Saturday, August 02, 2008

Tonight with DICK and (not Carmi?!?!) .... RICK!!!

For one night at the Big Dome,
it was back to the days of '80s Discos:


Kudos, Rumors, Jealousy,
Culture Club,
and Faces!!!


Before Techno & House, before Rap & R & B...

there was RICK ASTLEY!!!



And I was, and am, one of his biggest fans;
in the years after his reign on the charts
and on the dancefloors abruptly ended,

whenever I'd hear one of his songs on the radio,
I'd wonder why the hell the Disco Divo didn't wisen up
and realize that the biggest audience he'd be able
to muster up was right here in the Philippines.



In March of this year,
I blogged about it right here,

and apparently, all the crappy new age nonsense
in "The Secret" really does work, because
exactly a month later, I got a confirmation!!!



And finally, just a few hours ago,
after a wait of over 20 years since
"Never Gonna Give You Up" hit #1 back in 1987,
5,000 screaming fans got to see Rick Astley LIVE!!!



The opening act, a Mossimo-discovered band from Bacolod,
tried very hard to get the crowd into the '80s mood;

however, their male lead sang "We Built This Seeeeety",
and his female counterpart danced like Shakira on Extra Joss.

The band's singers could use a month in the Pinoy Dream Academy,
but their lead guitarist definitely does a mean Eddie Van Halen.

Overall, they deserve an "A" for Eyffort.




It was a few more long minutes before the main act,
and I passed the time by hollering "RO-DE-RICK!!!!"

little did I know how prescient my shouting was...




And then, the lights dimmed;

and there he was; in a dark suit,
skinny tie, and Adidas sneakers,
Rick Astley and his pompadour,
singing "Together Forever"!!!

He sang all his hits:
"It Would Take A Strong, Strong Man",
"My Arms Keep Missing You", "Hopelessly",
"Whenever You Need Somebody", "Cry For Help",
"When I Fall In Love", "Hold Me In Your Arms",
"She Wants To Dance With Me", "Ain't Too Proud To Beg",

and my all-time favorite, "Don't Say Goodbye"!!!



And despite a plethora of glitches:
technical and sound problems, forgotten lyrics,
an inability to dance due to age, jetlag, and gin & tonics,
Rick Astley's baritone filled the Araneta Coliseum to the rafters.

Sure, he couldn't hit all the high notes anymore,
he seemed to be clueless about his popularity among Pinoys,
and during his many spiels to catch his breath,
he acted and sounded exactly like a lecherous Austin Powers,

but he was singing to an enthusiastic, forgiving crowd,
none more so that one fan in particular,
seated at the very front; a fan who was about to live a dream!


Yes, my friends...


RODERICK PAULATE
was personally invited to come up on stage by his idol,
and as all of us stood up, clapped, and cheered madly,

Dick sang the show's encore as a duet with Rick:
"Never Gonna Give You Up"!!!


Sorry Lea Salonga & Simon Le Bon, but that was far & away,
The. Concert. Highlight. Of. The. Year.

Fairy Tales do come true!!!




for more on Rick's Dick, check out
SPRING ROLL and TANGGERA!!!

23 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

nag-duet po ba sina kuyas dick and rick?

August 2, 2008 at 3:02 AM  
Blogger spanx said...

YES!!!!!!


oh yes!!!!

August 2, 2008 at 3:53 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

shox. inggit ako!

i really want to watch Rick Astley kaso walang gustong sumama sa akin! hu hu hu.

August 2, 2008 at 4:07 AM  
Blogger Faith said...

Wow, I was there too! You have the complete song list! Cool!

August 2, 2008 at 9:21 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I saw Carmi Martin, she was there! But she remained seated throughout the concert. It could've have been fun if she was brought up that stage, too.

My take on the concert at http://egreyes.blogspot.com

August 2, 2008 at 9:49 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh, by the way, Gabe Mercado posted the Roderick moment here:

http://gabemercado.multiply.com/journal/item/117/Consumatum_Est

August 2, 2008 at 10:41 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

cool! its good to start my saturday morning laughing!!! galing!

August 2, 2008 at 11:40 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i was there too! im in awe! rick's so dreamy! :-)

i wish they'd bring in more 80s acts.

August 2, 2008 at 12:28 PM  
Blogger spanx said...

