Journey frontman Arnel Pineda performed an original composition for the survivors of super typhoon “Yolanda” on “It’s Showtime” Saturday. The ballad, entitled “This Christmas,” invites everyone to extend a helping hand to the survivors of the calamity in Visayas during the Christmas season.
“Ang message ng kantang ito ay lahat tayo in our own little way, puwede tayong maging ‘Santa’ sa mga gusto nating tulungan at sa mga mahal natin sa buhay,” said Pineda. (The message of this song is that all of us, in our little own way, can be a ‘Santa’ to anybody we want to help, and to our loved ones)
THIS CHRISTMAS
Through all these years
Into crossfires and conflicts
Buried in your eyes
Are bloodstain of tears
You’ve trekked through a life
All homeless and loveless
Wounded and in near-death
I wonder if you’ll ever find
The healing comfort of His cradle
Can I be your Santa?
Can I be the gift?
Can I be your hero?
Can I be your freedom?
This Christmas
Painful tears and cold roads are fading
Enough of darkness, days ahead are brighter
Angels’ little hands are reaching to grace you
The kindness of Yul’tide from the heavens
So let me be your Santa
Let me be your gift
Let me be your hero
Let me be your freedom
This Christmas
I’ll never be our Savior in a manger
Instead a friend who will stand by your side
So let me be your Santa
Let me be your gift
Let me be your hero
Let me be your freedom
Let me be your sleigh ride
Let me be the love
let me be this hero
Who will set you free
This Christmas
So what do you do when you hear about the story of this bar singer in a Third World country who just got hired as frontman for an iconic band? You'd probably think it's for the Ripley's or a twitter trend that would last only a day or two at most. But for a filmmaker like Ramona Diaz there lies a story worth putting into the big screen. She knew the risks to take but as anyone with a passion for the things they do, she decided to go through along with her collaborators Capella Fahoome and Josh Green faster than anyone can say 'Don't Stop Believing.' Arnel Pineda could have busted his vocal chords within a few gigs for Journey as their songs are NOT easy to sing and they could have ended up with a thirty minute feature film. But such was their luck and Arnel's, that they were able to follow him for his first four years with the band, and went to capture him perform live before thousands of people in places even Arnel has never even heard of, and capture they did not only his talent but his bravery and fortitude which was showcased in this almost two hour film.
Everyman's Journey is not quite your traditional rockumentary for me as some would call it in the sense that it is not about how a rock band is formed or a day or two in the life of a rock band, nor is it about how an album was produced as is much more often the case in some bands doing their own, such as U2's Rattle and Hum or the Beatles' Let It Be.
It is a full-fledged documentary movie of how a man was plucked from a densely-populated Third World city halfway around the world to do an extraordinary job by an iconic rock band whose beginnings can be traced to about the time Arnel was old enough to do his first communion. That is a fascinating story to begin with.
Taking into consideration all the advantages that the new millenium had to offer by way of the internet, Ramona knew this was where she would begin. After all that's how Arnel's Journey story began.
The film starts off with a scene from a homecoming, that of Arnel visiting the school that first taught him his ABCs. It was interesting how Ramona used this to start the movie. It easily portrayed the laid back nature of Arnel in contrast to the wide eyed, bewildered teacher who's probably never had time to go through the internet and knew what was going on (remember this was filmed 4 or five years ago before apps and wi-fi became household words ) and thus seemed lost at what Arnel was talking about being in a band called 'Journey'. The latter sets the humor element of the film that was evident in a number of scenes. If you are looking for a dark and edgy documentary, this may not be the one for you. But Arnel's character and how he dealt with his life that has gone upside down as he calls it and how he was in control of everything perhaps unknowingly, are what make this film unique.
Arnel was pretty consistent in the film. Laid back and in total control of what he was facing. Even after an adrenaline high after a performance, Arnel knows when to taper down his emotions. It was all work for him as he says. And that leads me to say this is a non-traditional documentary of a rock star, sans the noise and the extravagance often depicted in them.
