Sting gets back to basics at Fillmore Detroit as 3.0 tour kicks off its U.S. leg

For months, it was one of the more intriguing dates looming on Detroit’s concert calendar: Sting would be stripping things back down to a trio format — for the first time in ages — and playing the cozy confines of the Fillmore Detroit.

That Police 2.0 premise came to life Tuesday night in a concert cleverly billed as Sting 3.0, the opening of a two-night stand at the downtown venue and kickoff to a rare U.S. club and theater tour by the seasoned English star.

It was a classy, tightly executed show for the capacity crowd of about 3,000, featuring a mix of Police songs and solo work, including signature hits and deeper cuts, as Sting was joined by longtime collaborator Dominic Miller on guitar and Luxembourg-born Chris Maas on drums.

Playing his most intimate Detroit gig in two decades, Sting was in strong voice out of the gate, ripping out lengthy sustained notes during “Message in a Bottle” and later “Walking on the Moon” in a proud display of his 72-year-old stamina. Some of the old Police songs were dropped a half-step or more in key, but when you’ve got “Roxanne” waiting in your encore, that’s forgivable at this point.

Miller’s lithe guitar and Maas’ well-rounded drum work locked in with Sting’s vocals and bass for the kind of lucid interplay that defines the great rock trios, bringing concentrated energy to songs like “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” and “So Lonely” while lending emotional air to “Shape of My Heart” and the melodic loveliness of “Fields of Gold.”

The overall effect was precise but loose, with Sting and company occasionally veering into vamps and breakdowns while largely sticking with the familiar song arrangements that keep an artist in the good graces of fans who have paid hundreds of dollars for seats. No lute concert , this.

The set list spanned the breadth of Sting’s 46-year public career, from those early Police hits to his latest single, the Bo Diddley-baked “I Wrote Your Name (Upon My Heart),” perhaps the most primordial rock ‘n’ roll song he’s yet concocted.

It was the sort of show that connected the broader artistic dots, from the crisply syncopated Police stuff to his jazz-kissed solo excursions, while showcasing the songwriting that runs as the through line to it all.

Donning a headset microphone, pop singer-style, Sting was an amiable master of ceremonies, introducing songs with personal anecdotes and recalling his earliest trips to Detroit with the Police. He’d even made a point to memorize the date of that first show at the local punk-new wave epicenter Bookies Club 870, on Nov. 5, 1978. (“I was 12,” he cracked.)

As he eased into “Englishman in New York” early in the set, Sting noted he’d never written a song about the Motor City. “Sorry,” he said. “What rhymes with Detroit?”

Well, there's “adroit," for one, and it was a fitting label for Tuesday’s Fillmore show, where Sting’s trio approach was especially effective on the night’s 10 Police songs, which included “Can’t Stand Losing You” (with a segue into “Reggatta de Blanc”) and a briskly played “Every Breath You Take” to close the regular set.

The solo material was served well, too, including a performance of 2003’s “Never Coming Home” that unfolded as a svelte jam, part of a rewarding night in a relatively small venue — and featuring a classic body of work imbued with fresh energy.

Sting, Miller and Maas will do it again at the Fillmore Detroit on Wednesday night. (Note for concertgoers: The trio took the stage Tuesday at 8:56 p.m., following a set by jazz-rock pianist Eric Lewis.)

Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or bmccollum@freepress.com .

Sting 3.0 tour set list, Fillmore Detroit, Sept. 17, 2024

1. "Message in a Bottle"

2. "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You"

3. "Englishman in New York"

4. "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic"

5. "Fields of Gold"

6. "Never Coming Home"

7. "Mad About You"

8. "Why Should I Cry For You?"

9. "All This Time"

10. "Driven to Tears"

11. "Can't Stand Losing You"/"Reggatta de Blanc"

12. "I Wrote Your Name"

13. "Shape of My Heart"

14. "Walking on the Moon"

15. "So Lonely"

16. "Desert Rose"

17. "King of Pain"

18. "Every Breath You Take"

19. "Roxanne"

20. "Fragile"

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Sting gets back to basics at Fillmore Detroit as 3.0 tour kicks off its U.S. leg