Joy of life and harmony – that's what Sting and Shaggy's concert in Salem was like...

Sting and Shaggy promote a better world with reggae and serenity at their joint performance in Salem's castle garden. 

They'd already been playing for an hour when Shaggy explained to the audience something that really needed no explanation: that this music is aimed at all people of different backgrounds and religions. But above all, at all those fighting for a world without racism, nationalism, and sexism. "Especially in this time," he says – especially in this time.

The fact that Sting and Shaggy are joining forces – the 66-year-old pioneer of the New Wave movement with the 17-year-younger reggae-pop singer from Jamaica – has a lot to do with "especially in this time." There is a mood of general tension and irritability, a phase of cultural trench warfare and aggressive polemics.

 
Sting has always been adept at responding to such social trends, even anticipating them. In the late 1990s, he surprised audiences with his borrowings from Arabic folk music, and later, he presciently predicted the decline of rock 'n' roll. And today? Does he counter the aggressive tones with the serenity of reggae: Relax, folks!

On stage in the Salem Castle Gardens, Sting and Shaggy never leave any doubt about their cosmopolitan outlook. The opening number, "Englishman In New York," becomes a hymn to the melting pot of cultures, as Shaggy insists on replacing "Englishman" with "Jamaican" and waving the flag of his homeland. "44/876," the title track from the jointly produced album, follows: a transatlantic bridge forged from the telephone codes of Great Britain and Jamaica.

And with rhetorical questions like "If you can't find love – how are you going to find yourself?" they appeal to the conscience of the potentially angry citizen in the audience. Accompanied by a five-piece band (including a background duo), Sting and Shaggy spread Caribbean joie de vivre and harmony: All the ugly topics of everyday life, from the asylum dispute to Özil's resignation to Trump chaos, are a far cry from their commotion.
 

The effectiveness of this tranquilizer is also due to the remarkably high musical standard. Sting grooves on bass like in his prime, the band provides a sparkling, pulsating foundation, and Shaggy fits in pleasantly unobtrusively with his growling rap. It's well known that Sting repeatedly incorporated elements of reggae into his songs, even back in his days with his band The Police. However, the seamless transformation of songs like "Love Is The Seventh Wave" or "Message In A Bottle" into true Bob Marley-esque numbers is surprising. Sometimes it seems as if Shaggy provides the lubricant that gets some rusty classics ("Set Them Free") going again.

And Shaggy himself? He has to live with the fact that the vast majority of visitors undoubtedly came to Salem for Sting. While the audience may raise their arms to his hits like "Oh Carolina" and "It Wasn't Me," that can't disguise the fact that the longing for "Fields Of Gold" prevails. Shaggy, too, is worth his weight in gold: as the constantly bouncing counterpoint to the stoically stationary Sting—dancing, talking, animating. The Brit Sting, whose performances sometimes seem a bit static, especially due to his sparse body language, can only benefit from this.
 

And at some point, even Bob Marley actually makes his imaginary appearance. His hit "Get Up, Stand Up" becomes a plea to the audience on stage in Salem. Shaggy hammers home the line "Don't give up the fight" so forcefully, as if a peace demonstration were planned afterward. But what follows is nothing more than a somewhat strained, cobbled-together song collage: From "So Lonely" it goes to "Strength Of A Woman" and back again, then "Roxanne" desperately attempts a symbiosis with "Boombastic." Things don't always come together on this evening.

Be that as it may: Only those who take risks can fail. And the risky, unusual collaboration between Sting and Shaggy paid off for the most part in Salem. For all those who, even after two hours, still don't know what to take home from this evening, Sting (after the first encore, "Every Breath You Take") has a final message in his bag with "Fragile." "Lest we forget how fragile we are," he sings: We should all never forget how fragile we are. Let's take it to heart.

(c) Südkurier by Johannes Bruggaier