On Oct. 10, friends and colleagues will celebrate the life work of the journalist, poet, editor, screenwriter and translator Jose F. Lacaba with “Salinawit ni Pete Lacaba: A Tribute” at My Brother’s Mustache.

The happy event will feature performances of some of the songs that Lacaba has translated into Filipino—classics, standards, jazz, Broadway hits, even the French immortal “La Vie en Rose,” etc.—by such artists as Nathan Abella, Rey Abella, Joey Ayala, Bayang Barrios, Noel Cabangon, Pat Castillo, Cooky Chua, Waki Ignacio, Leah Navarro, Chickoy Pura, Joel Saracho and Mitch Valdes. Think “Yun Lang” (“That’s All”), or “Kayumanggi at Balingkinitan” (“Tall and Tan and Young and Lovely”), or even “Kayakapyakap” (“Embraceable You”). 

The translated songs display Lacaba’s mastery of the languages, contexts, and impish wit. And provide a glimpse into a facet of the man quite apart from, yet in keeping with, his reportage, commentary, and poetry. 

Like “Walang Kupas,” his rendition of “As Time Goes By”:

Alalahanin mo

Halik na totoo 

Ay di nagbabago

Kapag dalisay at wagas 

Walang kupas.

Rosas at awit 

Na di naluluma 

Lambing at galit

At selos at tuwa 

Isang dibdib, dalawang nilikha 

Pag-ibig ay ganyan.

Paulit-ulit lamang 

Ang ating kasaysayan 

Ngayon at kaylanman

Walang wakas itong pag-ibig

Walang kupas.

The evening of words and music promises to offer more of the same delicate and surprising turns of phrase. CS

“Salinawit ni Pete Lacaba: A Tribute” starts at 5 p.m. on Oct 10 at My Brother’s Mustache/Hive Hotel, 68 Scout Tuason, Quezon City. Tickets are at ₱1,000 and ₱1,500. For inquiries and reservations, send a message to My Brother’s Mustache Bar on Facebook.

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