Friday, December 13, 2019
DECEMBER 13, 2019- FRIDAY JAM UPDATE & PHOTOS
Admit it or not, SomeOne above must surely be watching over us, as the turn of events last night (almost nil that it ever happens) definitely went to my absolute favor unintentionally just when I needed it most. You can attest that like in many many instances when some setbacks arises, may it be material need (particularly in this case of the music room's needs) or otherwise, prayers are quickly answered and solutions are quickly presented right under your very nose. At times there is not even a chance of asking for a specific solution yet the problem is quickly resolved. I don’t know about you guys, but this is an absolute validation why TRUSTing in God graces is paramount for me.
Speaking of noses, I was not at my 100% last night due to an incessant bout of the sniffles, non-stop sneezing accompanied by teary and puffy eyes that was probably caused by an allergic reaction to irritants that i was exposed to while I was de-cluttering the gym earlier. In case you didn’t know, i am quite sensitive to dust, cigarette smoke, the stench of a strong cologne and even foul body odor which causes irritation to my nasal passage subsequently causing respiratory problems when exposed to.
And so, rest and sleep, to increase the immune system, is always essential to a quick recovery, something that was granted to me timely at last night’s jam. As if by stroke of luck (I call it blessing), it was to be a short evening. In fact, as early as 12:45am we were ready to call it a night.
Despite the early lock up, a handful of guys had made it over for the jam. With all the Christmas parties going on everywhere, a lean turnout is absolutely understandable. Among the few guys who showed up were guitarist and flyboy Loren Orendain, drummer Iñaki Goitia, bassist Rick Trinidad, guitar sensation Joko Reantaso and his ever supportive dad Jay. It was great to si Jay and Joko back in the room after a year in absentia. With Joko’s seemingly lighter load in school, we might just see more of him in the next coming jams.
Though brief, it was still a productive jam for the guys with Loren and Joko lording over the lead guitar exchanges on some of the tunes they jammed. Captured a few of their effort on video which I opted to do all night. I decided not to participate on stage and was just on the side manning the camera for obvious reasons. Honestly, I wasn’t really in the mood to play at all, lest i end up sneezing, losing concentration and spoil the jam completely. with the ample rest and sleep i just had, i am feeling a lot better today. Thank God.
Hey, next Friday is our much awaited 2019 Pete’s Place Music Room Christmas Party. Promises to be a humdinger and another epic night for everyone. Don’t miss it.
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! GOD BLESS US ALL!
Saturday, December 7, 2019
DECEMBER 6, 2019 – FRIDAY JAM UPDATE & PHOTOS
I can’t deny the fact that whatever the turnout in attendance we ultimately end up with, the satisfaction and gratification I personally get from the whole experience is still totally unchanged. The warm bonding among friends and the subsequent jam will always be intact and existent to appreciate, packed or not. Such has been the culture of our humble music room for four exciting decades and still counting. Praise and thank God!
Last night, we were just a total of ten guys around with a mix of the young and the young at heart. Cebu based flyboy and guitarist Loren Orendain is in town and found his way again over to be with us. As always adept and complete in gear, Loren had so much fun playing with his shiny white fender strat, his particular axe of choice for the evening.
Bassist Rick Trinidad, percussionist Vincent Garrucho, vocalist Mayette Alberto-Clemente along with young guns flutist Carlo Mikhail and keyboardist Ryan Nacino plus myself comprised the whole ensemble performing on stage.
Incidentally, Gab Villanueva, Monchie Henares, Tinnie Esguerra and Kiko Montecillo, who had previous plans of coming, sadly had to abort at the last minute due to some unexpected developments. Well, there’s always next time to catch up.
At the jam, we managed to do some catchy jam progressions with Carlo playing flute and some standard jazz covers with Mayette doing the vocals, as well. As usual, I found myself alternating playing drums and bass to fill in. The jam was totally productive and gratifying, persisting for hours till about 4:15am.
Special mention to fellow Air force brat and chopper pilot Jb Gabor and also to my dear friend Gigi Rubio for their welcome surprise visit. I am blessed to see good friends over after being away for such a long time. Oh yes, Luisa Distor was in the house too. Glad to see you guys around!
Jb will be stationed briefly in Manila for a few months before he returns to his sea vessel where he flies a chopper. We hope see more of Jb and Gigi while he is still in town. Thank you so much Jb for the nifty bar table mats. Really appreciate the pasalubong. It definitely added class to the bar counter. I love it.
And so another episode of this week’s jam night had concluded. Two more weekends before our much anticipated Christmas Party. But before we bask on that thought, we still have one more Friday night jam to think about.
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE! GOD BLESS US ALL!
Saturday, November 30, 2019
NOVEMBER 29, 2019- FRIDAY JAM UPDATE & PHOTOS
It turned out to be an early evening for me when I decided to come down prematurely to the music room to prepare and to study a new song assignment we had hoped to play. With the little time I crammed into learning it, I was just glad I was able to gain enough grit to have a semblance of preparedness to try it out with the band later on.
My mind absorbed, I had apparently forgotten to open the front door to welcome early bird Gab Villanueva when he arrived because I was too preoccupied and distracted studying the song. He had to find his way elsewhere via the gym and through the back to get to the music room. Totally hilarious.
Soon, a group of young musicians arrived, mostly graduates from the conservatory of music. With their solid musical foundation, these youngsters are destined for greatness. A flutist, a keyboardist, a female bassist and a drummer friend they are comprised of (sorry I forgot their names). Welcome back to the music room guys.
Bassist Rick Trinidad, percussionist Vincent Garrucho, Monotones’ front man Ryan Nacino and myself were the first wave of jammers on stage. To no surprise, I again found myself alternating on bass and drums having no legitimate drummer in our band around. The young musician guests quickly jumped in to join the fun timely to reinforce the line-up. Ain't it nice to have a wind instrumentalist on board.
Later on, more friends and family showed up including fellow Air Force brat Deanna Aquino and her grandchild guitarist Fonz Cabal. Among the others who were present were my wife Vicky, sis-in-law Ana Mara, her daughter Tina and a couple of newbies they just met in Le delice by the names of Dj Callum and Astrud Schuck. Luisa Distor, Alan Coscolluela and Pinky Gaa were in the house as well. I think there were still random others I did see frolicking around the place while I was busy on stage.
At already past midnight, house band honcho Tinnie Esguerra and our newest ever musical talent in the room’s list of great keyboardists, Herbie Buted both arrived at long last. With their presence, it was now time to do some more serious stuff. We indeed did some reviewing of last week’s tunes and tried out the latest song assignments as well. After numerous retakes (understatement) of every tune we recorded, we eventually got some respectable videos. I am happy. Praise God!
After the jam, Tinnie, Herbie, Gab and myself stayed around at the smoking area for a breather to unwind and recap on the successful jam we just enjoyed. It was already daybreak at just about 6am did we finally call it a night. There’s always a next time.
And so, another awesome night of great music unfolded that will last me another week. Already looking forward to next week’s jam. Thank you Lord for the blessing.
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE! GOD BLESS US ALL!
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