Tonight was the second night of the Dubai Jazz Festival which is being held at the Amphitheatre at Media City. We were a bit late arriving so most of the seating at the table and chairs was alraedy taken but fortunately we were able to grab two of the beanbags so we had comfortable seating for the rest of the evening. The group playing when we arrived was the Sergio Bekhazi Trio. Sergio is Lebanese and is based in Dubai usually performing with the Blues Drivers. They play a driving, rock influenced style of blues which reminded me of early Clapton. Really enjoyed what I saw of their set. If anyone knows where the Blues Drivers are playing locally in Dubai please email me.
Next up on the main stage were the Three Ladies of the Blues. Powerful, gutsy voices. Following them, but on the second stage, were Randy Brecker and Ada Rovatti. The crowd had to move between stages to watch the acts but as Toto were playing next on the main stage (where Roger Waters had played the previous week) I didn’t want to lose my prime spot so we sat in our bean bags, drank coffee and watched the performance from the second stage on the big screen.
Toto came on just after 10:30pm to a huge response and played until midnight. They’ve been together for 30 years and I’ve been a big fan since the days of “Hold the Line” so it was really exciting to finally see them live. The bass player was Lee Sklar, last seen in Dubai playing for Phil Collins. Lee's filling in while Mike Pocaro is recovering from a hand injury. After their first song which was, to be honest, rather rusty, they got into their stride and set about doing a brilliant show. There were plenty of old favourites, the crowd was singing along to “Rosanna”, “Hold the Line” and “Africa”. Its so good to see musicians doing what they’re best at and still having fun. They sound a lot like Foreigner at times but that’s not a bad thing IMHO.
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