Freestyle song inspires JaDine flick

No Filipino band provided more kilig moments than Freestyle did during the turn of the millennium. Well, it was actually during the last two years of the ’90s that the then young band from Davao burst into the local music scene with a most exciting album of originals. Among the cuts included was Before I Let You Go, a song which would forever cement Freestyle’s reputation as one of the greats in Filipino music.

To this day, Before I Let You Go still brings on the goosebumps whenever it is played. In fact, I think it gets a lot more this time because of all the memories that are now connected with the song. But that was not the only tune popularized by Freestyle. Then songwriter and soloist Top Suzara also came up with the hits So Slow, Once In A Lifetime, Till I Found You, Paano and my favorite of them all This Time.

This Time is from the second Freestyle album also titled This Time, that was released in 2000. This is a very well-written song. I am sure you know of instances of Filipinos composing with English lyrics with very awkward results.  Not in the case of This Time. It also has the easy pop melody that is easy to like and recall, but with enough room for Top, who did the vocals for the recording, to put some soul into his delivery. I believe that the song turned out to be one of Freestyle’s best. Besides, everybody loves a contrite lover and This Time also became a big hit.

Fast forward to 16 years later and what do I find?  James Reid and Nadine Lustre singing This Time as the theme of their new movie directed by Nuel Crisostomo Naval, written by Mel Mendoza-del Rosario and produced by Viva Films. And the fans are screaming their hearts out.  Truth to tell, the combination that emerged from pairing the Freestyle song with the JaDine love team is just fantastic.

Today’s hottest lovebirds for reel and for real, together with a familiar song about a guy promising forever love, which is just like what James is constantly doing to Nadine these days. Watch and listen to him when he sings This Time.  He sounds like he means every word. This guy could very well have written the song.

This Time is also very much what the movie, which opens today in theaters, is all about. This Time tells the story of Coby and Ava, childhood playmates who grow up and develop romantic feelings over the years. Their only problem is that Coby lives in Japan and he gets to see Ava only during summer vacation. I do not know how they get to resolve the problem but I am sure they will. And when they do, you can bet that James, who looks incredibly cute with those glasses, will be singing This Time. And kiligan na to the max.

Oh, I’m sorry girl/ for causing you much pain/ Yeah

Didn’t mean to make you cry/ make your efforts all in vain

And I apologize/ for all the things I’ve done/ Yeah

You were loving me so much/ but all I did was let you down

Oh I really don’t/ Know just what to say

All I know is that I want you to stay

This time I’m not gonna let you slip away

This time I’m not gonna let another day go by

Without holding you so tight/ without treating you so right

This time I’m not gonna let go of your love

This Time I promise you that we’ll rise above it all

And I won’t ever let you fall/ I’m gonna give you my all

This time...

P.S. to This Time.  I thought I’d check out the lyrics of the song before doing this piece on the Internet. Oh, there are a lot of lyrics sites available, some of them proudly proclaiming themselves featuring Original Pilipino Music.  Others even feature chords, doubtless to entice readers into playing the piano or guitar while singing the song. All well and good.

But would you believe, not one site mentioned the name of the composer or the publisher of the song. If those sites are putting out song lyrics without permission from the owner or worse, making money out of them on the Net then they are clearly in violation of the copyright law. But even if they are not, I think it’s only fair for them to mention the composers of the songs they use.