Sting, no frills, and a few more fans: Assago: the concert was feared to be a flop...

Just a few days before his arrival at the Assago Forum, Sting's performance seemed to be one of the most resounding flops of this music season. Advance ticket sales officials were talking about a ticket sales figure barely approaching two thousand, and the organizers certainly weren't sleeping soundly. In reality, in our country, advance ticket sales aren't capable of accurately conveying an artist's popularity or the number of people who will attend their shows (except for U2 and Guns and Roses), so much so that for Sting, the bulk of the audience showed up at the box office only a few hours before the show began.

The final turnout, however, still totalled around 9,000 people - not a bad thing. On Wednesday, however, Sting's show was heralded by a performance by the very Italian Brando, a young Polydor artist. He and his band put emotion aside and let loose like the most seasoned rockers, applauded by everyone thanks in large part to a clever and never boring setlist.

After a half-hour intermission, at 9:35 PM, the former Police man took the stage, accompanied by David Sancious on keyboards, Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, and Dominique Miller on guitar. Unfortunately, while Sting's music is refined, capable of captivating even in its most lively forms, the same cannot be said of the set design, which was truly perplexing, both in terms of colour and lighting.

Sting, with short hair, a white shirt, and a bass guitar slung over his shoulder, immediately began "If I Ever Lose My Faith In You," applauded and recognized by everyone from the first note. Next came "Heavy Clouds," "Seven Days," and then the songs from the new LP "Ten Summoner's Tales."

Shortly before the concert began, the record company executives had awarded Sting a platinum record for selling over 300,000 copies of the album, which was praised by the public but not by the critics, who always dismissed it as mediocre.

To be honest, the first half of the concert was a bit boring, and the sound that was being broadcast inside the Forum was certainly not the best. From the press box, you could barely hear the nuances of the keyboards, drowned out by the heavy sounds of the bass drum, and David Sancious had his hands full getting out of the sonic swamp.

It's not a euphemism, but the second half of the show was truly something else entirely. Retrieved one after another, they set the pulses racing with Police classics like "Synchronicity," "Roxanne," "King of Pain," "Bring on the Night," and "When the World Running Down." They then closed with a final encore and the song "Fragile," which had been dedicated to Judge Borsellino for the Marsala date.

Well, it was probably at the finale that we felt like we were rediscovering the Sting of old. Less frills, more music and arrangements from a rock old fox, they thrilled the audience, full of nostalgic fans who would still lend a hand just to see the trio of Copeland, Summers, and Sting together again.

Sponsored by Heineken beer, Sting's Italian tour brought the rocker into the publicity business thanks to the TV commercial advertising the beverage. In fact, the music the two jazz musicians in the commercial play during the 30-second broadcast is none other than a jazzy version of Sting's "Straight To My Heart." The beer company itself has announced that Sting's is only the first of a series of major tours he will be performing in Italy. The future is destined for artists of an equally high calibre.

(c) La Stampa by Luca Dondoni

10,000 fans at the Forum - Sting in Milan "stings" more amidst a thousand jazz aromas...

A longer and richer show than his debut in Ascoli. Catanzaro, after having banned him, even dedicated a conference to him.

Milan is more energetic and less detached. And above all, more generous and fun. This is how Sting appeared the other evening at Assago compared to the compact (i.e., 80-minute) performance of his debut in Porto San Giorgio (Ascoli Piceno) before an audience normally cut off from the beaten track by the big names in international music. At the Forum, the forty-two-year-old "sting" from Newcastle held sway, hinting at a few dance moves and a couple of milord bows, for an hour and 50 minutes. He performed about twenty songs, bass slung over his shoulder, without allowing a second's rest between each one.

Drawing heavily from his most recent album, 'Ten Summoner's Tales': from 'If I Ever Lose My Faith In You' to 'Shape Of My Heart', from 'Heavy Cloud No Rain' to 'Seven Days'. Revisiting his Police past: from 'Roxanne' to 'King of Pain'. And paying homage to the Beatles with 'A Day In The Life'. Sting has managed to gather around ten thousand fans: all decent people, very well-mannered youngsters alongside quiet thirty-year-olds, capable of enjoying the extraordinary embroidery created by Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, Dominic Miller on guitar, and David Sancious on keyboards who support him.

Indeed, they contribute significantly to the musical vitality of his performance, which features a sober, theatrical setting: a handful of shimmering lights, a few ethnic designs, and simple curtains moved by puffs of air, all sparingly and without flights of fancy. What truly leaves its mark are his songs: delivered with refined taste, clear and engaging, especially thanks to the breath-taking jazz openings. A choir of 10,000 voices, illuminated lighters, arms raised to the sky, constant applause. Among the most applauded: "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," "An Englishman in New York," and "It's Probably Me." Sting faces his encores bare-chested: "She's Too Good For Me," "Nothing 'Bout Me," and "Every Breath You Take."

And, called back by cheers, he returns in his vest to deliver "Fragile," a song that has enjoyed renewed popularity since the English artist dedicated it in Marsala to the memory of Judge Borsellino. Tomorrow, Sting will be in concert in Genoa, and on Saturday in Livorno, where, according to promoter Mamone, anything can be expected except an impromptu reunion with his former bandmates, the Police, on Sunday in Udine. And we learn that in Catanzaro, work continues on how to mend the "embarrassment" of denying him a stadium spot. Mayor Fiorita notes in a pompous letter to Mamone that the decision to grant honorary citizenship to Sting was made "following the approval expressed by the famous rock star at a press conference in Rome" and "at the conclusion of a specially convened conference with the participation of nationally renowned figures to address, within the context of youth issues, the themes of art, music, and theatre aimed at civic and social commitment, including on behalf of the most vulnerable." Is it ever too late to reconsider?

(c) Corriere della Sera by Pozzi Gloria