An original pressing copy of this record was auctioned off by Salcedo Auctions in June 2018 for php28,000. Wow! No one knew that by 2020 Viva (who owns all the records released locally by Vicor and Blackgold would reissue the album) would start remastering and unleashing in 2021 quarterly releases of sought after OPM albums.
Bong Penera's album Batucada sa Calesa was produced in 1977 by Blackgold Records, with cover art by Mauro Malang Santos, taken from a photo of the painting at the Hyatt Regency Manila’s Calesa Bar, hence the title.
It is his second album, Bong is credited for having popularized samba and bossanova in the Philippine music scene, combining Filipino and English lyrics in tunes inspired by Antonio Carlos Jobim. The great artist Malang meanwhile died in 2017 at 89 yrs old. His paintings are commanding prices in the millions after his death.
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About the Author
Romeo Babao is a Mastering Engineer, record producer, composer and jingle maker. He graduated Doctor of Medicine from Lyceum Northwestern. He writes multiple pressing comparisons and reviews for the US based MusicStack 6 times a year and produces EDM for a label and club in Japan.