Daniel “Danny” Javier has passed away.

And although the APO Hiking Society has long since disbanded, now there’s never going to be a reunion of this fabled Original Pilipino Music trio. More so their long-time manager and former APO Hiking Society member Butch Dans has also left us.

I got to interact with the four Javier brothers in my lifetime. And that ran the full spectrum of emotions.

The eldest brother Sandy was a client of ours when I was still in advertising. From their successful Andok’s chain of stores (named after their father), he had asked our agency to prepare a campaign for their then new product, the Andokito, and their new Quick Stomach restaurant along Makati Avenue.

Sandy was a stern and no-nonsense fellow although he was gregarious when he took us along at the race track.

George or “Dyords” I have met various times during my elementary, high school, and college days at the Ateneo as he was part of school variety shows including guesting on “Champoy” that featured my dad’s classmates Noel Trinidad, Subas Herrero, and Gary Lising. He was hilarious.

Even when Sandy was chewing us out for our advertising presentation, George’s facial expressions made us stifle a guffaw (he was part of the company’s board).

Plus, we got to talk some when we would watch the Ateneo Lady Eagles when his daughter Corinne was playing in the UAAP.

Jimmy, I interviewed for the Ateneo Sports Hall of Fame documentary about his stint as a color commentator for the old Silverstar Sports where his tandem with Joaqui Trillo was some of the most fun commentary in Philippine sports.

In my many discussions with Jimmy, I always found his insights revealing as he straddled the seriousness of Sandy and the lightheartedness of George.

Danny had something from all three other brothers.

Being the son of the long-time president of the Philippine Association of the Record Industry (PARI), Danny Olivares, who served for 27 years, has its perks. Aside from getting free records and concert tickets, I got to meet and talk with many many stars and celebrities.

I woke up one Saturday morning to find Danny Javier in the sala of our old Cubao home. It wasn’t unusual to find recording artists paying my dad a visit to talk on a Saturday.

As a youngster in the Ateneo Grade School, even with my obsession with comic books, the nascent Philippine Basketball Association, Voltes V and other mech-anime characters, I, well, we at school, all knew of the APO Hiking Society. Even years after their graduation, they remained campus heroes.

APO were total entertainers. They not only were excellent songwriters and singers, but they were showmen. Their shows had comedy skits so which explains why when they did their noontime show later on, they were naturals.

While he was in conversation with my dad, I sat in the nearby dining room where I could hear them. Yes, I intentionally eavesdropped. It wasn’t anything controversial or scandalous. Just some industry shoptalk.

The phone rang and my dad had to take a quick call.

I went to the sala to ask Danny for an autograph to which he obliged.

Boldly, I said, “I think APO Hiking Society is the Philippines’ version of the Rat Pack.” I referred to the informal group of American entertainers that famously included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.

When my dad returned, Danny said to my dad, Danny, “Your son compared us to the Rat Pack.”

I chimed in, “I think APO is better. Because you write your own songs while the Rat Pack has others to write their own songs.”

Both Dannys laughed.

"Well, we grew up watching and listening to the Rat Pack, and in our industry, you should be able to do a lot,” answered Danny Javier.

And he sure wrote a lot of great songs that are considered some of the best in OPM (he coined that term by the way) history – “Kaibigan,” “Pumapatak ang Ulan,” “Pag-ibig,” “Princesa,” “Do Bidoo”, and “Salawikain” among many others.

“Pumapatak ang Ulan” was one of the first songs I was taught how to play at the old Yamaha School of Music (at Ali Mall).

He said in that short but memorable conversation that we had, “Ang pagsusulat ng kanta ay galing sa iyong mga karanasan at mga nakikita mo sa buhay.”

There I was, age 12, in conversation with a great songwriter and now, OPM legend.

And that he wrote in the vernacular was a story of the time. The Ateneo at that time had shifted from a school where the American influence was markedly felt to a more Filipino one.

After Fr. Leo Cullum S.J. ended in 1959, there would be one more American Jesuit in charge of the university. But in between, Fr. Fritz Araneta, S.J. and Fr. Pacifico Ortiz S.J. presided and the Filipinization of the Ateneo began in earnest.

Danny Javier was in school at this time and the shift was felt in the way students spoke. The famous “Arrneow” accent was changing for a more Filipino one.

And that manifested in Danny’s thinking and eventually, songwriting.

If you go through his lyrics, they speak to a Filipino’s life experience. That line of “radyo, TV, at mga lumang komiks” spoke to me and an entire generation.

“Pag-ibig” was a song we danced to (sweet) during parties. And I did dance a slow one with the granddaughter of an ex-Philippine president (who I still wonder about to this day).

APO wasn’t averse to poking fun at one another during performances. Even at their own selves. Danny’s character of “Pidro” who made his debut during the live performance of “American Junk” during their fabled concert at the ULTRA on the 30th of November, 1985, was self-deprecating but wise.

And the popularity of that character was parlayed into a line of Pidro clothing. I loved the character and the name that I named my first cat (during that time) Pidro.

The next time I got to speak with Danny was sometime in early 1994 when the Eraserheads exploded onto the Philippine music scene. And because of the style of the band’s songwriting, the 'Heads were said to be this generation’s APO Hiking Society.

At a show where APO was performing, I asked him what he thought of the comparison.

Danny laughed: “It is flattering, but they are really good songwriters. Better than us.”

There was that modest self of his again.

But it does say a lot when over 20 Filipino bands participated in the "Kami Na Po Muna" tribute to APO.

Danny then went on stage to perform. Giving it his best along with his mates in APO.

The consummate performer.

Danny Javier has gone now.

But he left behind a body of music that remains timeless and will speak to new generations of Filipinos.

Thanks for the music, Danny Javier. Oh, yes, they do bring a lot of great memories. Even the bittersweet ones.

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