Listen to The Guitar Man

If you don’t know how, where and when Bread got together, then you’re not a Bread-"tripper" (fan, I mean).

If you can rattle off the names of the two other Bread composers – Jimmy Griffin and Robb Royer, then you’re a true-blue Bread-"winner".

If, like me, you’re a follower/devotee of Bread (among other pop groups which reigned supreme during the Baby Boom era), then you must float on Cloud 9 meeting in person, shaking hands and weighing every word spoken by David Gates, the most prolific and most popular Bread member whose "soft style and sentimental lyrics" (as a music critic aptly put it) combined to sell millions of albums around the world in the ’70s. Bread songs have such enduring appeal that they sound today exactly like they did way back when Baby Boomers were decades younger, had less cares and worries in life and only thought of long-playing albums to splurge their meager allowance on. Those were the days, my friend!

I had a Conversation with Gates last Monday, Jan. 12, in Hong Kong where he did a concert. He then flew to Singapore also for a concert and is proceeding to Manila on Tuesday, Jan. 20, for a one-night show at the Araneta Coliseum (produced by Jojo San Pedro’s JP Entertainment).

The Hong Kong concert, held at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium, was a great musical experience and the Big Dome show promises to be the same. With only two American strings artists as back-up and an all-Filipino orchestra as accompaniment, Gates gently wafted the (enraptured, I could see) audience into a fondly-missed but lovingly-remembered bygone era with such Bread songs (all composed by Gates himself) as Make it With You, Diary, Seventeen, Aubrey, Lost Without Your Love, Guitar Man, Everything I Own, a new song called Find Me and – of course, of course! – If, probably the most popular Bread song. (For tickets to the Big Dome show, call JP Entertainment at 899-2812 or the SM Ticketnet at 911-5555.)

Gates was the Guitar Man par excellence on the Queen Elizabeth stage, shifting to the piano only during his last three songs.

Earlier that day, Bulletin’s Shirley Pizarro and I covered the mini-presscon where Gates was presented by the Hong Kong producers with an expensive watch, a silk Chinese jacket and a red wall decor carrying the Chinese characters for "good luck," in time for the Chinese New Year which starts on Thursday, Jan. 22.

I asked Gates what "animal" he is and he said, "I don’t know." He was born on Dec. 11, 1940, so he’s a Dragon. Gates is turning 64, all right, but he hardly looked it. He has a great sense of humor, very evident during our Conversation and during the concert when he did spiels in-between his songs.

Let’s listen to The Guitar Man:

How long do you see yourself still doing this?

"A few more years."

Like... 20 more years?

"Maybe...another five?"

Only? Too short.

"Well, I think I might still write songs but I might not be doing as many concerts because I need to play golf. I think five years are good enough. After that, you might not want to see me again."

That’s not true. We could listen to your songs and watch you in concerts for as long as you’re around.

"Because I’ve been doing this for a long time. I can’t be doing it forever."

When was the last time you were in Asia?

"In l997. I was in Hong Kong for a concert right after the handover."

By yourself?

"No, with Bread. It was our World Reunion Tour."

What happened to the other members of Bread?

"Oh, they’re everywhere."

Still making beautiful music or retired, enjoying their lives?

"They’re doing many different things but not music."

A lot of your fans, me included, have been wondering why you were called Bread.

"It was like this: We were standing on the street, trying to think of a name, when a bread truck came by. So we asked ourselves, ‘Why not Bread?’ It worked! I was thinking that it was a good thing that it was not a garbage truck. But there is a group called Garbage."

Haven’t you ever thought of writing a musical based on Bread songs (like the hit Broadway musical Mama Mia!)?

"Well, there’s another kind of music I may want to try. I’m also thinking about writing some classical music or Broadway show tunes some of which I already have, just to do something a little different. But I never really stray from what I think I do best which is pop music. Most of the melodies I hear are pop-type melodies. I could do something else but at some point it probably might be too difficult especially since I travel a lot and I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on it. It can wear you out."

Which three of the Bread songs are your favorites?

"It’s just like asking me who among my children is the best, is my favorite. You know, it’s hard to pick. If is the best song I ever wrote; I wrote it in an hour and a half. Very short; very unusual. Aubrey is the best melody I’ve written. One of my new songs, Find Me, is the one I enjoy playing in concerts the most."

What would you consider the song of your life, the one song that has a great impact on you?

