carabao: tho. thahan otthon

band: คาราบาว (carabao)
album: ท. ทหารอดทน (tho. thahan otthon)
tracklist:
01. ท.ทหารอดทน (tho. thahan otthon)
02. ทินเนอร์ (thinner)
03. ผู้เฒ่า (phu thao)
04. ขี้เมาใจดี (khimao chaidi)
05. สวรรค์บ้านนา (sawan ban na)
06. ตุ๊กตา (tukta)
07. คนเก็บฟืน (khon kep fuen)
08. เวลา (wela)
09. คนนิรนาม (khon niranam)
10. กลิ่นรวงทอง (klin ruang thong)

this week we hear from the biggest thai rock band ever, carabao! though they had their apex in the 1980's, carabao is still among the most visible elements of thai popular culture; even today you can see banners of frontman ed all over, hawking their energy drink in just about every bus terminal throughout the kingdom. however, the guys came from humbler beginnings, and this tape takes us back to 1983; it's their fourth album and (i think) major label debut! their sound began as standard เพลงเพื่อชีวิต (pleng puea chiwit or "songs for life"), albeit with a bit of harder rock sound in lieu of the genre's typical folky atmospherics. the big single here, "'t' is for 'tough troops'", is one of my favorites of theirs; the verses are carried by a military-style marching cadence, ed's speak-singing & a banjo, as well as some whistling and sing-along for good measure! the rest of the album is somewhat more standard american-style rock & ballads, all good fun! big guitars and impassioned vocals. hope you enjoy!

electone; international for dancing, vol. ii

artist: unknown
album: เพลงเต้นรำนานาชาติ electone; international for dancing, vol. ii
tracklist:
01. soran bushi
02. i can't stop loving you
03. aredang
04. i don't want to go home
05. rhythm of the rain
06. ring guo
07. i miss you
08. all for the love of a girl
09. let it be
10. when you return
11. sukiyaki
12. why do i love you so
13. arisan
14. japanese love
15. love is blue
16. lovely cloud
17. jambalaya
18. sayonara

a bit of an odd one this week... thai electone sounds! the yamaha corporation's electone organ was a pretty big hit in a lot of asian countries, thailand being no exception. while primarily thought of in the united states as a remnant of the "home electronic organ" trend of mid-century, the electone has become something of a studio staple in asia, and defines a great deal of thai pop especially. there are even big competitions held, presumedly to see who can get the most sound out of the thing! (see thailand's 2007 competitor, 14-year-old ปุณยาพร ลิ้มภักดีสถาพร (punyaphon limpakdeesathaphon) here!) this tape, which i can find hardly any information about, comprises mostly instrumental interpretations of foreign dance hits; american, japanese, korean, chinese, etc. strange and fun synth noises abound, and there's the occasional acoustic percussion (drum kit, bongos or what-have-you) supplementing the rhythm track; something like thai "library music"! there is no artist listed, just english song titles with the dance style indicated beside it in thai. if anyone happens to know who's playing, please do tell! otherwise, just enjoy!!!

laongdao + sakaoduean: duan sai tai

singers: ละอองดาว + สกาวเดือน (laongdao + sakaoduean)
album: ด่วนสายใต้ (duan sai tai)
tracklist:
01. ด่วนสายใต้ (duan sai tai)
02. ไม่มีใครรักเธอเท่าฉัน (maimikhrai rak thoe thao chan)
03. รักฉันแล้วอย่ารักใครอีกนะ (rak chan laeo ya rak khrai ik na)
04. ให้เพราะความสงสาร (hai phro khwam songsan)
05. สอนน้อง (son nong)
06. คอยเธอ (khoi thoe)
07. แน่ต้องมาขอ (nae tong ma kho)
08. สาวนครชัยศรี (sao nakhon chaisi)
09. รักพี่เสียดายน้อง (rak phi siadai nong)
sung by ศักดิ์ชัย วันชัย (sakchai wanchai)
10. สามพราน (sam phran)
sung by ศักดิ์ชัย วันชัย (sakchai wanchai)
11. อย่าลืมสามพราน (ya luem sam phran)
12. สาวท่ายาง (sao tha yang)
13. ไม่ลืมท่ายาง (mai luem tha yang)
sung by พนมไพร ลูกเพชร (phanomphrai lukphet)
14. จับปลาสองมือ (chap pla song mue)

the singing twins laongdao + sakaoduean began life as champi and champa sothrabun of chachoengsao province. in their early teens, as the sisters' vocal talents became evident, their older brother dragged the two into the city, thinking to make stars of them. as it happened, they were discovered by none other than suraphon sombatcharoen! khun suraphon had been determined to acquire some female voices, in the hope of catching up to his rival of the fairer sex, phongsi woranut, whose popularity had been quickly surpassing his own. he adopted the girls, gave them their stage names ("stardust + pale moon") and took them on the road! they became an important part of suraphon's troupe, and went on to be pretty big stars in their own right! i think the twins are remembered mostly for their love songs, but their tough voices undercut any amount of lyrical schmaltziness!

a couple of the side 2 tracks are male-response style numbers, sung by two fellows i've never heard of (and who go uncredited on the tape; i had to track down their names myself!)