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Jan 19, 2016

Dong Abay Rocks 70s Bistro

GPS waypoint: 14°37'50.2"N 121°03'41.3"E
Location: #46 Anonas Street, Project 2, Quezon City, Philippines

Heard from the Grapevine
I've heard of Dong Abay being mentioned in some passing conversation about Pinoy music but I've only noticed him from the postings of Bluesman Elwyn. Coming from Elwyn, that alone goes a long way. So when I learned about his gig at 70's Bistro, I penciled it in. Surprisingly, or perhaps not, Elwyn was at the gig himself. We were later joined-in by Doris, a sculptor and affiliate of the Blues Friends.

Westdon Martin Abay (aka Dong Abay)
Dong was accessible to his fans. At 70s Bistro before his set, he was just outside talking to me and Elwyn. His fans would start arriving and he would be gracious to all of them for a photo op. On stage, he morphs into a charged dynamo with his electrifying stage presence, conviction and unprentention. He reminds me of the poet in Bob Dylan and Jim Morrison, the endurance and connection with the audience of Bruce Springsteen and the grit of stand up comic, Lenny Bruce. He is a musician, a poet, a humanist and an artist, writing and performing all his songs. He is also a crowd pleaser - I think he did 5 encores to his fans' delight.


		I'm a singer, songwriter, recording artist, humorist, microblogger, literary writer, educator, photographer, performance and multimedia artist. I love ink. -- Dong Abay

Dong Abay Biography

April 5, 1971 - Dong Abay is born with the full name, Westdon Martin Abay
1992 - Dong Abay together with Eric Gancio and Larry Mapolon met to form the band, NG (pronounced as en-ji) with percussionist Renmin Nadela. Abay and Gancio remained and recruited musical arranger and bassist, Onie Badiang to the group. Eventually, the band's name was renamed to Yano
June 1993 - Dong recorded the song about the Edsa Revolution, "Kumusta Na?" in Joey Ayala's house. The protest song found its way to a radio station where it enjoyed air time and popularity. This paved the way for the band Yano to play gigs in the local music bars, namely Mayrics, Club Dredd, 70s Bistro
1994 - the band launched a self-titled album which produced hit singles like "Banal Na Aso, Santong Kabayo" (Holy Dog, Saintly Horse), "Tsinelas" (Slippers) and "EsEm" (wordplay for SM or Shoemart mall). They became the signature songs played in their nationwide concerts that enjoyed commercial success. The band enjoyed continued popularity through 1997
late 1990s - Dong quits Yano and goes through a 5-year phase of clinical depression
2002 - Abay rebounds into the music scene and formed the band, Pan together with Onie Badiang, former bassist of Yano. The collaboration produced noteworthy songs like "Parnaso ng Payaso" (A Clown's Collection of Poetry), "Dumpsite", "Hula" (Prediction), "Mabuhay!" (Long Live) and "Rebolusyon" (Revolution) The band enjoyed a string of successful gigs in the local scene
2003 - Dong quit Pan to complete his bachelor's degree at the University of the Philippines where he took up Arts and Letters
2005 - Dong became an indie artist and eventually earned his university degree of Bachelor of Arts in Philippine Studies (Creative Writing in Filipino and Humanities) after struggling with it for 18 long years
2014 - Dong formed a new band (his current) after playing with session musicians from New Zealand to Canada from the time he released his last solo album and the formation of this group.
2016 - Dong never stopped writing new songs and now they're working on 14 compositions which will be released in a new album this year

Ending Thoughts
Dong Abay is ANYTHING BUT a canned-performance or a recording company creation. He's an original, and a dynamic and powerful one at that. I have a feeling we haven't seen the best of him yet, not with the forthcoming projects lined-up this year. If you have't seen him live yet, do yourself a favor and check him out.

--- TheLoneRider

ps - If you are a musician or band (or a music bar) and want me to objectively cover your next gig/scene for this website, email me.

70's Bistro