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I really enjoyed the Police but I'm a huge fan. I think a lot of people either expected too much or don't know the Police. Here's just a couple points.
I didn't expect the set to be 2 hours plus. They haven't played together in 25 years and none of them play Police songs on tour. I can't imagine they'd pull something out of their butts and try anything they hadn't practiced. Look at the complaints about the screw ups on the things they did practice.
As for the screw ups; I thought they were fun. I was second rows and it was fun to watch them look at each other and laugh about f$*#ng up. I was afraid they'd get mad at each other about it. All in all they were having fun and we were allowed to just have some fun too.
What I really like was the way they didn't just play studio versions of their songs. The early Police always played unusual versions and they did here too. I would have been very disappointed to just hear a greatest hits. The varying song motifs made the show for me.
They did try and stretch a few songs out to lengthen the set and I think here is where they failed. The long, repetitive chants didn't work but I think it was just their attempt to stretch their limited material for Roo.
As I said I liked it a lot. It was like a few old friends getting together after decades and trying to jam a bit, kind of like a 25th high school reunion. As long as they had fun and didn't take themselves too seriously, I was happy.
Post by bloomindaedalus on Jun 20, 2007 13:26:53 GMT -5
far worse than my (low) expecattaions. That show ranks among the worst i have ever seen by any well-known band. I should have just gone to the Lips even earlier than did.
"...well yeah the guitar is good accompaniment but you can't like compose with it; I mean you can't base a whole song around the guitar." -Bob Dylan 1965
Yeah, the police was a bit of a letdown. Frankly, I might look into selling my tickets at Fenway Park - if they are just going to phone in a performance ar roo...why would they even bother trying to perform to the "real" fans who will just tell themselves they enjoyed it?
I had more fun in the back drinking beers from our mini-keg of "warsteiner" which we figured was german for "can" or "fosters". Plus, I was a little lifted, so when he sang Roxanne and there is that pause before he says the name - I surprised myself by belting out the loudest & most out of tune Roxanne possible. That brought out a chorus of other out of tune "roxanne"s throughout the song. it was histerical
I felt a little bad for this couple that was dancing through most of it - i think they were dedicated fans.
Post by cgreen2599 on Jun 20, 2007 15:14:16 GMT -5
I thought the Police sucked. Just wasn't really feelin the vibe at their show. I didn't mind too much though since we left early and got a great spot for the lips.
I thought the Police rocked. I was just really feelin the vibe at their show. I didn't mind too much sticking around for their whole set, we left at the end and still got a great spot for the lips. ;D
Whatever, to each his own. If you enjoyed the show check out some of these videos I took, otherwise STAY AWAY YOU HATERS!
(only kidding of course)
The Police: Roxanne Message in a Bottle Every Breath You Take So Lonely Wrapped Around Your Finger When The World Is Running Down...
Hope you guys like them, please leave any ratings and comments you feel appropriate!
All in all I shot some 4 or 5 hours of video at Bonnaroo, so I'll keep you guys posted as I upload more videos. You can check out my account at www.youtube.com/greenproduction to keep up to date. What a great weekend!
I thought the sound was alright, but isn't anyone else upset that the Police ended 45 minutes early? That's all me and my friends could talk about concerning that band.
This was rediculous...seriously...this was so dumb...I'm stumped.
I had a blast. I was super close. I could see Sting's expression, HE was having a blast, and as was said above it was the friggin' Police, I'll take it.
Towards the end after Sting took off his shirt did anyone hear a guy yell for him to take off his pants? It got a huge laugh.
