The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
It’s my third week in Iloilo.
To be exact, sixteen days since I arrived at Gateway Hotel and Suites at Barangay Mali-ao, Pavia, Iloilo.
Why am I in Iloilo?
Aristeo Demavivas, the famous balladeer who popularized the hit song “So Lucky in my Life” in the 70s, invited me to visit him in the hotel he manages.
Before going to the story about the ditty “So Lucky in my Life,” let me explain my presence in Aristeo’s place.
Since Aristeo, also known as Aris Demavivas in the local music industry, and I are Facebook friends, we are in constant communication however only on audio call and text messages.
In the course of our digital catching up, I managed to propose to him a performance in his hotel of my artist, the so-called Amazing Diva Armida Zuniga, which he, through my persistence, agreed to.
So, it wasn’t an invitation alone because prior to his approval of Armida he told me that I could be in Iloilo with or without a show. “Just for you to visit Iloilo and to enjoy it here,” he said.
But with Armida in tow, it was work as well.
I’ve been writing about Demavivas during his active years in the local Tin Pan Alley and seeing him after decades was a thrill.
I personally introduced Armida to Aris when we stepped in the lobby of the hotel.
The next day being Monday, was the first night of Zuniga’s series of performances at Bridges Bistro.
It was a baptism of fire for Armida being a solo artist outside Quezon Province where she has also performed in some countryside bars in Calauag and Guinayangan.
Zuniga was able to arrest her audience on her first night when she belted out songs of wide variety, covers from Barbra Streisand, Dulce, Imelda Papin, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Lani Hall, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Didith Reyes, Eva Eugenio, Sarah Geronimo and a lot more.
Aris, without him showering praises on Armida, was a happy face.
On her end, Armida was impressed as well with Aris who is already an icon in the music industry and the Original Pilipino Music (OPM).
As a matter of fact, in the following nights of her shows, Armida did duets with Aristeo, like “Something Stupid” as popularized by father and daughter team Frank and Nancy Sinatra, “Unforgettable” as waxed by dad and daughter duo Nat King Cole and Natalie Cole, “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” an original song by Patti Austin and James Ingram and a lot more to the delight of the audience.
Demavivas, due to insistent public demand, did solo stints of ballads and jazz music like “If I Rule the World,” “She” and many more.
As entertainment news hen Nitz Miralles would blurt out on her Facebook reaction post to Aris video: “Walang kupas si Aristeo Demavivas (His voice doesn’t fade).”
Indeed, Aris hasn’t lost the voice that people associate him with top pop tunes like “So Lucky in my Life,” “Love Me, Love Me Again,” “Forgive Me” and a lot more.
“So Lucky in my Life” became a hit that galvanized the name Aristeo Demavivas in the Philippine music scene.
Soon enough, “So Lucky…” was translated and adapted into a Filipino song by Tito Sotto in “Balatkayo” that catapulted Anthony Castelo’s singing career to the top and made him a constant placer in the music charts.
What happened to Aris’ career after making a name for himself?
Demavivas accepted several singing and producing shows abroad for Philippine tourism.
While in the US and elsewhere, Aris also studied hotel management and franchising that honed his expertise on them.
When he came home, he brought with him not only his music but his entrepreneurial acumen as well.
The beneficiary of his foreign education is his management of Gateway Hotel and Suites in Iloilo.
His singing doesn’t take the backseat, though.
With Armida at Bridges Bistro, Aris is inspired to sing again.