Naples, Sting overshadows Shaggy in the reggae arena...
It must be quite a treat to put on a tour after a record so reggae, so Caribbean, and return home with the knowledge, and critical acclaim, that you, a white Englishman from Wallsend, born in 1951, can reggae better than an original reggaeman born in 1968. Who knows, perhaps behind the declarations of friendship and multicultural connection that Sting used to justify his meeting with Shaggy, lies the former Police member's desire to indulge this whim. When, with his former band, he began prophesying the advent of a "Reggatta de blanc," the success was global, but the experts, rightly, preferred, on the "white" front, the punky-reggae party of the Clash and other free radicals, decidedly more attentive to the themes and bass lines of the free-form, upbeat singing. Now, sharing bread and roses with Mr. Boombastic, he overshadows him, more or less voluntarily, in terms of repertoire, applause, attitude.
The album "44/876"—a title that summarizes the telephone area codes of the two protagonists' countries—didn't highlight the problem much, given the previously unreleased material, but the issue became blatantly evident during the duo's tour, applauded by six thousand people last night in Naples: Sting & Shaggy are in perfect harmony on the stage of the Arena Flegrea, capping off a strong season, finally rewarded by the crowd, but... the former's repertoire literally eclipses that of the latter, who nevertheless has a tacky bravado perfect for the Jamaican dancefloor.
The Englishman's falsetto in "Kingston" pairs perfectly with the deep, baritone tone of his partner, with whom he also shares his own hits, to (not so) secretly see the effect: Sting beats Shaggy 3-0. Even the line-up that accompanies them is democratically divided in half, but that's not enough: Dominic Miller (guitar), Josh Freese (drums) and Rufus Miller (guitar), plus keyboardist Kevon Webster and backing vocals Monique Musique and Gene Noble.
The yellow, green, and black flag flutters on the stage and between the steps. "Englishman in New York" is the opening line, which quickly becomes "Jamaican in New York," given that the man from "Oh Carolina" grew up in the Big Apple, eventually becoming an American citizen.
Nothing forced, in short, everything spontaneous, even inevitable, but if "Morning is Coming" suggests a bass line that leads directly to "Everything She Does Is Magic," for Sting it's like taking a penalty into an empty net. And when he gets to "Message in a Bottle," it holds up much better than the original, and then the goal is worth double, if not triple.
The six thousand in the audience dance and sweat; it's hot, downright hot. "Fields of Gold", "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free", "Don't Make Me Wait", "Angel", "Hey Sexy Lady", "So Lonely", the apotheosis of "Get Up Stand Up" with Shaggy haranguing and the legend of the saintly smoker Bob Marley hovering in the Naples night.
The two have fun, even dressing up, Shaggy as the judge and Sting as the defendant, yet it's hard not to notice the disparity in strength, the artistic imbalance on the stage.
At the end, there's no one to beat, and here the repertoire finally helps Orville Richard Burrel (as he was born), who can respond to Mister Gordon Sumner's "Walking on the Moon," "Roxanne," and "So Lonely" with his catchy "Boombastic," before everything concludes with "Every Breath You Take," a nod to "O Sole Mio," and then slows down with "Fragile."
Tomorrow is the last Italian stop of the tour, at the Ancient Theater in Taormina.
(c) Il Mattino by Federico Vacalebre
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