Many times, I have bought a ticket to this concert without knowing the lineup. Based on my first benefit concert experience with the Rainforest Fund (then known as the Rainforest Foundation) – which had a Motown theme and Stevie Wonder as a surprise guest – I don't need to know the plan. This year, the preliminary lineup was revealed in advance, but I was already sold on the theme, We'll Be Together, featuring songs and videos from the '80s and '90s. Also, it was the charity's 30th anniversary celebration. Again, I had to go!Unlike previous years, this concert was hosted at Beacon Theatre, not Carnegie Hall. Beacon Theatre is smaller, which is nice, but it also had fewer seats available to the public, and the ticket-buying process was frustrating.
First off, I swear that they announced a 10 a.m. start time for ticket sales. It was just my luck and anxiety that made me check early, and I found that people were already buying up seats at 9:36. Secondly, I kept selecting supposedly available seats and being told to wait, then that the seat was taken already by someone else, and to try again. This panic-inducing process went on for at least a half hour before I finally got whatever seat they'd let me have.
Who was in charge here? Thanks, Ticketmaster. (At the event, the person next to me said that tickets went on sale at 9 a.m., and that he had the same experience I did, trying to buy tickets for four people: he ended up having to buy individual seats, so he had to go through that nightmare four times. I guess I was lucky.)
Let me borrow some of Trudie Styler's zen energy and move beyond this fiasco. At least I got a seat; that's all that matters. (Ticketmaster, fix this!)
I went all out for this trip to New York: I stayed in a fancy hotel, I saw two other shows on Broadway (Dear Evan Hansen and David Byrne's American Utopia), I spent a day at my favorite museum (Museum of Modern Art), and I treated myself to lots of good food. (Thanks for my daily cup of chocolate chestnut chai tea, Argo Tea Cafe: it's the best!) But it was all leading up to the Rainforest Fund concert, by which time it was raining and I was in full denial that I had a cold.
I've been to the Beacon Theatre once before for Sting's amazing 60th birthday charity concert, but I didn't remember what it was like until I was in it. My seat, in Row E of the Loge Level, had a great view, and I had newly bought binoculars with me just in case. (I was still in the Carnegie Hall mindset: to see this concert in that venue, I had to climb at least seven flights of stairs to get to the top-level "cheap" seats, where binoculars are useful.)
The stage was set for the big, talented house band, always directed by drummer Narada Michael Walden. Three video screens were hanging around the stage too – one above it, one on the left, and one on the right. A few chairs were placed at stage right too: this is where the featured performers can sit and watch each other throughout the show. Those are probably the best seats in the house.We were all instructed to get in line by 6 p.m. for a show that would start promptly at 7 p.m. As I waited in my seat for 45 minutes, it amazed me how many people did not follow these simple directions. The show ended up starting at 7:15, while people were still milling around, chatting, and thinking about maybe sitting down sometime.
It's showtime, people!
I want my MTV!
Then, host Robert Downey, Jr., kicked off the concert by picking his own tune! My ticket was already worth it. Here's a rundown of the performances.
When he finished this song, a guy in the audience yelled, "Iron Man!" He responded with, "I'm retired. This is my new gig." He continued that before the concert really begins, he should give us a "rambling soliloquy" about climate change, but he was interrupted by a loud ringing cell phone that came through the speakers. He started looking around and asking who's phone it was, pointing to people in the audience, and then realized, "Oh, it's me."
Someone brought out a giant boxy cell phone."It's the '80s calling," he said, "Enjoying Reaganomics, are we? Yes, I know, I got fired from SNL, but things work out fine for me. Really, everything's okay.... If you're so smart, guess who's president right now. You'll never guess....Okay, deal with your self-important denial while we deal with the ramifications of your behavior. Okay, little brother, gotta fly." After he got off the phone, he told us to put ours away: put them in your pockets, watch the show, and enjoy it without your phones in hand. If he saw a phone, he warned, he would yell at us. And, then, he introduced the next guest.
After they left the stage, Sting walked back out and said, "I was so excited that I forgot I had the next thing to do!" He introduced James Taylor, who has participated in 17 of the Rainforest Fund's concerts and is considered family.
Afterward, he thanked everyone for coming and how happy he was to be back in New York with his friends at this event.
