Sting genius evident in songs...
Rock star Sting, famous for his work as bassist for the Police, is very generous with his time.
Without the aid of an opening act, he played a solid two and a half hours Thursday night at Lloyd Noble Center.
On his 'Dream Of The Blue Turtles' tour, Sting entertained a surprisingly small house of 4,600 with lengthy arrangements of familiar Police ditties, along with freestyle jazz interpretations of new material from the 'Dream Of The Blue Turtles' album, his first solo outing.
The Police song 'One World', best exemplifies the evening: beginning with the structured album version, Sting soon segued into a prolonged instrumental jam, a variation on the original theme.
Trading his customary bass for a black Fender electric guitar, Sting noodled jazz-flavoured riffs through the protracted middle portion, returning to square one at coda.
He followed with the moody, brooding 'We Work The Black Seam Together', from 'Turtles'.
'When The World is Running Down, You Make The Best of What's Still Around', from the Police's 'Zenyatta Mondatta' album, continued the format of song, interminable jam and final resolution.
Sting's lean, muscular band stretched out on this one with extended electric piano and drum solos.
'Fortress Around Your Heart', one of the most accessible and melodic works on the new solo album, delivered a sustained sense of musical gratification - i.e. good song.
Perhaps the most challenging, ambitious piece of music presented was 'I Burn For You', from the film 'Brimstone and Treacle', an early starring role for the diversified Sting.
Moody and textured, morose and disjointed, 'Burn' was a challenge for both band and audience - too challenging, perhaps, to work well in a concert setting.
The greatest challenge for the band, however, were the eruptions of ear splitting distortion that rifled once more during 'Burn'.
The band's concentration rose above the jarring interruption to save the fragile jazz ambience, sustained without missing a beat.
A steamy sax ride and a Herculean drum solo by Omar Hakim provided 'Burn' with a colossal finale.
'If You Love Somebody, Set Them Free' closed the first part of the show.
His first encore, by near-unanimous request, was a solo version of 'Roxanne'. Two forgettable blues jam followed.
For a second encore, Sting sang the lovely 'Every Breath You Take'. A furious, rave-up treatment of 'Demolition Man' brought the crowd to its feet, as the band exited.
The third encore, 'Message in a Bottle', sent the 4,600 home satisfied, after 155 minutes of certified genius.
(c) The Oklahoman by Todd Webb
Police ditties featured Sting genius evident in songs...
Rock star Sting, famous for his work as bassist for the Police, is very generous with his time.
Without the aid of an opening act, he played a solid two and a half hours Thursday night at Lloyd Noble Center.
On his 'Dream of the Blue Turtles' Tour, Sting entertained a surprisingly small house of 4,600 with lengthy arrangements of familiar Police ditties, along with freestyle jazz interpretations of new material from the 'Dream of the Blue Turtles' album, his first solo outing.
The Police song 'One World', best exemplifies the evening: beginning with the structured album version, Sting soon segued into a prolonged instrumental jam, a variation on the original theme.
Trading his customary bass for a black Fender electric guitar, Sting noodled jazz-flavoured riffs through the protracted middle portion, returning to square one at coda.
He followed with the moody, brooding 'We Work the Black Seam Together', from 'Turtles'.
'When The World is Running Down, You Make The Best of What's Still Around', from the Police's 'Zenyatta Mondatta' album, continued the format of song, interminable jam and final resolution.
Sting's lean, muscular band stretched out on this one with extended electric piano and drum solos.
'Fortress Around Your Heart', one of the most accessible and melodic works on the new solo album, delivered a sustained sense of musical gratification i.e., good song.
Perhaps the most challenging, ambitious piece of music presented was 'I Burn For You', from the film 'Brimstone and Treacle', an early starring role for the diversified Sting.
Moody and textured, morose and disjointed, 'Burn' was a challenge for both band and audience - too challenging, perhaps, to work well in a concert setting.
The greatest challenge for band, however, were the eruptions of ear-splitting distortion that rifled once more during 'Burn'.
The band's concentration rose above the jarring interruption to save the fragile jazz ambience, sustained without missing a beat.
A steamy sax ride and a Herculean drum solo by Omar Hakim provided 'Burn' with a colossal finale.
'If You Love Somebody, Set Them Free' closed the first part of the show.
His first encore, by near-unanimous request, was a solo version of 'Roxanne'. Two forgettable blues jams followed.
For a second encore, Sting sang the lovely 'Every Breath You Take'. A furious, rave-up treatment of the 'Demolition Man' brought the crowd to its feet, as the band exited.
The third encore, 'Message In A Bottle', sent the 4,600 home satisfied, after 155 minutes of certified genius.
(c) The Daily Oklahoman by Todd Webb
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