A belated report on the Police show last weekend

Jesse and I didn't have tickets. They were going for around $100, and even with brokers trying to frantically give them away at the last minute because when it came close to concert-time, they realized this show wasn't the hot item everybody thought it was be, we still couldn't find a great deal.

So we just said fuck it, walked over the Wrigley and hung around outside for most of the set. It ended up being more than satisfactory. The sound just beyond left field was perfect.

As far as the material, they played their Top 40 stuff almost exclusively. For the most part it sounded good. They tended to overplay some of the songs (Sting has adopted some jammy tendencies over the years.) But once they got the ball rolling, you really couldn't tell that it had been decades since they last played together. I'm not saying I'd have paid $100 to get into the place, but towards the end of the set I didn't start to feel an urge to find my way in there and see this reunion in person.

We wound up going to a bar just across Clark from the field and finding a seat next to its open windows and listening to most of the set.

After buying a $4 round of beers, Jesse and I looked at each other like we pulled off the coup of the century. Not only were we comfortably listening to the show for free, but we were paying less than half as much for drinks as we would be on the inside.

Given the cool vibe around Wrigley during the show (lots of people just out walking around or partying in their yards) and the fact that you can hear the acts for free, I'd say it's time the historic ball park started hosting more concerts. Of course, given the poor condition of the field after the two sold-out shows, it's not likely that will happen.