That, ladies and gentlemen, was MY goofy husband ;D
Post by oysterheadhead on Jun 21, 2007 0:40:16 GMT -5
i thought the Police were great but i also was disappointed about a short show. they could have played a couple more tunes for roo. no curfew here. but i can't really complain because i got to see one of my all-time favorite bands. and they sounded good, all of them: sting's voice was strong, andy was awesome!! and stewart was like a little energy dynamo hitting everything that he could. i loved the newer versions of their songs. i was very happy to hear "bed's too big.." i also loved how andy summers got several extended solo breaks. one thing that i noticed was that most of the younger people in the crowd wasn't singing along to many of the songs. they didn't know them. they missed the cues where crowds usually sing a call-and-reponse with sting. some people did it but not for most songs. overall, it was a great show but they should have played two more songs in the middle somewhere. (where was "one world is enough"? that would've been perfect)
I thought the Police rocked. I was just really feelin the vibe at their show. I didn't mind too much sticking around for their whole set, we left at the end and still got a great spot for the lips. ;D
Whatever, to each his own. If you enjoyed the show check out some of these videos I took, otherwise STAY AWAY YOU HATERS!
(only kidding of course)
The Police: Roxanne Message in a Bottle Every Breath You Take So Lonely Wrapped Around Your Finger When The World Is Running Down...
Hope you guys like them, please leave any ratings and comments you feel appropriate!
All in all I shot some 4 or 5 hours of video at Bonnaroo, so I'll keep you guys posted as I upload more videos. You can check out my account at www.youtube.com/greenproduction to keep up to date. What a great weekend!
Thanks for the video. I was in the 2nd row and security kept making me shut off recording. Also the sound recording that close was awful. Do you have "Bed's too Big w/o You"?
Great posts goofs! thanks and karma to ya. As i said before, I really loved the show. It brought back some sweet college memories back to me and my friends and, of course, I never dreamed I would actually see them in person. Whoever made that post about Sting being into the no-orgasm tantric thingy, I can relate. The Police stopped before I got mine. What a lousy lover. lol
Post by Jazzmaster on Jun 21, 2007 11:14:17 GMT -5
I did not like the jam band version of Roxanne at all, I thought they killed the momentum of the song totally. After Roxanne, the set vastly improved (too bad it only lasted a few more minutes). I really enjoyed King of Pain and So Lonely. Overall I have to say I was disappointed, I expected a longer set and a better performance. I still love The Police though.
Post by mytwitewesties on Jun 21, 2007 14:39:59 GMT -5
It is all about expectations. I expected to see a guy who can't reach the notes he did 25 years ago try to sing those songs as well as he did. That meant everything had to be reworked. The Police said so when they announced their reunion tour at the Hall of Fame induction. Even the song played then and aired on newscasts throughout the country sucked if you wanted to hear the Police of the 1980s. You know, I don't look like I did in the 1980s and I am sure I sound different (esp. after the Roo Flu). I was interested to see how much the songs got reworked, how far from the original they got twisted. I only experienced what I expected, a great group of musicians still improvising old material and working it out as they go on. I loved their show. I loved the people around me during their show. There were people pushing past me during the show.
Was Sting technically off about what Bonnaroo is? Yes. But, that will probably get edited out of the eventually DVD of their reunion tour and the screaming of the audience, and the singing along to old tunes will likely remain.
It is the music business after all and the show and tour are all about making money. Having the crowd at Bonnaroo on the DVD is going to help sales no matter what anyone on this blog has to say, good or bad, about the Police.
you people are f**king high. say you didnt like it, thats fine, and thats called an opinion. but to say they phoned it in or sting cant hit the same notes, gimme a break. these guys are f**king pros. listen to those videos above and come back and state your case again. save it...
Biggest let down of the fest for me, and before you start smiting take a look at my icon. Been a fan and waiting for this tour since 1984. There are really two sides of this coin. It was amazing to see The Police, as a unit, on stage live in front of me playing all the great songs I have loved for....gawd...23 years now. Not too many errors, thought it all sounded great, was dancing with my wife, had an alright time. On the other hand, didn't seem like anybody except Stewart really gave a damn. I think Copeland could have played for another two hours, and you could see him trying to push Sting and Andy, but they obviously weren't having any of it. It seemed like "Hi, here's our set. See you later [insert name of town or festival here]." No passion. No connection with the crowd that I had already witnessed with The Black Angels, Tool and Ben Harper, just to name a few. The Police were the final piece in the "Am I going to Roo or not" puzzle, and I really felt like they failed to bring it.
