What I've Learned: Jim Paredes | Esquire Philippines
It takes a different level of artistry and musical genius to write the great APO Hiking Society songs that are now in the annals of Philippine music history. Songs like Batang-Bata Ka Pa, Panalangin, When I Met You, Yakap sa Dilim, American Junk, Blue Jeans, Mahirap Magmahal Ng Syota Ng Iba, San' Na Nga Ba'ng Barkada Ngayon, and Nakapagtataka, among many others, are already considered OPM classics.
But did you know that Jaime "Jim" Paredes, one-third of the Philippines' most popular trio and the songwriter behind the above-mentioned hits, only acknowledged his talent later in life?
We interview APO Hiking Society member Jim Paredes on what he has learned about life, love, and being an artist.
But did you know that Jaime "Jim" Paredes, one-third of the Philippines' most popular trio and the songwriter behind the above-mentioned hits, only acknowledged his talent later in life?
We interview APO Hiking Society member Jim Paredes on what he has learned about life, love, and being an artist.
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00:00 Maybe I really have some talent.
00:03 [MUSIC]
00:13 [MUSIC]
00:23 We're ten brothers and sisters, and I'm number nine.
00:38 So my brother had a band, so he loved to sing in the house, and his friends would be there.
00:43 And all of us could sing in the family.
00:48 And I remember my mother would invite people to the house, and I was maybe about even four years old.
00:56 And she would ask all of us to sing for the guests in the house.
01:00 Parang kami bon trap family.
01:02 That's how I remember it.
01:03 We were always singing, and for me it was natural that everybody could sing.
01:08 And then I picked up the guitar.
01:11 At age 11, my sister asked me for what I wanted for my birthday.
01:15 I bought a guitar in Lumanog.
01:17 It was 100 pesos, would you believe?
01:21 It was not a great guitar, but, you know, steel strings pa.
01:25 And my brother knew some chords, and he taught me a few chords.
01:31 I met Danny in college, and, you know, Apo had so many members.
01:36 So we would sing in the counselor's office.
01:40 Basil was there, and Danny was there.
01:42 He wasn't even from high school.
01:44 He came from another school.
01:45 And all of a sudden, he was like hanging around with us.
01:49 Noona, parang, sino ba 'to?
01:52 Parang he insinuated himself.
01:55 That's how I, you know.
01:57 He had a good voice, and he said, "Hey, you know, we're getting along very well."
02:01 So that's how we met him.
02:03 Boboy, I had known him since, you know, since grade one.
02:08 I would sing, but I never talked to him until high school.
02:12 He had his own band in Ateneo.
02:14 He was a drummer, you know.
02:17 And then when we would be in the same high school, yung pag-gitara, gitara,
02:21 si Lito de Hoya, Boboy, and I were like the three, you know, guitarists.
02:29 Every lunch, we would be playing there.
02:32 I was into school.
02:39 Philosophy, history, you know, even literature, English lit.
02:47 But we were so politicized during that time because 1972 was martial law, declared martial law.
02:54 1973, we graduated.
02:56 But prior to that, it was really building up to it.
02:59 When we would have a school, a class, for example, and the teacher would say,
03:05 "Please give me the summary of, you know, let's say, Midsummer Night's Dream."
03:11 Tapos may tata yung activist na.
03:13 "What's the relevance of that when the Sakadas are starving in Bacolod?"
03:20 "Yeah, that's right." Ganun.
03:22 The teacher was lost, didn't know what to answer.
03:25 So, and early, ganun.
03:28 Tapos may rally na bigla sa ano.
03:30 Parang ganun ang buhay nun.
03:32 It took me a long, long, long while to be able to take a compliment
03:41 because I always thought that, you know, let's say you come up to me,
03:44 "Oh, Jim, ang ganda nung ginawa mong ano.
03:47 When I met you, super ganda, everything."
03:50 I would agree with you, "Thank you, thank you," ganun.
03:53 But in my mind, I always doubted na siguro bebentahan ako nito ng encyclopedia or Tupperware or something.
04:02 So, parang I wasn't comfortable.
04:05 I would find an excuse to leave because until it was only during the midlife crisis ako na natanggap ko na,
04:14 maybe I really have some talent.
04:17 That was my midlife crisis.
04:20 Until it was so spiritual, the whole thing was so spiritual,
04:25 I wrote four books during the midlife crisis.
04:29 I took up Zen also during that time.
04:31 Parang, you know, the here and now, and what do you call this?
04:38 Tapos nagbibid life ka, you feel that the software that you've been living,
04:43 running your life with, is not up to date.
04:46 It needs an upgrade.
04:49 I discovered depth.
04:53 I think malalim na ako dati, pero at that time parang,
04:56 lalo na I went scuba diving because I think I needed to physicalize what I was going through internally,
05:04 that you go into yourself.
05:06 Basta ang philosophy ko sa music nun, sa hanggang ngayon,
05:12 when everybody likes something, don't go there.
05:16 Because you'll sound like everybody else.
05:19 So, I never buy tough 40, I never buy ano.
05:22 I want my influence to be non-traceable.
