Wednesday, March 8, 2023

chittima chueachai: tha hua chai chan mi pik



artist: จิตติมา เจือใจ (chittima chueachai)
album: ถ้าหัวใจฉันมีปีก (tha hua chai chan mi pik)
tracklist:
01. ถ้าหัวใจฉันมีปีก (tha hua chai chan mi pik)
02. หลักไม้เลื้อย (lak mai lueai)
03. คำพรสะท้อนใจ (khamphon sathon chai)
04. คำแถลงการณ์ของหัวใจ (kham thalaeng kan khong hua chai)
05. พระจันทร์ตับในดวงใจ (phra chan tap nai duang chai)
06. เพชรบุรีตัดใหม่ (phetburi tat mai)
07. เพียงเห็นหน้า (phiang hen na)
08. อิทธิพลรัก (itthiphon rak)
09. กาลเวลา (kan wela)
10. ขาดเธอฉันไม่รู้สึก (khat thoe chan mai ru suek)
11. แล้ววันนั้นเธอจะซึ้ง (laeo wan nan thoe cha sueng)
12. รักยามจน (rak yam chon)
13. ตัวสำรอง (tua samrong)
14. คำพรก่อนจาก (khamphon kon chak)
15. ฝนซาฟ้าใส (fon sa fa sai)
16. โชคดี...ยอดรัก (chok di... yot rak)
17. โถ...ช่างกระไร (tho... chang krarai)
18. ฝันดี...โชคดี (fan di... chok di)

this week, old bangkok ballads from chittima chueachai, courtesy of a tape sent over by our pal gary from bodega pop! after losing her day job as an accountant, ms. chittima supported herself by performing at clubs around new phetburi road, the major entertainment district for u.s. soldiers on r&r from vietnam and other well-heeled nightlife denizens of the late-60s/early-70s. her subsequent recording career was supported by her husband, songwriter thawiphong maninin, and despite his apparently notorious philandering, the two remained together until his mysterious murder in a drive-by shooting outside of metro records in 19831. chittima still performs with some regularity today, having been a longtime wednesday-night staple at the niran grand hotel on sukhumvit 103. this cassette features a collection of early recordings, including her signature 1976 song, "tha hua chai chan mi pik (if my heart had wings)", which was nominated for the royal golden record award but was disqualified for being adapted from a japanese melody. the selections are mainly the sort of torch songs and latin-inspired dance numbers common to luk krung, with occasional nods to the more au courant disco sounds of the 70s. enjoy!

[note: the folks at amigo seem to have overbooked themselves on this production, as the tracks ending both sides tail-out before finishing]