article from: Malaya -Entertainment (04.04.2004)
additional text: Ricky Lo, Phil. Star (03.27.2004)

Fresh from his Las Vegas performances, singer Martin Nievera is set to woo lovers with his latest album featuring all his best wedding songs. He will send his love, luck, and the best of his wishes to all engaged couples and newlyweds.

“Best Wishes, Martin Nievera,” is his recent CD release. It is a collection of wedding love songs, both grand and intimate that is sure to make your wedding feel like a splendid celebration and a sacred love affair. Martin’s timeless hits like “You’re My Everything” and “Never Say Goodbye” will surely give your wedding the pomp feel of a wonderful merriment, while “The Promise,” and “Of All the Things” give your event the warm air of love and intimacy.

Martin’s songs have always been favorites at weddings, celebrity marriages or otherwise, movie settings or real-life events. Most grooms choose to dedicate “You Are My Song” to their chosen woman, while most brides enjoy the promised romance in “Promise of Love” (which he originally wrote for Pops and later finished it for the wedding of Richard Gomez and Lucy Torres). “Of All the Things” often finds itself in compilation CDs that the couple gives away as souvenirs, alongside “You,” “True Love” and “Forever,” which is a duet with Regine Velasquez.

The idea for “Best Wishes, Martin Nievera” came about after the famed singer/songwriter wrote “With You” for the wedding of newscasters Christine Bersola and Julius Babao. Since Martin’s songs are usually included in an engaged couple’s track lists for the wedding rites and ceremony, as well as in the merriments and dancing at the reception; and since more and more requests for the Concert King to sing at celebrities’ weddings are coming in, “Best Wishes, Martin Nievera” is only apt and timely.

Now, you might not be lucky enough to have a new Martin original for your wedding, let alone have him perform live. But you can set the same ambience as these couples did when Martin set their special days to music. See if you know any of them. With You for Tin-Tin and Julius, Promise of Love for Lucy and Richard, Today for Michelle and Paul and In Your Eyes for Fia and Jinggoy.

“How much do I charge for a wedding song? I don’t. I write it for free – if the marrying couple are my friends. If not, I would charge so high – you know, presyong ayaw – and if the couple who are not my friends say ‘Okay lang,’ then I do it.”

“Best Wishes, Martin Nievera” features 17 timeless Martin Nievera hits, three of which are newly recorded tracks. Alongside “Forevermore,” “You Are My Song,” “The Promise” and “Forever” (a duet with Regine Velasquez) are “Ikaw,”

“Today,” and “With You.” The first among the new songs is a Louie Ocampo composition, to which master lyricist George Canseco writes his poetry. “With You” is the new song penned by Louie Ocampo and Martin himself, for the recent wedding of Tin-tin and Julius. The album has been released last May 2004 with Martin set to cast his magnificent love spell on the bride, the groom, and all the well-wishers at your wedding.