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By Rome Jorge, Lifestyle and
Entertainment Editor
Showbiz people would do anything
to promote their movies, their careers and themselves. They’ll
even issue lame dance albums, CDs filled with nothing but lackluster
remakes of old tired ballads and various versions of the same
nursery rhyme-like song.
It gives them something to sign
autographs on and toss at their fans as their motorcades go buy.
Without their cutesy smiles, naked muscular torso or sexy gyrating
bodies, these songs are nothing. Who buys these albums?
Definitely not the same people
who love Eula Valdez—the sexy and sultry 40-year-old men’s
magazine cover favorite, perennial television drama kontrabida, one
of the good guys of showbiz in real life and Aliw-award winning for
Best Stage Actress star of the hit musicale Zsazsa Zaturnnah. The
girl who famously posed for the album cover of
punk-thrash-novelty-rock band Kamikazee’s Maharot is back in the
music scene, this time to belt her own tunes.
Her single “Blue” recently
topped the listener request charts of rock ’n roll station RJ
Underground 105.9FM. For anyone, most especially a celebrity, to
earn the respect of indie rockers, punks, blues and classic rock
aficionados—all of whom are musical snobs that are all too eager
to thumb down any contrived and inauthentic entertainer—is no
small feat.
“Blue” is just of the colors
of Valdez. Schizo, as the album’s name suggests, showcases
Valdez’s vocal talents in various musical genres. Unlike most
celebrity albums, Valdez sings nearly all-original compositions:
eight by Vince de Jesus, the same genius behind the endearing music
of Zsazsa Zaturnnah; three by Ronnie Quizon, her former partner and
father to her 13-year-old son Miguel; and a lone cover song, a
soulful rendition of Everything But the Girl’s “Driving.”
She confides that Quizon wrote
the song “Who Can Stop the Rain” 14 years ago as a rock ballad.
On the album, it features a more upbeat pop rock tempo that
highlights the song’s irresistible hooks. In contrast, she
reveals, “I only learned how to sing ‘Blue’ during recording.
He [Quizon] was writing it on the spot on a napkin. He didn’t give
me a study CD or anything. All he said was, ‘You can do it.’”
Did it she did indeed. She nailed with spine-tingling sultriness,
melodic brilliance and heart-rending blues empathy.
The musical diversity of her
album reflects her influences. “My father would listen to Glen
Miller. My mom would listen to ‘Moonlight Serenade.’ Our eldest
sibling would listen to Shirley Basie. My brother would listen to
the Beatles. My other sisters would listen to Michael Jackson and
the Carpenters. We were all taught to play the piano.” But don’t
expect Valdez to sing just jazz standards and pop songs.
“I like old rock, like Led Zep.”
She segues the conversation into news about a new album from Led
Zeppelin’s remaining members but laments the possible
non-participation of iconic vocalist Robert Plant. “I’m still
excited nonetheless. And Van Halen . . . David Lee Roth is such a
monkey on stage. And Jim Morrison, he was my crush. I love the
Doors. It’s a pity about Wolfmother. They’ve disbanded now,”
she gushes. My, my, the girl is a bona fide classic rock fan. She
bashes the skins and shreds power chords
“I have a [real] drum set at
home. I also have Guitar Hero [the best-selling interactive musical
videogame for Microsoft X-Box, Sony PlayStation and Nintendo Wii
that features facsimile musical instruments to play]. I can only
play on ‘medium’ though. The ‘hard’ level is too difficult.
I play the guitars [on the game],” she reveals.
Nonetheless, her parents’
musical influences have informed her taste. “I like [jazz]
standards too . . . stuff like Fabulous Baker Boys too,” she
enthuses.
However, being inter-disciplinary
artist does have its drawbacks. Know throughout the film and
television industries for her professionalism, commitment and
promptness as well as pleasantness and unpretentiousness, she has as
of yet little time to spare for live performances. Nonetheless, she
admits, “I would love to do that. When you’re sick of acting,
this is what I want to do.”
Eula Valdez has whetted the
appetite of rockers, bluesmen and jazzers with her breakthrough
album. We can only hope she doesn’t keep us waiting too long and
give us more, in the flesh, live.
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