WHAT’S an “involuntary semantic memories”, you may ask. It’s just another way of saying “random thoughts”.
And we start with this: Purely out of curiosity to see what the fuss was all about, I dared watch on MYX online a certain Kakie Pangilinan debut as a singer. I was almost at a loss for words but you have to commend her courage and audacity to identify herself as a singer/artist. She embodies the phrase “singer without talent”. She gives new meaning to “cosplay”.
You know, I endured Yoko Ono’s abysmal screams in John Lennon’s “Plastic Ono Band” album but compared to Kakie, Yoko Ono is a mediocre irritation.
Meanwhile, Sen. Tito Sotto sponsored a bill that will grant the ABS-CBN broadcast network a new franchise to operate for a period of 25 years. About 15 senators expressed their support for Sotto’s proposal.
That bill violates Section 24, Article VI of the Constitution, which states; “All appropriation, revenue or tariff bills, bills authorizing increase of the public debt, bills of local application, and private bills shall originate exclusively in the House of Representatives, but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments.”
The bill sponsored by Sotto is a private bill, meaning it falls within Section 24, Article VI of the Constitution. Simply said, Sotto’s bill is unconstitutional, doomed from day one. Either he’s totally unaware of that which is highly possible, or he’s just trying to be cute with the owners of ABS-CBN.
And speaking of music – real music, certainly not the sound coming from Kakie Pangilinan – we segue to Blues for Salvador, a 1987 album by Carlos Santana dedicated to his wife Deborah.
The record was released by Carlos Santana as a solo project, not with the Santana band. It won the 1989 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, his first Grammy ever.
And the man, rather the artist in focus. Carlos Santana is a Mexican and American musician who first became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered a fusion of rock and Latin American jazz.
The band’s sound featured his melodic, blues-based guitar lines set against Latin and African rhythms featuring percussion instruments such as timbales and congas not generally heard in rock music.
Santana continued to work in these forms over the following decades. He experienced a resurgence of popularity and critical acclaim in the late 1990s. In 2015, Rolling Stone magazine listed Santana at No. 20 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists. He has won 10 Grammy Awards and three Latin Grammy Awards.
I first heard of the music of Carlos Santana sometime 1969 and was blown away. It was totally different from the usual fare of hard rock so prevalent during those “dazed and confused” days, a blues- based fusion of rock and Latin jazz.
The music, at least to me, was Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis and Tito Puente combined, heavy on guitar riffs and percussion instruments, a totally heady fusion of different musical genres, the “Santana” sound.
From an AllMusic Review by Chris Devonshire-Ellis:
This release allows Carlos to make a recording away from the restrictions of the Santana band, and bring in a bunch of other musicians to explore his unique way of playing.
But these are no hacks; its friends from afar as the ilk of Buddy Miles, Alphonso Johnson, Tony Williams and many others join in the fun.
Santana just about manages to steer the right side of his secret heavy metal passion as he lights up some heavy…heavy monster sounds, and overall we get a rather more rock based outing than is typical Santana band fare.
Don’ t be misled by the title, there’s not much blues going on here, and that’s a shame as he is more than capable. At moments he sounds like he’s trying to audition to join Thin Lizzy. Blues for Salvador then is fun, but slips into the ether as yet another Santana jam without the intense Latin joy that he can produce when at his best.
You’ll enjoy the experience, but be unable to whistle any tunes from it an hour later. Nice, well played, yet unremarkable.
All in all, a great musical experience different from your usual Carlos Santana Band albums but still has that distinct sound you would expect and more./PN
