By NOEL D. FERRER
Starting today at NU Star Cebu, then February 14 and 15 at the Newport World Resorts, songwriters and certified hitmakers Odette Quesada and Ogie Alcasid will be rendering their favorite love anthems for the Filipinos who have made these the soundtrack of their lives.
When asked about the Top 5 songs of each other they like, Ogie quickly extolled Odette‘s songwriting for its simplicity, singability and unique charm. “Her songs, especially the English ones sound like they are the anthems of my youth,” said Ogie.
So we asked Odette the stories behind each of the songs that Ogie liked and here they are:
Don’t Know What To Do/Don’t Know What To Say
“‘Don’t Know What To Do/Don’t Know What To Say’ is a timestamp for me. It was my 17th birthday in 1982, I was having breakfast and watching ‘Good Morning Manila’ on TV.
“They had Michael ‘Bluer Than Blue’ Johnson on that day to promote his upcoming concert.
He was asked by the host how he would best describe himself. He paused for a moment and said: ‘I’m a hopeless romantic.’ After hearing that phrase, an overwhelming feeling came over me to write a song about it. I immediately turned off the TV, got my guitar and wrote ‘Hopeless romantic.’ It took all of 20 minutes to finish the song. A couple of months after that, I gave it to Ric Segreto to include in his debut album ‘Segreto.’
“‘I’m a hopeless romantic, I know I am, memorized all the lines but here I am, struggling for words I still don’t know what to say, what to say.’ The record company changed the title to what you all know as ‘Don’t Know What to Say, Don’t Know What to Do.’ But in my heart, it will always be ‘Hopeless Romantic.’”
Farewell
“‘Farewell’ was written in 1981, released in 1984. It was my last month of my senior year in High School, and I was leaving for the US right after graduation to go to college and live there for good. I wanted to write a song to say farewell to all my friends & schoolmates – ‘I may be miles away, but here is where my heart will stay, with you, my friends with you.’
“Three years later, I was asked to compose the theme song for the coming-of-age movie ‘Bagets’ and I included ‘Farewell,’ popularized by Raymond Lauchengco, in the movie’s soundtrack. To my surprise, this song is still used for graduation montages here and abroad.
Give Me a Chance
“Coming home from watching the movie ‘Fame,’ I was absolutely inspired by one of the songs in the film called ‘Is It Okay If I Call You Mine?’ by Paul McCrane. The offshoot, of course, was ‘Give Me a Chance.’ The following year, I submitted this song in the amateur division of the 5th Metro Manila Popular Music Festival, with Ric Segreto as my interpreter.
This song marked my foray into professional songwriting in 1982.”
A Long, Long Time Ago
“I was inspired to write this song based on an interview Kuh gave in 1982. There, she talked about a lost love. If I remember correctly, it was about her first serious relationship.
From what I can recall, the guy wanted for them to settle down, but Kuh was just starting to get popular as a singer. I remember thinking how sad it was that they had to part ways.
‘We used to be one, I can remember, when our hearts were very young, you said: our love will be forever, but that was such a long, long time ago, a long, long time ago.’”
To Love Again
“Vic Del Rosario personally asked me to write the theme song for a new movie he was producing for Sharon Cuneta. I was only given an outline of the story and felt both fear and excitement for the task at hand. Up until then, I had never had to tailor-make a song to fit someone else’s idea. I remember thinking, I could get used to this.
“‘Radio’s fine, it helps me forget for a while, I look back and recall those days I had with you, sometimes I need a friend, just to make it through, another day spent without you.’
“Since I turned 50, I rediscovered the song and it had greater meaning now than when I wrote it.”
We also asked Odette about her favorite Ogie Alcasid songs.
“Ogie’s Filipino songs are so well written,” she said. “Grabe ang hugot niya sa mga kanta niya, but these ones stand out: ‘Pangako,’ ‘Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang,’ ‘Ikaw Lamang,’ Pangarap Ko’y Ibigin Ka, and ‘Kailangan Ko’y Ikaw’.”
Pangako
“‘Pangako’ is the love theme of my movie with Manilyn Reynes entitled ‘Michael and Madonna.’ It was written during the coup de etat of 1986,” Ogie said with a laugh.
Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang
“It was a personal experience of mine… something that happened to me and I just had to write it.”
Ikaw Lamang
“I really wanted to write a traditional Filipino love song, mala-harana. Good that it came out as that – may pagka-classic, more like a modern-day harana – because I wrote it for my wife. It can be sung sa mga wedding. This was later picked by Star Cinema for the movie ‘Dubai’ with Aga Muhlach, John Lloyd Cruz and Claudine Barretto.
Pangarap Ko’y Ibigin Ka
“This was actually commissioned work for a movie by Regine [Velasquez], but that was really what I was feeling for her during that time na parang pangarap pa lang kasi I was going through something. So when she asked me to write the song, I said ‘Ikaw na lang ang siyang kulang sa buhay kong ito, pangarap ko ay ibigin ka’.”
Kailangan Ko’y Ikaw
“Some sort of a commissioned work. Regine Velasquez asked me to write a theme song for her movie with Robin Padilla, but again, it’s actually my song for Regine.”
These are the choices of Odette and Ogie. Our sourcebook and guide to their very rich song catalogue. The next time we hear or sing these songs by Odette Quesada and Ogie Alcasid, we are enriched by the stories behind the hits; made more interesting by our personal experiences enough to celebrate this Valentine’s Day and beyond.