05:25 So, there was 14 years in my life where I didn't even listen to English music.
05:31 I was listening to Latin, I was listening to even Mongolia, mga ganun,
05:37 just for enrichment, 'di ba?
05:40 That's where I discovered world music.
05:42 And I started teaching it at the Ateneo, world music,
05:45 history of world music, OPM, mga ganun, ganun.
05:47 So, parang I wanted to marinate myself in music of all types.
05:58 I think the whole idea of being a creator, writer, whatever, kahit na priest ka pa,
06:04 kahit na writer of books, kahit na lecturer, kahit na ano,
06:07 is to take your audience to a place where they've never been.
06:11 And you can only do that, so far, by what Hollywood's been doing,
06:17 through surprise and delight, or shock and awe.
06:20 It affected my children so much, in the sense na they apply for a job, they get it,
06:28 kasi anak ni Jim Paredes.
06:30 Sabi ko, that's why I brought them to Australia.
06:33 'Cause when we moved to Australia, sabi na ako, "Why are we transferring?"
06:36 Sabi ko, "Because I want you to experience a society that's egalitarian, okay?
06:43 Where you really have to earn your own reputation and name."
06:47 Eventually, things worked out for them, no?
06:50 Now, I can't claim anything about what they've done.
06:54 I mean, they've built their own lives, and I just say, "Great for you."
06:57 And which went with my philosophy of raising kids.
07:02 Sabi ko, "I think you raise kids for them to outgrow you, not to be a mirror of you."
07:08 As a parent, as a person, I always say, I went through all my schooling four times.
07:17 One, my own experience.
07:19 Tapos ako nagturo sa kanila ng ABC at saka 123.
07:23 Throughout high school, I was helping them do their homework.
07:27 College, term papers, akong reference, walking encyclopedia ako.
07:32 "Pa, what is this?" Ganyan yan.
07:33 So parang I experienced it four times.
07:36 I have three children of my own.
07:37 I never gave them money for luho.
07:40 Never.
07:41 It was my wife who would do that.
07:43 "Just don't tell papa na lang."
07:46 Ako, sabi ko, "You know, be resourceful.
07:50 Kung gusto mong ganito, save up for it.
07:54 I'll help you."
07:56 Siguro I'll start with my father's death.
08:00 I was five years old.
08:02 Parang, hindi ko maintindihan yun.
08:05 Sabi ko, "I don't understand why it happened to me."
08:08 Until much later on when I was reading a lot of books na.
08:11 Medyo, mahilig akong mag-discuss ng books.
08:16 Tapos nabasa ko si Joseph Campbell.
08:18 Sabi niya, "Rule of life.
08:20 Everybody's born in Eden, but everybody gets kicked out."
08:23 And the rest of your life, you're trying to find your way back,
08:27 but you can never go back.
08:29 Yun sinabi niya.
08:30 So sabi ko, "I got kicked out of Eden at age five."
08:34 I had father hunger.
08:37 Always looking for my dad hanggang high school na.
08:40 Nagdadesal pa ko sa tatay ko.
08:43 Sinisisi ko pa siya kung situation ko.
08:46 Kasi nawala ka ng maaga, kaya wala akong ganito.
08:49 And I would always dream of him pag magtra-travel na ako,
08:53 makikita ko yung image na.
08:55 Always in a coat, always coming out of, parang ito yung horizon,
09:00 lalaba siya ganun.
09:02 Kumisan, lalaba siya from a plane that crashed and just dusting his suit.
09:07 "O, anak, kamusta ka?" Ganun.
09:10 I had those.
09:12 And growing up with that, grade three,
09:15 nalala ko, pen teachers meeting.
09:21 Everybody had a dad there. I didn't have a dad.
09:24 You know, the reason why I figured it out,
09:31 the reason why there's so many people who separate,
09:33 is because they think love is something na,
09:36 kailangan tumitibok pa yung puso mo,
09:38 kailangan yung naglablash pa siya,
09:40 kailangan yung ano, and you thrill her with every flowers
09:43 and that diamond ring, whatever it is,
09:45 until you realize, you know what,
09:47 the depth of romantic love allows true love to enter.
09:52 Wala na yung physical, wala na yung thrills, wala na yung ano,
09:54 hindi mo na kailangan yun, di ba?
09:56 Kailangan mo lang yung ano.
09:58 Kumisan yung, yung ano lang, presence niya lang, di ba?
10:05 Tapos yung hindi mo na kailangan sabihin, "I need you,"
10:07 pero alam niya, kailangan siya, di ba?
10:11 But what I would like, kung mamatay ako,
10:14 gusto kong may maliit na plaza, anywhere in the Philippines,
10:17 maliit na plaza na merong ano,
10:20 may statue kami na nag-gigitara.
10:23 And people just gather around there, you know,
10:26 para, okay na sakin 'yun.
10:29 Kahit na, kahit na saan, kahit na hindi Metro Manila, ganun.
10:34 Some little town just remembers Apo, okay na 'yun.
10:37 Some little town just remembers Apo, okay na 'yun.
10:41 [no audio]