Jim, Boboy nahirapang ibalik ang original tunog ng APO: ‘Danny’s voice is one of a kind, walang kaparis’

Jim Paredes at Boboy Garrotillo

MIXED emotions ang nararamdaman ng original members ng OPM legend na APO Hiking Society na sina Jim Paredes at Boboy Garrovillo habang papalapit na ang kanilang Valentine Concert.

Muling magkakasama ang dalawa sa “All Heart” concert sa February 14 na magaganap sa Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Plenary Hall. Ka-join din dito ang iba pang OPM icons na sina Roselle Nava, Raymond Lauchengco, Ito Rapadas at Wency Cornejo.

Masayang-malungkot ang feeling nina Boboy at Jim dahil nga sa muli nilang pagsampa sa stage ng PICC ay hindi na nila kasama ang kanilang kaibigang si Danny Javier na pumanaw last year.

Biro nga nila, baka ang itawag na sa kanilang dalawa ay APO Minus One” o “Dalawa Na Lang Po Sila.” Pero sa kabila nito, sigurado raw sila na gagabayan sila ni Danny sa lahat ng magiging projects nila ngayong taon.

“To us, it was difficult to start with. Jim and I were even asking, ‘Who’s going to do the lead voice of Danny?’

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“Danny’s voice is one of a kind, walang kaparis. He always sang the lead in most of APO’s tunes. But Jim and I were thankful that we’re still healthy enough and project our voices. So nakuha naman. Tunog APO pa rin,” ang pahayag ni Boboy sa isang panayam.

Successful ang reunion concert nina Boboy at Jim last December sa 19 East. Pag-alala ni Jim, “We’ve performed together in concerts, big and small venues, even in the wake in Japan at 4 a.m. and in provinces.”

“The 19 East show, I knew we have fans,” Paredes said. “But both of us had not been on the radar for a long time. We were not being played on radio. We were not seen on TV.

“When I went there, it was a small place. If we didn’t do well, that was probably alright. But the reception was so amazing. Every song was a sing-along. To think we only had a three-piece band.

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“Nag-iba ang sound. We played around the songs. The bass player had to play certain notes that he was not supposed to play. And the lead guitar had to play different notes, too. It worked,” lahad pa ng veteran singer.

Sabi ni Boboy, sa kanilang Valentine concert ay napagkasunduan na magkaroon sila ng back-up singers, “We have to have back up now because the sound of APO is our harmony. We’ve worked on that.

“The two voices will always be there, but we will have two other singers with us to back us up. We have back up to project the sound of APO. Unfair naman if the audience will not hear ang tunog APO,” aniya pa.

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“We are very thankful for this, the thankful element now. Even if it is just the two of us onstage, the moment a song starts, the audience would sing along right away.

“It’s the song that carries us now. When you’re recording, you carry the song. But when the song gets popular, even if there’s only one APO who sings it, the show has a life of its own.

“We are thankful, we have many songs that are like that. That’s why we are still around,” pagbabahagi pa ng OPM legend.

Ang musical director ng “All Heart” ay si Elmer Blancaflor sa direksyon ni Calvin Neria.

Samantala, kung wala nang magiging problem, sa darating na July, 2023 naman magaganap ang  50th anniversary concert ng APO Hiking Society.

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