Sting, 70, performing in Finland is in for a big hit – "When the work ethic is right, there's not much to complain about"...

One can only speculate whether Gordon Sumner, born in Wallsend, England in October 1951, could have thought that he would still be touring the world at the age of 70. He has one good justification and reason for that: songs that span several decades, in a variety of styles and, to put it bluntly, for every occasion.

So let's talk about Sting, who will be performing at the Helsinki Ice Hall on Thursday. Based on Tuesday's gig, we can only recommend that if it's possible to go to a gig, it's definitely worth going there.

At Tampere's Nokia Arena on Tuesday, Sting also offered many surprises. The man's key songs are familiar to the whole world, but the practically sold-out arena was amazed, among other things, by how great Sting's vocals are. Many people who have reached the age of 70 have had their voice suffer many times, but Sting's voice still showed no sign of old age.

Likewise, every Finnish man could look in amazement at what a 70-year-old man can look like: judging by his eyes, one could say that at least Sting has not looked at a glass songbook too much during his career – if one did not know his age, one would think that the man is close to the same age as several of the players in his band.

The tour, which bore the name My Songs, has been planned with confidence. The approximately one and a half hour set is not wasted on interludes, but the music speaks for itself. In that time, there is easily time to play 19 songs and the opening track, Message in a Bottle, one of the Police's biggest hits, shows in terms of composition, lyrics and band playing that tonight's maestro is really not playing or messing around. When the set reaches the eighth song, Fields of Gold, which is played a little too loudly thanks to Tapani Kansa's Finnish translation and has unintentionally taken on comical tones, it is easy to understand why Sting's career continues into his sixth decade. And it's so popular that the man's world tour will continue until the end of the year.

Let's recap the most important reasons: the man understands music with a rare open mind. This means that the man is able to take influences from many different styles and make music that sounds specifically like Sting. When the work ethic is in order and the musical talent is there, there's not much to complain about. Reggae, new wave, rock, jazz, pop and world music are all raw materials that the artist knows how to use skilfully and also choose his players accordingly. The gig band was naturally a collection of the best musicians, and Sting's son Joe Sumner also played along with him.

When you've made your own songs and your own career, you can also play them casually when you're confident. The man can't be accused of being egotistical in any case: the skilled backing musicians were given proper space during the gig and black jeans and a grey t-shirt were enough for his own performance attire. There were no rockets exploding on stage, but the lighting design relied on an almost understated elegance.

Even artists who have seen it all may have original versions of the biggest hits that they can't do a second time in their career. On the other hand: they don't have to. The Police's biggest hit, Every Breath You Take, which is often misinterpreted as a love song, was performed faster than the album version and with less drama than Sting did in the 1980s. On the other hand, at the time, there was a love triangle drama related to civilian life and a tense band relationship, in which Sting and Police drummer Stewart Copeland could get into fights even in studio conditions. Perhaps the tension was worth it, considering the results of the social fire that reached a blaze.

Over time, Copeland and Sting have become friends again, and it seems that Sting's civilian life has also been in order for some time. Based on the stage performance, it can also be said from many perspectives that, based on Tuesday night's performances, Sting will easily be touring the world for another decade.

The best thing about the performance was noticing that the artist still enjoys performing immensely. At the same time, it also contains lessons and correction for us younger people, no matter what our own background is.

Go to the show on Thursday if possible. Sting, 70, is in a tough spot.

(c) Tamperelainen by Pekka Ruissalo