I was under arrest!

This past Sunday, August 5, I caught the Police live at Giants Stadium. As you know, Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland buried the hatchet and reunited this year for a full blown tour, celebrating their 30th anniversary. They played two nights at Madison Square Garden on August 1 and 3 and Sunday’s Giants Stadium show ended this stretch of shows that started in late May. They will return to the area for another show at Madison Square Garden on October 31 and play Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on November 3. The tour will continue into early 2008.

First the negative - - my seats were barely adequate...on the side of the stage, towards the back of the first tier. Despite being on the first tier, the stage seemed a mile away. I am not really a fan of watching video screens at a concert, but, thank goodness they were there! I was well underneath the level above, which would have been fine at a football game in the winter, but on a very warm, stuffy night, it was quite sweaty. These seats were not worth $269 (with fees) apiece. Plus, no surprise, the traffic getting out of the parking lot was abysmal. It took me approximately two hours to get home. To add insult to injury, I couldn’t find route 3 east!!

Now a positive - - despite the very mediocre seats, the sound was outstanding. The sound for this outside stadium show was better than some of the indoor shows (arena and theater) I have seen recently.

Opening for the Police were two bands: Fiction Plane and the Fratellis. I missed Fiction Plane’s set - I was enjoying alcoholic beverages in the parking lot! Fiction Plane is a trio from England featuring Sting’s son Joe Sumner. Like his dad, Joe Sumner plays bass and is the band’s lead singer. They have two albums under their belt - 2003’s Everything Will Never Be OK (produced by David Kahne) and Left Side Of The Brain, which came out earlier this year. I walked in the stadium about halfway through the Fratellis’ set. The Fratellis are another trio, but they are from Scotland. They released their debut album earlier this year. It’s called Costello Music, and it got some airplay on WFUV. They were very passable, if not mildly interesting. Their lead singer is a dead ringer for T. Rex’ Marc Bolan (with a little Syd Barrett thrown in)!

Now, the Police - -

They were outstanding. They delivered exactly what you would expect...rock solid musicianship, a lot of energy and non stop hits. You really couldn’t tell that it’s been over 20 years since these guys were a regularly active, functioning band. There was no sign of the animosity that has existed over the years between the members. You also would never know that Sting and Stewart Copeland are in their mid 50s and Andy Summers is in his mid 60s! They were inspired and vital. This is clearly a band that means business and have reunited for the right reason - music and not money. Occasionally, they tinkered with the arrangements of the songs, but most of the time, they played it fairly straightforward. Sting’s voice was perfect, sounding like it was the late 70s. Stewart Copeland was a dynamo behind the drum kit. He has always been an athletic player and a rock solid timekeeper. Sting and Stewart are a killer rhythm section. I have always known Andy Summers was a monster guitarist, but seeing him live gave me a new found respect.

Here is the set list (with the albums the songs originally came from):

“Message In A Bottle” (Reggatta De Blanc, 1979)

“Synchronicity II” (Synchronicity, 1983)

“Walking On The Moon” (Reggatta De Blanc, 1979)

“Voices Inside My Head” / “When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What’s Still Around” (both from Zenyatta Mondatta, 1980)

“Don’t Stand So Close To Me” (Zenyatta Mondatta, 1980)

“Driven To Tears” (Zenyatta Mondatta, 1980)

“Truth Hits Everybody” (Outlandos D’Amour, 1978)

“The Bed’s Too Big Without You” (Reggatta De Blanc, 1979)

“Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” (Ghost In The Machine, 1981)

“Wrapped Around Your Finger” (Synchronicity, 1983)

“De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” (Zenyatta Mondatta, 1980)

“Invisible Sun” (Ghost In The Machine, 1980)

“Walking In Your Footsteps” (Synchronicity, 1983)

“Can’t Stand Losing You” (Outlandos D’Amour, 1978)

“Roxanne” (Outlandos D’Amour, 1978)

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“King Of Pain” (Synchronicity, 1983)

“So Lonely” (Outlandos D’Amour, 1978)

“Every Breath You Take” (Synchronicity, 1983)

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“Next To You” (Outlandos D’Amour, 1978)

Most of these songs are on the new compilation album The Police.

Here’s hoping this reunion is more than just a one off celebration of their 30th anniversary.

- DDD 8/7/07