Nostalgia Manila Exclusive Interview with Roger Rigor of VST & Company Part 1

Here's a big treat for all of you VST & Company fans! Nagkapihan kami ni Roger Rigor of the legendary hitmakers, VST & Company. Ang saya ng aming kwentuhan, as he shared with me all the fun memories nung mga unang panahon ng grupo. This is Part 1 of our Nostalgia Manila Exclusive Interview:

NM: Bumalik tayo sa simula, papano nabuo ang VST? Sino ang mga original members?

VST is a conglomeration of guys from two sectors of Manila: the Paco boys and the 461 boys---we referred to the Sotto brothers with Joey (De Leon) as the Paco boys, kasi doon sila nakatira and of course, the 461 boys are the guys like us from San Juan. But, the core section of the band, the rhythm section headed by Homer Flores, could be considered the driving force behind the music of the 70s---most of the guys in the band were active producers in the recording business...kaya, matindi...

NM: Close kayong mga magbabarkada, sino-sino ang mga kasama sa barkada ninyo?

The 461 boys have been together for many years, as with the Paco boys...the 461 boys were Spanky (Rigor), Male (Rigor), Monet (Gaskell), Celso (Llarina), Jun (Medina) and myself...Val (Sotto) was the lone Paco boy until Vic (Sotto) joined us in the latter part. That was because Jun Medina left for the States...and this was the height of the band as we would do all kinds of concerts around schools and provinces...prior to VST, the 461 boys were already into the music scene: Spanky and Celso were mainstays in the production house of in the very early days of Vicor music. They also were part of many bands from the past: Celso was with the Ramrods and Cinderella, and Spanky with Purple People and the Cinderella...they were also together in the superband of the early seventies called the Blackbuster band---where the mainstays were Bob Guzman (also a 461 guy, who eventually was the driving force behind Octo Arts and the Boyfriends), Celso, Spanky and Snaffu Rigor, the Ilacad brothers: Sunny, and Guy; and Willy Cruz, who eventually headed Jem records. Together with the Blackbuster were Charo Unite, Nanette "Dona Buding" Inventor and Aida Firme...
Monet also had his band stints with his San Beda friends, while Male tinkered in the theatre arts...as for myself, my only background in music was when the 461 boys would sing in church for weddings where the ultimate of singing was doing some real good harmonies...Of course, among all of us, it was Jun Medina who was the most veteran, being the guy from Olongapo, he had the voice and the presence of any band crooner...

NM: Saan ang home base ng barkada?

The home base of the barkada, especially the 461 boys, were at the house in Little Baguio. The address 461 General Lim was always filled with cars everyday as guys would flock to the house for some beers and a time to unwind with some dart games and singing. If the mood strikes everyone, the whole gang would drive out to see a movie. It used to be, in the early days of the seventies, the barkada, as they would always be together to watch a movie or whatever, will always attract some attention, since all would be sporting some really long hair---the hippie days, as we all fondly recall...Greenhills Shopping Center was the place to be...

NM: Ano ang usual gimmik ng grupo? Saan kayo gumigimmik? Mga paburito ninyong pasylalan at gimmik spots.

The 461 guys would also have some weekend sprees to Matabunkay, the summer place owned by the Estevas and Johnny Wilson...otherwise, it would be at Greenhills...and then, of course, the weekend basketball games at Greenhills park, where the boys remained unbeatable as the color Tangerine in the local Little Baguio Basketball League....we would also frequent St. Paul's College in Quezon City as we coached the girls' basketball teams for the WNCAA...and after these games, we would be having some weekend parties at the Estevas in Little Baguio.

NM: Any usual tambayan?

Ang paboritong hang-out ng barkada ay sa Greenhills Aristocrat dahil kabarkada ang may ari nito, si Butch Reyes. And then, meron pa yung Sun Moon Restaurant for the favorite pre-basketball merienda, "makimi"....pag masaya na sa 461 at andoon na ang tropa, yung paboritong pulutan ng lahat ay yung titsaron bituka ng Santa Lucia...yun at matinding game ng darts o chess, at may accoustic guitar, masaya na ang lahat...

NM: Sino ang iyong mga paburitong music artists noon? Mga madalas mong pakinggan nung araw?

At that time, the hit was the band Queen...which we would play while even playing basketball at the park...or, Dan Fogelberg, England Dan and John Ford Cawley, Yes, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Rick Wakeman, Deep Purple, Steely Dan, James Taylor, Crosby, Stills and Nash and many, others...

Don't forget to check out the VST & Company Photo Album at maraming mga photos na siguradong hindi mo pa nakikita.

Also Read: Nostalgia Manila Exclusive Interview with Roger Rigor of VST & Company Part 2

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