Sting, tour review: Muscular comeback from one of music’s heavy hitters

Sting thrilled this partisan crowd with a set brimming with styles, says Andre Paine
Performing like a man half his age: Sting
Angela Lubrano/Livepix
Andre Paine10 April 2017

It's worth arriving early tonight for Sting’s second Hammersmith show. At the opening night, fans including Sadiq Khan got to see the former Gordon Sumner singing with both support acts. Admittedly, Joe Sumner is Sting’s son but their duet before the main event suggested the 65-year-old still relishes being a touring musician. He’s rediscovered his mojo on his first rock record in 13 years.

Dressed in tight jeans and an even tighter T-shirt, he thrilled this partisan crowd with punchy Police tunes Synchronicity II and Spirits in the Material World. Like his physique, Sting’s voice was a muscular focal point alongside the abrasive guitars and clattering drums.

The jaunty jazz of Englishman in New York was transformed into a robust anthem. Sting’s concern for the planet came to the fore on One Fine Day, which he dedicated to Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency: “One day he might wake up and realise what those words mean.”

It was a satisfyingly melodic tune in a set brimming with styles, from the retro folk of Pretty Young Soldier to the acoustic warmth of Fields of Gold.

But it was the driving rock songs, old and new, on which Sting — hitting the high notes and slapping his bass guitar — performed like a man half his age.

“That means something to me – I don’t take that for granted,” he said in response to the singalong for The Police’s reggae-tinged Message in a Bottle. The crowd reaction grew even more euphoric as the hits kept coming — Roxanne, Walking on the Moon, Every Breath You Take.

For those who missed The Police’s reunion a decade ago, Sting’s generous comeback surely made up for it.

Playing tonight, April 10 (0844 249 4300, eventimapollo.com)

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