Summer: 2013

Wrapped around his finger...

Over a career that's spanned 35 years, Gordon Sumner has been a pop superstar in a band, a jazzman, a solo star, actor and soon to be playwright.

But first and foremost, the man better known as Sting is a terrific singer, whose vocal skills remain undiminished. That was evident to the crowd of 5,500 gathered at the Rogers K-Rock Centre on Tuesday night.

Any doubts about those 61- year-old pipes being a little rusty were quickly put to rest with the traditional opening song of a Sting concert 'If Ever I Lose My Faith in You', in which he barely strained to hit those notes. His singing remained sterling throughout the evening.

There was nothing fancy about the setup, no big screens or fancy backdrops or videos, just a functional stage. The five-piece band strode on and started playing with Sting barely a step behind dressed in simple T-shirt and jeans.

The first several songs served up the musical palette of the evening. 'Every Little Thing She Does is Magic', from his days in The Police served notice that those days would be well represented. 'An Englishman in New York', the biggest hit of his solo career could best be described as melo pop. 'All This Time', my favourite Sting song, was all driving pop while 'Seven Days' had a nice touch jazz. 'Demolition Man', a lesser known Police song, was all about hard rock 'Fields of Gold', one of his best gentle ballads evoked, according to him, the fields of barley outside his self-described castle home in Britain. Each had a few extra musical swirls added near the end.

There was even a country song thrown in a Sting composition that he was proud to say Johnny Cash had recorded. Well the content of 'I Hung My Head' was country, involving shooting and riding, although the music sounded from a little further north, like say Motown.

Sting has always surrounded himself with crack musicians. Three of them have been with him on an off for 25 years. That would be chameleon guitarist Dominic Miller, who can rock and play tenderly as he did on the ballad 'Shape of My Heart', keyboardist David Sancious, who once played with Bruce Springsteen, and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, who has toured with the likes of Frank Zappa, Joni Mitchell and Jeff Beck. The two other younger members of the band were also impressive. Jo Lawry echoed Sting's vocals on most songs, no mean feat, and Peter Tickell did amazing work on electric violin, especially on a fiery solo on another lesser known Police song 'Driven to Tears'.

To the casual fan, the concert was a mix of the unknown and the familiar, many of which were big hits for The Police in the '80s. A song like 'The Hounds of Winter' and its jazzy overtones made have made them restless al- though it was hard not to be im- pressed by Lawry's powerful and eery vocal solo.

Sting was clever enough however never to keep the hits salted in every few songs. Sometimes they were given new readings. The Police hit 'Wrapped Around Your Finger' was slowed down to a crawl and suffered by comparison to the original. Thank goodness he kept the jittery rhythms to an early Police hit 'De Do Do De Da Da Da'.

Just in case you weren't aware of Sting's jazz roots he treated the audience to a little jazz jam featuring Sancious and Colaiuta with Tickell throwing in some ghostly fiddling.

(c) The Whig-Standard by Greg Burliuk

Sting went back to bass-ics...

Walking into the K-Rock Centre on Tuesday night was like entering a time warp.

Crowds of middle-aged couples came to see celebrated musician Sting, stopping first to collect their wristbands and then rushing anxiously, yet composedly, to their seats as if they were late for church.

The Back to Bass tour follows the release of two compilation albums, 25 Years and The Best of 25 Years, celebrating Sting's 25-year-long solo run.

Gordon Sumner lived up to status as 80s English music god Sting - but the crowd was subpar, and the singer knew it throughout his performance.

The 61-year-old singer sported a plain blue t-shirt, black skinny jeans and black boots. He had the body of a high school track star, and his vocal performance reflected it.

The set wasn't made to impress - there were no fancy lights or any other visual accompaniment - only the band to compliment Sumner's vocal perfection with their own soulful brilliance.

Sitting in a corner booth with a bird's eye view, at least three quarters of the audience didn't get up from their seats during the first half of the show.

Three times the singer went out of his way to engage the crowd, chatting about his house, and even blowing snot into a cloth and laughing about it.

Beginning with "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You", "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" and "An Englishman in New York", Sting's performance mirrored the crowd's seemingly awed, yet stifled behaviour. It was routine.

That all changed toward the second half, when, after a few calls for engagement from the audience, Sumner fired up his act and let his musical zest shine.

The singer admitted he "doesn't even know how many times he's played" his hit "Roxanne", which he performed closer to the end of the concert

Nearing the end, Sumner relinquished the spotlight to his fellow musicians, giving them each a chance to display their unique talents in solo performances. Back-up vocalist Jo Lawry's solo stood out - her piercing vocal talent in combination with a misty white spotlight created a hauntingly beautiful performance.

At the show, Sumner performed 21 songs, ending with "Every Breath You Take" and "Fragile."

But the show wasn't just about Sting - it was a cooperative gig. In my opinion, that was the best part.

(c) The Queen's Journal