The riot that is Rex

You enjoy watching the shows of Rex Navarrete and can never seem to get enough of his jokes. But there is just no way you can watch him everyday. Reality-wise, it is not that easy on the pocket during these difficult times. Besides, he is not always in town. The guy is American. If not at home in San Francisco, US of A, he is touring and regaling Filipinos abroad with his funny tales about the maid Maritess and her superfriends, about Tito Boy, the SBC packers or those other characters he has created that Pinoys never fail to recognize or identify with. Then maybe he might be taking a break from work and is relaxing in the tropical warmth of Guam or Hawaii.

Take heart though. This year you can give yourself and all your friends who also love Rex, the enjoyable present of having Rex Navarrete available whenever you want him to perform for hours and hours and hours. The Philippine-born stand-up comedian has recorded three CDs over the past five years. But these were then only available in America. Then last month, EMI acquired the rights to the Rex Navarrete catalogue and released all three albums–Badly Browned, Husky Boy, and Bastos–at the same time.

I assure you, listening to these CDs is like getting a front row seat in a Rex Navarrete show. Each one is a virtual anthology of riotous gags. In fact Badly Browned alone has 25 cuts! These are also the most familiar, probably because this set was Navarrete’s first recording and was where he introduced his Pinoy prototypes. The jokes straddle the fine line between the local humor and its Americanized version. The effect can be pathetic, ironic, sad or downright funny. But whatever the reaction, it is a fact that everything Rex jokes about is real. He takes his materials experiences of Filipinos living in the US and acclimatizing themselves to the ways of America. This results in that unique individual, the Philam. He takes their language, their idiosyncracies, their hopes and dreams, everything about them, and then takes aim for the funnybones of everybody.

The Philam experience is something that Rex is personally familiar with. He was born in the Philippines but moved to the US as a child. His biggest influence as far as being comedian is concerned is his mother who is even funnier than he is. He started performing in public when he was 19 and hasn’t stopped since. Given the way his mind works and the way the Filipino reacts to everything, I do not see any chance of Rex running out of materials soon. But to better understand what he has in store for his fans in the future, it is best to check out the past. And this means the CDs Badly Browned, Husky Boy, and Bastos. I say give yourself the gift of laughter this Christmas Season.

Muling Balikan

Foreign artists like Barbra Streisand, Michael Bolton, Cyndi Lauper and Mandy Moore are not the only ones who have come out with albums made up of covers of pop standards this year. So has Pinoy group Aegis. This is the group made up of sisters Juliet and Mercy Sunot, Stella Galindo, Rey Abenoja, Rowena Pinpin and Vilma Goloviogo. Aegis is famous for its soaring harmonies and dramatic high notes. A few weeks ago, Aegis released one of its best efforts what looks to be one of the must-have releases of the year.

The album is titled Muling Balikan, and it is made up of Filipino hits from the past 30 years which have now been given that distinctive Aegis style. The first single releases are Dukha originally popularized by Judas and Father & Sons’ Miss Na Miss Kita. Then there are also Bulag, Pipi, Bingi, Himig ng Pag-ibig, Laki Sa Layaw, Pagsubok, Ang Buhay Ko, Lupa, Panahon, and Baleleng. The best of the lot though is Bayan Ko, the classic composition by Constancio de Guzman and Jose Corazon de Jesus, which is ideally suited to the group’s plaintive singing style.

A Spagheti Christmas

Musicwise, it is indeed turning out to be a spagheti Christmas. Now also available is Spagheti Sa Pasko by the Sexbomb Girls, the sexy lovelies who originally popularized the Spagheti Song. The CD is made up of all Spagheti tracks. There is Spagheti Sa Pasko the Christmas version of the famous tune featuring Joey de Leon. Then there is the Pasta Remix, which comes in two cuts, one by DJ Kubs. Now if you and the kids want to sing along, minus ones of these three cuts are also included in the CD.

So ready now, "Spagheti pababa, spagheti pataas, Merry Christmas."