Pure listening pleasure

In the middle of last year, at a time when "great" pop concerts were made up of high tech production spots, countless Top ’40s-per-minute repertoire and superfluous costume changes, six brave artists took to the stage and delivered, well, something else... music. That is, outstanding, good-to-the-last-note, quality music.

The group, of course, is no other than the Philippine’s premiere vocals group, The CompanY. Composed of Annie Quintos, Moy Ortiz, Andre Castillo, Cecille Bautista, Sweet Plantado, and Reuben Laurente, the sextet is well-respected in the industry for their masterful harmonies, romantic originals and irreverent performance sensibilities.

That memorable concert was billed The CompanY Live At the CCP! and coincided with the group’s 17th anniversary. Beyond that, it celebrated a musical mélange that criss-crossed genres and eras essayed in a fearless but fun style that is the hallmark of every outing of the group.

Recently, Pop Art Music, a label under Viva Records, released The CompanY At the CCP! on CD. When others do so for nostalgic or novelty reasons, this differs as it captures the intent of The CompanY to trace their musical history via carefully selected pieces sans the trappings of a regular concert scenario.

The 22-track project (divided into two acts) opens with The CompanY’s version of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Fugue in C Minor and Fugue in D Minor that show off the group’s fine vocal blending and self-deprecating humor throughout the show.

It also hints at the group’s beginnings. It can be remembered that The CompanY debuted professionally as back-up singers/chorus members in a production called Komiks Konsierto held at the CCP decades ago.

The live recording then moves forward with Sweet and Andre doing operatic singing on The Laughing Song and Freaky Li’l Elves. Nothing extraordinary there, only the next number, Flat Baroque, seguing into Tie A Yellow Ribbon! The hilarious twist totally destabilizes the Conservatory-of-Music-feel established by the former numbers and presages more surprises in the offing.

Before more laughs, however, The CompanY gets into some serious moments by calling on "storytellers" Reuben and Cecille to do a medley of Pag Nagkataon and Baka Ikaw! Culled from their last album, Storybook, these are their only hits that made the line-up. As true artists, The CompanY opted to be consistent with the design of the concept rather than sacrifice it by singing obvious crowd-pleasers. Which is why I like them.

Act Two unfolds with an unreleased single called Gusto Ko Ng Acapella. Although whimsical, the tune keeps my adrenalin ready for a stylized, a capella version of a rehashed version of ABBA’s Dancing Queen. Replete with doo-bi-doo’s ala-Manhattan Transfer, this is certainly one of the CD’s best numbers.

Then marvel and mirth just keep rolling in. Four consecutive tracks have The CompanY doing a capella versions of Buchekique (Baroque-inspired), Rock Lobster, Sweet Dreams and the Mission Impossible Theme (with just a snippet of Madonna’s Frozen in the intro). Now think about it: Yoyoy Villame, Devo Eurythmics, Madonna – how did they all get in? And one after the other at that?

Ah, but there lies the unique artistry of The CompanY. Like a time machine, they throttle back and forth with but one destination in mind: true-blue musical entertainment.

And one simply cannot argue with 11 albums, 35 music industry awards and almost 18 years of staying power. When people tell me that the group is perhaps the most gifted and most successful vocals group in the country today, I don’t merely take their word for it. I simply listen to their songs.

(The CompanY Live At The CCP! is available at your favorite music stores.)