"I ain't Mick Jagger": Billy Joel duets with Sting on The Police’s Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, then manages expectations before covering The Rolling Stones’ Start Me Up

By Ben Rogerson
( Keyboard Magazine )
published

The Joel-aissance continues in Tampa, Florida

Billy Joel seems to be having the time of his life right now. He’s releasing new music, musing on who would be in his supergroup and now duetting with Sting on The Police’s Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.

This meeting of musical giants happened at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, over the weekend. Joel invited a be-bassed Sting to the stage and the pair gave an effortless performance of the song, trading lines in the verses and harmonising during the choruses.

Billy Joel and Sting

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The Tampa Bay Times reports that Sting’s set at the co-headlining gig featured both solo and Police material, and that he also duetted with Shaggy on Englishman In New York.

Joel, meanwhile, played a crowd-pleasing, hit-filled setlist, also finding time to cover The Rolling Stones’ Start Me Up. He was keen to set expectations before that one, though, telling the crowd that “I ain’t Mick Jagger”.

Did we detect a few Jagger-esque moves from Joel during the performance, though? Take a look and decide for yourself.

Ben Rogerson
Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.