DZRJ launches all-English AM radio station

Original Article Here

MANILA, Philippines – Tune in to 810 khz today and experience a refreshing, informative and unique AM station, now called The Voice of the Philippines, as legendary radio station dzRJ launches its new format with a new high-powered transmitter for its AM station.

The Voice of the Philippines, the first and only all-English AM radio station in the country, is a brainchild of Ramon “RJ” Jacinto, president of Rajah Broadcasting Network Inc., and is headed by Ramon Arrastia Tuason, general manager.

DZRJ-AM embarks on this groundbreaking journey in alliance with The Philippine STAR, which will provide up-to-date local news content.

“It’s an honor to have The Philippine STAR with us. We will certainly have fun. We will also make everybody’s lives better by giving them advice and news, information and entertainment,” Jacinto said.

For his part, Philippine STAR president and CEO Miguel Belmonte said: “AM radio has a huge market of listeners who are hungry for news and commentary, thus The STAR’s partnership with dzRJ would surely widen our audience to include not just the reading public but followers of AM radio as well.”

DZRJ 810 AM will also feature live feeds from foreign partners, BBC and Voice of America.

“Our foreign partners help to ensure that our news and public affairs content is very fair, objective and compliant with international standards,” Jacinto said. “BBC told me that they were looking for a news organization that has these qualities, so that’s how our programming will be: Fair, objective, constructive, and The Philippine STAR is that way, too.”

DZRJ 810 AM will feature local headlines from senior anchors David Nye, Michael Williams and Neric Acosta.

A slew of other seasoned radio journalists also join the fray in anchoring public affairs programs and radio shows that focus on imparting helpful information, interesting facts and trivia, and providing entertainment that will uplift the Filipino spirit while broadcasting in English.

The station’s new format will further enable both DZRJ and The Philippine STAR to contribute to the betterment and empowerment of the people by providing the public with “real-time news, all the time.”

Segments from life coach experts

In addition, DZRJ 810 AM’s eclectic and exciting fast-paced programming is sure to keep listeners tuned in and interested with their sprinkling of segments provided by experts and personalities from various fields who serve as life coaches to listeners. Airing throughout the day are helpful segments by lawyer Katrina Legarda of the Child Protection Network, former Marikina mayor Marides Fernando, restaurateur chef Ed Quimson, Nick Tuason of Bellaluce Productions, Lulu Tan Gan, legal eagle Lorna Kapunan, Anton San Diego of Tatler Magazine, and Billy Esposo, Mayenne Carmona, Apo Hiking Society’s Jim Paredes, Mons Romulo Tantoco, Babe Romualdez, Johnny Litton and lawyer Jose Sison from The Philippine STAR stable, among others.

Live PBA, UAAP broadcasts

For sports enthusiasts, the station will also feature programs that include premier leagues such as the UAAP and the PBA, and “Sports Insider Radio” hosted by Jinno Rufino and Noel Zarate.

Listeners of all ages and demographics can tune in and be delighted by the appeal of diverse content ranging from the classics to hip and trendy programs that will be the mainstays of the new DZRJ 810 AM. Old-time radio theater classics such as Superman, Green Hornet and Western Classics on radio are also sure to entertain.

Date with history

DZRJ 810 AM has a history with revolutionary episodes. 

It has received many awards in recognition of the pivotal role it played in the 1986 People Power Revolution, which brought Filipinos to EDSA as June Keithley called out to the public; and broadcasting from the DZRJ AM Tower that was then located in Sta. Mesa after Radio Veritas was shut down upon orders of former President Ferdinand Marcos.

DZRJ AM came to be known as Radyo Bandido. The radio station also played an influential role during the EDSA 2 Revolution of 2001.

Reflecting on DZRJ’s role in these historical episodes in the country’s democratic journey, Belmonte said: “This is the perfect time to launch this partnership. President Noynoy Aquino’s administration has brought about a certain air of optimism and renewed hope all over the country, especially in the business sector. We know that P-Noy is a defender of press freedom, and for our part, The Philippine STAR will always be on the side of truth and justice.”

He is optimistic about the partnership. “When two highly respected leaders in their respective fields band together, only good things can happen. The partnership will greatly benefit both The STAR and DZRJ, in the service of the Filipino people,” he added.

Original Article Here

Makati rocks to 50 years of The Ventures

By Pocholo Concepcion
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:02:00 09/16/2010

Original Article Here

MANILA, Philippines—The sound that has influenced scores of musicians worldwide for 50 years sprang to life, performed by its creators, on Tuesday night in a Makati hotel.

The Ventures, the American band credited for inventing surf music, gamely played till midnight before a cheering, well-heeled crowd at the grand ballroom of Dusit Thani at the Ayala Center.

Spotted in the audience were US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr., Chief Justice Renato Corona and Philippine National Red Cross chair Richard Gordon.

The show was mounted by businessman-musician Ramon Jacinto, who was also celebrating his 50th year as a performer. He had personally invited The Ventures, who last performed in the country in 1962 at Araneta Coliseum.

100 million records

The band has sold over 100 million records to date and was inducted into the prestigious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.

At the start of Tuesday’s concert, Jacinto expressed his gratitude to The Ventures for deepening his passion for music. He especially cited the band’s version of the guitar instrumental “Walk Don’t Run” which, he said, “hit him like a tornado” when he first heard it in 1961.

In a video shown before the band went onstage, big international rock stars John Fogerty (Creedence Clearwater Revival), Joe Walsh (The Eagles), Carl Wilson (Beach Boys), Alan White (Yes), Stephen Stills (Crosby, Stills and Nash), Jeff Baxter (Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers), and Elton John, to name a few, related the huge effect that The Ventures’ tunes had on them as kids and, later, as aspiring musicians.