Post by canexplain on Jun 22, 2007 11:47:34 GMT -5
bigjohn said:
Biggest let down of the fest for me, and before you start smiting take a look at my icon. Been a fan and waiting for this tour since 1984. There are really two sides of this coin. It was amazing to see The Police, as a unit, on stage live in front of me playing all the great songs I have loved for....gawd...23 years now. Not too many errors, thought it all sounded great, was dancing with my wife, had an alright time. On the other hand, didn't seem like anybody except Stewart really gave a damn. I think Copeland could have played for another two hours, and you could see him trying to push Sting and Andy, but they obviously weren't having any of it. It seemed like "Hi, here's our set. See you later [insert name of town or festival here]." No passion. No connection with the crowd that I had already witnessed with The Black Angels, Tool and Ben Harper, just to name a few. The Police were the final piece in the "Am I going to Roo or not" puzzle, and I really felt like they failed to bring it.
agree ... but then i saw the flips, and govt mule with jpj, then sasha till the sun came up , so it was all good .. cr****
Post by bamadancer on Jun 22, 2007 12:14:25 GMT -5
I loved it. It was the freaking Police....I have been a fan since I was little, and it was amazing to me. I got to hear everything I wanted. The guys are old! They don't sound like they did in the 80's! Hell, I saw Elton John back in May and he sounds a LOT different too. You can't expect them to be exactly what they used to.
And to all the people bitching about the short show...does anybody remember how late Tom Petty started last year? His set was just as short...
Post by princessritalin on Jun 22, 2007 14:27:30 GMT -5
Well I flew to Bonnaroo this year primarily for The Police and I wasn't let down at all. I was indeed disappointed that they ended early but I think they played a good set of greatest hits. I thought the sound was great but then again I was just a few rows back from the stage and also I had some herbal enhancement making it the best show I have ever seen. LOL
the police, the police, i like the police. seen the police a few times b4 this silly reunion greatest hits tour. im an og and saw them as young lad in 79, 80, 83 (full bickering in effect) they are a dynamic innovative band from late 70s early 80s. thats where they stay with me. sting is a talented lyricist, performer, singer, etc. and he's got the ego to go with it. fine.
this incarnation is not the police, if andy and stewart said no to the tour sting probably would have just gotten another couple of fantabulous guys to back him up. but they fell for his bs and the corporate bucks. ugh.
it is the sting show afterall. he almost had me fooled. talking about unfinished business, hah, unfinished bank no doubt.
all about sting and his fantabulous mates behind him. what a crack up, this guy has some nerve. i dont blame andy if he has to be drunk every show to deal with it.
i watched from camp on top of van watching screens with binocs. i could take only so much of sting on the screens, ugh, didnt have expectations for anything special, despite what stewart said about bonnaroo, apparantly his people didnt send the memo to stings people about what bonnaroo is. what was up with the tenneseans comments from sting(k). ugh, wtf, sting irks me.
one shot of stewart on the screens i saw i swear he was rolling his eyes. you bet he got the hell of manchester asap, tail between legs i hope stewart pulls the plug on this swindle tour (too many lawsuits for that ever to happen) and calls up his oysterhead bros and redeems himself.
glad to say i never fell into the sting camp after the police. had plenty of chances. esp when he opened for dead on summer tour. never once went in for that.
i think stings solo career stalled a bit and he figured out he could call up his old mates and charm them into thinking this time will be different. well it sure looks like they picked up right where they left of. on the verge of self destruction.
i know lots of people enjoyed the show, good deal, and high fives all around.
i guess i learned my lesson last year at petty, i was way to close for that disaster. at least the police stopped short of pancake makeup
Post by oysterheadhead on Jul 1, 2007 3:33:54 GMT -5
i can't say that the Police were a "let down" because they are one of my favorite bands of all time. seeing them at Roo was really awesome!! however, i am a bit disappointed by the short set. i think its the shortest set they have done this tour. they left out songs llike "don't stand so close to me", "invisible sun", "murder by numbers", and "spirits.." i expected a longer set not a shorter one. why was it shortened??