"If. It’s really the most important song to me. I wrote it for my wife, Jo Rita, and it’s a timeless love song for me, so I enjoy sharing the song with as many people as possible. If has been recorded by 200 other people and it’s probably the most special song for me."

Do you sing If with your wife?

"No, she doesn’t sing. She’s nice but she doesn’t sing. You wouldn’t want to hear her sing."

There’s a David Gates who writes about music for Newsweek. Is he the same David Gates we’re talking to now?

"No, he’s a different guy. There’s yet another David Gates and I think he writes Gospel music. So many David Gates."

But only one who writes beautiful, romantic songs. By the way, are you related to Bill Gates?

"No. How I wish!"

At what point in your life did you realize that you could write songs?

"I started writing songs when I was just a kid, on piano...just a little melody. I always enjoyed it. You know, you don’t feel confident as a songwriter until you hear your song on the radio. So until I heard my first song recorded by somebody else...in 1963 when a girls’ group called The Murmaids recorded my song called Popsicles and Icicles, I knew my writing was good enough. That’s when I gained confidence."

What was the first song that made an impact on your life?

"A piece of classical music. You really want to know what it was?"

Oh, yes, of course!

"Okay. Have you heard of Bolero by Maurice Ravel? It was in the movie 10 with Bo Derek." (Does the song’s instrumental portion) "It was the first song that turned me on. I was three years old then. The rhythm and the melody got me started."

What makes a song click – and endure?

"I think that if you write a good song with a good melody, it will last forever, something that doesn’t sound too dated, something you can hear over and over again and not get tired of hearing. There’s a lot of songs like that. I think that’s the key to a song’s staying power."

Have you tried singing other people’s songs?

"You know, I’m a songwriter who sings. I’m not really a singer. Pavarotti is a singer. You know, there’s a lot of people who can really sing. I sing well enough to sing my own songs but I’m more of a songwriter."

Do you sound the same when you try to sing other people’s songs?

"No, I don’t sound as good. I sound better when I sing my own songs because I write them for my voice, in my range and my capabilities."

Who kind of influenced your style?

"In the beginning, you know, we all liked Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Elvis Presley, so they were my influences. But I really liked Peter Gabriel. I think he’s fantastic! There are real good songwriters who can sing, like Sheryl Crow."

Do you need an inspiration to write a song?

"Yeah, it’s funny. Inspiration is unusual; it depends on your mood. When you’re depressed, it’s a good time to go get your guitar. Or if you’re flying a kite, you get excited and you go get your guitar. Anything in-between you’re not going to do much."

Can’t you write when you’re too happy?

"Oh, yes, I can. Happy means happy songs; sad means love songs. You write based on your mood because you feel it. If you don’t feel anything, you don’t write anything."

Most writers are romantic. You are, too, I suppose.

"Yeah. I’m the same kind of person as my songs, kind of traditional."

You’ve been married to the same woman for a long time now, haven’t you?

"Yeah. For 44 years. She must be getting tired of me. We have four children – one doctor and three lawyers."

No musician?

"No musician."

What a pity!

"Oh, they all like music but they didn’t have enough talent to write songs."

You really love music more than anything else.

"Well, I kind of enjoy the music business for the quality of music and the songwriting rather than riding my own limousine. It’s not necessary to be a star. The most satisfaction I get is when another artist comes up to me and says, ‘Man, I love your stuff!’ You know. Stevie Wonder used to go around and play Diary. Other people know my work in the business, and other writers and singers will come up and tell me they like what I do. And that’s the best compliment you can get."

Aside from golf, what else do you do when you’re not writing songs or doing concerts?

"You know, I work outside a lot. I do gardening, trimming trees and golfing and walking and hiking. I’d get onto a canoe and do a lot of sailing. Outdoor things, yeah."

Oh, you’re a nature-lover.

"Yeah. A great nature-lover."

If there’s one song you want people to remember you for, what song would that be?

"If. It’s probably If. It’s my most well-known song."

Which line in the song do you love most?

"People come up to me and say that the line in the song they like most is...If a man could be in two places at one time I’d be with you tomorrow and today, beside you all the way...So those are probably the strongest lines from the song."

If you could be in two places at one time, which two places would they be?

(Smiling) "Hong Kong and Singapore."

Not Manila?

"I haven’t gotten to Manila yet. I’d be there on the 20th (of Jan.) to do a concert. If you ask me the same question when I get there, I’d tell you, ‘Hong Kong and Manila’."

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