality; he's one of those musicians who can't give a bad performance; he's in the Olympus of contemporary music legends. Furthermore, Annie Lennox wasn't far behind; although we know her quality and her solo work isn't well-known, she captivated the audience because she's simply good. It was a great concert."

In the end, only the immediate fond memories of what we heard/seen/enjoyed remained, still gently piercing our eyes, ears, skin, and the rain, the rain, the rain.

(c) The La Jornada by Jorge Caballero