Treat yourself to Jose

Jose Llana has very impressive credentials. Lun Tha in The King and I on Broadway at 19, singing and dancing in the Gene Kelly role in the Central Park production of On the Town, the title role in Martin Guerre, the leading man in Flower Drum Song, all to excellent reviews. So it was quite a nice piece of news finding out that he will be recording an all-Filipino album and I will be working with him.

The question came next. How is his Tagalog? He has after all been living in the US since he was three. Can sing but cannot speak. Good enough. How much time does he have? Not much. He will be in Manila on May 10 and must be back in New York for Flower Drum rehearsals on July 15. He will also be doing a concert or two plus some TV while in the country.

To save time, we lined up the songs. Are there any songs he wants to record? He e-mailed a list. Two made it to the album, Ogie Alcasid’s Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang and Wency Cornejo’s Habang May Buhay. The other early choices were Louie Ocampo’s Ikaw Lang ang Mamahalin, Willy Cruz’s Sana’y Maghintay ang Walang Hanggan, Valera’s Walang Kapalit, Ogie’s Kailangan Ko’y Ikaw and Kailangan Kita, Ngayon and Paano Kita Pasasalamatan by George Canseco, Danny Tan’s Iisa Pa Lamang and Ryan Cayabyab’s Nais Ko and Iduyan Mo, which will be a duet with a female singer. Producer Eugene Villaluz insisted on Let the Pain Remain also by Cruz.

The songs were sent out for arranging before Jose’s arrival. Some of the composers like Cruz and Ocampo agreed to do their songs. Cayabyab and Tan were busy but others whom I believe are among the best we have rose to the occasion like Homer Flores, Alvin Nuñez, Mel Villena, Egay Gonzales and Mark Lopez. Jose wanted music sheets but since even classical artists in the Philippines have already learned to sing by ear, the compromise was that Eugene, ex-New Minstrel and awardwinning singer would record the songs first for Jose to learn. Hard work for a baritone singing in tenor key but it was all we could do given the time constraints.

It seemed like we had the makings of a good album but what about the artist we still had to meet. What is he like? Is he nice? Will he be patronizing of us Pinoys? Don’t tell me that he is so exceptionally talented that he should be forgiven for all his quirks, for being demanding or snooty? I couldn’t see any reason to turn our heads toward this guy, because he sings on Broadway. He will, after all, be working with the best this country can offer. Besides, we are all familiar with some really great singers, Basil, Rico, Gary, Martin, Janno, Ogie, etc. etc. Anything less than professional behavior from this guy will bring the claws out.

Jose arrived in May. Susan Tagle, who is used to working with the biggest, having been FPJ’s assistant for many years met him at the airport. An hour or so I was talking to a surprisingly gushy Susan on the phone. "Guwapo at mabait." And I told myself, we will be OK. This was proven the next day when although not scheduled for vocals, Jose turned up at the Amerasian Studio. He wanted to listen to Ocampo’s arrangements.

Louie replaced Ikaw Lang ang Mamahalin with You are My Song, which he felt suited Jose’s style better and he had this original, To Love You Once Again, a very special song he had composed for his wife. Louie was willing to let Jose record it, but only if the singer will be able to do justice to it. If not, he was going to get the song back. An hour or two later in the session, Jose was singing the song to Louie’s satisfaction. Before Louie left, he was telling us that he is sure Jose will also make it big in the Philippines.

Recording was a breeze. Jose, supposedly the jaded New Yorker, fell in love with the songs. "I can just see my mother crying when she hears this." As he learned the meaning of the lyrics, his voice, perfectly pitched and guwapong-guwapo soared each time with moving expression. There were hitches, too. Minor were words like pagkakataon and patutunghan. Almost major were his bouts with pharyngitis and suspected appendicitis. Truly major was the fire at Amerasian with three songs to go including the duets. Everything was moved to Pink Noise where Regine Velasquez did the wonderful Iduyan Mo and where late addition Sarah Geronimo joined Jose in Nais Ko.

The album Jose was finally released last July 9. It is more beautiful than I thought it would be. Of course, it is seldom that one can go wrong with those songs and arrangers and Eugene orchestrating the whole thing. But it was also because Jose Llana is a gem of a singer and a joy to work with.

Indulge me and treat yourselves to this one. This guy makes you feel proud to be a Filipino.