It was quite appropriate that “Versions and Verses (The Repeat)”, the second run of the successful concert of Joey G and Nina, fell on a Thursday because the repertoire of ballads and love songs is a throwback to the eighties and nineties. And the songs sure brought back memories fit for the hashtag #ThrowbackThursday.
I have been a fan of Joey Generoso since the early 1990s, the peak of Side A’s popularity. I have watched Side A concerts at just about any venue: bars/restos, hotel lounges, school campuses and even abroad (in Dubai). So, it felt really good to watch him in a concert again. Although, I did catch a gig of the new Side A a few months ago. But it’s still different without Joey G.
As Joey G pointed out during the concert, it has been three years since he left as the band’s vocalist. But like most of his fans, to this day, it is still hard to dissociate him from Side A. So, he still sings Side A songs in his concerts. At Versions and Verses, he performed “So Many Questions”, “Tuloy Pa Rin Ako” and “Forevermore“, the most applauded number. His voice is still worth swooning over.
Nina is, as always, a sight and voice to behold. She looked and sounded every bit the Soul Siren that she is that night, wearing her lovely gowns. As a Mariah Carey fan, I cannot help but be a fan of Nina, who idolizes Mariah as well.
She, in fact, opened the show with “Never Too Far”, the theme of Mariah’s movie “Glitter”. Yes, Nina can still hit the so-called “whistle register” a-la Mariah.
While Joey G himself mentioned that Nina has a unique way of making other singers’ songs as her own, Nina sounds best when she sings her own songs. The concert turned into a sing-along when she sang her hits “Love Moves in Mysterious Ways” and “Jealous”.
If they sounded great in their solo numbers, Joey G and Nina singing together is really something else. Their duets, whether fast (“Addicted To Love”) or mellow (“Foolish Hearts”) are very well applauded. But the parts where they sing a version of each other’s songs are the best. They performed Nina’s “Someday” and Side A’s “Set You Free”.
There was no mention of another repeat of Versions and Verses in the future, but for sure, we will see a lot more of Joey G and Nina separately and together in gigs and concerts. Until then, we have their throwback performances to look back on.
