The Emirates Airline Dubai Jazz Festival got into the business end of the proceedings, unleashing its biggest acts over the closing weekend.
It was a rocking battle of the generations on the main stage: the UK’s Deep Purple headlined on Thursday while the Irish pop-rockers The Script closed the event on Friday night. Of the two, the winner was Deep Purple, hands down.
But first, to The Script’s performance. Augmented by a bassist and keyboard players, the trio put on a super-slick show with a set list that allowed equal play from all three albums.
The group may be described as similar to U2 or Keane, but tracks such as We Cry and Science of Faith display a hip-hop heart with some inventive drum work.
While earlier anthemic singles such as The Man Who Couldn't Be Moved and If You Could See Me Now may seem too calculated, the closer Hall of Fame hints that the group has more to offer than pop impersonations. The expansive track sounded brilliant live, its sweeping chorus bringing everyone to their feet.
Throughout their four-decade career, Deep Purple explored many genres as a band. On Thursday night, with the line-up relatively stable, the group delivered a dazzling hit-laden set. Kicking off with Fire Ball, the singer Ian Gillan was more than up for it.
He wrenched those high notes out as he prowled the stage and did an impressive job of delivering Into the Fire's classic, high-pitched chorus spot on.
For decades, the guitarist Steve Morse has been convincing the hard-core fans that he is a worthy replacement for the band's original guitarist, Ritchie Blackmore. His star turn should have finally converted any of the Dubai sceptics. As the sole guitarist on stage, he summoned up the fury brilliantly in The Battle Rages On and Wasted Sunsets.
His 15-minute solo performance preceding the latter, consisting of furious fretwork and coaxing synth piano lines of his instrument, had the crowd in raptures.
But one thing differentiating Deep Purple from their peers – and to some extent, the current crop of rockers – is their muscular organ sound.
While the use of the instrument in today’s rock tunes tend to denote a sense of grandeur and melancholy, under Deep Purple, the organ is a feral beast with riffs as muscular as the guitar.
Don Airey had no problem going head-to-head with Morse in Space Trucking, while in the closer Black Night, his swampy notes gave the track its signature vintage feel.
In the Jazz Garden, on Friday night, The Yellow Jackets celebrated three decades of music with a funk-fuelled set, while the All-Star Smooth Jazz group – including guitarist Paul Brown, keyboard player Oli Silk and trumpeter Lin Rountree – kept the crowd moving in a largely improvisational performance that catered to each of their strengths.
The young singer-songwriter J Lee deserves a mention.
On Thursday night, the smokey-voiced singer showcased tracks from her forthcoming debut album. Her sultry mix of jazz and alt-country songwriting hints at a wonderful emerging talent.
sasaeed@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Without Remorse
Directed by: Stefano Sollima
Starring: Michael B Jordan
4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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PSL FINAL
Multan Sultans v Peshawar Zalmi
8pm, Thursday
Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Company%20Profile
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HEADLINE HERE
- I would recommend writing out the text in the body
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- It can be as long as you link
- But I recommend you use the bullet point function (see red square)
- Or try to keep the word count down
- Be wary of other embeds lengthy fact boxes could crash into
- That's about it
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
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EA Sports FC 25
Developer: EA Vancouver, EA Romania
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
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1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List
James Mustich, Workman
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).