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Sting’s new trio races through Police and solo classics on tour

Vaseline October 17, 2024

OXON HILL, Md. – As we know, Sting can lead a threesome quite capably.

He’s toured with big bands – like last summer’s team on his My Songs outing – well-prepared quartets and, in 2018, his unlikely buddy Shaggy.

Sting’s tenure with The Police is of course legendary, and his return to a trio – called Sting 3.0 – finds him as playful and engaging as ever.

On October 16, during the second of two shows at The Theater at MGM National Harbor, Sting, who earlier in the day donned a suit to perform “Fragile” at Ethel Kennedy’s memorial service in Washington, D.C., blew a nearly two-hour long show. , a 23-song set with longtime guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Chris Maas.

At 73, Sting still strikes the perfect rock star pose as he hugs his bass, his toned muscles peeking out from the sleeves of his white and gray T-shirt, his charisma and intellect making the perfect clash.

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Sting becomes a storyteller

As he walked around the stage with his professorial appearance, Sting chatted frequently, educating the audience on the stories behind many of his songs.

Only at a Sting show will you hear about song inspirations from a Bible verse from the Book of Samuel (the esoteric “Mad About You”), a reminder of his father’s advice to “go see the world and make something of yourself” ( “Why Should I Cry for You?”) and a description of the “sea of gold” at harvest time outside his home in the English countryside (“Fields of Gold”).

Sting said in a recent interview with USA TODAY that he favored a headset microphone after his 2021-2023 Las Vegas residency. The setup not only allows him to roam freely around the stage, but also use his hands to coach the audience in the art of his patented “e-yo-ohhs,” clapping when he’s not playing his bass and his arm in a seductive throwing motion during “Desert Rose.”

Sting’s setlist is a powerful mix of police and solo work

The set list for this tour is packed with Police classics, Sting’s cosmopolitan solo work – including the rarely played ‘I Burn for You’, the first song he says he wrote while still a teacher in 1974 – and the new song recorded with this trio.

“I Wrote Your Name (Upon My Heart),” released last month, is an aggressive rocker on record and is even more thunderous live, with Maas hitting a Bo Diddley-esque beat and Sting in full rasp.

The song was well positioned between the beautiful ‘Shape of My Heart’, with Miller’s soft guitar lines circling the melody, and the reggae anthem of ‘Walking on the Moon’, which, after a solid hit on the snare drum from Maas, seamlessly transitioned into a driving “So Lonely.”

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Sting’s song thrives on diversity

Sting’s catalog is to be admired not only for its longevity – even the jazzy pop bop “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” holds up remarkably well – but also for its diversity.

The elegance of “Englishman in New York” and the swinging groove of “If I Ever Lose My Faith in You” are musical dichotomies (the lyric “You’d say I’ve lost my faith in our politicians” in “Faith” drew cheers from the crowd as Sting tilted his head in acknowledgement). The same goes for the gritty bounce of ‘Can’t Stand Losing You’ and the sliding ‘Wrapped Around Your Finger’, where the caterpillar tempo imbues the song with sultriness.

The precision and efficiency of this trio is not surprising considering that the tour started abroad in May, but their potential is still impressive. Sting and his mates will continue their US gig into November – joining Billy Joel for a few stadium dates in between – before heading to South America and Europe next year, no doubt dishing out a solid roster of sonic sophistication .