Timothy Winton

After taking almost two months off on the concert front I caught a big show two nights ago. The Police were out in full force at Dolphins Stadium which is actually closer to Fort Lauderdale than Miami. I’ve been to dozens of football games and baseball games there, but this was only my second concert. I saw the David Gilmour fronted Pink Floyd there over a decade ago.

Like that show, this one was sold out. Because the stage was so massive there were a lot of unused obstructed view seats. Still a good 50,000 came out for the reunion. Sting’s son Joe Sumner opened the show with his band Fiction Plane followed by Pop/Rock multi-platinum hit makers Maroon 5.

I am a great admirer of The Police and have every official song they’ve ever released on CD. I’d never caught them in their hey day back in the 1980s but two years ago I did fly to Carnegie Hall in New York to see Andy Summers perform the world premier of an Ingram Marshall minimalist symphony for electric and classical guitar with orchestra. I am quite a fan of Andy’s solo work and the film work of Stewart Copeland, having many CDs by both after they left The Police. Sting is another story. I don’t like his solo work and have never indulged in a purchase but I do love his songwriting and singing as front-man with The Police before the squabbles broke them up initially.

The concert was spectacular from the initial striking of a gong by Stewart Copeland. The lights, video screens and sound were great despite us being a good ways away in such a large stadium. The ticket prices were steep with field level seats going for up to $400 each. It was a hot summer night with no rain in sight, unusual for this time of year in South Florida.

The trio opened with the famous arpeggio to Message in a Bottle followed by Synchronicity II and Walking on the Moon. The entire hour and fifty minute set was packed with hit after hit that everyone seemed to recognize. The band rocked hard on Driven to Tears and most of the audience was on their feet all night for favorites like Roxanne, Don’t Stand So Close to Me and Every Breath You Take. They even kicked in some obscure early cuts like The Bed’s Too Big Without You and Truth Hits Everybody. The set list is at ThePolice.com and I’ve read some favorable reviews there and in the local newspapers as well.

The trio fleshed out many of the arrangements allowing Andy Summers to rip through several extended solos throughout which was not the case back in their Punk/New wave years. Stewart Copeland had a barrage of exotic percussion surrounding his kit that he played standing for Walking in Your Footsteps and Wrapped Around Your Finger. After several encores The Police sent everyone home happy, closing the show with Next to You.