>>>lilit,

great to finally meet you!
so where did you stash your
camera during the concert?



>>>p0ytee,

ganda ng pictures mo,
where were you seated,
in the "rattle your jewelry"
section? ",)



>>>mich,

so sa David Cook concert
na tayo kitatkits?



>>>tei,

Gene Loves Jezebel and
Tony Hadley are up next,
to be followed by
Arnel Pineda with Journey!

Revenge of the '80s
na talaga!!!

August 2, 2008 at 1:08 PM  
Blogger spanx said...

>>>dyosa,

you should've buzzed me,
I usually organize a group
to watch concerts. mich and I
will get a group together
for David Cook;

next up for me at the Big Dome:
Kwarenta nAPO Sila!!!

August 2, 2008 at 1:12 PM  
Blogger Didi said...

Spanx! Where were you seated!
I had sooooooooo much fun! Grabe!

I too have the Rick-Dick moment! Still uploading it in Youtube! Will post it as soon as its UP!! :)

I think I saw Chuvaness! Hahaha.. Louie Heredia was there too!! :)

August 2, 2008 at 1:14 PM  
Blogger spanx said...

didi, we were at the upper box ",)
ako yung maingay na sigaw ng sigaw
ng "RODERICK, UWI KA NA!!!"
from that part of the Araneta

yup, I saw Louie near Starbucks,
he was my schoolmate at the
Ateneo HS, and aasarin ko nga
siya that the time is really
ripe for his comeback. hahaha!

August 2, 2008 at 2:15 PM  
Blogger Faith said...

Patron seating. :D I actually went near the stage, several feet away from my seat twice to get clear shots. There were too much people when Roderick went up the stage so I couldn't get clear shots. LOL. The whole araneta felt like an 80's bar.

August 2, 2008 at 8:37 PM  
Blogger The Dork One said...

shetness ang saya!

dick and rick!

August 2, 2008 at 11:36 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i left it at the package counter in front of the Big Dome. I was restless thinking how secure my camera was there.

Great to have finally met you, too.

Keep blogging!

August 3, 2008 at 12:41 AM  
Blogger ALiNe said...

HAhah! Nakakatuwa naman... sana ginawa din ni Dick yung sayaw ;-D

August 3, 2008 at 5:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I was also there. Despite all the glitches you mentioned, I still enjoyed the concert.

I went to the concert by myself, because no one wanted to go with me. I went with no expectations but to simply see Rick in person and hear him sing, although at the back of my mind I was hoping he would sing “Cry for Help”. I remember browsing http://www.rickastley.co.uk way back in 2002 and reading that he was reluctant to visit Asia because of the distance. So the mere fact that he finally agreed to endure that long-haul flight to Asia is a BIG DEAL to me. I really had an OMG moment when I first saw the plug for the concert on MYX. I then checked You Tube and found out that in his recent shows he did not do much dancing anymore. I went to the venue with those in mind.

I am glad that his singing voice still sounds good after all these years, despite the fact that he is really not that active in the performing scene. When he finally sang “Cry for Help”, I was set for the night.

For the information of those who were not there, after that epic moment with Roderick, Rick re-started and performed “Never Gonna Give You Up”, this time with full music with the band, under a very bright disco ball.

Like what I said in my Multiply site, my long-time wish for him to come to the Philippines for a concert had finally been fulfilled. That is one item off my checklist.



Raymund

August 4, 2008 at 9:34 PM  
Blogger Kel Fabie said...

My post should be up in a bit... linking to yours!

August 5, 2008 at 1:17 AM  
Blogger Oliboy's Adventures said...

too bad i missed this... :(

August 5, 2008 at 11:33 AM  
Blogger Sgt Oinky said...

really?! no way!

Roderick Paulate was invited up on stage?!

hahahaha!

wow!

August 6, 2008 at 1:28 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i was watching the youtube video you posted. i was howling and clapping and laughing and just having fun watching Roderick Paulate sing and strut his stuff on stage! Man, too bad I missed this concert. *sniff*

August 7, 2008 at 1:49 AM  
Blogger Didi said...

Until now, I smile when I think of the 'Rick Astley Experience'

I'm so glad I went!

I loved it!!

Highlight of the year!!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

August 7, 2008 at 7:24 PM  
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