Review: Sting at Kings Park and Botanic Garden

Sting at Kings Park and Botanic Garden
w/ Joe Sumner
Friday, February 10, 2023

It’s been eight years since international rock icon Sting graced us with his presence and the fond memories of his last performance on the South Perth foreshore double-billed with Paul Simon have only just started to dim. On Friday night at Kings Park it was all Sting, with family, as his son Joe Sumner was joining him on the tour for his My Songs live album, a tour started in May 2019, with dates cancelled and rescheduled in 2020 and 2021, before it got back on the road last year.

Revellers packed the lush gardens with folding chairs and picnic hampers and positioned themselves in preparation for an evening with a “star" under the stars. The demographic was certainly on the older side, but with experience comes knowledge, and what better way to take in a concert than being comfortable on the lawn with cheese and a bottle of wine? The sun had set on a hot summer’s day, turning into a refreshing cool clear night. Perth doesn’t get better than this!

There is no denying the star power of Sting. From his early beginnings hitting major success with his reggae/rock/punk band The Police to being a Hollywood movie star (who could forget his role as the evil Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in David Lynch’s 1984 adaptation of Frank Herbet’s Dune?) to tantric yoga master and political activist, to his illustrious solo career penning some of the biggest tunes of the 80s and beyond, Sting has been there at the forefront of popular music – up there amongst the best of the best.

Opening the night was Joe Sumner, son of Sting. The former lead singer of the London-based rock band Fiction Plane, Sumner played a concise set of seven songs including his most well-known track You, You, You and his latest single Looking For You, Looking for Me. The strength of his voice was evident, holding out long notes as the audience appreciated his skill with rousing cheers.

Sting appeared on stage with his signature 1957 Fender precision bass guitar and “Madonna" style head microphone meaning that he wasn't limited to a centre stage mic and was able to roam freely to the corners of the stage to greet each section to the audience. Seeing the legend in the flesh was almost surreal. At 71 years of age he looked amazing as only Sting could. It only took him half a beat to warm up and transition from lanky-looking old guy into full power rock star in the first song, The Police classic Message in a Bottle. The hits kept coming with An Englishman in New York and Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, before he took a stool to address the crowd.

He oozed charisma and confidence as he joked that the next song was a new song. “I know, I know," he said. “Just give it a chance, it might be a hit one day." He went on to muse about “what makes a hit?" and regaled a past anecdote about hearing a window cleaner outside his hotel room whistling a tune. “What is that tune?" he thought, “I know that tune? It's Roxanne! That's how you know you've got a hit!"

Sting then introduced a song that he had written for the Netflix series Arcane. The atmospheric sombre tone of the song, What Could Have Been, was sonically moving. The performers were backlit with anime clips from the show and added visually striking light sequences, with the lead guitar breaks taking it into a futuristic sci-fi height. It was moments like this where you really noticed how on point the light design and sound quality were.

Sting's backing band were phenomenal, comprised of his long-time guitarist Dominic Miller, keyboardist Kevon Webster, harmonica player Shane Sager, drummer Zach Jones and backing singers Melissa Musique and Gene Noble, each getting their turn in the spotlight to show off their talents, most notably the backing singers who got to step forward for their own solos. Musique stepped forward to join Sting for Heavy Cloud No Rain and Noble for Shape of my Heart.

Joe Sumner returned to the stage to help out with The Police track King of Pain and stayed on for the last track, which was of course, Every Breath You Take. The sensible seated sections of the audience rose to their feet to dance and clap along. After the final bows, they exited the stage, but there was the lingering feeling – had they forgotten one key song?

After the audience called for the encore, Sting and the band returned to the stage. “Now I don't know what song you want us to play?" he joked as the guitarist rhythmically strummed the chords to Roxanne. “Oh no, I can't, my throat!" Sting teased before falling into the beat and raising the first verse, inviting the audience to sing along.

Sting then finished the evening on classical guitar with the delicate Fragile, showing off his skill on the instrument, soloing in beautiful Spanish flamenco style. It was a majestic night in the Perth summer with the perfect soundtrack that could have lasted all night, but with so many favourite hits played, no one could have asked for more.

ANTHONY JACKSON

Photos by Linda Dunjey