Smoky mountain tony lambino biography

Smokey Mountain was a Filipino singing group formed by musical director, composer, and conductor Ryan Cayabyab. The original group was based in Manila, Philippines, and had James Coronel, Geneva Cruz, Jeffrey Hidalgo, and Tony Lambino as its members.

They were often dressed in ragged clothes to depict the then dire situation of the scavengers living in the garbage dump in Manila after which the group was named. In 1989, the group released its first self-titled pop album that consisted of songs revolving around social, environmental, and patriotic themes. The group's first hit, Kailan (When), was number one on national airwaves for eight straight weeks and the album hit gold, platinum, and double-platinum status within months of its release. In late 1990, the group went on the "Better World" tour, performing at the United Nations World Summit for Children and representing the Philippines at the 5th ASEAN Song Festival in Surabaya, Indonesia.

As the members aged, Lambino, Cruz, and Hidalgo would leave the group. Ryan Cayabyab would reform the group with its last remaining original member Coronel and three new members Zhar Santos, Chedi Vergara, and Jayson Anganan. It is from this batch that the group's most successful hits were spawned: Da Coconut Nut (about the benefits of the coconut plant), Paraiso (literally paradise; ironically, about a degrading environment filled with garbage and smog), and their own version of Kailan. They also won awards for both Paraiso and Tayo Na (Let's Go).

In around 1993, Coronel would leave the group. The remnants of the latest batch disbanded sometime later. Cruz would later on move full time into showbiz, with Lambino having stints in musical theatre and broadcast news and later, graduate studies in the United States as a Fulbright Scholar. Hidalgo would go into songwriting and Coronel into managing a Manila-based call center. Santos would audition in the fourth edition of the reality show American Idol

Filipino singing group

Smokey Mountain was a Filipinosinging group formed by musical director, composer, and National Artist for Music, Ryan Cayabyab, and executive producer Judd Berlin.

The group was based in Manila, Philippines, and had James Coronel, Geneva Cruz, Jeffrey Hidalgo, and Tony Lambino as its original members. Jayson Angangan, Chedi Vergara, and Zhar Santos joined for the second lineup after Geneva Cruz, Jeffrey Hidalgo, and Tony Lambino left the group. Eventually, James Coronel left to pursue a solo career. Anna Fegi replaced Shar Santos during the 1994 tour in Japan.

History

The group was named after the Smokey Mountain garbage dump in Manila.

In 1989, the group released its first self-titled pop album. The group's first hit, Kailan ("When"), was number one on national airwaves for eight straight weeks and the album hit gold, platinum, and double-platinum status within months of its release.

In late 1990, the group went on the "Better World" tour, performing at the United Nations World Summit for Children in New York and representing the Philippines at the 5th ASEAN Song Festival in Surabaya, Indonesia.

Having to choose between formal schooling and a two-year, two-album contract for release in Europe and the U.S., Tony Lambino and Jeffrey Hidalgo left the group, while Geneva Cruz pursued a solo career and released her first solo album "I Like You". Ryan Cayabyab held auditions to find members. The group reformed with the remaining original member James Coronel, and new members Shar Santos, Chedi Vergara, and Jayson Angangan. This second batch had successful hits, such as Da Coconut Nut, Paraiso, and their own version of Kailan.

In around 1993, the group released its third and international album Know You Will. James Coronel left the group after completing promotional work for this album. The last batch released the fourth album Death Penalty and disbanded

Tony Lambino is Governance Specialist at the World Bank Insitute's Governance Practice and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication. From 2007 to 2011, he was a member of the CommGAP team, doing research and training, and providing analytical support to CommGAP’s operational portfolio in Asia and Africa. Research interests include political communication, governance reform, public opinion, and citizen engagement.

Tony worked as Chief Media and Communications Officer for the Office for Regional Development, Office of the President of the Philippines (Manila), news anchor and writer for ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs (Manila), and consultant to the Global Forum for Media Development (London and Amman). He has published original research on presidential rhetoric, journalism, and media development. He received his M.A. in Political Communication from Penn, Master in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School as a Fulbright Scholar and Osmeña Fellow, A.B. in Communication, cum laude, from the Ateneo de Manila University as an Aquino Scholar, and was named one of 1999's Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines.

In a previous life, Tony was a professional singer and songwriter, cutting albums in the Philippines as a solo artist and with the multi-awarded Smokey Mountain, a singing group named after the largest garbage dump in Asia in the 90’s, with a mission to promote social and development issues through popular music.

1991 studio album by Smokey Mountain

Paraiso is the second studio album by young Filipino singing group Smokey Mountain. It was released in the Philippines in 1991 by Sony BMG Music. The album slightly surpassed the commercial success of the group's self-titled debut album, also certifying 8× Platinum by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry (PARI) and selling over 253,800 units in the country. It is considered to be one of the biggest-selling albums in the Philippines, overtaking Smokey Mountain (the album) in terms of sales. The album was released in Japan in 1992 with a different track listing.

Background

Having to choose between formal schooling and a "two-year, two album" contract for release in Europe and the United States, original band members Tony Lambino and Jeffrey Hidalgo left the group, while Geneva Cruz pursued a solo career and released her first solo album "I Like You". The popularity of the group already reached its peak at the time of the departure of the group's three members. Because of this, Ryan Cayabyab—who formed, directed and conducted the group—held auditions to find new members to fill in the void of the three founding members who left the group. Cayabyab, then, reformed the group with remaining original member James Coronel, and three new members Shar Santos, Chedi Vergara, and Jayson Angangan. The second batch of the group were the ones who recorded the second album.

Composition

"Da Coconut Nut" is described as a funny song with a "tropical" mood that Cayabyab wrote for Smokey Mountain, where he allowed himself to have fun, writing the song. The song talks about the benefits of the coconut tree. The title track "Paraiso" is, ironic to its title, about a degrading environment filled with garbage and smog. Because of the commercial and critical success of the first batch's single "Kailan" which was led by Cruz, the seco