Ashley’s Unang Halik

Unang Halik, that wistful song about the quiet excitement of first love and that all-important kiss, is the new single release from the album Ashley. Unang Halik was composed by Mon del Rosario, the singer/songwriter and doctor also responsible for the Metropop winner Sino ang Baliw and the phenomenal selling Isang Linggong Pag-ibig by Imelda Papin. It was first recorded way back in the ’80s by the very young Kristina Paner and it has been a big favorite among girl singers since.

Unang Halik requires a very special interpreter. Aside from being young and female, the singer must be able to convey innocence, naivete and the thrill of being in love at the same time. Now while a girl with these qualities was easy to find 20 years ago, the female singers of the 21st century are of a very different breed. Admittedly, the girls who sing hereabouts are not as tarty as Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera but I cannot think of any among the current pop princesses who can sing Unang Halik with unbelievable conviction and sound. That is, save for Ashley.

Ashley came to show business the same way that Elvis Presley did. Way back in the early ’50s, Presley, then a young truck driver, wanted to record a song as birthday present for his mother. So he went into one of those booths where you can sing and record your own single for a small fee. So Elvis sang. Sam Phillips of Sun Records heard him and put him under contract. And that was the beginning of the rock and roll phenomenon that changed the sound and also the look of popular music forever.

Ashley, like most kids her age, also likes to sing and her family also likes listening to her. So one day, they went to the Karaoke King booth at SM to record Ashley just for the fun of it. This is one of those booths where anybody can go to record a CD. You sing to recorded accompaniment, a technician makes an instant mix and you go home with the CD. So, Ashley sang Reflections and took home her own CD. Little did she know that she would leave SM with a manager in Karaoke King and the promise of soon becoming a singing star.

The self-titled Ashley is her first album and aside from Tina Paner, she also takes on other singing princesses from the past like Yolly Samson through an upbeat rendition of the Cinderella hit Sa Aking Pag-iisa and Donna Cruz with a rap version of Kapag Tumibok ang Puso with the hip hop trio Salbakuta. The album also has the originals Paligaw-ligaw Tingin by Arnie Mendaros and covers, All You Wanted by Michelle Branch but her Unang Halik is the biggest winner of them all.

Feedback

From the mail: Gladys Songayab wrote in from North Dakota in the US of A about Eva Cassidy. "I would like to share this lovely artist. I heard of her in the morning show of Katie Couric and her name is Eva Cassidy. You may have heard of her already. The sad thing is that she died of some kind of skin cancer but anyway try to buy one of her albums and you will surely love it. She has a crystal-clear powerful voice. She’s a jazz singer. I’ve got two of her albums and I always play it every now and then. Eva appeals to the early ’30s crowd. The great thing about her is that she plays the guitar. She recorded most of her albums in the UK. It’s a good thing I have a sister based in London and bless her heart, she bought me the CDs. I know you love music, try listening to her."

Thanks for the letter, Gladys. I am indeed a fan of Eva Cassidy. In fact, I have written about her and her music several times. She was even included in the list I came up with about the 100 greatest singing voices in the 20th century. It is indeed most unfortunate that she had to go so soon and doubly unfortunate that her albums are not released locally. For those interested, check out the imports section in the stores, buy the albums in the Internet or better yet, get somebody from abroad to make you a present of Eva Cassidy’s albums.