Smokey Mountain was a Filipinosinging group formed by musical director, composer, and National Artist for MusicRyan Cayabyab[1][2] and executive producer Judd Berlin. The original group was based in Manila, Philippines, and had James Coronel, Geneva Cruz, Jeffrey Hidalgo, and Tony Lambino as its original members while Jayson Angangan, Chedi Vergara, and Zhar Santos joined James Coronel for the second lineup after Geneva Cruz, Jeffrey Hidalgo, and Tony Lambino left the group. Eventually, James Coronel left to pursue a solo career and Anna Fegi replaced Shar Santos during the 1994 tour in Japan.[3]
The group was named after the Smokey Mountain garbage dump in Manila. The concept for their debut album cover came from the idea that they had to be dressed in ragged clothes to depict the then-dire situation of the scavengers living on the Smokey Mountain garbage dump.
In 1989, the group released its first self-titled popalbum that consisted of songs revolving around social, environmental, and patriotic themes. The group's first hit, Kailan (When), was number one on national airwaves for eight straight weeks and the album hit gold, platinum, and double-platinum status within months of its release.
In late 1990, the group went on the "Better World" tour, performing at the United Nations World Summit for Children in New York and representing the Philippines at the 5th ASEAN Song Festival in Surabaya, Indonesia.
Having to choose between formal schooling and a two-year, two-album contract for release in Europe and the U.S., Tony Lambino and Jeffrey Hidalgo left the group, while Geneva Cruz pursued a solo career & released her first solo album "I Like You". The popularity of the group already reached its peak at the time of the departure of the group's 3 members, however, Ryan Cayabyab held auditions to find new members to fill in the void of the 3 founding members who left the group. Ryan Cayabyab then reformed the group with remaining original member James Coronel and three new members Shar Santos, Chedi Vergara, and Jayson Angangan. This second batch also had successful hits, such as Da Coconut Nut (about the benefits of the coconut tree), Paraiso (literally paradise; about a degrading environment filled with garbage and smog), and their own version of Kailan (boy version). They also won awards for both Paraiso, "Kahit Habang Buhay" and Tayo Na.
The media was very critical of the new members who joined James Coronel. However, in 1992, at the Tokyo Music Festival the new lineup proved their worth as they won the grand prize in the contest. They also joined the Golden Kite Festival & won the 1st Place trophy, & had more tours in Asia and Europe.
In around 1993, the group released its third and international album Know You Will. James Coronel left the group after completing promotional work for this album. The remnants of the latest batch released the fourth album Death Penalty and disbanded a year later. In 1998, BMG Records (now Sony Music Philippines) released the fifth and final album of the Smokey Mountain Smokiest Hits with 12 tracks.
Past band members
Geneva Cruz moved on to showbiz full-time.
Tony Lambino cut a solo album and wrote songs recorded by fellow artists, did musical theatre with the Cultural Center of the Philippines, among others, and anchored an early morning news program on ABS-CBN. He finished his undergraduate studies at the Ateneo De Manila University, cum laude, completed his master's degree at Harvard University as a Fulbright Scholar, and earned a Ph.D. from University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication. Tony Lambino also worked at the World Bank in Washington, D.C., and became head of communication at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). He then became an Assistant Secretary of the Philippine Department of Finance.[6]
Jeffrey Hidalgo completed his Chemical Engineering degree at the University of the Philippines and placed 11th when he took the board exam. In 2009, he studied film making at the New York Film Academy in Abu Dhabi. He has written songs in recent years and even competed in the Metropop Song Festival. He currently runs his own company which produces cleaning products.
James Coronel owns call centers in USA, Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka.
Shar Santos auditioned in the fourth edition of the reality TV show American Idol under the name Sharon Galvez, but was shut out of the semi-finals and now she is Sharon Kaylor.
Chedi Vergara also released her self-titled album "Chedi" with some success and she joined in Teatro and she also has a band but now she lives in Brisbane, Australia.
Jayson Angangan returned to his own native land in Ilagan, Isabela.
Anna Fegi joined the group in 1994 for the final tour in Japan as she replaced Shar Santos.[3] Anna has gone on to release 2 solo albums under the Sony BMG label, performed on the hit show ASAP, toured with cruise line Royal Caribbean International, and performed in several musicals for Atlantis Productions in both Manila and Singapore.[7][8] She also owns and operates a successful music school, Brown Academy of Music, in Cebu.
Reunited for charity in 2011 and 2020
In March 2011, all Smokey Mountain members re-united for the first time in 15 years to record a new song for Japan earthquake relief entitled I FEEL WHAT YOU FEEL.[9] The group has strong ties to Japan as some members lived in Tokyo during the peak of their popularity in the early 1990s. Due to the members now being spread out all over the globe, the song was recorded separately and then edited together in a studio.
In May 2020, the members again reunited virtually for a Bayanihan Musikahan special.[10][11][12][13] They performed a "Paraiso/Better World medley as well as "Da Coconut Nut."[14] The performance was shown on ABS-CBN as well as streamed as a fundraising effort for the coronavirus pandemic. There was a rerun on May 9 on the Facebook page of Bayanihan Musikahan. Six of the eight members were interviewed by Iza Calzado during the May 9 special.
A Song For Japan (Single) (2011, Ivory Music & Video)
I Feel What You Feel
Greatest Hits (Digitally Remastered) (2012, Ivory Music & Video)
Kailan
Can This Be Love
Da Coconut Nut
Kahit Habang Buhay
Paraiso
Mama
Sabihin Mo
Nahan Ka?
