This is an amusing interview I found archived in the Manila Standard... so it's not true that too much drugs are bad for you eh?
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Interview by Totel de Jesus
Pepe Smith: National artist?http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=goodLife01_oct06_2005
Would it be OK if I ask you about your health?Type na type ko `yan.
What health drugs are you taking now, I mean, like vitamins?Yero, gulong, bakal (laughter). No, not really vitamins. I eat corn flakes sa umaga, whipped cream, oatmeal, wheat bread, ganun lang.
Do you still eat meat?I am meat. Without the S. I am Pepe Meat (laughter). That's number one on my list.
Do you get high-blood pressure?I only get high but no blood (guffaw.) No, not at all. Seriously, if someone or something pisses me off, na ha-high blood ako. Natural lang. I got a healthy heart.
Is it true that about 10 years ago, straight from prison, you had a mandatory medical exam and you got a clean bill of health?Yeah that's right. After two years in prison, there's the required medical test. Even the doctor was surprised, rather, disappointed. We were waiting for the result in his clinic and while looking at my papers, he shook his head in disbelief. He actually said he can't (sic) believe it. He was a bit angry pa ata kasi binagsak n'yang padabog yung papers sa table nya. Parang newborn baby daw ako. No trace of any sickness. Blood pressure 120/80, ganun. We were all laughing at the clinic. Wow, I was very much thankful to the Lord. I was surprised and very happy also because I was expecting that the side effects of the drugs I took over the years would come out. Akala ko lalabas `yung mga nagtatagong sakit sa mga ugat ko. I was proud. S'yempre lagi na lang tayong napapag-isipan e. Ngayon pwede ko na silang sabihan na,`o ano'? Anong pinagbibintang n'yo sa akin?
How many hours of sleep do you get now?Wow...in Baguio for the past four years, eight o' clock or nine o' clock pa lang ng gabi tulog na ko. Then I wake up at five or six in the morning.
Do you still smoke?Yeah, pine tree, hinihithit ko yan.
How many sticks a day?Mga 3,000 sticks a day (guffaw). Kidding aside, one or two packs a day.
How about exercise?Climbing stairs and roads. Kasi in Baguio ang daming hagdanan at paakyat ng mga kalsada di ba? Which is OK kasi it's a natural kind of exercise.
You don't have difficulties climbing stairs?Syempre `pag walang nakatingin, gapang. No, naman. Kaya naman.
Do you feel anything painful in your body, like signs of arthritis and rheumatism?
I feel something painful in my fingers and my back but I don't know if it's arthritis or rheumatism. Dapat balikan ko `yung doctor na nag-checkup sa kin e. Papagalitan ko (guffaw). Once in while, I got fever, cold or cough. Wala naman akong major ailment. I feel cool. I feel great. But of course, I think I need another checkup. I need someone to look into my systems very soon.
Is it true that you survived a vehicular accident last year?Yes, that's true. My friends and I came from a party and we had too much to drink. There was a 10-wheeler truck before us that stopped instantly, our driver failed to step on the brakes on time and we hit the truck from behind. I was sitting in front. I forgot to put my seatbelt on. Upon impact, my jaw hit the dashboard, near the aircon. I got a broken jaw, right here (pointing both sides of his face). Now, robot na ako. The doctor had to put some platinum plates to connect my jaw to my face. It was painful to eat during the first few months. OK na ngayon. And thankfully, my voice wasn't affected at all.
After that, do you consider this life as your second?No, third na yata or fourth (laughter). There were many times when I passed out I felt Death coming in but he left as fast as he came.
Are you still sexually active?Oh, I'm not going to lie. Am not gonna hide anything. Yes I am.
How did you survive the '70s, when everyone's heavy on sex, drugs, and rock n' roll?Actually I wasn't there. I was hiding under my bed all the time (laughter). Drugs would fall down from someone else's pocket and roll down under the bed and I would pick `em up and take them. Then I discovered the Philippines! (guffaw). No. Seriously, yun na nga ang masakit dun e. That's the hardest thing. Yung reputasyon mo. Ang tingin sa yo, ganun. If people see me and my speech is kinda slurry, they would conclude, `a `yan si Pepe, bangag na naman yan. Then you hear this balita. But all they have to do is approach me and ask me. Siguro in the `70s. Noon yun. I was jamming all around. I was a young roller then. Pero I kept my cool over these things—a puff of this, a pill of that, a tablet of this, then a ton of ano (laughter).
Mind expanding drugs you took?LSD, mescaline, cenoxybine mushroom all those psycho-traffic drugs.
Did you ever get suicidal?I think I'm a ghost (guffaw). Did I ever get suicidal? No, never. There were some bad trips. There was a time when I was heavy on downers, I passed out. I had a friend who I used to shoot with barbiturates like xeconal in his room. Those were the days. Am so glad I went through that and I survived. Am not gonna do that again. Well, if I'm given another life, probably I'm gonna shoot some more (laughter).
Now, before performing, do you still take something to warm you up?No, natural na. `Di na ako bata, man. All those drug adventures and all that. They were way, way back. I won't be able to reach this stage and age if I am still heavy on drugs, man. Wala na yun e. Natatawa na lang ako pag may nakakakita sa kin tapos sasabihin, `Ay si Pepe o, bangag na naman yan.' But now, if I have to be up onstage, I'm completely normal, 100-percent normal. Normally stoned (guffaw). No, never.
Do you find pirated copies of Audiosyncrazies?Wala pa. `Yung Juan dela Cruz, there are a lot. In Baguio, sa Session Road, nakahilera. Whenever I see pirated copies of our albums, I talk to the vendors. I beg them to spare our albums. If they have to do that, sabi ko `yung sa iba na lang. I explain to them na I earn nothing from that. Talo kami. If piracy continues, pare, time will come no one will go into recording anymore.
Do you still get royalties from your former recording companies?With Vicor, wala na nga e. Dapat tingnan nila `yung mga nakaligtaan nila sa amin. Like ring tones. There are about six or seven songs from Juan dela Cruz used as ring tones. We were asking for some formal reports but there's nothing. Si Wally (Gonzales, Juan dela Cruz' lead guitarist) nga, he's very much pissed off. He's the one handling all the legalities for Juan dela Cruz.
Do you see yourself living up to what age? Say 30 more years?I think am gonna last until 150 years (guffaw). No, seriously, my grandmother died when she was 88 or 89. I think I can do that. Ang hirap sabihin no? I think I'll pass that age. By that time robotics na siguro ako, puro bakal na ko sa kamay (demonstrating a puppet-like arms movement), howdy-howdy-howdy. I don't know pare but minsan, nagdadasal na lang ako, `Lord, kunin mo na ko, nakakainis na dito'."
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