LAST Wednesday, we saw Philippine music icons Freddie Aguilar, Sampaguita, Chito Bertol and Ramon Jacinto performing together at Bistro RJ on Pasay rd. in Makati. It was a special treat to see the four veteran singers having such a good time, and their audience along with them.

RJ cracked that some people regarded them as aging rock 'n' rollers, but Sampaguita quickly riposted, "--But we're still raging!" True enough, the rage to rock still blazes in these pioneering musical artists.

They were at Bistro RJ because Jacinto was launching "The Ultimate RJ Bistro Collection," a five-CD compilation of the musical highlights of performances at Bistro RJ for the past 13 years. Also present at the launch were some members of the Electromaniacs, Bad Habits, Deltas and Hijacks, as well as Gary Lising and other Jacinto buddies, plus some of his loyal followers through the years, many of them "baby boomers" like him but still raring to rock.

Jacinto said he came up with his nostalgic compilation for them, but also for younger listeners, to get them excited about rock 'n' roll as well.

Aside from music, the five-CD collection is also big on nostalgia, thanks to the unusual 52-page "photo album" that comes with the package. Browsing through it, we learn that Jacinto was first bitten by the rock 'n' roll bug 43 years ago, when he was only 11 years old. One of the first songs he performed was Li'l Richard's "Long Tall Sally" which he continues to dish out to this day.

Jacinto recalls, "My mom bought me a local guitar and I started listening to 'Diana' by Paul Anka, 'Rock Around the Clock' by Bill Haley, and of course Elvis. I started singing during informal parties and jam sessions. In 1960, I made my first public appearance at the Ateneo de Manila High School's Christmas Party."

Jacinto's group began as Ramon and the Riots before it became RJ and the Riots. His first hit was "Weightless," and RJ and the Riots went on to release two albums and 40 hit singles.

Soon, it seemed like every neighborhood had a garage band. For his part, Jacinto put up the dzRJ radio station and came out with Teenstone magazine and the Boss Era paper for students, all of which he used to enable rock 'n' roll to reach out to a wider audience.

The music stopped for Jacinto when Martial Law was declared and he lived abroad for years. Coming back to the country in 1986, he put up the first Bistro RJ and started yet another craze, this time for retro music. "After 13 years," says Jacinto, "we've come up with our RJ Bistro anthology to capture those magical times once and for all."

It wasn't easy producing the 142-song collection. It took one year to listen to all those tapes of live performances at Bistro RJ through the years and to choose the best to include in the compilation.

Particularly nostalgic is the fifth CD, which includes some memorable guest performances: Jose Mari Chan sings "The Young Ones," Kojak and the Orioles do "Sumpaan" (an adaptation of "Historia de un Amor"), Eddie Mesa is featured in a "Stuck on You"/ "Return to Sender" medley, the late, great pianist Bobby Enriquez goes to town with "Roll Over, Beethoven," Eddie K guests in a medley, the Moonstrucks let loose with "Daddy Cool," and the Mindbenders pay musical obeisance to "Good Old Rock 'n' Roll."

Looking back at his four decades as rock devotee, Jacinto says the enjoyment he gets performing rock 'n' roll hasn't palled through the years. True enough, when he regaled his guests with some numbers last Wednesday, he looked and sounded like he as having himself a whale of a good time.