Rewind to the good times: What is a combo?

Today, a combo is usually short for a food combination in a fast food: Coke, fries and burger; two viands and rice; soup, salad and dessert. Or it could easily mean that snack that tastes like a pretzel on the outside and has cheddar cheese on the inside.

In the ’60s and ’70s, bands in the Philippines were called “combos.” Just like clubs in the ’70s and ’80s were called “discos.”

If you were already around in the ’60s and the ’70s, you must be consumed sometimes by a wistful desire to revisit the era. (I personally think the ’80s, the Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet era,  and ’90s were better, more disciplined, but those who were starting to party during the ’60s and ’70s think they had wild fun during those Woodstock years.)

A tankful of gas at P20. No traffic jams. Lunch for P3. A movie for a peso. No VAT. Soft drinks at 10 centavos per bottle. A jeepney ride for the same amount.

I remember the declaration of martial law, curfew, several typhoons that left classes suspended for weeks. I remember my Uncle Edward getting crazy over the soundtrack of Jesus Christ Superstar. And I remember some Assumptionistas going crazy over Ted Neely (who played Jesus in the movie). I remember getting kilig with the song Pers Lab, by the Hotdogs (Tuwing kita’y nakikita, ako’y natutunaw. Parang ice cream na bilad, sa ilalim ng araw.)

For one enchanting night, you will be transported back to that era. Hotdog Productions, in cooperation with Harvest Aid Organization Foundation, presents YEBA Combo Festival, “a grand reunion of the superstar combos that dominated the local music scene during those magical years.”

To be staged on May 2 at the NBC Tent in Fort Bonifacio, YEBA will feature the Electromaniacs, Moonstrucks, Dynasouls, Deltas, Cobras and Sundowners. The combos (as bands were called during that period) will perform the music of icons like The Ventures, The Beatles, Herman’s Hermits, The Temptations, Peter & Gordon, and The Dave Clark 5, among others.

To add sparkle to this unforgettable event, special guests Ramon “RJ” Jacinto and Hotdog will dish out their original compositions guaranteed to rekindle an avalanche of memories. Of course, no trip down memory lane will be complete without the presence of Steve O’Neal, the show’s host and designated “historian.”

You don’t need a time machine to be part of this unforgettable event. Reserve your seat now to YEBA Combo Festival by calling 817-0828 or 815-1924. It’s the feel-good concert of the year!

The following is former Hotdog band member Dennis Garcia’s account of how he came up with the combustible combo reunion:

Mid-year last year, I experienced the most boring phase in my life. I was confined, “imprisoned” actually would be a more apt description,  in a hospital room for nearly three months. I survived whatever was ailing me and the “imprisonment.” (Thanks to the fact that I had a little savings, caring kids and siblings, a supportive extended family, doctors and nurses who loved Hotdog music, and a rich wife.)

While glued to a narrow bed 24/7, I got to thinking about my musician peers who continue to perform and accept gigs (reduced, mostly, to singing at wedding receptions and forgettable corporate events). What would happen if they got sick and needed funds to get well — or merely to continue pumping oxygen to their brains and blood to their hearts? Idea bulbs flashed all around.

I brainstormed with my brother and Hotdog collaborator Rene. Instead of Hotdog going on tour with the Cascades in the States, he said a combo festival would be a more meaningful gig to mount. The ever congenial producer of the tour and ex-musician Frank Rivera agreed.

Made sense. A combo festival would raise awareness for the unheralded bands of the ’60s and the ’70s. These guys paved the way for Original Pinoy Music but never cashed in on the concept since, a) their managers had limited media savvy or, b) corporate sponsors were non-existent during those times. “Suwerte kayo Bamboo, Rivermaya, Parokya, atbp.” A combo festival can give them a second wind, a chance to be introduced to a new generation of music fans. (Think Santana and his “Supernatural” comeback album.)

Rene and I got together and came up with a wish list, the combos (by the way, that’s what bands were called in the ’60s) that we most admired when we were grade school kids and who had influenced our own music careers.

First on the list was “Electromaniacs,” of course, with Ernie Delgado and Lito Toribio. And passionate new bassist Bert Tuason.

And there’s the Moonstrucks with bubbly Toto Ealdama, who pioneered the hilarious antics that the Society of Seven are now well known for.

A combo festival wouldn’t be complete without the Dynasouls, “the Beatles of the Philippines,” frontlined by brothers Vick and Tony Generoso.

Not to forget, the talented Deltas Snafu Rigor, Tony Jalandoni, Tonet Fabie and company, whose musicality was overshadowed by the notoriety of combo manager Jaime Jose.

There was also the band Cobras that produced ace bassist Sonny Nabong and Direk Bert de Leon, now much better known as the manager of Arnel Pineda of Journey.

The Celtics was also on the list but we found out that its frontman, Rey Sanchez, had passed away a few months earlier. Not to worry, we pinned down a combo that was equally popular during that period, The Sundowners.

Of course, the festival will never be complete unless we had these iconic initials attached to it — RJ. (Ramon Jacinto, the icon, readily agreed to be a special guest of the event.)

We wanted three more combos badly: Hi Jacks (but learned that frontman Nonoy Jereza had also passed away), Tilt Down Men (Tito Sotto’s group) and the Ramrods (Orly Ilacad’s band). Knowing no padrino to get through to them, we decided to forego these combos’ participation but resolved to keep them in mind if we decide to mount yet another similar gig.

To complete the cast, we convinced our good friend and Hotdog discoverer, Steve O’Neal, to be the festival’s host and “historian.”

Thus, YEBA Combo Festival was born. It’s happening on May 2, 7:30 p.m. at the NBC Tent, a benefit concert for the Harvest Association. (Because it’s for a good cause, you should give 817-0828 a call to reserve some tickets.)

Like a mantra that I keep repeating, the concert will spotlight “the legendary bands of the ’60s and the ’70s, together on the same stage for one night only. And, maybe, never again.”

That one night is coming soon. See you there. Yeba!

(You may e-mail me at [email protected])