Sting brought out a new song last night on The Late Show With David Letterman, where he performed “What Have We Got” off The Last Ship, his latest album and the basis for a musical due next year. The singer amped up the folky and performance with help from a multitude of backing musicians who included two fiddle players, and accordionist and a vocalist who repeated his lyrics, making for a conversation-like effect.
Dressed simply in a white T-shirt, jeans and boots with his foot propped on a wooden box, Sting embodied the industrial themes of the shipbuilding town that the album and musical describe. The Last Ship is set to debut on Broadway next year following a trial run in Chicago next summer.
