THE LATE composer George Canseco left
many memorable songs that have touched
millions of Filipinos-tunes that have
been immortalized by our top recording
artists.
Kuh Ledesma and Basil Valdez have worked
closely with George, and share fond
memories of the legendary composer, who
succumbed to cancer last year: "He was a
very sensitive man. He was always
dissatisfied with my interpretations. He
would constantly remind me to put more
emotion into the songs. He would never
leave the recording studio until he was
completely satisfied. Nagbabantay siya
from start to finish," says Kuh.
Duet
Before his death, Kuh asked George
to put Tagalog lyrics to the Spanish
song, "No Me Ames," a duet recorded by
Jennifer Lopez and husband Marc Anthony.
Ledesma intends to include the song in
her forthcoming album to celebrate her
25th year in show business.
Blackgold Records released Kuh's debut
album in 1980. It contained 10 tracks,
eight of which were written by George!
Another landmark song for Kuh is "Ako ay
Pilipino," a popular ditty that Ledesma
always performs for Filipinos overseas.
Another prominent interpreter of
Canceco's poignant love songs is Basil
Valdez.
Basil recalls: "Everytime George had a
song for me, he would call up and ask me
to write down the lyrics. He wrote fast
and, remarkably, his songs were all
meaningful! His lyrics were measured, as
if they were written as poems."
Recording scene
A favorite song of Basil is "Ikaw,"
a Sharon Cuneta and Ariel Rivera hit
that was originally written for Basil
when he was inactive in the recording
scene. Basil also treasures "Ama,"
Canseco's version of "Our Father."
Before his death, Canseco wrote the
song, "Pakisabi" for Valdez, about a
person who missed the chance to tell
someone how much he cared. The song will
be included in Basil's forthcoming CD.
Basil interpreted some of Canseco's most
memorable movie theme songs: "Ngayon at
Kailanman," "Gaano Kadalas ang Minsan?,"
"Kastilyong Buhangin" and "Paano Ba ang
Mangarap?"
Today, a special tribute to George,
fittingly titled "Paano Kita
Mapasasalamatan?," will be held at the
PICC Plenary Hall. Kuh, Basil and
Christian Baustista lead the
star-studded lineup, which includes
special guests Pilita Corrales, Dulce,
Zsa Zsa Padilla and Martin Nievera.
|
