Gary Valenciano has big dreams for his latest CD Rebirth. He says in his liner notes: “So much has happened in the last few months and many events have dampened the spirits of the Filipino. Many dreams have lain dormant for many years, many hopes have lost fire and countless desires have remained just that — desires. Rebirth hopes to refuel the passions to live life to the fullest; to re-ignite those dreams once thought lost, those hopes once thought unreachable, those lives once thought dead.”
The power of prayer knows no bounds and it had also been said that prayer set to music is even more powerful. That is what Rebirth is, a prayer. One song after another conveys the sentiments of anybody who dreams of a better place, of being a better person, or of simply never losing hope that things could change. It can bring relief to the hurt and despairing. It can gladden the sad and the disappointed. To what extent I do not know but it can also create the changes in the way we regard life and in what we believe, living entails right now.
Gary does inspirational recordings remarkably well. In fact, most of his best and most affecting work during these past 25 years, are songs about his faith. These can be rousing dance tracks, Shout for Joy, dramatic power ballads, Natutulog Ba Ang Diyos or well-executed covers, Stephen Curtis Chapman’s If I Could. And no matter what these are, you can count on Gary to sing them with the deep conviction that only a true believer is capable of.
If I Could is not in the package but Rebirth by Gary Valenciano has his best prayer songs. Some like Natutulog Ba Ang Diyos? have already been previously released. Some have been reworked like Shout for Joy, which comes in the new Gabriel Mix. Being old, new or remixed does not really matter in this case though. The way the album is sequenced easily brings prayer to mind and the listener is simply content to just let the music and one’s feelings flow.
The first single release is Only Hope. It is an excellent version of the Mandy Moore hit and also comes in an acoustic mix as a bonus cut. I have always liked Mary Did You Know? and I find Gary’s rendition so heartfelt. Then he may not be Ben E. King but he proves that he can really dish out his own kind of gospel/soul with Stand by Me, which should do well as a single. Other songs included are When I Hear You Call, Father’s Love, He Won’t Let Go, Letting Go, Friends, Better Than I, Home, Ohhh and Lean on Me.
Fiesta ng Musikang Filipino
The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) welcomes the month of May with lots of rocking at the usually staid Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo. This starts tonight and also goes on tomorrow, May 3, and on May 4, when the Fiesta ng Musikang Filipino presents Pinoy rock pioneer Juan de la Cruz Band in concert with the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) and some very special guests.
Leading the lineup is Lucia Micarelli. She was the pretty and quite dynamic violinist who played with Josh Groban at the PICC last year. Then there are also Sugarfree, Up Dharma Down, the Radioactive Sago Project, Sinosikat?, The Jerks and The Dawn. So if Pinoy rock is your groove and you are curious to find out how Beep Beep or Laki Sa Layaw will sound backed up by the MPO, check out this fiesta.
MYX’s Top 20 videos
And now more Pinoy sounds and sights as we take a look at the Top 20 videos of the week in the Pinoy MYX Countdown from MYX: Ang Sarap Dito by Project 1; Migraine by Moonstar 88; Susundan by Callalily; Aaminin by 6Cyclemind; Under Repair by Imago; How Do I Live by Jennylyn Mercado and Janno Gibbs; Honestly by Rachelle Ann Go; Pasubali by Sponge Cola; Love Song by Nancy Jane; Eargasmic by Dice & K9;
Procrastinator by Sandwich; Summer Song by Silent Sanctuary; Evidence by Urbandub; Maskara by Rivermaya; Ikaw Lang Talaga by Yeng Constantino; One Day in Your Life by Kyla; I’ll Be Over You by Mark Bautista; Here I Am by Erik Santos; Monobloc by Pupil; and Princesa by Itchyworms.