A Klassy Tribute

The concept is straightforward and nothing groundbreaking. Others like Side A, Pops Fernandez, Martin Nievera, Gary Valenciano, Kuh Ledesma have all done their own variations of the same concept. "Look back on our very rich OPM (Original Pilipino Music) legacy, pick out one’s favorites, and do personalized ‘covers’ of these tunes." It’s a great formula, as obviously, the oldies out there will warm to hearing these songs again, and the artist’s current crop of young-ish fans will "discover" these great tunes for the first time. And hopefully (for the recording company), one gets the resultant magic of both generations queuing to purchase the CDs.

The CD is OPM Klasiks on Vicor Records and the artist is Nyoy Volante and Mannos. For those who have been living under a rock the past three years, Nyoy was one of the three prime movers (along with Paolo Santos and Jimmy Bondoc) of the acoustic craze that hit our local music industry. In fact, since that acoustic wave, no real trend for where our live audience and CD buying public are going has emerged. A localized version of R & B has continuously simmered, but has never caught fire in the mainstream like the acoustic phenomenon did just a couple of years ago. Also, R & B has not yet developed as a true live performance idiom, preferring to state its case within the realm of CD sales and DJ-inspired dance clubs.

So, while OPM Klasiks does not tread new ground, the singular approach of Nyoy Volante to his music provides the essential difference. In his live performances, Nyoy and Mannos have always been characterized by the rearranging and "playing" they do with their "covers". Never to go for a note-per-note rendition of the song, Nyoy teases something new each time out, stamping each "cover" with a very personal signature–seek out their live gigs and watch out for Sting’s Englishman in New York, for example.

While they can’t be as "loose" on this CD, given how radio play, music videos and commercial success require less noodling and experimentation, there is enough here to show the new listener why Nyoy has a unique charm and talent. Beyond the trademark almost-out-of-breath quality of his delivery, and the seemingly facile (yet impressive) shifts to falsetto and "kulots", there are the rearrangements providing the impetus to the Top 3 Reasons why one should get this CD.

Gary Valenciano’s Eto Na Naman and Reachin’ Out, Basil Valdez’s Narito Ka and Sana Ay Ikaw Na Nga (and an instrumental Ngayon at Kailan Man), Binibini of the Rainmakers, the Tillie Moreno/Ray-An Fuentes standard of Umagang Kay Ganda, the first video we see of the Martin Nievera-popularized Each Day With You, Sumayaw Sumunod of the Boyfriends, Beep Beep of the Juan de la Cruz Band; and some very strong originals like Nasaan and Parang Kapiling–at 17 tracks, there’s a wealth of material on this one CD.

The Eto Na Naman of Gary gets a fresh take as there’s a much more easy going, laid back gait to this interpretation. The upbeat violin work on Sumayaw Sumunod had me nostalgically remembering the fiddle of Come On Eileen of Dexy’s Midnight Runners from the 1980s. While the Umagang Kay Ganda lost the duet quality of Tillie and Ray-An, Nyoy’s rendition still stands out, thanks to the "kulots" he injects to the coda and final chorus.

Naturally with this many numbers, it’s inevitable that some cuts will succeed better than others. I personally found the instrumentals a bit too de-numero. In the case of Ngayon at Kailan Man, was wishing Jerome (on violin) would stretch away from the melody much sooner than at the end of the song. The Each Day With You is somewhat overproduced for my tastes and am more interested to hear if a sparser version will be rendered when they perform live. The filler cut at the end of the CD is Nyoy’s own Dahil Wala Ka Na and I felt this was the strongest original composition, even if it was only a demo version that was included.

Nowadays, it’s not that easy to find music this accessible and yet of sufficient musical merit. Too many artists have opted to ride the "formula train" of novelty songs and easy listening fodder. We should thank our lucky musical stars there are still artists out there like Nyoy Volante–even while giving us a CD of covers, he remains an "original."