KEY ARENA, SEATTLE, WA :: Kristie and I initially didn’t have high expectations for The Police concert. We thought it would be a relatively quiet night, with us having a good time singing along to familiar tunes from the early 80s. Our expectations sank lower after Copeland’s well-publicized criticism of the rehearsals in Vancouver… But wow! What a difference a week apparently makes! The Police put on a great show in Seattle tonight!
The band kicked it off with a recording of Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up,” a salute to the reggae sound that influences so many of their songs. Copeland walked out first and rang an enormous gong. The crowd was roaring and on their feet for most the show as the band played renewed versions of the following songs:
Message in a Bottle, Synchronicity II, Don’t Stand So Close to Me, Voices Inside My Head, When the World Is Running Down You Make the Best of What’s Still Around, Spirits in the Material World, Driven to Tears, Walking on the Moon, Truth Hits Everybody, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Wrapped Around Your Finger, The Bed’s Too Big Without You, Regatta De Blanc, De Do Do Do De Da Da Da, Invisible Sun, Walking in Your Footsteps, Can’t Stand Losing You, Roxanne, King of Pain, So Lonely, Every Breath You Take, and Next to You.
There was a lot of energy in the crowd and the band was smiling, joking, and having fun as if the break-up never occured. Really though, how can you not be having the time of your life as a legendary rockstar playing some of the greatest hits of an era to sold-out arenas, especially after a 20 year lapse? Sting looks and sounds incredible at 55 (fifty-five!). He sang through many high notes and “ee-yo-yo-yos” without falter. Likewise, Stewart and Andy are still amazing. The band rocked! And I’m guessing Kristie and I will be humming Police songs for at least a month now.
Here’s a great YouTube video of “So Lonely” from the concert:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaOwOahoh7Q
The band kicked it off with a recording of Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up,” a salute to the reggae sound that influences so many of their songs. Copeland walked out first and rang an enormous gong. The crowd was roaring and on their feet for most the show as the band played renewed versions of the following songs:
Message in a Bottle, Synchronicity II, Don’t Stand So Close to Me, Voices Inside My Head, When the World Is Running Down You Make the Best of What’s Still Around, Spirits in the Material World, Driven to Tears, Walking on the Moon, Truth Hits Everybody, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Wrapped Around Your Finger, The Bed’s Too Big Without You, Regatta De Blanc, De Do Do Do De Da Da Da, Invisible Sun, Walking in Your Footsteps, Can’t Stand Losing You, Roxanne, King of Pain, So Lonely, Every Breath You Take, and Next to You.
There was a lot of energy in the crowd and the band was smiling, joking, and having fun as if the break-up never occured. Really though, how can you not be having the time of your life as a legendary rockstar playing some of the greatest hits of an era to sold-out arenas, especially after a 20 year lapse? Sting looks and sounds incredible at 55 (fifty-five!). He sang through many high notes and “ee-yo-yo-yos” without falter. Likewise, Stewart and Andy are still amazing. The band rocked! And I’m guessing Kristie and I will be humming Police songs for at least a month now.
Here’s a great YouTube video of “So Lonely” from the concert:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaOwOahoh7Q
John – these pictures are amazing! Travis & I are right there with you two – it was an amazing show and we can’t stop humming the songs!!!
I think The Police are great. Sounds like a fun time. I heard (don’t quote me on this) that Sting actually owns the right to all the Police songs, so if you have gone to a Sting concert he played the Police songs anyways. Still, great nostalgia for the band to be back together.
I wouldn’t think the crowd would let Sting end his concerts alive if he didn’t sing “Every Breath You Take.”
Sting wrote most of the songs, if not nearly every one, so I think he has the right to perform them whenever he wants. I think the other two are doing okay, though.
I was surprised that security let me bring in my camera. I opened my bag and they asked if it was professional, and I said, “Naw, it’s not professional,” waving my fingers in the air like Obi Wan… It’s true, it’s not professional, but they usually don’t allow detachable lens cameras.
John
Thanks, Jessica. I still catch myself humming. =)
John
Very cool – good thing they let you bring it in. What was your plan B?
We parked in the garage right next to the Key, so if my sad expression and some pouting didn’t work, I would have just walked back to put it in the car and smuggled in the Elph.
I realized, however, that about three songs into the concert, I was watching it through my viewfinder, when I should have been enjoying it, dancing and clapping like everyone else. So I put the camera away and only brought it out a few more times through the show.
It made me realize that it would be kind of strange if the entire audience was filled with people pointing their long lenses at the stage. I think that’s a better reason for restricting cameras at concerts than for protecting copyrights. A little camera phone or compact camera is one thing, but an audience full of SLRs would probably degrade the experience.
John