..and this time I'm not talking about another NWA mashup. This time I'm talking about Sting, Andy and Stewart. I've always been a huge fan of The Police and their music. Stewart Copeland is one of my favorite drummers and Synchronicity is one of my all-time favorite albums. When The Police broke up, it was one of the few times I was actually sad over a band breaking up - Van Halen being the other. I bought some of Sting's solo material and followed Stewart's career t some degree and always hoped they would record together again. When I heard the announcement that they were going to perform at the Grammy awards and tour, I kind of made up my mind that I would try to see them since I missed the opportunity as a youngster. I was working from home yesterday and got an email from my local venue that a pre-sale was going to start in a few hours and I was given a special code to buy the tickets. The sale would be open to the public on Saturday morning so i was getting a 2-day jump. I started trying to get on the website at 9:50 since the sale started at 10:00 and the server was already maxed out. They allow you to sit idle for a few minutes and then they boot you to allow on another user. It's really a crap shoot as to whether you'll get on the site in time to get good tickets. If you don't connect, you get a 60-second countdown screen and it automatically tries again. I opened another tab and kept an eye on the ticket tab. At about 10:05 I got through and proceeded to input my code "ROXANNE" (how original) and 2 "Best Available" seats. What came back had to be an error in my estimation. Two tickets were placed in my cart and my total was $440 plus fees. I thought maybe I mistakenly asked for 8 tickets! Are you kidding me? I was disgusted. Shit, I should get to sit in and play drums for that kind of cheddar. How dare they? It's a concert! It's entertainment that lasts 2 hours. I can see an Oscar winning movie at the theater for $10 that lasts just as long. I cancelled the order but stayed on the ticket site and backed out to the seating chart. I selected the next tier of tickets out of curiosity - my mind already made up that I wouldn't be checking out The Police in July. The next level of seating was $90 per ticket. How you go from $220 to $90 is still a mystery to me, but I'm sure The Police can solve that problem. The Police, are in fact stealing money. Straight up. If John Bonham came back from the dead and Zeppelin toured I wouldn't pay $500 for 2 tickets and fees. Yes I pay a hefty amount of money each year to see my beloved Steelers, but that's more than just a game. It's an entire weekend of fun, tailgating and catching up with old friends (and old Dogs). I'm not paying $220 so 3 musicians can never have to worry about working another day in their lives. I already know Sting sold out years ago when he teamed up with Jaguar to make a commercial featuring his new single that wasn't selling. It was a conscious decision to sell more records and that's on the factual record. He also sang with The Backstreet Boys on a VH-1 special while dressed like a 20-year-old a few years ago. That didn't exactly do it for me either. I like to think of Sting as an artist - not a pop star. Now I think of him as a money-grubbing opportunist. I don't hate them and I won't turn the channel the next time "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" comes on the radio....but it's definitely another nail in the coffin for me for things that I used to enjoy. I'm sure I'll have ample opportunity to rent the DVD of the reunion tour when it comes out. better yet, I'll have my friend on Netflix rent it and burn it for me in protest. For those 2 hours I'd like to travel back in time to when the songs were just coming out - but I also have a feeling after watching the Grammy performance that they will get "too" crazy with new arrangements until the point of recognition with some of the songs is blurred.
