Enrique Gil: Dancing King

Dance music has not made much progress in the Philippines. While Filipinos love to dance and can easily adopt foreign music trends, dance music seems to be the one genre where we have not become success- ful. Say Filipino dance song and the first titles that come to mind are An- nie Batungbakal by Hotdog and Awitin Mo At Isasayaw Ko by VST&Co.

And I feel like screaming, those songs are almost 40 years old.

It was during the height of the disco craze in the late ’70s when Manila Sound pioneer Hotdog went disco and VST&Co was born. It was certainly during that time when original dance music was at its most popular. There were also other hits like Bongga Ka Day by Hotdog, Rock Baby Rock by VST&Co and I-Swing Mo Ako by Sharon Cuneta. There were also Hagibis with Katawan and the Boyfriends with Sumayaw, Sumunod. Local dance music reached its peak then.

But it has since then become a prob- lem. Dance music reached its peak and stayed there, unchanged and stagnant all through these past years. There were some attempts at change, but none of them caught on with a public. Most notable was Gary Valenciano, who can really move and who had songs like Shout For Joy and Di Bale Na Lang, but he is now better known for his ballads. As a result, we now have dance music fans, who either groove with club music from abroad or call in Hotdog or VST&Co, to swing.

This is why I am both excited and skeptical when I learn of Filipino artists doing dance mu- sic. Excited and thinking: ‘Hi savior, thank you for the new dance sounds.” Skeptical because I

am wondering if they would be able to break the swinging stranglehold that Hotdog and VST&Co have imposed on us for a long time. Of course, I am also very grateful that they have not stopped trying. And Enrique Gil is trying.

Enrique, gorgeous soap opera heartthrob of Muling Buksan Ang Puso and Princess And I, has add- ed dancer and recording artist

to his resumé. Dancer was an offshoot of Do The Dougie numbers in ASAP and stints in the dance show Good Vibes. Star Magic, his management, probably thought that since he is doing a lot of dancing, he might as well do it to his own music.The result is King Of The Gil, a part hip-hop, part-R&B, part-rap and part-dance album debut by Enrique. It is made up of Oha (Kaya Mo Ba To?) and Rockin’ Them Jeans featuring Tippy Dos Santos by Julius James de Belen and Timothy Alfaro; Miss Miss and Ikaw Lamang by Daryl Ronald Rendell

Barbaso and Jasper Lukban; and So Fly also by Timothy with Jasper Lukban.

And because there is really no ditching the classic dance hits, the producers have included a few. These are a Katawan and Legs medley originally written and produced by rocker Mike Hanopol for the all-male group Hagibis and another medley of VST&Co’s Magsayawan and Rock Baby Rock composed by Charo Unite, Ernie de la Peña and Vic Sotto. Admit it, these songs still sound good after all these years.

As for Enrique, the album shows that he is not going to win any singing contests.

What he has is the beat and he moves well. Since the CD and his upcoming concert are allabout the dance, then I can say he hit the nail on the head. For a live look and listen at The King of the Gil, check out his concert of the same title at theSmart-Araneta Coliseum on Nov. 29. Guesting will be Enrique’s fellow friends and co-stars like Vice Ganda, Angel Locsin, Kim Chiu, Vhong Navarro, Jhong Hilario, Rico Blanco, Gloc 9, Young JV, Arjo Atayde, Ejay Falcon and Aaron Villaflor. Also set to do a special number is his Muling Buksan Ang Puso leading lady Julia Montes. Tickets are now available at Ticketnet outlets and at ticketnet.com. ph.Still on upcoming concerts, lovely bossa nova queen Sitti will be holding hers at the Music Museum on Thurs- day, Nov. 28. The show is titled Bossa Love and coincides with the release of her new album of the same title. This event will also mark her return to bossa nova singing. The light Latin jazz style was what propelled Sitti to stardom some years ago. So after a pe- riod of experimentation with pop bal- lads, she is now back with the bossa nova but with a difference.

Bossa Love is a blend of pop and bossa tunes in that Sitti has taken famous pop songs and given them the bossa touch. Among those included in the CD and which she is set to perform during her show are Maroon 5’s Sun- day Morning; It Wasn’t Me by Shaggy; Someday We’ll Know by the new Radi- cals; Waterfalls by TLC; I Want It That Way by the Backstreet Boys; Smooth by Santana; and Lost Without You by Robin Thicke.

Sitti also promises to perform her big hits in the show. She will be joined by fellow acoustic star Nyoy Volante and rocker Jett Pangan. Tickets to Bossa Love are now available at SM Tickets or smtickets.com, the Music Museum and Ticketworld. Orchestra ticket holders will get a free copy of the Bossa Love CD.