Club C has new performers

Gerard “Gigi” Almine and Abdon S. Kaipat are two of the new performers who have been entertaining Club C regulars for close to two months now. Almine plays the latest pop songs and popular hits from different decades, while Abdon is more on reggae and island-style music.

They play different genres that cater to specific customers that frequent the Kanoa Resort gaming facility.

Alimine is on stage from 6pm to 9pm every Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays bringing with a variety of music played in his more than a decade experience of being a musician—from being a member of a band to being a solo act. He plays the keyboard and guitar.

Abdon—who has been playing for more than 20 years—showcases his guitar and ukulele skills every Wednesday, also from 6pm to 9pm, with mostly reggae and island style songs.

Both had no formal training in a music school and only learned how to play the guitar, keyboard, and ukulele either from their friends or relatives who also love to sing.

“I just learned to play the guitar from friends. I used to watch them and slowly they taught me. I further learned how to play guitar when I joined a band, and that’s where I also started learning to play the keyboard,” said Almine.

Abdon, meanwhile, started playing the ukulele and the guitar when he was 13 years old after hearing his uncles. “They were singing and playing the guitar, I heard them and immediately I fell in love with the sound. So, I asked them if they could teach me how to play the guitar.”

Alimine began playing with a band in bars in Olongapo City in Central Luzon, Philippines but transitioned to piano at the Lighthouse Marina Resort when he went solo in 2005. “Playing solo was hard at first since I was only a back up when I was with a band.”

“When I was with a band I only play in the background but it was totally different when I went solo. I slowly adjusted being a solo act and it gives me the liberty to experiment in some of the arrangement of the songs.”

Aside from playing pop songs and hits by artists like the Platters, Elvis Prestley, Paul Anka, and Frank Sinatra, Alimine also knows some Korean and Japanese pieces. “Some of the Korean and Japanese guests are delighted. I have to review with my Mandarin for the Chinese guests.”

Kaipat, on the other hand, also adds country, blues, mellow-classic, and slow tunes from his repertoire.

Club C is open daily from 12nn to 4am. For more information or reservation, call 234-0088.