Englishman in Lingen - Tea? Sting prefers coffee!

Lingen - It was the first of three open-air concerts in front of the Emsland Arena. World star Sting took 12,000 fans on a musical journey back to the 70s, 80s, and 90s on Wednesday. 

Stubble sprouts from his tanned face. Dark jeans, a tight T-shirt that reveals muscular upper arms. It's hard to believe that this fit guy is 67. An ascetic before the Lord, who, despite the wrinkles around the corners of his mouth, doesn't look nearly as old as he is.

Perhaps it's his six children, his wife Trudie Styler, or his passion for yoga and meditation that keep Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, aka Sting, young. Perhaps it's the fans, some of them graying but still vibrant, who have bowed down to him and his songs for decades. That's what unites them.

Perhaps it's simply the pure joy of life – because this man has a job that still brings him an outrageous amount of joy. You can see, feel, and hear it. It's fascinating how, on Wednesday evening, in balmy 27-degree weather, he takes 12,000 visitors on a journey back in time to the 70s, 80s, and 90s at the open-air venue in front of the Emsland Arena in Lingen. "My Songs" is the title of the current album, featuring the "songs of his life," as the Brit himself puts it. Classics from his Police days to catchy tunes from the modern era in a new guise. Because songs are like children who develop, grow up – and change, he revealed in an interview with Hit Radio FFH.

The opening track is "Message in a Bottle" from 1979, about a man stranded on an island who sends a message in a bottle in search of true love. A song with a signal effect: people hop, jump, clap, and sing along. Sting moves. After "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You," "Englishman in New York," "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free," and "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," things get personal. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I'm very pleased to be here today," stammers the global star. Applause.

Sting pulls through, wandering through golden fields to the sounds of a harmonica ("Fields of Gold"), strolling across the moon ("Walking On The Moon"), and casually paying homage to reggae icon Bob Marley with "Get Up, Stand Up." And admits to being "so lonely" at times. Yes, the good guy does seek solitude every now and then – and appreciates it. After "Roxanne," he sips a cup on stage. A moment of peace.

A hint? "I don't drink coffee, I take tea, my dear"? he sings as he strolls through the Big Apple with an umbrella in the video. All lies. "The song isn't about me," Sting once told the "Berliner Zeitung." "I sing about the gay English actor and writer Quentin Crisp, who lived in New York for a long time. But unlike him, I love coffee, especially espresso." That would (finally) be settled.

After a good two hours, Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner leads the final encore on his guitar: "Fragile" – fragile. Just like the human soul. "Stick together" – that is the message of the evening. Sting seems tired and leaves. At 67. The spotlights go out. Things continue on Friday. Then Mark Forster comes to the Ems. On Saturday, rapper Kontra K. Packed the house.

(c) Westfälische Nachrichten