phaichit aksonnarong: khoi phi

artist: ไพจิตร อักษรณรงค์ (phaichit aksonnarong)
album: คอยพี่ (khoi phi)
tracklist:
01. กุหลาบร่วง (kulap ruang)
featuring วินัย พันธุรักษ์ (winai phanthurak)
02. คอยพี่ (khoi phi)
03. แรมพิศวาส (raem phitsawat)
04. คนจะรักกัน (khon cha rak kan)
05. ผิดที่เกินอภัย (phit thi koen aphai)
06. บ้านของเรา (ban khong rao)
07. ชายเดียวในดวงใจ (chai diao nai duang chai)
08. ถ้าฉันจะรัก (tha chan cha rak)
09. ฤทธิ์กามเทพ (rit kam thep)
10. หนี้มาร (ni man)

this week, '80s luk krung throwbacks from phaichit aksonnarong! miss phaichit, from buriram, had a foot in many somewhat disparate modern thai music scenes: her earliest records were internationally-minded disco-pop string, while her later material, particularly duets with kung kittikhun chiansong, charted super-smoothed-out luk thung country sounds. her mid-period saw collaborations with thierry mekwattana of phuea chiwit veterans carabao, not to mention her marriages to other "songs for life" stars: first nick niranam, and later wisa khanthap. then of course, there's today's tape: a 1985 look back at classics from suntharaphon & co.'s catalog of jazzy urban ballads. the arrangements are by anek rungrueang, and recall the sound of his work for azona contemporary phumphuang duangchan at the time. winai phanthurak from the impossibles helps open the album with a turn on vocals, as well. enjoy!

khana chao thung: pen sot thammai

artist: คณะ ชาวทุ่ง (khana chao thung)
album: เป็นโสดทำไม (pen sot thammai)
tracklist:
01. เป็นโสดทำไม (pen sot thammai)
02. 16 ปีแห่งความหลัง (16 pi haeng khwam lang)
03. หนาวจะตายอยู่แล้ว (nao cha tai yu laeo)
04. ดำเนินจ๋า (damnoen cha)
05. เดือนหงายที่ริมโขง (duean ngai thi rim khong)
06. สวยจริงๆ (suai ching ching)
07. สาวสวนแตง (sao suan taeng)
08. เดือนจ๋า (duean cha)
09. รักน้องไม่มีเงินแต่ง (rak nong mai mi ngoen taeng)
10. แน่ข้างเดียว (nae khang diao)

this week, another unusual discovery that my friend chris chanced upon recently in bangkok! there's not much information about this group online, but a little digging reveals that they were a project of prayong chuenyen, the arranger who crafted the sound of many classic funk-styled luk thung singles. while the backing band here shares that feel, with its steady beats, laid-back basslines and groovy electric piano, the vocals are something completely different. more akin to the university chorus-style recordings of the time, the singers are a large mixed choir, singing in close harmony and employing instrumental emulation (despite not being a cappella). as for the songs on this 1989 cassette, the selections are entirely chosen from the oeuvre of suraphon sombatcharoen, the "king of luk thung". the smooth, blended voices are quite a departure from suraphon's own rough and characterful delivery. hope you'll enjoy!