You can also give it to Arnel's magnetic presence even on the screen and off stage that despite being surrounded by the people who have already made names to themselves and became legends in their field, that when Arnel shows up on screen you just gobble up every second and only see him stand out regardless of who he was with. Now I understand what Ramona meant when she said in one interview that the camera loves him. I think it's like when a camera has a face detector feature, it almost always focuses on Arnel's first.
Throughout the film and during his downtime moments, Arnel is often seen as a softspoken guy and understandably especially before and between gigs to preserve his voice. But he also seems to be always in a pensive mood and taking everything in. One instance of note was when Neal showed some sign of concern when Arnel said he has a cold. And then John Barruck comes and joins the conversation and he talks about tickets being sold out. Neal teases him "Pressure" when he saw a rather glum faced Arnel and to which the latter said "I am just shutting myself up." And I wonder. Where does he get that sense of tranquility with the kind of situation he is in? The answer was not direct but perhaps can be deducted from how he narrates about his humble beginnings and a series of unfortunate events that moulded his character to someday fit into some big shoes. He was pretty good at being articulate and inanimate in expressing himself and giving you that in the moment feeling like when he talked of his first gig in Chile. How I wish Ramona and company were around to capture his first time by themselves for it was the turning point in his being a band member, that of Arnel being thrown into the lion's den not only surviving but in a way taming the discriminating audience of 18,000, excluding the millions who watched on tv.
One element that particularly stands out for me in the film is the irony. Instead of being seen gulping bottles of wine after another as most celebrities and rock stars
are often seen, Arnel instead pours out hot water from the jug to his cup to drink some tea. Just like grandma. Instead of partying after gigs, he goes back to his 'hole' taking as much rest as he can and reflecting on what has been happening to him since he got the new job. There were no blue m&m's to be picked out or demanded, nor expensive branded mineral water or milk to bathe on. He was just your regular guy. Instead of indulging in interesting substances, we see him with an oxygen mask with steam coming out to lubricate those golden chords.
And this irony is what makes this movie more interesting. Ramona captures his daily routine and despite being a newcomer to facing the camera , Arnel hardly showed any sign of self-consciousness. He was a natural. One can't help but think of the kind of rapport that developed between the director and the subject, that she made him comfortable in his own skin, and quite literally to an extent. His 'spiels' flowed smoothly.
Indeed this film not only serves as an inspiration. It also serves as a good study for people who encounter sudden fame and can serve as a crash course on how to maintain one's sanity while playing for your favorite rock band.
Aptly titled Don't Stop Believing, here is a story of a city boy who took that midnight train on a journey going anywhere. Quite an analogy for the big gamble that Arnel took. He held on to that dream , he held on to that feeling - the sight of bright lights, of people everywhere watching , when the bright lights he used to see where the ones that lit up the park he once slept in and surrounded by other homeless people.
One can only do so much in what is meant to be an as-is-where-is movie, as Ramona explains in an interview. Thus, she probably saw the need to add extras which is not a bad thing. My only take with them is that some scenes would actually make a good fit into the movie itself. The wardrobe scenes for example (the Smurf comment was funny) and I would have exchanged those with scenes of stage preparation as extras. I would have also added a couple of stills on the back cover taken from the movie and not just from the concert so as not to mistake this as a concert dvd.
Having said all of that, one is left curious of the other details of Arnel's life story. What was shown on the film was his life on the road as a newbie. But this is a Cinderella story and every fairy tale starts off with 'Once upon a time' which was only partly narrated. There is a back story waiting to be told.
Highlights: Arnel singing a snippet of "Kailangan Ko'y Ikaw", his goosebumps performance of "You're My Inspiration" and last but not the least his duet with David Pomeranz. They sang Pomeranz' classic composition "Old Songs"
Arnel Pineda quietly flew back home recently, celebrating his 45th
birthday on Sept. 5—the same day his second child, Thea, was baptized.
The Filipino frontman of American classic rock band Journey took
the opportunity to bond with family and friends while on a short break
after completing 25 shows of the group’s current North American tour.
The tour, which includes a few dates in Canada and Hawaii, resumed last Saturday in Michigan.
Pineda chatted with the Inquirer via e-mail before he boarded the plane back to the United States.
How long will the tour last and how’s your health?
