It’s not often you get to see two living legends collaborate on stage together; less so given we live in Australia. But some two years after Paul Simon and Sting conceived the idea to bring their bands together and hit the road, their well oiled, impressive production showcasing the best songs of their careers has arrived in Australia.
The three-hour set kicked off with the pair hitting the stage and joining forces for three tracks: Sting’s “Brand New Day”, Paul Simon’s “The Boy in a Bubble” and Sting’s “Fields of Gold”. It was interesting to hear the two work together on songs that were favourites of their personal repetoire. Sting’s range isn’t the same as that of Garfunkel, so the harmonies you might expect from Simon in “duo mode” weren’t there – rather they would take turns on different lyrics, only singing select parts of the song at the same time. And for the most part, it worked really well – Sting’s voice in particular shun throughout the night, as did his energy and that battered bass guitar.
The rest of the set would see the duo work together for a track, before leaving the other to deliver a solo set. And with songs as iconic as the ones from Simon & Garfunkel as well as The Police to choose from, not to mention their own popular solo tracks, they had plenty to work with. But they made sure to fit in all the biggest hits. Interestingly, Sting even covered Simon’s own “America” after he left the stage – and I have to say he did the track justice. As Sting pointed out, “there’s a Paul Simon song for every moment in our lives, and this was one for me…”
As you’d expect, from two class acts like this, the production went off incredibly smoothly. Transitions were flawless, as band members changed depending on who was on stage, and what songs were being sung. I counted 14 members coming and going, with as many as four guitarists (at least) and three percussionists on stage at the same time. Not to mention keyboardists, the very impressive brass section and a young violinist who you can put under the “prodigy” category.
As is often the case with these older acts, while you make your way to the event to see the front men live, and hear their songs – it’s the amazing band that’s behind them who you stay for. From the incredible violin solos in tracks like “Driven To Tears”, to Marcus Rojas’ incredible tuba moments in “So Lonely”, where he turned it into something of a talking being, it’s hard to narrow down the moments to just a few. Though if I had to pick one, it would be the zydeco drenched “That Was Your Mother” with the washboard and the accordion putting forth some of the biggest energy we’d see all night.
And then there was the encore, which was preceded by Simon’s excellent “Don’t Call Me Al” – which was the first song to truly get the whole room on their feet. Simon & Garfunkel’s classic track “Cecilia” was given a terrific arrangement, with the horns in particular giving the song a spellbinding ‘oomph’ and a bit of playfulness between our two leads adding some fun to the occasion. And after The Police’s “Every Breath You Take” and the Simon & Garfunkel favourite “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” (which was performed beautifully I might add), it seemed the show was over. And I’ve never seen a quicker standing ovation in my life. The room unanimously stood up as one, in awe of the world class talent on the stage.
But it wasn’t over! The backing band left and Simon and Sting stayed on to play one final song, a cover of The Everly Brothers’ “When Will I Be Loved?” – which Simon introduced by saying “there have never been better two part harmonies than with Phil and Don”. You can almost hear an “ouch” coming from Art in the distance… But it was nonetheless a beautiful way to end a night of excellent music, recreated by a group of incredible musicians.
FULL SETLIST:
Sting and Paul Simon
Brand New Day (Sting Track)
The Boy in a Bubble (Paul Simon Track)
Fields of Gold (Sting Track)
Sting
So Lonely
When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What’s Still Around (The Police)
Seven Days
Driven To Tears
Walking on the Moon (The Police)
Sting and Paul Simon
Mrs Robinson (Simon & Garfunkel)
Paul Simon
50 Ways to Leave Your Lover
Dazzling Blue
Graceland
Still Crazy After All These Years
That Was Your Mother
Sting and Paul Simon
Fragile (Sting Track)
Sting
America (Simon & Garfunkel Track)
SOS (Message in a Bottle) (The Police Track)
The Hounds of Winter
End of the Game
Roxanne (The Police) (with Ain’t No Sunshine Interlude)
Desert Rose
Sting and Paul Simon
The Boxer (Simon & Garfunkel Track)
Paul Simon
Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard
The Cool, Cool River
Hearts and Bones
Mystery Train (Little Junior’s Blue Flames Cover – Simon called this “my favourite song of all time”)
> Wheels (Chet Atkins Cover)
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
You Can Call Me Al
Encore (with both Simon and Sting):
Cecilia (Simon & Garfunkel Track)
Every Breath You Take (The Police Track)
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon & Garfunkel Track)
When Will I Be Loved? (The Everly Brothers Cover)
There are three remaining dates on the tour:
14 FEB: Hope Estate – Pokolbin, NSW
21 and 22 FEB: a day on the green – Sir James Mitchell Park – South Perth, WA
For tickets and more details head to: https://www.livenation.com.au/artists/paul-simon-and-sting or http://www.simonandstingtour.com/
Photo provided by Live Nation.
