FOR a time he was called the “grandfather” of rock, a legend still rocking even in his waning years. But Joseph William Feliciano Smith, known as “Joey” or “Pepe,” finally took a bow after suffering another stroke. He was 71.
I was in first year college in the late seventies when I first got a glimpse of the man. He was promoting a concert together with female rocker Sampaguita inside the old Southwestern University campus. What attracted me to Smith, who was more Caucasian than Malay, was the color of his hair (it was dyed pink, or was it green, I can’t fully remember now). He was wearing dirty-looking and tattered clothes (khaki jacket and maong pants).
Pinoy Rock wasn’t my favorite then, so I wasn’t that familiar with Joey Smith’s music except Juan de la Cruz Band’s (his band) “Ang Himig Natin.” I preferred the lighter Pinoy Folk and the band Asin. But his presence in the campus got me interested in his band. Soon I had a casette tape collection of some of Juan de la Cruz Band’s songs and got to appreciate Mike Hanopol and Wally Gonzales as well.
Every generation has its own music to remember by. Those who grew up in the ‘70s are familiar with Manila Sound and Pinoy folk and rock. The ‘70s was right smack into the Marcos dictatorship and while protest music of the ‘60s was already muted by then, Pinoy folk and rock soon paved the way for the nationalist songs that inspired the protest actions of the ‘80s and the struggle against the Marcos dictatorship.
Juan de la Cruz Band would soon break up, with Hanopol creating popular bass-fueled songs like “Laki sa Layaw (Jeprox)” and Gonzales composing memorable guitar rifts with “Wally’s Blues.” Smith’s career took a downturn. Sampaguita would still churn a few hits but I got to embrace more Asin’s Lolita Carbon and the soaring voice of Pinoy folk’s Coritha.
The scene was dominated by the commercial bands and big names like VST and Company, Boyfriends, Hotdog, Freddie Aguilar, Florante etc. but those acts always paid homage to the old Juan de la Cruz Band. If I remember it correctly, Gonzales collaborated with bands like Asin in producing songs.
I remember bringing with me a cassette player when I was roaming the city’s hinterlands and playing Pinoy folk and rock music over and over again. Some of the farmers had guitars and it was there that I learned to play the instrument. I got the time to learn the chords and even practice plucking patterns. The slower Juan de la Cruz Band songs and Asin compositions guided me through the process of learning.
Joey Smith resurfaced with the resurgence of Pinoy bands in the ‘90s and in the 2000s collaborating with younger musicians. There was a bit of nostalgia there and some old Pinoy folk and rock bands would reunite for what can be considered as nostalgia gigs. Smith’s “rock and roll!” growl would sum up that flashback trip.
Smith’s death came months after Rico Puno’s passing. That means the singers and musicians that peddled the distinctive Pinoy sound of the ‘60s and ‘70s and who were idolized by a generation or two are fading from the music scene.