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John Aizlewood's rating
The past masters
By
John Aizlewood
10 Sep 2007
Tinkering with the past is a business laden with peril, not least if you're The Police, playing your first dates within the M25 since 1983, so long ago there was no M25 to play within.
Last night's show was part of a tour that began in Canada in May and finishes in February in Australia. The band who disintegrated in acrimony in 1986 at the very moment they became the most popular act on the planet, have kept the rules of their reengagement simple: keep a low profile, sell out stadia, play the hits, take the money.
Yet, The Police never were quite so simple, despite Sting asking "are there any Police fans here?", as if he thought 55,000 people had turned up to hear selections from drummer Stewart Copeland's solo canon. Hence, I suspect, the tinkering.
Dismissed as a vehicle for Sting's songwriting, especially since the other two Policeman couldn't get themselves arrested afterwards, the trio were a band in the traditional-sense and so musical that no other musician appeared on their albums. Last night, from the moment Copeland began proceedings with an almighty thwack of a gong which heralded guitarist Andy Summers unleashing the spine-tingling solo that introduces Message In A Bottle, the hits were rejigged and the subtly altered vocal timings fazed Sting more than once.
Naturally, they lost their way when they strayed into album tracks, but after they exited with Next To You, the opening track of their debut album and played every hit bar Spirits In The Material World, nobody could claim the catalogue was unransacked. Better still, the tinkering enhanced everything.
De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da's verses used to tumble, now they glide; Wrapped Around Your Finger (surely popular music's first and last rhyming of "master" and "alabaster") showcased Copeland's remarkable percussive skills, while the already peculiar Walking On The Moon was revamped with an extra layer of weirdness courtesy of Summers's avant-garde guitaring.
This fiercely intelligent sense-tickling should be the way of all reformations: the old material, but with new life.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Reader views (12)
I think it all depended on where you sat. We sat up in the gods at the furthest end of the stadium, and the sound was absolutely abysmal, probably reaching us a good couple of seconds after the audience at the front. You could see the screen images were totally out of synch with the sound. The mush of sound was so bad that some of their best known songs took a full twenty seconds to identify. Sting's bass pretty much dominated the sound, but with so much echo around the cavernous stadium, it seems almost futile to even discuss the sound mix. Awful, awful, awful. Note to Twickenham. Stick to rugby, not rock 'n roll.
- Paul, London SW, 16/09/2007 19:27
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I enjoyed the concert. I was too young to go when they toured last so I had been waiting over 20 years for this. The crowd was a bit stiff. I was singing and dancing but I seemed to be the only one in my area. As teenager I had melted the LPs playing them so often and I still new all the words... unlike most there. I would love to see them at say Brixton Academy or ULU as I think the intimacy was lost in Twickenham but I still enjoyed it despite the 90 quid. Next to you was great and Invisible Sun. I'd see them again but at a smaller venue.
- Kinkyt, London England, 11/09/2007 21:52
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The sound and video was definitely set up for previous (smaller) venues like the Birmingham Indoor Arena earlier in the week and was inadequate at Twickenham. They did play well, but at £75 for the middle tier of the stand furthest from the stage I too feel a bit cheated.
- Gareth James, London, 11/09/2007 14:47
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Awesome! I went to the Saturday show and was blown away by everything. I'm not a big fan of concerts at larger venues, but the vocals and musicianship was spot on. The crowd participation was great and added to the evening. I'm going to get tickets for Wembley, bring it on!
- Justin Donald, Colchester, UK, 10/09/2007 22:23
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An absolutely fantastic concert. I flew over from Northern Ireland especially to see them and it was worth every penny. Sting, Andy and Stewart put on a great show. Just as I remember them. Now trying to get tickets for Dublin date in Oct.
- Andrea White, Ballymena, Northern Ireland, 10/09/2007 22:06
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Once again at Twickenham, the sound system wasn't up to the job - far too much bass, reverb and general poor quality. And why, oh why do established bands think they need to try their best to make their classic songs sound completely different live from the originals? It was an OK evening, but I expected more for £90 per person!
- Sara, Middx, UK, 10/09/2007 17:01
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This was 3 great musicians playing great songs to 55,000 fans and the overwhelming majority, like me, loved every second.
I saw them 25 years ago and as a band they are better now. No contest. I didn't mind not hearing Sting's comments, perm any 10 from the thousands he has made over the years.
Welcome back.
- Terry B, Newport Pagnell UK, 10/09/2007 16:27
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Completely agree with reader. Poor sound, lack of crowd involvement, show was suited to an arena. Very poor especially after seeing Genesis and The Eagles put on such great shows at same venue.
- Matt, London, 10/09/2007 16:12
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I was bitterly disappointed by this gig. Having waited 15 years since I first heard their music, I was sure this would be the gig of my life but couldn't have been more wrong. The sound was appalling, they made ridiculous changes made to beautiful songs and we had terrible seats despite a huge ticket price.
The screens were so small that the I could still barely see anything and looking at the stage I could just about see a coule of ants milling around.
As a result I left well before the end (and was glad to be out of there).
I feel completely ripped off.
- Kyla Hurley, Feltham UK, 10/09/2007 14:19
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I totally disagree. I thought the show was incredible. They are as good now as ever before with their combined musical talents making them one of the best bands I have ever seen live. After some doubt over the quality of the concert (having heard some negative press following the opening show in Canada I wasn't too optimistic) I was totally blown away. I also thought the crowd were awesome, singing along to almost every number, making the atmosphere positively electric. A thoroughly enjoyable concert.
- Lauren Adley, Mayfair, London, 10/09/2007 14:04
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The Police produced a masterful powerhouse of a performance. Transporting the crowd at Twickenham back 25 or so years with more ease than Tardis, into an Aladdin’s cave of hits, you begin to recall why The Police were regarded as the supergroup of their generation. Certainly, they changed some of the arrangements for a few tracks but that only served to re-invigorate the group. Many journalists have been less flattering in the past about Sting and his ego, yet he was generous in comments about Stewart Copeland and Andy Summer. In fact, the band played amazingly tight as a unit considering the years that have passed. Indeed, it was hard to believe such a wall of sound could come from only 3 musicians. Singling out individual moments from a concert this good is difficult but for me the highlights were the rawness of Synchronicity II and hearing 55,000 people belting out the choruses of Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, Roxanne and So Lonely. The Standard’s star rating only allows for 5 stars but I would have given it 6 as this was without doubt the best concert I have ever experienced.
- Darren Lewis, London, UK, 10/09/2007 13:58
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Too much tinkering if you ask me. It's been many years since we've heard this live - it could have been a bit more pure. That coupled with awful sound (way too boomy), and not being able to hear Stings comments during the song breaks made for a less than satisfactory night out.
- Steve Holland, Islington, London, 10/09/2007 12:44
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