APO milestones
MANILA, Philippines - 1969: The “Apolinario Mabini Hiking Society” begins its 41-year career at the Ateneo High School with 13 members. Danny Javier joins the group in college. Before settling on the name APO Hiking Society, among those shortlisted were “Jose Rizal Bulletproof Vest Company,” “Kataas-taasang Kagalang-galangang Kombo” and “The Purple People.”
1971: Danny and Jim write Now That It’s Over and Done, one of only two songs they ever co-wrote, the other being Blue Jeans. Danny and Jim had just broken up with their respective girlfriends (Danny’s was Jim’s sister). They wrote it over just one bottle of beer.
July 14-15, 1973: Danny, Boboy, Jim, and Lito de Joya stage a two-night farewell concert at the Meralco Theater. Reason for break-up: Lito decided to go corporate and Jim was to leave for Turkey.
1975: The now-trio APO visits 57 cities in three months in their first concert tour. They were paid US$2,000 each. The Forex then was P7 to US$1.
1976: Show Me a Smile, Danny’s first English composition, is released. It is the second track on side B of their second studio album “Songwriter.”
May 1979: Jim Paredes’ first child Erica is born. He writes for her what would be one of his most favorite APO songs — Batang-Bata Ka Pa.
1980: Mike de Leon’s Kakabakaba Ka Ba? is released. On its movie set, the APO wrote Pumapatak Na Naman ang Ulan while waiting for the rain to stop in between sequences.
1981: Blue Jeans, starring then teen star Dina Bonnevie, is released. There were three others sharing the top billing with Ms. D. Their names? Danny, Boboy, and Jim.
1987: Gary Valenciano releases his first Tagalog hit, Di Na Natuto, composed for him by Danny. Gary said Danny gave him the song with the “threat” that if he didn’t record it before a particular deadline, the APO would record their version of the song. Gary, of course, beat the deadline. Danny described it as “in all my 61 years, there has never been a song na kasing-hit ng Di Na Natuto.” The APO released their Di Na Natuto version in 1990.
Sometime between late ‘80s and early ‘90s: The APO performs Batang-bata Ka Pa in an episode of Batibot, on what would be most ‘90s kids’ first exposure to their legendary music.
Jan. 28, 1990: Musical variety show Sa Linggo nAPO Sila airs for the first time.
1998: The APO and The Eraserheads — with the signature ‘90s banda look — team up for their first San Miguel Beer TV commercial “Homeboys.” It’s on YouTube, look it up!
2006: Jim migrates to Australia.
Aug. 9, 2006: The tribute album to the APO Hiking Society Kami nAPO Muna, featuring 18 covers by our biggest rock bands, is released. It sells more than 125,000 copies in less than six months.
Sept. 20, 2008: The APO holds their reunion concert called Apo of the Philippines at the Araneta Coliseum for their 39th anniversary.
March 6, 2009: @jimparedes joins Twitter. Only Jim has a Twitter account among the APO members. He has 277,800-plus followers.
2010: The APO announces that they will be disbanding because of the group’s “diminishing creative process.” They held their last series of performances, beginning with “Last Valentine nAPO,” and ending with a concert at the Music Museum. Then-presidential frontrunner Noynoy Aquino and then-girlfriend Shalani Soledad attend the finale concert.
June 30, 2010: The APO reunites for the last time and performs at P-Noy’s inauguration as president.
Aug. 29, 2012: I Do Bidoo Bidoo opens in theaters nationwide.
