Give the gift of music this Christmas

Here are two albums that I’m sure people in your Christmas list will be glad to receive. Think primarily of the budding music historian or anybody who appreciates Filipino pop music.

Ultraelectromagneticjam: The Music of the Eraserheads: There are plenty of hit songs in the charts at any given time. They stay for a while and then move on to make room for others. Thank you, we all had a nice time. However, the true test of a hit song is not in how long it stays in the hit list. It is in how it withstands different arrangements, various interpreters and the changing times. Everybody loved Ultraelectromagneticpop when it first came out 15 years ago but it seemed very unlikely that any of the songs will survive the coming years.

The songs of Ely Buendia, Raymund Marasigan, Buddy Zabala and Marcus Adoro initially seemed like novelties that shocked and amused. But they also entertained loads of listeners over the years and are now ready to join the classics. Proof is in the way some of the country’s most popular artists today have taken E-Heads materials and then interpreted these in their own styles. Would you believe that even Rico J. Puno joins the fun? His entry is the enduring Ang Huling El Bimbo.

The other cuts are Magasin by Paolo Santos; Alcohol by Radioactive Sago Project; Spolarium by Imago; Torpedo by Isha; ‘Wag Mo Nang Itanong by M.Y.M.P.; ‘Wag Kang Matakot by Orange and Lemons; Ang Huling El Bimbo by Rico J. Puno; Ligaya by Kitchie Nadal; Overdrive by Barbie Almalbis; Pare Ko by Sponge Cola; Alapaap by 6Cyclemind; Super Proxy by FrancisM with Hardware; Hard to Believe by Cueshé; Maling Akala by Brownman Revival; With a Smile by South Border; and Tikman by Sugarfree. All’s well and good but does anybody know what happened to Toyang?

The Anthology a 20th Anniversary Celebration by The CompanY: Ang Huling El Bimbo, again, arranged this time as a mellow ballad, is one of the featured songs in this collection. The impressive boxed set contains an audio CD, a video CD and a booklet filled with interesting bits about the history of the pop group. In a way, it also says a lot about the development of local pop music during the past two decades and how The CompanY evolved into what it is today.

Aside from Ang Huling El Bimbo, the album’s Disc One has Didn’t We, Minsan Pa, Everlasting Love, Now That I Have You, Muntik Na Kitang Minahal, Pakisabi Na Lang, Pag Nagkataon, Baka Ikaw, Kung Kailan Pa, A Different World for You and Me, The Look of Love, Mahal Kong Radyo, Hindi Na, Forevermore and Bulaklak. Disc Two has videos of Ang Huling El Bimbo, Baka Ikaw, Hindi Na and Hopeless Romantic.

The CompanY started out as a group of 12 in 1985. The album ends with six, Annie Quintos, Moy Ortiz, Andre Castillo, Cecile Bautista, Reuben Laurente and Sweet Plantado.

Tower Records anniversary

Tower Records marks its seventh year in the country with a free concert headlining top hitmakers at the Ayala Center in Makati tomorrow. Consisting of a pre-party and a concert, the event is being presented in cooperation with the Philippine Association of the Recording Industry (PARI) which shares the same vision with Tower to promote OPM music and curb music piracy.

Featured performers in the concert sponsored by Levi’s will be M.Y.M.P., Keith Martin, Sugarfree, Upharmodown, Akafellas, Join the Club, Cynthia Alexander, Silent Sanctuary, Raymond Lauchengco, Peace Pipe, Pupil, Menaya and Stonefree. Also set to perform are Levi’s Engineered Team of dancers and zip zappers. Lucky members of the audience will win a pair of Levi’s pants.

The party will be held at the Glorietta Activity Center at 5 p.m. today. Guests include Paolo Santos, Imago, True Faith, Aiza Seguerra, Mike Villegas, Wickermoss, Isha, Nikki Gil, Christian Bautista and the DLSU Pops Orchestra.

Founded in 1960, Tower Records is America’s leading independent music and movie retailer. It operates 90 stores in the US and 114 stores run by licensees in nine countries. It now has seven branches in the Philippines located at the Alabang Town Center, Glorietta 3, Shangri-La, SM Megamall, Quezon Avenue, SM North EDSA and SM Pampanga.