I feel great, considering the long flight, just to be with family
and friends again. My health is okay. I’ve been taking care of myself
to keep up with the demands of the tour this year. It will last until
Dec. 15.
Touring may not allow you to explore much of the places you visit. Which cities have impressed you so far?
That’s true, because all we do is go to the next destination as
soon as we are done with the scheduled show. It’s all travel via bus and
private planes. New York is very impressive, and this place called “The
Gorge,” was breathtaking.
How do you fight boredom?
I’ve been watching this American TV (drama) series called
“Breaking Bad.” It has a wonderful, unique story and lots of lessons to
learn. I’ve seen four episodes. Now I’m watching “Damages.”
How hard is it to please a foreign audience?
This is my fourth year with Journey. I think more and more
people, young and old, have come to love the things that I do with the
band … Each show gets more crazy, in a positive way.
What new bands or artists have caught your attention lately?
Dead Sara (a band from Los Angeles), also Grace Potter and the
Nocturnals (from Vermont, New England). They’re very good artists … with
different styles but both musically captivating.
How’s your family?
I missed my family so much it felt like I was gone forever. Yes,
my second child Thea was baptized last Sept. 5. It was also my birthday,
so it was a double celebration.
What do you miss most about the Philippines when abroad?
Family, friends, the food, and my own music, which I’ve been
working on. I’ve been recording my own stuff since last year and will
continue to do so until it’s done. I will release it as soon as
everything is finalized.
Do you still wear Doc Martens when performing with Journey?
Yes I do, they’re among my favorite things. They just never go out of style.
Excellent, superb, electrifying, stupendous. I ran out of adjectives.
Wednesday is not your usual day for holding concerts but Arnel Pineda is flying to his next big gig that will reunite him with his Journey band mates after a year long break to trailblaze their way all around Europe and Latin America and several more cities in the U.S. of A for their latest world tour and to introduce their new cd.
Earlier husband and I took a quick burger snack a few establishments away from Rockville Bar before it opened just to fill up our hungry stomachs. But I found myself hardly finishing my sandwich. Not that it was bad. It was good but I just wanted to take a few bites and was antsy to run to Rockville. I was afraid we may not get seats as there were previous gigs where people had to be turned away. That night was one night I did not want to miss since it would be his last gig and last time he'd spend a night with his fans before he turns Journey mode. Indeed he made it extra special by singing songs the fans and followers listed on his fansite.
As everyone should know by now, Arnel Pineda can sing the phone book. After all he's been in the business for twenty seven years and has tried everything literally from A-Z. There was a mix of requests from the list that I read. From love songs, to kundimans, to classic rock and songs fans never heard him sing before -- at least not on youtube nor on any recorded media. Bridge Over Troubled Waters for one. Who would've thought. But more on that later.
The show started at half past nine with the Ammo Band. They did some real good classic rock songs I haven't heard any local live band perform. Mustang Sally? Whoa! Next time I get a chance to visit, can you guys please do Muddy Waters and Raspberry Beret? There must be five or six more songs that really impressed me a lot. Unfortunately, I didn't note them down. But for two songs, I do remember telling my husband I want Arnel to perform them too.
End of first set.
By this time I was already enjoying a glass of mai tai. I haven't drank anything with alcohol since two Christmases ago when sister brought home some real good wine. I also gorged on a plateful of deep fried chicken fingers. They were yummy and juicy. I also didn't expect it to be a generous serving for its price. For this alone, I give Rockville 5 stars! Even the pancit bijon is how I wanted it to be steamy with just the right amount of sauce and not dry. Again another generous serving. The waiters and waitresses were nice and quick to attend to you. They were also quite diligent in cleaning up the tables. I just noticed though that they were using their bare hands in removing soiled table napkins. I think it would be better if they had tiny tongs to pick them up instead. But that's just the OC part of me. I think we all have that in us.