What's Wrong With Dat
Tayo Na (Come On)
Street People
Sabi Mo
Earth Song
Better World
Kailan (Boy Version)
A Bayanihan Musikahan Special (COVID-19) (2020, ABS-CBN)
Da Coconut Nut (Tropical Version)
Better World/Paraiso (Medley)
Covers by other artists
In the 2000s, the song "Kailan" and "Can This Be Love" were covered by singers Sarah Geronimo and Juris and the Philippine acoustic band MYMP in the present generation and has been mostly covered until today by many other Filipino artists even on television especially the 2012 Primetime Series Ina, Kapatid, Anak by singer Bryan Termulo.
"Kailan" was also covered by Gary Valenciano and Noel Cabangon.
"Da Coconut Nut" was also covered by a P Pop Female Group BINI in 2020.
The San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra (SMPO) was one of the two major performing arts groups (along with the San Miguel Master Chorale) under the San Miguel Foundation for the Performing Arts. As a young ensemble, its wide selection of works encompassing musical genres attests to its versatility and dynamism. Together with the SMMC, the SMPO aspired to produce and perform new orchestral works that will ensure the growth and development of Filipino music.
The San Miguel Master Chorale (SMMC), now non-existent, was the first professional choir in the Philippines. It was composed of an all-Filipino roster ranging from faculty members and honor graduates of music conservatories, alumni of various choirs, choral conductors, composers, arrangers, and soloists.
Raymundo Cipriano Pujante Cayabyab, known professionally as Ryan Cayabyab, is a Filipino musician, composer and conductor regarded as one of the pillars and icons of Original Pilipino Music (OPM). He was the Executive and Artistic Director for several years for the defunct San Miguel Foundation for the Performing Arts. He was named National Artist of the Philippines for Music in 2018.
Jose Ariel Jimenez Rivera, professionally known as Ariel Rivera, is a Filipino singer, songwriter and actor.
Anna Katrina "Kitchie" Dumilon Nadal is a Filipina singer-songwriter who was formerly the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band, Mojofly. Her popularity in the female OPM niche grew after she released a self-titled solo album featuring her chart-topping single, "Huwag na Huwag Mong Sasabihin". Her debut self-titled album Kitchie Nadal debuted at number 4 on the Philippine Albums Chart, and after a year end the album climbed up at number 1 with growing sales the album was certified 7×Platinum by PARI with sales of 214,800 physical CD album copies in the Philippines.
Ryan Cayabyab Singers is the 7-member musical group, headed by Ryan Cayabyab.
Viva Music Group Inc., doing business as Viva Records, is a Philippine record label owned by Viva Communications. It was founded in 1982.
South Border is a Filipino pop and R&B band formed in the early 1990s that gained widespread recognition in the music scene in the mid 1990s to the 2000s.
Geneva Mendoza Cruz is a Filipina singer and actress known for her songs, "Anak Ng Pasig" and "Kailan" (When). She was discovered and mentored by National Artist of the Philippines for Music, Ryan Cayabyab who formed the defunct iconic music group Smokey Mountain, which she was a member of. In 2020, Cruz moved back to Manila in the Philippines, from the United States, where she worked as a weight-loss coach for a few years.
Smokey Mountain was the term coined for a large landfill once located in Tondo, Manila.
Regina Liguid Alatiit, professionally known as Gina Alajar, is a FAMAS and Gaward Urian Award winning Filipino film and television actress and television director.
The second season of Pinoy Dream Academy formally began on June 14, 2008. Nikki Gil and Toni Gonzaga reprise their roles as hosts of the show, but Gonzaga now handles the main hosting plum while Gil appears both on the Probation Nights and Little Dreamers Gala/Expulsion Night. Billy Crawford has joined this season as the host of the late afternoon edition Pinoy Dream Academy Überture.
Basil Salvador Valdez is a Filipino singer. He has received several Tinig Awards and the 1991 Tanglaw ng Lahi Award from Ateneo de Manila University.
Paraiso is the second studio album by young Filipino singing group Smokey Mountain. It was released in the Philippines in 1991 by Sony BMG Music. The album slightly surpassed the commercial success of the group's self-titled debut album, also certifying 8× Platinum by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry (PARI) and selling over 253,800 units in the country. It is considered to be one of the biggest-selling albums in the Philippines, overtaking Smokey Mountain in terms of sales. The album was released in Japan in 1992 with a different track listing.
Celeste Kalugdan LegaspiGallardo is a Filipino singer, actress, film and theatre producer, and an advocate for artists' rights. Her singles and albums reached gold or platinum status during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. She is the daughter of National Artist for Visual Arts César Legaspi. She has been one of the founders of the following artist organizations: Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM), Culturtain Musicat Theater Productions, Performers' Rights Society of the Philippines, and the OPM Archive. She is married to Nonoy Gallardo, an advertising director and one of the premier Original Pilipino Music composers.
Anna Fegi is a Filipino singer and actress. She has performed internationally in over seventy countries and is known for her work on the popular show ASAP on the ABS-CBN television network and The Filipino Channel (TFC), her performances in the Himig Handog competitions, as well as her two solo albums released under the Sony BMG label. Fegi is recognized by her powerful voice, high vocal range, and trademark curly hair.
Brown Academy of Music is a performance-based music school located in Cebu City, Philippines. It is located on the 2nd Floor of Northgate Centre in Banilad on Gov. M. Cuenco Avenue, across the street from Gaisano Country Mall and next to University of Cebu-Banilad. The school serves as one of the premier sources of music education in the city of Cebu. The school not only serves as the foundation of music study for its students, but also provides performance venues for the students to showcase their talents.
The Company is a Filipino vocal group since 1985. The current members are Moy Ortiz, Annie Quintos, Sweet Plantado and OJ Mariano.
Da Coconut Nut is a song composed by Filipino National Artist Ryan Cayabyab, for the band Smokey Mountain in 1991.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
