Hi Gang,
Sorry for the delay, it was a very busy workday for me!
32 songs, and neither Sting nor Paul missed a note or broke a sweat. 32. I
am still in awe of the performance last night.
It was my first time at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA, and I was very
impressed: not a bad seat in the house,
as the rows were high enough apart so that no one had an obstructed view.
They had two jumbo screens on either side of the stage, and the camera work
was excellent.
David Sancious was as fabulous as ever, playing accordion (!) much of the
night, as was Peter Tickell, who played the most frenetic (and talented!)
electric fiddle ever.
Jo Lawry was in good voice, although, personally, I could really have done
without her howls on Hounds of Winter.
I know Sting enjoys that, and he growled a bit at the end, but it didn't
add anything.
Vinnie Colaiuta, on the other hand, did indeed break a sweat. I can only
hope that he had as much fun on the rest of the tour as he seemed to have
last night.
He looks fantastic -- they all did -- but he was a wild man on the drums,
playing with gusto, abandon... and joy!
They shared a horn section, three very talented guys. Paul's drummer also
played guitar, and his guitarist also played bass saxophone. A very
talented bunch!
My husband Thom is a longtime fan of Paul Simon's bass player, Bakithi
Kumalo, who played the incredible bass line on You Can Call Me Al, and
seeing it live was impressive!
It was an inspiring performance: these two legends have earned their
status. It lasted about 3 hours, and they went from one song right into the
next.
Sting would leave the stage and Paul would come on and start right up, then
Paul would leave and Sting would come back and start right up.
You could barely recover from one incredible performance before the next
one began!
With the exception of I Hung My Head, which I can barely tolerate, the rest
of the show was... impressive? Inspiring? Phenomenal?
Pick a complimentary adjective or two or six, and apply here. These two
performers are among the very few whose music was
transformative for me. The first time I heard Paul Simon's Scarborough
Fair, I was 12. My uncle had given me the Simon and Garfunkel album for my
birthday,
and I almost missed my party, as I sat in my room and played that song over
and over on my little red Webcor record player.
I just sat there in awe at the beauty of that song. The rest of the album
was also fantastic, but that song was the one that got me.
Later I would hear Joni Mitchell's iconic "Song to a Seagull" album and
have a similar reaction.
The first time I heard Crosby, Stills, and Nash's "Critical Mass: To The
Last Whale", I was practically in shock. I remember thinking how glad I was
to be alive when that song was released.
Emerson, Lake, and Palmer's first album that featured Keith Emerson's
masterful keyboard artistry... well, you get the picture.
So forgive me if my praise of these two is effusive. It's not often you get
to see two of your musical heroes in the same place at the same time.
And the performances were amazing! Wonderful! Fantastic! OK, I'll stop now.
The chemistry and friendship between the two of them was so obvious, even
the carefully rehearsed "snappy patter" between them was endearing.
And when they hugged each other at the end of the show, well... let's just
say it was as adorable as anything you've ever seen on I Can Has
Cheezburger.
True respect and obvious affection; who could ask for anything better?
Here's the setlist. I hope many of you got to see the show. I hope there's
a recording of it somewhere!! I would order mine right now!
Have a great week, everyone!
Holly
*Setlist:*
Brand New Day - Acoustic duet
The Boy in the Bubble - Duet
Fields of Gold - Duet
Every Little Thing She Does is Magic - Sting
Englishman in New York - Sting
I Hung My Head - Sting (Does he think that if he sings it enough we'll
start to like it? Why didn't he give this one to Paul, who could have done
something with it?! Note to Sting: stop trying to do country!!)
Driven to Tears - Sting
Walking on the Moon - Sting
Mother and Child Reunion - Paul
50 Ways to Leave Your Lover - Paul
Dazzling Blue - Paul
Graceland - Paul
Still Crazy After All These Years - Paul
Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard - Paul
Fragile - Duet (Not the train wreck that was reported in some reviews -- it
was actually quite good!)
America - Duet (Sting loves this song, you could tell when he sang it. A
terrific rendition.)
Message in a Bottle - Sting
Hounds of Winter - Sting
They Dance Alone - Sting, with Dominic doing excellent justice to the
Reuben Blades Spanish soliloquy.
Roxanne - Sting (Yes, he hit all the notes. As good as ever!)
Desert Rose - Sting (He hit all the notes here too. He was in excellent
voice!!)
The Boxer - Duet
That Was Your Mother - Paul
Hearts and Bones - Paul (I was pleasantly surprised to hear this one, one
of my favorites. Hearts and Bones is one of the most underrated albums
ever.)
Mystery Train by Junior Parker - Paul
The Obvious Child - Paul
Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes - Paul
You Can Call Me Al - Paul
*Encore:*
Bridge Over Troubled Water - Duet (Sting did most of this one, including
the final sustained note. Excellent cover!)
Every Breath You Take - Duet (Paul acquitted himself quite well on this one
too! The duets were really, really good!)
Late in the Evening - Duet
When Will I Be Loved by Phil Everly - Acoustic duet (Just the two of them,
on a darkened stage, face to face in close quarters as the Everly Brothers
used to do it. Wonderful!!)
