The Hollywood Reporter delivers the awkward truth about The Police and their performance in concert at the Los Angeles Staples Center:

The 55-year-old Sting, sort of the male Madonna, looked fit beyond his years in a sleeveless white T-shirt and tight black trousers tucked into combat boots . . . but when his face was projected on the large video screens in the rafters, he looked all of his 64 years.

Two songs into the set, things started to go awry. “Synchronicity II,” from the band’s final studio album in 1983, was a mess. The trio rebounded with a skank-worthy rendition of “Walking on the Moon” but stumbled again on “Don’t Stand So Close to Me.”

Making matters worse, Sting had trouble hitting high notes a few times during the set, most notable [sic] on the trio’s biggest hit, “Every Breath You Take,” one of several encores.

The Police are one of many 1980′s musical acts looking to cash in on the summer reunion tour madness, but it looks like the trio would have been better off staying at home and repackaging their greatest hits album with a jaunty new sleeve.

On a brighter note, some fetching pictures of (NSFW) Sting and Mini-Sting are now circulating the internets. Go see the goods if you’re into that sort of thing. Then go vote. As the Scottish say, it’s a wee pleasure.