A taste of nostalgia

One of the latest shows we watched was The Lettermen.

Of late, we have been blessed with a bonanza of shows from the enterprising impresarios. Have you noticed how these foreign artists have been coming in to Philippine soil and wowing the audience with their music? Of course, some of them are not worth the money you pay just to watch them sing a few obligatory songs, and then turn their backs on the audience who are still clamoring for more.

Gary Lewis & the Playboys were brought in by super concert master Steve O’Neal (Danny Samonte to us friends and poker peers). That one brought on memories of the 60’s, and the front act, a bunch of kids whose parents may even be too young to be baby boomers themselves, the Bloomfields was such a hit with us because, aside from dressing up for the part, they sang those vintage songs like they grew up with it. Then came Gary, son of comedic institution Jerry Lewis, who did not even have an extraordinary voice to start with but whose brand of music was easy on the listener, the kind you hummed to or sang along with. When he broke into Wooly Bully, he brought the house down. Everyone who was too shy to dance in the aisles at least stomped to the beat. Everyone, and I mean everyone was infected with the music. My wife Baby and I, and our companions Tony and Liz San Diego, had a good time that night. I guess our kids, Tin and Waywee missed out on the fun because they couldn’t relate to "This Diamond Ring" and "Tina I held you in my arms, and the world stood still". They were fiddling with their iPods and were oblivious to the nostalgia all around them. My God, the coliseum was awash with it, and they were simply not part of it. Moral of the story – don’t bring your kids to concerts such as this. Bring instead your neighbors or cousins your age who are too old to fiddle with iPods but who can dance to Wooly Bully.

At the Coliseum that night, they were announcing the forth-coming shows. The Lettermen? Wow! This one we can’t pass on, and right then and there we made a pact to set one day for this.The Lettermen are too much a part and parcel of my salad days that I can’t pass it up. How can one forget those romantic ballads that you danced to, cheek to cheek with some cute chick in pony tail? Together, you hummed the lovely music and swooned like everybody else.

This time around they were brought in by Ovation Productions. Badminton enthusiasts Renen de Guia and wife Cel were busybodies that night. The coliseum on that first night when we went with my Motoring Today TV show co-host and motor sports "living legend" Pocholo Ramirez with wife Ellen, was not full, as can be expected. That day was an afterthought, added I guess because the shows sold out and the clamor was so loud they just had to add one more day. But I heard from Tony San Diego and the guys that the place was full to the rafters on the subsequent shows. Just goes to show that us baby boomers are still a force to reckon with.

Just to show you how confident The Lettermen, and the producers themselves, were, there was no front act to all the shows at the Coliseum. The one at Manila Hotel, produced by Beth Tagle, had the excellent sound of the three tenors, Bayani Fernando, Angie Reyes and Joey Lina. They serenaded the dinner crowd with a few selected songs which I understand were well-applauded by the appreciative crowd.

Anyway, our show as well as the second one at the Coliseum didn’t have a front act, but with The Lettermen in their element, who needs a front act? They sang for a good two hours (there was a short recess in between), and we still couldn’t get enough of them.

Tony Butala, the recognized leader of the group, was charming and friendly, the Tony Butala of my youth, who caressed the ladies with his ballads like The Seventh Dawn, Memories, etc. The sound was definitely faithful to the original you’d swear they all dated back to the 60’s. Only Tony Butala was from the original group, although the other two have been with the triumvirate for decades now, going on concert tours and still packing them in. What was remarkable, aside from the fidelity of their sound, was also the charm the group packed along with their music. The Lettermen were incredibly friendly. They brought along a new dimension to concerts – young and old alike were mounting the stage to have their pictures taken with the popular trio, and they were encouraging them, literally waving them up to the stage and pulling them up to have those precious snapshots. Now that’s new, and definitely adds a nice touch to the whole show.

But when they sang, the crowd oohed and aahhed, and sighed to their melodious voices. The blending was impeccable, the harmony just splendid, the choice of songs designed to evoke long lost memories and transport you back in time. Individually, they were exceptional singers, with a quality and timbre of voice that could stand alone. Collectively, they were magnificent, the highs and the lows distinct yet married to a singular tune. What a performance!

And then they sang Dahil Sa’yo, sang it with their own blend and stamped it with their own signature. Of course, the audience lapped it up. Then they sang another Tagalog song – Sapagkat Kami ay Tao Lamang, and two more Tagalog songs which I can’t recall anymore now. Wow! The choice of the local ballads, of course, was also impeccable, but I can’t help thinking – how on earth did these guys memorize all four Tagalog songs and effortlessly belted them without the benefit of a teleprompter? I don’t think I can sing a Japanese song (actually, I can’t sing at all) from start to finish, and these guys sang all four. Amazing.

All told, it was one heck of a performance, one heck of an evening. You could tell from the crowd as they piled out of the coliseum that everyone had a grand time. My brother Rey was there on the first night with his wife Evelyn, and also had a ball. Some friends who are really too young to appreciate the music surprisingly had a good time as well. Just goes to show that, memories or not, a show can stand on its own merits with just their music. Hurray for The Lettermen!

Coming up is good old favorite Andy Williams of Moon River fame. Now that is one heck of a show I can’t afford to miss. The group, who by now are fanatics of shows like this, are again making a pact to come in force for this Valentine Show. How else to celebrate the day of hearts than through a night of romantic songs and the soothing voice of Andy Williams? You can bet that we’re all going to be there!

Congratulations to the men and women behind these remarkable shows – Steve O’Neal, Renen de Guia, Viva Productions. Lovers of retro music that we are, we canít thank you enough. Just keep them coming guys.

Auto Focus new time slot

The premier motor show on television (now on its 8th year of broadcast) that has its 60 minutes exclusively dedicated to the automobile and the auto industry, Auto Focus has just been moved to a new timeslot – Friday evenings at 10 o’clock on Channel 4 Manila and nationwide via satellite on the National Broadcasting Network.

Now, while we’re at it, I might as well remind you about the other shows that Sunshine Television produces – Motoring Today, tomorrow, Sunday at 11:30 in the morning and Business & Leisure, also Sunday, but in the evening at 10:30, both also on Channel 4 and nationwide on NBN, while Breaking Barriers, which I co-host with my brother Rey airs every Wednesday at 12 midnight on IBC TV-13.

Kindly notice that these are all long-running developmental shows that are informative as well as entertaining and are all aimed to uplift the viewing standards of our TV-viewing public.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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