The Police conquer Italy with cult songs, a huge crowd, and a lot of emotion...

A packed and joyful audience witnesses the return of the Police to the Delle Alpi stadium in Turin. It's been 27 years since Sting, Copeland, and Summers last performed at this stadium, 24 since their last Italian tour before their contentious breakup.

The concert begins with the tune of "Message in a Bottle" and is almost lost in the powerful roar of the 65,000 people who have come from all over Italy for the only stop on a world tour that until a year ago seemed impossible, so many quarrels had been exchanged between the three musicians even after the launch of their successful solo careers. Of the incredible reunions that marked 2007, that of the Police was truly the least likely, but ultimately it's also the most complete and realistic, given the crippled returns of Genesis and The Who, and, next November, Led Zeppelin without Bonham.

What happens on stage is a goosebump-inducing déjà vu, never so welcome: Sting climbs the high notes bordering on falsetto just as he did back then, Copeland's drums have the same unmistakable sound of skins tuned to the breaking point, Summers plays with his guitar as if they were two, he is the true alchemical centre of the trio that was able to extract rock from the nihilistic guillotine of punk, confidently focusing on the crossover and the upbeat rhythm of reggae.

"Give Sting what he wants," Copeland has been telling himself since the start of the tour, which kicked off on May 27th in Vancouver. And tonight, there's even more reason to keep the Police's overblown ego in check: the Turin concert falls on Sting's 56th birthday, and it all comes on the heels of the French Minister of Culture bestowing upon Sting the title of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, a title he shares with his two traveling companions. A detail that must have given him wings to his self-esteem, given that he's always considered his lyrics worthy of the finest literature.

The Police evening opened with the voice of Raiz and the rhythms of Notte della Taranta, in the version conducted by Vittorio Cosma and arranged in 2003 by Copeland, and then had a familiar support when Fiction Plane took the stage, led by Sting's son, Joe Sumner, who offered almost a re-edition of the early Police (much more 'Reggatta de Blanc' than 'Outlandos d'amour') but steeped in a post-grunge that studied the lessons of Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

Then the three Martians from London entered the scene, immediately conquering the stage and the hearts of the audience with the same energy as thirty years ago, with the experience and mischief accumulated over time, and with a new, crystalline, and astonishing harmony, honed in the American leg and exploded on the European leg of this tour.

It may be that Sting pursues perfection in every concert as if it were a personal nightmare, but in these reborn Police, all the tensions accumulated over the years seem to melt away: 'Synchronicity II' and 'Walking On The Moon' are a heart-wrenching blow for fans in their forties, but even the younger ones are singing them in chorus. 'Don't Stand So Close To Me' and 'Driven To Tears' are something we'd want to belt out if only we had the voice of that fifty-year-old nightingale Sting.

There's a magic about certain comebacks that can cut critics off and instantly erase any fear of nostalgia. More modern than ever, still capable of moving the audience, The Police are back.

(c) La Republica by Carlo Moretti