It’s not every day that a girl gets to live out a teenage fantasy. But that’s exactly what happened on Friday night as Gary Barlow chose one lucky lady from an audience of screaming fans and brought her on to the stage at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre for a special serenade. And when he broke into A Million Love Songs, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
It was a high point of Barlow’s debut concert in Dubai — a night of nostalgia for many as the Take That member played favourite tunes from the boy band’s glory days in the 1990s. He sang songs such as Shine, Rule the World and, of course, Back For Good.
There were smiles all round and memories of days gone by as the lad from Cheshire, England, made us all feel like we were teenagers again — if only for a night.
He also played some tracks from his latest album as a solo artist, Since I Saw You Last. And while his new music is decent, it just didn’t get the crowd pumped up as much as the old favourites, which is to be expected, I guess. When you’ve created gold, it’s hard to top it.
It was a hot and sticky night, uncomfortable for many, but Barlow made us forget we were in the desert and cooled us with his soothing voice — followed by an energising version of Relight My Fire and Never Forget. At one point Barlow even sang a duet with Elton John as Elton’s pre-recorded video was playing in the background — it was a nice touch from the legendary singer, who’s a close friend of Barlow’s, apparently.
All in all, although the heat was fierce, so were the fan feelings of adoration for a singer/songwriter who has shown that he’s made of sturdier stuff and actually, for a member of a boy band, is a very talented artist.
And for those of you pining for the rest of the Take That members to make a jaunt to the UAE, Barlow has promised to bring them here very soon. Now that’s a promise we hope he keeps.