4. Up on the Roof – James Taylor. "This song is not technically from the '80s or '90s. It's actually from the '60s," James Taylor explained before he started singing. It's a Carole King song, he continued; he said he did a version of it in the '80s, which he thought might count for something. He considers "Up on the Roof" to be "the quintessential New York statement." This was a good one. I love that James Taylor always shows up at this concert, he's always funny and charming, and he always looks and sounds the same with that amazing voice. Who cares about the theme? He can do whatever he wants.
After James Taylor finished, Robert Downey, Jr., came out again and introduced Bob Geldof, saying, "He likes six days of the week, but not necessarily this one." Then, he knelt on one knee toward Bob as he walked on stage because we were in the presence of more greatness.
5. I Don't Like Mondays - Bob Geldof. I was surprised by how excited I got at the sight of Bob Geldof, but it hit me that he's the organizer of Live Aid! He's the guy who got everyone in Band Aid together to sing "Do They Know It's Christmas!" He's the old friend of Sting's that I've read about all these years! Bob Geldof also looks and sounds exactly the same as he did in the '80s; he just has gray hair now.
After he was finished, Bob Geldof said that Sting and Trudie told him to sing that song. "'It'll be perfect,' they said, but they were being kind because it's probably the only song you might recognize." That's true: it's the hit from his Boomtown Rats era, and it was perfect because this concert was on a Monday. He continued, "You don't know any of my other incandescent songs, so I'm going to sing someone else's song."
6. (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding – Bob Geldof. I forget that this is a Nick Lowe song because Elvis Costello always sings it, and I also always think about Bill Murray's version in Lost in Translation. Bob Geldof's version was just as unique as those other covers. At times, he spoke the lyrics like poetry, and behind him, the screens flashed images from his work in South Africa and at Live Aid. Everyone cheered when certain images of concert performers appeared, like Freddie Mercury and Bono. It brought back lots of memories of that once-in-a-lifetime event at that critical time and reminded us how universal music is and how it can spark change.
Sting walked out after that and introduced his friend Shaggy.
Robert Downey, Jr., walked out afterward, exclaiming, "That was Shagtastic!" Then, he said, "I saw a few people with their phones out. This is what I call your first warning."
Next, he introduced Sting's eldest son, Joe Sumner, who heads his own band called Fiction Plane. I first saw Fiction Plane when they opened for The Police during the reunion tour. Then, I saw him perform solo on a couple Sting tours. But Robert Downey, Jr., shared something I didn't know – that he was the frontman for the David Bowie tribute band (which performs as the David Bowie Alumni Band for A Bowie Celebration). He said, "Here is Joe Sumner to channel Ziggy Stardust himself!"
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| I can't find any photos or videos of this performance, but here's a nice photo with Bob Geldof instead. |
It just occurred to me that I heard Joe Sumner sing this song before, connected to a Sting song ("50,000") during Sting's 57th & 9th tour a few years ago. This evening, he sang it on its own. I love this song, was happy to hear it, and sang along, but it made me sad too. I wished that David Bowie were there to sing it himself.
Don't worry, Sting cheered me up when he walked out afterward and said, "Well, that's what happens when you feed them." Sting talked about performing at these concerts with so many amazing artists over the last 30 years, noting that many have passed away. He named a few, including the great Pavarotti, and he introduced the next guest, Zucchero. He performed a popular duet with Pavarotti, which he sang for us next.
After Zucchero finished to rousing applause, Sting and Robert Downey, Jr., argued over who would introduce the next guest: "You ask me to host and now you want to take it over? I see, I see how this is going," Robert said. They went back and forth trading trivia about her, but then Robert put an end to it: "Well, I guess, it takes two men to introduce Debbie Harry."
10. Call Me – Debbie Harry. I saw Debbie Harry on tour with Blondie (and Elvis Costello) last summer. Months later, I saw her at a book signing for her memoir. And, a few days after that, I found out she was going to be at this concert. I swear that I'm not following her around, but we must have similar tastes. Of the three places I saw her last year, this is where she looked the most amazing in a sparkly animal print minidress with thigh-high boots and a red cape that had a couple of bees patched on the front (because she also wants to save the bees) and an important environmental message stitched on the back. She was true to form!
11. Rapture – Debbie Harry. This is one of my favorite songs. It became more exciting when a rapper showed up to continue rapping after Debbie Harry was done. People cheered at the sight of him, but I was slow to realize who it was – DMC from Run DMC! (You'd think I would have looked at the lineup during my 45-minute wait for the show to start. What was I doing? I was thrilled by this surprise!) Eventually, DMC rapped his own rain forest rap including a mantra, "Leave my rain forest alone." It was while he was doing his thing that I got to read the Debbie Harry's cape; she faced the band and swayed while he rapped. Then, I almost lost it with the next song.
