Sting must be a Cyborg. He didn't disappoint in Bratislava and introduced his son...

It's been a long time since the first concert of the Englishman Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, better known as Sting. He started with his band The Police in the late seventies. However, that is not visible in him in the slightest. Maybe except for the stylish torn T-shirt that he probably still has from that period. In Bratislava, and the day before in Košice, he played a show in which he takes stock of his career.

"This song is called Hope," announced one of the songs in hastily learned Slovak by Sting's eldest, 45-year-old son Joe Sumner, who opened the concert. He had a strong, piercing, interestingly colored voice, in which you could sometimes feel "father" Gordon, but you as a listener had to pay attention to it and mentally compare it with his father's singing.

Joe Sumner is not only facing overcoming his father's shadow, but he also took on the "burden" of entertaining the full Ondrej Nepela winter stadium alone with an acoustic guitar. Joe is a little more rock-oriented than his father, the songs are not as catchy as Sting's, but with his undeniable talent and sympathetic expression he managed to really get the fun going in the hall. "Thank you, I'll be back soon," he shouted this time in English with a gentle smile, which made him look even more like the American actor Woody Harrelson. He joined his father in the finale.

Sting's tour is also about the fans' favourite songs, and the ones he started his show with happen to be my favourite from him. The energetic "Message in a Bottle", the jazzy "Englishman in New York" and again the danceable "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic". However, it wasn't just the notorious songs that were played, which was a nice refreshing addition to the playlist.

"So nice to be with you, Bratislava," Sting shouted, and although he repeats it in every city, it sounded sincere. Sting, who is over seventy, must be a cyborg, because he still plays and acts like an 18-year-old. Similar, for example, to the one who accompanies him on tour on the accordion, named Shane Sage. Sting jokingly teased him that at this age he dares to put on Stevie Wonder's shoes and replace him in the song "Brand New Day", which the legend originally recorded with him.

The greatness of artists, such as he, is evidenced by the fact that they let their top teammates, led by the renowned guitarist Dominic Miller, stand out. He also gave space to backing singers, who were happy to take advantage of it, which was also a pleasant addition to the concert. Sting himself plays everything from classical and bass guitar, to mandolin, accordion, piano, saxophone, flute, and can also handle exotic instruments. At the concert in Bratislava, however, he stuck to his guitars. He recalled his reggae days with a cover version of "No Woman No Cry", after which he got the audience up out of their seats.

Even with the many outstretched hands with phones recording video, fans at the stadium in Bratislava confirmed that among Sting's hits, the ballads "Shape of my heart", "Every Breath You Take", "Roxanne" and "Fragile" are the most popular. The last of the aforementioned songs, with which he ended the show after an hour and a half and almost deafening applause, was dedicated to the people defending themselves in Ukraine and the women fighting for their rights in Iran.

(c) Pravda by Zoltán Rácz