Week of Sting and Paul Simon

     When it comes to seeing a living legend in concert, I am a sucker. So when two living legends announced a tour together, I just couldn't resist. It doesn't hurt that I have been listening to both of these artists for years. Without tours like this you would have to track down both artists individually, and that makes this a once in a lifetime tour. In truth I would rather see The Police and Simon and Garfunkel live, but that isn't going to happen. So this is the next best thing. The tour came to be when Sting and Paul Simon played the The Boxer together for a benefit concert. So here is my review of Sting and Paul Simon live in concert.

Here is a video of The boxer with Sting and Paul Simon.

     On February 23rd I went to see Sting and Paul Simon at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul Minnesota. I didn't know much about the event going into it aside from the fact that both Paul Simon and Sting would be playing, maybe together for a song or two. I had no idea if there would be an opener or not, turns out not. The truth of the show, was that this was a very unique tour. Neither band would play first or last. They would play small sets alone before joining for a song or two, and then switching for a small set. They did this all night, first together, then sting, then together, then Paul and so on. No matter what happened I was ready for a huge singalong that would last late into the evening.

Sting and Paul Simon live on stage.

     When I arrived at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul it became very clear the power of these two legends live on stage. The show was sold out, and the crowd was jam packed. Full of people from all ages and walks of life, a regular melting pot of people who's lives these songs had touched. The show was supposed to open at 8, but didn't start till around 8:30. Right at 8:30 Sting and Paul Simon took the stage along with both of their full bands for a rousing rendition of Sting's Brand New Day. Following that Sting and Paul gave a quick speech about their musical experiment of a tour, with quick jabs at Sting's ego and Paul's age. From there they dove right into Paul Simon's Boy in the Bubble and Sting's Fields of Gold. Then Paul Simon left the stage and let Sting go solo for a bit. 

Here is Sting and Paul playing Brand New Day.

     This whole tour was an incredible experience not just for the fans but for the musicians as well. Both Sting and Paul Simon are huge fans of each others work and had never worked together. So they were both very excited to sing each others songs. Not only that, but it must have been a blast for the bands as well. Throughout the whole show both bands stayed up on stage for most of it, playing songs from both artists. Sting kicked off his first solo set with Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, and he sounded amazing. They both did Sting at 67 and Paul Simon at 72 still sound amazing. This was one of the best moments of the show. He followed that with Englishman in NY, I Hung My Head, Driven To Tears, Walking On The Moon, before being joined by Paul for Mother and Child Reunion. From there Sting passed the torch to Paul Simon for his first set. 

Here is Paul Simon live with Graceland.

       Paul Simon started his set with 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, Dazzling Blue, Graceland, Still Crazy After All These Years, Me and Julio, and then was joined on stage for Sting's Fragile. Paul Simon is one of those artists that you have heard so many of his songs without even knowing it. Timeless would be the word I would use to describe his music. Just like before Fragile, Sting took back the reigns and went into his second set with Simon and Garfunkel's America, but not before giving a speech about how he came to fall in love with Paul's music. His set started off well, killing an amazing Message in a Bottle and an surprisingly chilling Hounds of Winter. Right at the end of Hounds of Winter problems started up.

Here is Sting with Message in a Bottle.

     During Hounds of Winter there was a large pop and a loud screeching noise that continued while they finished the song. The whole crowd watched as the sound guys scrambled for dear life, and the band stood dumbfounded on stage. No one had a clue what went wrong, or what to do. Sting tried to continue acoustic before being told what had happened and took a break. A few minutes went by and then the sound guys were able to play without the large screech. So Sting came back out and went right into Roxanne. He got about half way through the song till the screech came back. At that point they turned off the amp and finished the song acoustically. Paul Simon had finally noticed what had happened and came out to the stage. Eventually they figured out that it was Sting's sound system that had burst and Paul' was fine. He called Sting out for When Will I be Loved by The Everly Brothers then continued on to his next set. Thank goodness Paul Simon was there because he saved the show. Sting was upset and ready to quit and Paul performed adding another hour to the amazing show.

A reminder of what Paul Simon can do.

    He ended his set with the song above in the video My Name is Al. We didn't know was going to happen for the encore. Would Sting come back? If he came back would he play his music again? Would there even be an Encore? Well there was an encore and Sting did come back, but he didn't play more of his songs. They opened the encore with a jaw dropping rendition of Bridge Over Troubled Water. Straight into Late in the Evening and ending with The Boxer. The show itself lasted almost 3 hours, filled amazing music and talent. The bands took already awesome songs and brought them even higher with world class talent. It really is a shame that Sting's sound system broke. I would have loved to have heard the rest of Roxanne, Desert Rose, and Every Breath You Take as scheduled. The real shame however was that it left a black spot on an otherwise amazing night of music. I personally can't let that be the last time I see Sting. He was too good to let that be the end. I will go see him again. I would even go see Paul again with Garfunkel or without. Either way this tour was everything it was cracked up to be. A once in a lifetime musical experience.