After that, Robert Downey, Jr., walked out in shades. He explained that he wanted to switch to the dark glasses so we can't tell that he's reading the teleprompters. He announced with typical flair, "Up next...is a lull, an interval, as Sting, Trudie, and the Brits would say. Our lull will last 10 minutes."
Intermission
Then, Sting and Robert Downey, Jr., came out, talking about that song: Robert asked Sting how that collaboration came about, and Sting said the tune started out as "Don't Stand So Close to Me," but they changed it to "I want my MTV." There's our trivia for the night. (Note: Sting had changed outfits, from one black suit to another. This one featured a longer coat, and I liked it.) Sting introduced musical director Narada Michael Walden, who in turn introduced the band members.
Then, they paid attention to us, and Robert asked, "Did everyone get everything they wanted out of that lull that they ever wanted?" It's on to the second half.
13. Secrets O' Life – James Taylor. James Taylor kicked things off with one of his own songs from the '70s. For this song, he sat on a stool and sang while playing his acoustic guitar. That's James Taylor at his best.
Afterward, Sting and Robert Downey, Jr. returned, and Robert waved, "Hi, up there, by the way," to all those seated in the top balcony. They all cheered back, of course, and Sting walked up to the backup singers' section of the stage to get his partner for the next song.
"Are you ready, Lisa?"
"Yes!"
"Good, so am I."
14. We'll Be Together – Sting and Lisa Fischer. Whenever I hear this song, I remember Sting saying sometime that he could have made it better. It was a hit when it came out in 1987 and may have been what sparked my hopeless devotion to everything Sting. In any case, turning it into a duet with the great Lisa Fischer elevated it several levels. In the background, the song's black-and-white video played, featuring Sting with shaggy hair singing to Trudie, who sauntered around in a pretty black dress. Maybe it was this video that won me over. I remember it well: Sting was cute and the dancers were cool. (I didn't know much about Trudie back then.)When they finished singing, Sting gave Lisa Fischer a giant bear of a hug that warmed my heart. They are old friends.
It's Time to Listen Up!
When Robert Downey, Jr., came back on stage, he asked, "Who was that smokin' lady in that video?" He talked about Trudie's kindness, how she helped him through dark times, and now how lucky he is to be a part of Sting and Trudie's ever-expanding circle of wonderfulness. (They have known each other at least since the mid-2000s, when Trudie produced one of his films, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints.)
All of this talk also warmed my heart! He went on for longer with a lot of superlative adjectives that Trudie has earned, but I didn't write them all down. In the end, he introduced her as "the literally incomparable Trudie Styler."
I think Trudie came out wearing the same dress that she wore in the "We'll Be Together" video. If that's true, of course it still fits her. They hugged, and she said, "Thank you, Robert, for that amazing introduction. I knew it was a good idea to have you host."Trudie's speeches at these concerts leave me feeling simultaneously inspired and depressed. She's regal, well spoken, and thoughtful. And, she tells you the facts, like, "In my own lifetime, we have lost half of the world's rain forests. In my own lifetime, we've lost half of the world's land animals. And, in my own lifetime, we've removed life-sustaining oxygen from the seas and filled them with plastic."
She fears that we are losing safe places to live. "Every year, 20,000 square miles of tropical rain forest are destroyed and with it thousands of species of plants, animals, an insects," she said. The rate of deforestation in Brazil has been the highest in a decade because Brazil's President Bolsonaro actively encouraged the burning of the Amazon, and then he blamed Leonardo DiCaprio for the problem. Then, the always serene and composed Trudie Styler punctuated her frustration with, "You can't make this shit up!"
She continued, talking about how officials in Madrid are considering offering incentives to governments and industries to cut down carbon emissions. "That's extraordinary, isn't it? That any kind of financial incentivisation should be required at all – as if rising sea levels, extreme weather, the melting of the glaciers and ice caps, the deaths of coral reefs, droughts, floods, uncontrollable fires were not incentive enough!" She mentioned the migrant crisis and how millions more people will be on the move from their own destroyed environments, in search of food, security, and survival.