It must be fifteen minutes already and I was again turning antsy until I overheard one lady at another table say Arnel will I start at 10:30. That would be ten more minutes to go. I took this time to check my camera and took one last visit to the bathroom. Speaking of my camera, when we arrived I and hubby took turns taking a few photos behind the logo and the photos of Arnel with Journey by the stairs. One waiter passing by overheard me telling my husband to take just a quick shot to save up on battery. He then told us "Yes, ma'am baka mamaya pag dating ni Sir Arnel maubusan kayo ng battery." (Yes ma'am you better save up on your battery so it won't run out when Sir Arnel starts) Hmm. I like this guy. I thanked him for reminding us. He knows for sure fans bring along cameras and videocams to preserve those precious performances. In a way I was glad cameras were still allowed and in a selfish way I feel lucky that the livestream was not yet functioning or else our cameras will not be allowed.
After a while I heard some noise coming from behind. Then I saw about three bouncers (at least that's what's written at the back of their shirts) coming in surrounding the man of the hour. I hear more wolf whistles as he goes nearer the stage.
Immediately what came to mind is the question of what is it about extraordinary people that makes them different from you and me. Earlier I saw the Ammo band play and I thought they were good. When Arnel stepped foot on the stage even while the spotlights were not yet turned on you can already feel the electricity in the air. Then the spotlights were turned on. Wearing white printed shirt over a white tee, he looked like some kind of deity. And by some coincidence, his first song was entitled "Heaven" by Bryan Adams.
I can never forget the visual. It gave me goosebumps actually. Awashed in bright spotlights, he looked radiant, almost luminous. Was it a sign of things to come I ask myself, that his star will shine even brighter in this tour with his musical heroes? It didn't take the entire show to finish to answer that question.
As soon as he segued to the second song More Than You'll Ever Know, you can tell he already had the crowd at the palm of his hands especially the women. Oh the women. You can hear them sigh, scream, swoon the entire night. They were having the most fun especially when Arnel sings the love songs like First Time which was a special request from the missus "or else he can't come home'' as Arnel announced.
Then came two U2 songs. First was One which segued to With or Without You.
I've always wanted to hear him sing this live in its entirety. I was delirious. Crowd sounded deilrious too. His rendition of With or Without You , my personal U2 favorite, this time was much better than the last time I saw him sing it. On you tube of course. How Arnel made me feel like I'm hearing this in an arena like the famous Irish boys in a small dim bar is only proof how his voice can bring you to places. I wouldn't want to hear anyone else sing this other than Bono himself.
Then he sang two hits from The Doors back to back.
For me this was one of the highlights of so many highlights of the show. Roadhouse Blues and Break On Through. Using the growly side of his voice, Arnel showed mastery of his gift. The only thing I wished that were there was Jon Cain's harmonica playing. I can imagine the J-boys do a cover of this song with everyone in the crowd singing and dancing wildly like they do whenever Loving Touching Squeezing is played. Now this was the first time for me to hear this song. A funny moment for me was when I misheard part of the lyrics of this song. Towards the bridge or chorus I thought I heard him sing "take off your blouse" only to find out when I googled the lyrics back home that he was singing "Give up your vows." It must be the mai tai.
When the song ended and segued to Break on Through, the energy and heat rose ten notches higher. Man, this number was hot, hot, hot. More than any other song on this show, here was where I saw the classic rocking Arnel, headbanging, jumping (the ceiling is too low for the famous Airnels though), twirling the mic stand, so completely into his zone. He seemed to have thrown everyone back to the sixties where wild parties and smoke-filled rooms were the order of the day. Except of course there was no smoke here at all. The only one sizzling other than the 'sisig' on peoples plates was Arnel himself. Also starring was the mic stand which took some extra beating from our rock stah. The performance was so infectious that you want to join the ride with him but at some point you just have to stop and allow him to have his moment and just be at the sidelines to watch how he gets into his zone. It was a thrill to watch him do this.
Fast forward to what I would call the triple whammy. Satisfaction, Stairway to Heaven and Bridge Over Troubled Waters. What more can you ask for. With Satisfaction he got the crowd singing along and raising their fists each time Arnel points the mic towards their direction to sing the last two words of the line "I can't get no!" He got the place shaking.
With Stairway to Heaven, he got everyone else, to use a twitter's words, trippy. He started the song with some light banter with Monet about interesting substances. Ahem. What more can I add but yet again another highlight of the show. Robert Plant and Arnel should jam before any of them completely forget the lyrics of that song.
