These rock legends kicked off their tour at Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium on February 6th. Since then they have co-headlined shows throughout 2024, including one scheduled at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium this November.
Expect Sting to join Joel for another duet performance like in Tampa where they sang a rendition of “Big Man on Mulberry Street”. That momentous performance should happen again soon!
What to Expect
On Saturday night in Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium a one-night-only co-headlining concert was hosted. Not only does Raymond James Stadium house the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but has also seen major acts like The Rolling Stones, U2 and even Taylor Swift perform there in previous years.
Sting’s set began with an intimate cover of The Police’s “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”, with Joel joining in. Following this performance, Sting ran through an array of hits including his own “Piano Man.”
Joel’s voice may still be strong, but it has diminished over time. To compensate, the singer is smart enough to know when they need help and recruited a group of younger backup vocalists for his high parts during some of the evening’s most beloved hits (he even brought in an amateur harmonica player to match Stevie Wonder’s harmonica parts on “Brand New Day.”) Sting was on full display himself with impressive bass skills as well as his contemporary take on “Roxanne.” During the encore he even got everyone singing along by calling out all bald heads and grey locks from within the audience to come up onstage and sing along!
The Setlist
Joel and Sting performed a wide-range of material from their time together with The Police as well as original songs written by them both, with The Piano Man even breaking out his harmonica holder for “Shape of My Heart.”
Joel also gave Tampa crowd plenty of Empire State flair during “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)” and “New York State of Mind,” with clips from Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty flashing across a screen during performances of these songs.
Midway through the evening, Sting returned dressed as Frank Sinatra wearing a hat and suit, performing “Big Man on Mulberry Street” alongside Joel as well as joining him to perform their song together “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.”
The Audience
These two rock legends dazzled Tampa Bay with an unforgettable one-night-only concert – more than simply music – celebrating its power to heal and uplift.
Audience members were mesmerized by their amazing talents, compelled to sing along and join in during every word. There was plenty of Empire State love with an overhead projection showing Brooklyn bridges during “Scenes From An Italian Restaurant”.
Sting’s set included an unforgettable moment: inviting Billy Joel on stage to perform The Police’s “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”. As soon as Joel took the stage, applause from the crowd was immediate; later in his set Sting returned dressed like Frank Sinatra with a jazzy duet of “Big Man on Mulberry Street”.
Though CBS made an unfortunate error that caused their concert special to air on an entirely different network than originally intended, their performance together still won over audiences and is testament to both music’s power and friendship between members of this band.
The Final Words
Billy Joel and Sting kicked off their One Night Only concerts Saturday in Tampa with an electric performance, making their series of One Night Only concerts an eventful night. Sting led off with 16 songs spanning his solo catalog as well as time spent in The Police; Billy Joel then joined him onstage to sing “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” initiating many future collaborations between them onstage.
Reggae fusion superstar Shaggy joined him onstage for an amusing rendition of “Englishman in New York,” while Sting returned for an epic rendition of “Big Man on Mulberry Street.”
Though they had performed together previously in 2014 at Madison Square Garden, Tampa marked their inaugural co-headlining tour date. Fan-captured clips of their collaboration have since gone viral online; check them out if you get a chance! It appears they enjoyed themselves immensely together, which made their mutual appreciation all the more evident to those attending their gig.