October will rock Rogers Arena, not just with Canucks hockey games but concerts by Iron Maiden, Morgan Wallen, Peter Gabriel, Wu-Tang Clan, P!nk, Tool and Hozier, plus others (I see you too, Adam Sandler).
On Friday night (Sept. 29) it was Sting鈥檚 turn in the spotlight at 800 Griffiths Way, and he didn鈥檛 disappoint.
Relaxed, chatty and charming as usual, Gordon Sumner has assembled an ace band for his , a nod to a reimagined-hits album released pre-pandemic.
The guitar-strumming opener, Joe Sumner, later joined his pops for 鈥淜ing of Pain,鈥� a highlight of the night. , starting with 鈥淢essage in a Bottle鈥� and continuing with 鈥淓verything Little Thing She Does is Magic,鈥� 鈥淚nvisible Sun,鈥� 鈥淩oxanne,鈥� 鈥淲alking on the Moon鈥� and more.
Quick clip of Sting doing one of my fave Police songs at last night. The guitar didn't have the glorious spacy echo of the original Walking on the Moon, but this still sent me into orbit.
鈥� Tom Zillich (@TomZillich)
Sting鈥檚 solo work shined, too. Every so often he intro鈥檇 songs with stories, about the barley crops that surround his U.K. castle in autumn (鈥淔ields of Gold鈥�), how mutual-love songs are boring (鈥淟oving You鈥�) and how he loved American country music as a kid (鈥淚鈥檓 So Happy I Can鈥檛 Stop Crying鈥�).
Throughout, I was impressed by Sting鈥檚 underrated playing on his weathered P-bass. He always used a pick back in the day, but he was all fingers on Friday night, and the pockets were deep (like those who can afford a concert ticket these days).
Last time the Police man played in Vancouver, in 2017, he rocked the Commodore Ballroom, where Australia鈥檚 Wolfmother turned up the fuzz for a night of retro blues-rock on Sept. 23.
At Rogers, Sting performed to a packed lower bowl only, with the arena鈥檚 upper deck draped off. The setting was a relatively intimate one for a night of reggae- and jazz-influenced hits by a guy who sure knows how to write them, ending with the sublime 鈥淔ragile.鈥�
STARWALK FOR SKYLARK, FOSTER
In case you missed it, David Foster and Skylark were the latest 鈥淪tarWalk鈥� inductees of the during a Sept. 22 ceremony on Granville Street in Vancouver.
Foster and BJ Cook are the two surviving members of Skylark. They were joined in the 鈥�70s band by Doug Edwards, Donny Gerrard, Steve Pugsley, Maxwell, Robbie King, Bobby Taylor and Dave Richardson, all of whom have passed. Skylark is best known for released in 1973.
鈥淭hese inductees,鈥� noted Bill Allman, hall president, 鈥渁re especially poignant because they represent the heart of the B.C. entertainment sector, given the 50th anniversary of the massive hit 鈥榃ildflower鈥� by Skylark and the countless hits David 鈥榯he hitman鈥� Foster has had on the global music, film and entertainment industries.鈥�
, which charts the history of 鈥渙ne of the most performed songs in the history of Canadian popular music.鈥� Covers of 鈥淲ildflower鈥� have been done by The O鈥橨ays, Blake Shelton, The Neville Brothers and others, and the song has been sampled by Kanye West, Eminem, Jaimie Foxx, Tupac Shakur and Drake.
鈥楩**K CANCER 2鈥� CONCERT
The BC Entertainment Hall of Fame鈥檚 Bill Allman (mentioned above) is also the media contact for F**K Cancer 2, planned Saturday, Oct. 21 at Vancouver鈥檚 The Centre theatre (which I remember as The Ford when it opened in 1995).
saw dozens of classic-rockers fill the stage at Coquitlam鈥檚 Hard Rock Casino theatre to raise an impressive $344,000 for cancer research. This time around the show will benefit BC Cancer Foundation鈥檚 PROFYLE program (Precision Oncology for Young People), targeting children鈥檚 cancer.
tickets are priced from $105 for the Oct. 21 show, to feature Colin James as headliner plus members of Chilliwack, Doug & the Slugs, Headpins, H.U.N.N., Loverboy, Powder Blues, PRISM, Trooper Hot Shots (three original Trooper members with two members of Stonebolt), Jeff Neill, Al Harlow, Jim Byrnes and Lee Aaron.
鈥淎ll the musicians donate their time and talent for free, but the production costs are generously covered by Wheaton Precious Metals and Beedie,鈥� a news release notes.
Colin James was a big draw during in August, and he鈥檒l bring his Little Big Band to the Commodore Ballroom for two shows early next year, Feb. 2-3.