An excerpt from a magazine interview with the late George Harrison quoted him as saying that The Beatles “preferred the American guitarsound of The Ventures to British contemporaries.”

Packed ballroom

At the packed Dusit Thani grand ballroom, when the band hit the stage and cranked up its famed guitar tones—combining an ear-pleasing metal clang with distortion and reverb—it became clear why all those other famous artists were such raving fans.

“I’m 77 and still working,” said Ventures cofounder and rhythm guitarist Don Wilson, who effortlessly demonstrated his signature chicken-scratch technique on the song “Pipeline.”

He joked intermittently with the audience: “I’d like to thank my parents for making this show possible, my kids for making this necessary, and my choreographer, Jack Daniels.”

Lead guitarist Gerry McGee, who joined the band in 1968, was all business as he handled most of the solos. He smiled occasionally, though, apparently when pleased with a well-executed interplay with his band mates.

Their admirably undiminished skills were highlighted when two members switched instruments before playing a three-song medley. Bassist Bob Spalding, who took over McGee’s guitar, led the band on “Walk Don’t Run,” “Perfidia” and “Lullaby of the Leaves.”

As drummer Leon Taylor (who took over his late dad, Mel Taylor) laid out successive rolls to set the rhythm, the audience was obviously reminded of the sense of adventure and freedom that The Ventures’ sound had exuded from the very start. Applause and approving roars filled the ballroom. It was like taking a joyride with friends, in a car that suddenly switched to higher gear.

“Apache,” apt for a Spaghetti Western flick with its foreboding mood, was a perfect explanation for celebrated filmmaker Quentin Tarantino’s decision to use some Ventures songs in “Pulp Fiction.”

The band, of course, also went on to make soundtrack music and it was a joy to hear the popular “Hawaii Five-O” TV theme, even without a horn section.

Anything at all

At one point, it was obvious that the veteran performers could play anything, including blues classics (“Hideaway” and “Green Onions”) the hip-swaying “Tequila,” and a tribute to Japan, “Kyoto Doll,” which was ingeniously interspersed with the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black.”

Japan figures prominently in The Ventures saga because the band is revered almost piously in that country, where its albums still reportedly outsell The Beatles two to one.

When Wilson called Jacinto onstage to jam, the latter looked like a kid let loose in a candy store, grinning from ear to ear as he traded licks with his idols.

Earlier, RJ and his band opened the show with a 10-song anniversary set that began with his own instrumental composition, “Weightless”—whose riffs are very much inspired by The Ventures, no doubt.

Surprise number

A surprise number came in the form of another jam, guest guitarist Katsuhisa Yoda, Japanese president of Honda Philippines, joining Jacinto on “Let’s Go.”

Yoda’s solos harked back to a musician from an earlier decade—Chuck Berry, godfather of rock ’n’ roll.

In effect, what was presented on Tuesday night was a capsule history of contemporary music, at the center of which, and deservedly so, was the group that set off the craze for electric guitar music: The Ventures—in the flesh.

Original Article Here

The Ventures Live in Manila!

TRIBUTE TO ELVIS On occasion to his 33rd Death Anniversary

Feat. RJ Jacinto, the "Elvis Presleys of Japan, Italy, Mandaluyong and Asia" Douglas Masuda, Eddie Lombardo, Jun Espinosa, and Edgar Opida, Richie Barangan (Winner 2002 Discover Channel Singapore), Eric Alvarez (2009 Elvis Presley Grand Champion of Enchanted Kingdom) and Atty. Homer Mendoza (Best Elvis Presley 50's Sound-A-Like) on Aug. 11, 2010 Wednesday @ 8:30pm, Dusit Thani Hotel, Makati.

R U LIST3NING TOUR 2010: THE UR 105.9 3RD ANNIVERSARY

The Latest and Gratest Concert Series: "Let's Dance!", feat. Ramon "RJ" Jacinto with special guests The Electromaniacs and introducing Bea Tantoco.

RJ 100.3fm, Vue Bar and Smart Infinity presents: The Latest and Gratest Concert Series: "Let's Dance!", feat. Ramon "RJ" Jacinto with special guests The Electromaniacs and introducing Bea Tantoco. "Let's Dance!" will be on July 24, at the Vue Bar, Bellevue Hotel, Alabang. Show starts @ 9pm. For any queries or reservations, please call 771-8181 or 899-3108



ALL AMERICAN ROCK & ROLL CONCERT CELEBRATING FILIPINO-AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP DAY ON JULY 4, 2010!

On this 4th of July, come and celebrate U.S. Independence Day with us, as RJ 100.3fm, Johnny Rockets American Diner and AMA Education System bring you: All-American Rock & Roll Concert, celebrating Filipino-American Friendship Day! Featuring the one and only, RJ Jacinto and The official ELVIS of MTV America, Johnny Elvis as his special guest. Dance to the beat of of good-ol' American classic rock 'n roll made popular by Elvis himself. Plus, there will be an RJ Guitar display and a demo workshop, and a meet and greet RJ and "Elvis" from 5pm onwards! This will be held on Sunday, July 4 at the Eastwood Mall @ 7pm. Entrance is FREE!!! :)

UR 105.9FM presents: The UR MixTape!

For this month of June, you, that's right, YOU will get to play DJ and pick out YOUR OWN 3 songs-in-a-row of your choice, with the theme of our Independence Day, and explain why you chose those them. All of the mechanics are listed here, on this link: www.rjplanet.com/UR1059 . This segment is spornsored by UR 105.9fm and Alaska Yogurt Drink.