And then came Bridge Over Troubled Waters. Wow.
It was nothing that I expected to be on his playlist. I learned later it was someone's favorite. Simon and Garfunkel are two of my and my husband's favorites. These two geniuses definitely has written some of the best songs that any generation can appreciate. To hear it sang live by Arnel no less made me excited as he started the first words "When you're weary..." Everyone was in awe. Again ladies were screaming their heads off. But Arnel made it into not just an "I'm singing this song because you requested it" moment. His show of emotions was something I did not expect. As ladies kept swooning he maintained a sober mood. As soon as he finished the words "When times get rough.." he took a short bow and gave out a quick smile. Soon his voice was starting to quiver and tears fell. From my angle I thought these were just sweat. After all he has been singing for more than an hour now without break and the kinds of songs he were singing were more than enough to drain one's energy in thirty minutes.
When the song ended, he mentioned something about the lines "When you're down and out. When you're on the street." Everyone should already know the story by now. As it is with Arnel there are just things that happen in our lives that you simply can't erase. You move on alright but the memory of the pain remains.
For his last encore song, Arnel sang Kenny Loggin's Forever.
This one I say you just have to be there and hear it live to be able to fully appreciate the magic in that voice. No camera or recorder can do justice to hearing his voice reverberate within the four walls and feel that passion coming out from him. It was heartfelt and beautiful and at the same time enchanting. What they say about drowning in one's voice.
Truth is there's something about how Arnel delivers each song he sings that sucks you into his realm. While this was meant to be in a way a fans' day being a Most Requested Song night where fans and followers throw in their favorites, it was in some sense a night where Arnel has proven what a truly gifted artist he is. I won't be surprised if the list was just given to him a day or two before and thus the presence of the lyric sheet. (Well I only said he can sing the phone book, not memorize it! lol) but he delivered each song and made sure that it gets the respect that is due the artist who wrote them. It could have been one big karaokefest with someone singing the lyrics of the songs but Arnel was not just doing that. He made sure he puts the right emotions to those songs and made his audience feel what is being conveyed in the lyrics. He made each song his own that you sometimes forget who the original artist was.
Was it a perfect night then? No and I don't expect that in this kind of setup where Arnel gets a list of songs probably just a day or two before the event. There could be songs he hasn't sang in ages and thus the need for a lyric sheet. However there are also pitfalls to singing with a visual aid which became pretty obvious when he sang 'One' where he almost skipped a line. He was quick though to correct himself. Arnel does some adlibbing as a way of adding his personal touch but again given the setup, there was the tendency to emphasize on the words he remembers but those that he didn't and had to read from the sheets sounded slurred. In some songs, in a manner of saying, he has to mind his p's and q's. To an OC listener (I sometimes am) it can be just a wee bit distracting. If there is something he had to improve on (which every artist should continually be on the lookout for), this would be it. At the same time I must say he has vastly improved. As for the band, they did well. Were excellent at some point especially when performing the blues where one does a lot of improvisation. I was pleasantly surprised by how they did the two Doors song. Same thing with U2's WOWY though I wished the bass part were given more emphasis because the bass riff is what that song is known for. Did I tell you I can be quite OC?
If there is one word that I can use to describe this night, it is enchanting. Truly I felt everyone left the show like they fell under his spell. It was not just your usual MRS night but a night that was like Arnel himself selecting the songs which he does best. And since six of the songs I requested were performed with two more I've been wanting to hear him sing, this would be a perfect playlist for me. If there were others that were not played it was simply because two hours was not enough. Indeed two hours is so short considering the repertoire of songs he can deliver well. Then there were some of us who not only requested two or three songs but even an entire playlist. I was one of those. :)
Lastly, if there is a word I can use to describe Arnel that night it is resplendent. He started the night by appearing onstage wearing his white shirt and with the bright spotlight reflecting on it, he appeared radiant. He ended it shining brighter even as the lights were turned off for he proved to each and everyone of us in that small room, that he truly is a star extraordinaire. I'm more than excited with what lies ahead of him in the very near future.
