The hits of Michael Learns to Rock

It took a while getting used to the name Michael Learns to Rock. While those familiar with the pop music scene are certainly no strangers to weird names – think Three Dog Night or Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark – Michael Learns to Rock still sounds strange. The name is not just that or a title. It is in truth a complete sentence. The group also turned out to be Danish. While we do not really know everything that goes on in Denmark, there is still no explainable reason why a band should be called Michael Learns to Rock. And most of all, there is nobody among the members named Michael.

We should make sure we find out the story behind Michael Learns to Rock when the group gets here next week. The famous band is slated to do a gig at the Araneta Coliseum on the evening of Tuesday, Nov. 6. Titled The Michael Learns to Rock Greatest Hits Tour, it is a joint production of Viva Concert, Midas Promotions and Uniprom Inc. This is the group’s second time in the Philippines but you can bet fans of their music will make sure they will be there to listen to them perform their hits live.

Hit songs are what Michael Learns to Rock has aplenty. Ever since the engaging ballad The Actor burst into the local chart, it had been one big seller after another for this group. That should not come as a surprise. That title is an instant attention grabber. There is the theme. "I’m not an actor/I’m not a star/and I don’t even have my own car" goes the refrain. Just think of the big number of young men all over the world, who are not actors, are not stars and do not have their own cars but are promising love true and everlasting. Quite a lot. No wonder the song turned out to be such a hit.

The Actor was the first and after that followed the other hits, mostly soft ballads or light pop rock tunes composed by the band’s singer and keyboard player Jascha Richter. The Actor plus 13 of these songs can be found in the Paint My Love Greatest Hits album. These are Paint My Love, Sleeping Child, That’s Why (You Go Away), Wild Women, Love Will Never Lie, I Still Carry On, Complicated Heart, Breaking My Heart, Someday, Out of the Blue, 25 Minutes, Breaking the Rules, and How Many Hours, Bonus tracks in this collection are Crazy Dream, an acoustic version of Paint My Love and an alternative version of Breaking My Heart.

Take note that this album was released in 1995 as MLTR’s way of counteracting the way their records were being played all around Asia. Hence, Paint My Love does not contain the later hits like Nothing to Lose, Something You Should Know, Strange Foreign Beauty and others. It also does not include anything from the newest release Blue Night. So if you want all of Michael Learns to Rock, you will just have to get three albums at the very least.

MLTR was born in the town of Arhus in Denmark 14 years ago when Richter formed a group with Kare Wanscher on drums and percussion, Mikkel Lentz on guitars and keyboards, and Sorren Madsen on bass and percussion. The group easily hit its stride with sharp vocal harmonies and pretty melodies and after extensive touring around Europe released its self-titled first album. This contained the instant international number one charter The Actor. The rest as the cliché goes, is now history.

The Michael Learns to Rock Greatest Hits Tour is sponsored by EMI Phils. Inc., Mossimo and Aqua Purified Drinking Water. Tickets are now available at all SM Ticketnet Outlets and the Araneta Coliseum Booking Office.

Still on the concert scene, you might also want to check out Viva Concerts’ Viva’s & I, also at the Big Dome on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 8:30 p.m. This one stars Janno Gibbs in a recap of his career as a singer and actor with Viva Films. He will be performing cuts from his Divas & I album with special guests like Pops Fernandez, Jaya, Lani Misalucha and Miss Pilita Corrales. Also featured are Janno’s friends and screen co-stars Andrew E., Blakdyak and Ogie Alcasid.

Tickets to Viva’s & I are now also available at all SM Ticketnet Outlets and the Araneta Coliseum Booking Office.