Friday, February 23, 2007 Serna: Starstruck again By Roger Serna Sounds and images
BECAUSE of their number and frequency, this columnist lost count of the times when he encountered luminaries from the entertainment firmament in press conferences, concerts and similar shows, interviews and the like so much so that he thought he is no longer capable of being starstruck… again.
He was proven wrong when the first leg of The Great American Songwriters Series (featuring Dennis Lambert and Paul Williams) was brought to Cebu four days before the day of lovers.
Gosh, I thought my days as a starstruck fan were over! Yours truly fondly remembers applauding and yelling after every familiar song that the duo separately performed.
Dennis was more reputed as a songwriter and producer of hit songs of several artists and as musical scorer of Hollywood hits.
He revealed that the Philippines has a special place in his heart because it was only here where his one and only album was a success. Was he kidding or serious? Can hardly tell which.
Among his most applauded numbers were Rhinestone Cowboy (popularized by Glen Campbell) and Of All The Things (his finale). In all his numbers, Dennis had only himself on the keyboards and a guitarist to provide accompaniment in addition to pre-recorded music that he prepared.
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Perhaps even the most diehard Paul Williams fan will agree that there are many other better singers than their idol. I can even go to the extent of saying that ordinary videoke fanatics can outperform Paul Williams as a singer.
So what makes him stay long in the business even up to his senior years (he’s 66)? It’s the songs that he makes. They’re simply beautiful!
He opened his segment with Just An Old Fashioned Love Song which set the right mood among the viewers. This was followed by familiar hit songs, which he and other artists popularized.
Surprisingly, the song which this fan (and the rest of the crowd) excitedly expected was not in his original list that the keyboardist-musical director had to scour his file of musical pieces in search of that particular song. How could he have excluded Save Me A Dream from the repertoire still escapes me.
Paul had to hear the first bars of the song before he remembered how the song goes. Were the two just acting? Whatever. It could be for real as this was not reported in the accounts of the rest of the tour held in other parts of the country. (Yes, Cebu was the first in the series.)
Back to my being a fan . . . Yours truly was among those who bought a copy of Paul’s album after the show and then patiently lined up to have the album jacket autograph by the songwriter-artist himself. I even had myself photographed with my idol, notwithstanding if it was only on a cell phone camera.
Oh my! What will my fans say had they seen me in that situation?
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This year’s Suroy Suroy Sugbo Southern Heritage Trail, held just three days after the Sinulog, had more foreign tourists and balikbayans (mostly spouses of the foreigners) joining the tour.
Just like in the previous outings, residents of the local government units (mostly of the first and second districts) put their best foot forward, flashed their most winsome smiles, let out their warmest and friendliest selves to please and to make the visitors feel welcome and at home as possible.
So you think that the tourists were only awed by the natural and man-made sceneries? Think twice. Most of the tourists we talked to during the tour were more overwhelmed by the local people more than anything else.
Dan Bookright from Oklahoma, and who once spent a few years of his life as a peace corps volunteer in Dipolog and Cebu cities, said that “the greatest asset that I have experienced in the Philippines are the people.” He added that he regarded the Cebuano people as “very special” because, in his own words, “they’re humble, industrious, fun-loving, smiling, beautiful, incredibly beautiful.”
Needless to say, it was because of these traits and qualities that he married a Cebuana. He predicted that “the governor’s attempt to bring people to the countryside will be very successful and will bear fruit” and that “the fruits will be plentiful and this part of the Visayas will prosper as it should.”
Ingel Aulish of Munich, Germany, whose wife is Felisa Ancajas of Lapu-Lapu city, “was overwhelmed by the warmth and friendliness and the welcoming of the people.” He echoed Bookright’s observation that “the greatest asset was the friendliness of the population.”
Among people with Filipino blood who expressed their appreciation of Gov. Gwen Garcia’s tourism brainchild was businessman Elmo Siap who was pleased by the economic “movements” that the project had brought to the localities and he urged provincial officials to ‘do it regularly.”
Lovely businesswoman, philanthropist and socialite Mariquita Salimbangon Yeung need not articulate her thoughts. The fact that she stayed with the group all throughout the entire route and had her photos taken with the awe-inspiring local landscapes as backdrop were proof of her approval of the project.
Gaudencia Camomot Estrada of Los Angeles, California, and who traces her roots to Carcar, considered joining the tour as “a good homecoming” for her. She plans to come back next year with her children after having seen that the country has improved so much since the time she left.
Take a bow, Cebuanos… Filipinos! Kudos, Gov. Gwen, for conceptualizing Suroy Suroy Sugbo!
