QUESTING bandstand

Pilita is regarded as the greatest singer of the Philippines. As a teenager, she played the guitar and sang on a radio show called La Taverna. The premature death of her father forced her to help her impoverished family by singing. She began her recording career after arriving with a shipwrecked (literally, requiring the rescue by Aussie Navy) troupe of performers in Melbourne, Australia. During her short three-year sting in Melbourne, she recorded “Come closer to me” (1958) which made her the first woman to reach the Australian pop charts with a local recording! This remarkable feat prompted the mayor of Melbourne to offer her permanent residency and to name a street after her. Pilita was almost immediately recruited to join a group of Filipino performers in the Philippines Festival show which ran for six months in Las Vegas. This engagement launched Pilita into a long enduring relationship with the Filipino communities overseas who loved her sentimental songs about home. In 1963, Pilita returned to the Philippines and hosted “An Evening with Pilita” on ABS-CBN. The popular TV show is widely regarded as one of the benchmarks in Philippines broadcasting history; it ran for 11 years until martial law closed down all privately-owned broadcast networks in the country in 1972. During that same year, Pilita was persuaded to enter the contest at the 1st Tokyo Music Festival. She sang “A million thanks to you” from her popular TV show. Pilita won the Best Performer Award, having bested numerous international artists including the popular Olivia-Newton John. She also earned herself the distinction of being the first Filipino to win in an international music festival. The Japanese Press dubbed her “Asia’s Queen of Songs”. In the early 1980s, she was a guest performer with Sammy Davis, Jr. for three weeks at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. She was the first Filipino to sing at Caesar’s Palace. Trivia: She was also the only Filipina singer who performed at the Beatles’ concert at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium on July 4, 1966.

Pilita has recorded four gold records: “Kapantay ay Langit,” “Pipit,” “Sampaguita Movie Songs,” and “Philippine Love Songs” (Vol. 1 & 2). She also dabbled in movies. The first was “Miss Wawaw’ (1968) to be followed by eleven others, most of them musicals produced by Sampaguita Pictures and Leas Productions.

Pilita received a Merit Award from FAMAS (1990), the Philippine Association of the Record Industry Lifetime Achievement Award (1991) and Philippine Citizen’s Award for TV as Best Female Performer (1965).

(MATUD NILA)
Matud nila ako dili angay
Nga magmanggad sa imong gugma
Matud nila ikaw dili malipay
Kai wa akoy bahanding nga kanimo igasa
Gugmang putli mao day pasalig
Maoy bahanding labaw sa bulawan
Matud nila kaanugan lamang
Sa imong gugma ug parayeg
Dili maluba kining pagbati
Bisan sa unsa nga katarungan
Kay unsa pay bili ning kinabuhi
Kon sa gugma mo hinikawan
Ingna ko nga dili ka motuo
Sa mga pagtamay kong naangkon
Ingna no nga dili mo kawangon
Damgo ko’g pasalig sa gugma mo

(DAHIL SA YO)
Sa buhay ko’y labis
Ang hirap at pasakit
Ng pusong umiibig
Mandi’y wala ng langit
At ng lumigaya
Hinango mo sa dusa
Tanging ikaw, sinta
Ang aking pag-asa
Dahil sa `yo nais kong mabuhay
Dahil sa `yo hanggang mamatay
Dapat mong tanungin
Wala ng ibang giliw
Puso ko’y tanungin
Ikaw at ikaw rin
Dahil sa `yo ako’y lumigaya
Pagmamahal ay alayan ka
Kung tunay man ako
Ay alipinin mo
Ang lahat sa buhay ko’y
Dahil sa `yo
Dahil sa `yo nais kong mabuhay
Dahil sa `yo hanggang mamatay
Dapat mong tanungin
Wala ng ibang giliw
Puso ko’y tanungin
Ikaw at ikaw rin
Dahil sa `yo ako’y lumigaya
Pagmamahal ay alayan ka
Kung tunay man ako
Ay alipinin mo
Ang lahat sa buhay ko’y
Dahil sa `yo