as for the performance, it was great! andy summers is soo underrated as a guitarist. his lines are always interesting and tasteful and even when he is improvising he doesn't stray from the song. the extended solos were a treat! sting's voice was superb. i have seen him in concert a few times and he sang better than ever at roo. his bass playing was even funky at times. and while sting is the songwriter, stewart is the real fuel behind the police. it is stewart's energy that drives their power. this was evident in how he used dozens of different percussion instruments in his kit. he was making a beat with everything he could find. and it all sounded good. i loved the newer versions of their songs.
there were a few mistakes by the band, but overall it was great. and they did play one of my favorites "bed's too big without you". i was thrilled with that!!
one thing that i noticed was that most of the younger people (most of the audience) in the crowd wasn't singing along to many of the songs. they didn't know them. they missed the cues where crowds usually sing a call-and-reponse with sting. some people did it but not for most songs. it was the weakest "singing" crowd i have ever seen at a Police/Sting show.
overall, it was a great show but they should have played some more songs in the middle somewhere. ("one world is enough" would've been perfect for roo) it was however bonnaroo, which makes the show very special just for that. under that sky, everything is a little bit better.
PS - did you guys notice all the "clean" older people that showed up on saturday?? those were clearly the high rollers who flew in just for the police. they stood out because they were well dressed, clean, out-of-place, and clearly not sleeping in any tent.
Headliner cutting their set 45 minutes short? You've gotta be f'ing kidding me! They should have been booed off the stage. Don't get me wrong... I love The Police. They're legends... But they played a show of legendary crappy status at Roo.
Go listen to the set again from one of the tapers. It's truly cringe-able material. Ugh...
45 min short. That's an absolute atrocity.
Also, Andy Summers' guitar playing was f'ing HORRIBLE! He butchered "Message" from the first few notes! Honestly, have a listen again to the set. He sounded extremely amateur!
Sting's vocals took a while to "warm up," but he started to hit his stride towards the end of the set. His bass playing? Eh... He was really off too.
Stewart Copeland? The man. One of the best ever... At points, he was a bit off too, but Stew was the one member holding it all down.
Post by strumntheguitar on Jul 1, 2007 11:57:43 GMT -5
The Police go down in the history of rock, there's no doubt of that in my mind. I did not make it to the show because I was in desperate need of relaxation, but I could hear the show very well from my campsite, which was just outside the gates to Centeroo. Can't say it was my favorite headliner, but they sure sounded better than WSP in my opinion.
I would say they would've done better at a different time slot, but then again I couldn't imagine having a band as reputable as them not being a headliner so it's a tough situation.
But seriously, they were not bad enough to ruin my night so it makes no difference to me! rock on.
Post by chopperdave on Jul 1, 2007 18:35:03 GMT -5
I dunno, it was right on par for my expectations. You can't expect a bunch of older guys in a pop band who haven't done their thing in 25 years to be spot on for 2 and a half hours. Fairly tight for an hour and a half was reasonable. Summers screwing up Message In A Bottle was the major disappointment to me. Beyond that, yeah, I wish they'd have played a little longer, I wish Sting had a clue as to what Bonnaroo was, and I wish they'd have played Don't Stand So Close to Me, but overall it was what I expected; a decent set by a band that used to be great.
honestly, the police was a big reason i was sooooo excited for roo this year! they're prob. one of my absolute favorite bands... but i was sorta upset w/ their performance. plus everyone around me wasn't real into it, and that makes a difference. i actually left early to get a good spot for the lips... and from what it sounds like, things didn't get better at the police show after i left. i guess i'm not quite as upset that i left early.
I am a big Police fan. I saw them a couple times back in the day. Them being at Bonnaroo was the deciding factor in going. I was a bit disappointed. It was a good show but not great. Sting seemed to be there for the paycheck.
Sting's voice was faltering especially toward the end. I don't think this was all old age. The wind was carrying all of the smoke and dust from the crowd right to the stage.
I might give them another try when they play here in Tampa in a a couple weeks. If I can get a cheap ticket.