The Rainforest Fund is more important now than ever, a vital part of the bigger problem of our warming planet. While it may feel impossible, we owe it to the next generations not to give up. "We need to turn our activism into real, concrete action," she said. "The urgency demands that we must create a community of activists acting in harmony to save humanity."
She stressed that every choice we make matters – our diets, our cars, our use of plastic, our vote – if it's part of a unified vision. She urged for a new environmentalism that fosters a universal language of inclusion, that celebrates diversity and suggests a new way of being for humanity, and that ultimately protects all things on our Earth.
15. The Cup of Life – Ricky Martin. I don't think this guy ages. The crowd went wild for the sudden burst of energy and party atmosphere this performance provided.
16. La Vida Loca – Ricky Martin. Everyone sang along, stood, clapped, and danced to both of Ricky Martin's songs. The best thing I remember about this is that, two big guys were standing next to me, and when this song started, one of them exclaimed to the other, "Now, we're talkin'!!!"
After Ricky Martin brought down the house, we got a video message from Peter Gabriel! He said he was sorry that he couldn't attend tonight's event but was confident that Sting and the band would do okay. He complimented Sting and Trudie's efforts toward this cause and then said that Sting has introduced "tantric advocacy." (No, I still won't roll my eyes tonight.) He's helped the world realize how dependent we are on the rain forests.
After it was over, Robert Downey, Jr., walked out, saying, "Peter, what a dick! 'Tantric advocacy'?" Thanks, Robert, but let's move on... He and Sting introduced Adrienne Warren, who is now on Broadway portraying Tina Turner in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.
Robert Downey, Jr., came back out afterward. "We are continuing our theme of disgustingly philanthropic performers," he said, and he introduced John Mellencamp.
22. Here Comes the Rain Again – Eurythmics. This song started out acoustic and quiet. As with John Mellencamp's, everyone was singing along to this one too. Annie Lennox stopped singing at one point and prompted us to sing the chorus for her. "You sing so well," she whispered when we finished. Then, the song exploded, using the full band and crescendoing with another guitar solo from Dave Stewart.23. Sweet Dreams – Eurythmics. Keeping with this momentum, they launched into probably their best known song with the classic video playing in the background. We were all standing, singing, and swaying together. We were lucky to see them here, reunited for the first time in several years.
After this set, Robert Downey, Jr., returned and asked, "Does anyone find it ironic that The Boss never really had a job?" He was met with the typical response after any mention of this guy: "Bruuuuuuuce!'
25. Dancing in the Dark – Bruce Springsteen. As John Mellencamp left the stage, Bruce yelled and signaled Narada Michael Walden to start with a drum solo. All the backup singer clapped to the beat and did some happy choreographed moves throughout the whole song. We sang, danced, and cheered along to this one, which featured a great saxophone solo. Eventually, all of the performers joined Bruce on stage, dancing and clapping to the beat as he ended this song.
But, I won't complain because everyone is on stage here! One of the backup singers I didn't know took on main singing duties and sounded great. I appreciate that she dressed up in an '80s-inspired mostly black outfit, with hot pink lips on her t-shirt and a matching hot pink hair tie, jewelry, fingerless gloves, and leg warmers. But I spent most of my time trying to figure out if she was a famous special guest I didn't recognize or if she'd been here the whole time. (It was the latter.) I also noticed, more importantly, that Trudie had changed her look and outfit; now with a long ponytail, she wore a more festive shiny silver dress.
As usual, the performers had their own hand-held microphones and participated in this last song of the night, singing along to the chorus and big finish. When the song ended, the music from "Rapture" started up again and DMC rapped about the rain forest, leading everyone to chant, "Leave our rain forest alone!" It was a good message to end on.To end the chanting and music, DMC turned to face the band with outstretched arms. He had his back to us and stomped to end it. He immediately hugged Trudie and Sting, who were right in front of him, and everyone on stage followed suit, cheering, clapping and hugging each other. Then, Trudie stepped forward to thank everyone for coming and and supporting the Rainforest Fund: "We've done it!"
What does the future hold?
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| All concert photos' copyright: Getty Images |
I whole-heartedly support this plan. However, I'm also glad that she's not saying they're never having the concerts again. I'm holding out hope that this is just a break because I like these concerts. Can you tell? Thanks, Trudie, Sting, and everybody involved for making these events so unforgettable!
Now, everyone, every little bit counts. Donate to the Rainforest Fund today, vote, recycle, bring your tote bags to the grocery store when you shop, and do whatever else you can to help save our home. We've only got one.
