Police reunion starts with sellout gig in Vancouver

THE Police kicked off their reunion tour in Vancouver, Canada, before a sellout crowd of 20,000 — not bad for a group playing in their first stadium in more than 20 years.

Fans took to their feet and sang along as Monday night’s show opened with Message in a Bottle, the group’s 1979 smash hit.

The trio of singer-bassist Sting, guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland followed that up with a six-minute rendition of 1982’s Synchronicity.

From hit to hit, fans at General Motors Place swayed to the music, offering up thunderous applause. The Police broke up in 1984 at the height of success.

Sting, 55, Summers, 64, and Copeland, 54, have since pursued individual careers.

Sting’s son started off the evening. Joe Sumner, the lead vocalist and bassist for Fiction Plane, raced onto the stage sounding a lot like his father, otherwise known as Gordon Sumner.

Some fans were in for a nostalgic night while others were not even born during the group’s heyday.

“I think it’s good that all these bands are getting back together so that our kids can see them,” said Mark Beason, who attended the show with his daughter Alanna Beason, 18, of Whidbey Island, Washington.

The Police are hoping to rival recent outings by the Rolling Stones and U2 and will join a crowded reunion line-up this summer that includes Genesis, Van Halen and the Eagles.

The Police have scheduled 21 gigs in the United States and Canada, including stops in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Seattle, New Orleans and New York.

The world tour, which runs until 2008, will touch down in North America, Europe, Latin America, Japan and Australia.