masae 'sun saengsaeo: chut sun-sur-native 1

artist: มาแซ 'ซุน แซงแซว (masae 'sun saengsaeo)
album: ชุดซุนเซอร์เนทีฟ ๑ (chut sun-sur-native 1)
tracklist:
01. บางนรา (bang nara)
02. มะละกอที่รัก (malako thi rak)
03. วันพรากจาก (wan phrak chak)
04. ชนชั้นคน (chon chan khon)
05. เหมือนบ้าง (muean bang)
06. ดูดดื่ม (dut duem)
07. จะทำอะไรดีก็ไม่รู้เหมือนกัน (cha tham arai di ko mai ru muean kan)
08. ประชาชนผู้มีหนวด (prachachon phu mi nuat)
09. ชายหาดสีขาว (chai hat si khao)
10. มารดาแห่งความมหัศจรรย์ (manda haeng khwam mahasachan)

today, a left-field discovery that my friend chris chanced upon recently in bangkok! masae 'sun saengsaeo a.k.a. surachai songthawonthawi is a wandering poet associated with the phuea chiwit and socially-engaged buddhism circles (see: introductory blurb by none other than sulak sivaraksa!). according to the liner notes, the album's title is a contraction of "surrealist-alternative", a genre designation given by fellow writer wat wanlayangkun. the tracks display a range of influences from psychedelic-/blues-rock to reggae to guitar-&-violin-driven folk tunes (which masae credits to the apache people). the decidedly lo-fi production was handled by aphinan chit-sopha, who got together a band of his students from srinakharinwirot university's songkhla campus (now thaksin university) to back masae. quite an unusual entry, hope you enjoy! 

phongsit khamphi: rao cha klap ma

artist: พงษ์สิทธิ์ คำภีร์ (phongsit khamphi)
album: เราจะกลับมา (rao cha klap ma)
tracklist:
01. แค่นั้น (khae nan)
02. กตัญญู (katanyu)
03. หนุ่มน้อย (num noi)
04. เบื่อ (buea)
05. คนเอย (khon oei)
06. แค่นั้น (khae nan) [backing track]
07. ฝากจดหมาย (fak chotmai)
08. ความเข้มแข็งสุดท้าย (khwam khem khaeng sut thai)
09. เจ้านาย (chao nai)
10. เสือ สิงห์ กระทิง แรด (suea sing krathing raet)
11. เราจะกลับมา (rao cha klap ma)
12. ความเข้มแข็งสุดท้าย (khwam khem khaeng sut thai) [bonus track]

this week, romantic "songs for life" from pu phongsit khamphi! a native of nongkhai, khamphi is a leader of what we might call the 'third wave' of phleng phuea chiwit (if we think of the first wave as comprising the folksy protest groups like caravan, and the second being the more rock-inflected groups like carabao). khamphi combined the harder sounds of the latter with a lighter touch that recalls the former, and moved away from explicitly political lyrics, focusing more on human-interest style storytelling and even somewhat conventional love songs. this album is his sixth, recorded at caravan studios and released on m² in 1994. enjoy!

[as a side note: i was surprised to see that the liners contain a special dedication to former political prisoner surachai saedan, whom khamphi apparently met while performing in khlong prem central prison. a leader of the communist insurgency and a long-time anti-monarchy activist, surachai disappeared in 2018 and is widely presumed to have been murdered while in exile in neighboring laos, fleeing a lèse-majesté charge]

tonchabap 1

artist: various
album: ต้นฉบับ 1 (tonchabap 1)
tracklist:
01. ยากยิ่งนัก (yak ying nak)
performed by ชาตรี (chatri)
02. ดั่งเม็ดทราย (dang met sai)
performed by สุชาติ ชวางกูร (suchat chawangkun)
03. รักครั้งแรก (rak khrang raek)
performed by ชาตรี (chatri)
04. ใจรัก (chai rak)
performed by สุชาติ ชวางกูร (suchat chawangkun)
05. ลองรัก (long rak)
performed by จันทนีย์ อูนากูล (chanthani unakun)
06. น้ำเซาะทราย (nam so sai)
performed by จำรัส เศวตาภรณ์ (chamrat sewataphon)
07. เหมันต์ที่ผ่านพ้นไป (heman thi phan phon pai)
performed by สุชาติ ชวางกูร (suchat chawangkun)
08. ลมลวง (lom luang)
performed by ธีระศักดิ์ อัจจิมานนท์ (thirasak atchimanon)
09. รักฉันนั้นเพื่อเธอ (rak chan nan phuea thoe)
performed by พิงค์แพนเตอร์ (pink panther)
10. เดือนเพ็ญ (duean phen)
performed by คาราวาน (caravan)

this week, a great label sampler of early 80's bangkok sounds courtesy e.m.i. music (thailand) co., ltd., a local branch of the british transnational conglomerate. this compilation brings together a mix of their offerings from the first half of the decade, with an emphasis on soft-rock and a.o.r. sounds, whether from pop groups like chatri and pink panther, phuea chiwit veterans caravan, or solo artists like singer-actor suchat chawangkun, singer-songwriter chanthani unakun, grand ex' alum chamrat sewataphon and relative-unknown folkie thirasak atchimanon. enjoy!

 

phongthep kradonchamnan: i am isan

artist: พงษ์เทพ กระโดนชำนาญ (phongthep kradonchamnan)
album: ไอแอมอีสาน (i am isan)
tracklist:
01. สาวเสื้อลาย (sao suea lai)
02. เอาเต๊อะ (ao toe)
03. ไอแอมอีสาน (i am isan)
04. โคราช 4 (khorat 4)
05. นกเขาไฟ (ภาคผีเมือง) (nok khao phai (phak phi mueang))
06. คนเลว (khon leo)
07. สาวเมืองเลย (sao mueang loei)
08. แหล่ 29 (lae 29)
09. ลำตะคอง (lam takhong)
10. อีแต๋น (i-taen)

this week, 'songs for life' from the 'farmer's poet'! phongthep was born in nakhon ratchasima (khorat), in thailand's isan region. he started out with the legendary phuea chiwit pioneers caravan, before fleeing to the jungle like many thai student activists after the terror of october 6th, 1976. he resurfaced following the amnesty of 1980, and joined pop-protest group carabao as a touring musician, before embarking on a solo career. on this, his third album (released 1986), he's joined by thongkram thana (guitar, violin), ut yannawa (drums), wichai chomrit (bass) and mongkhon uthok (so and phin), as well as guest spots from guitarist suthep thawanwiwatkun of hope, back-up vocals from yupphawan imkrung and so-u from rangsit chongchansittho. a noted multi-instrumentalist, phongthep himself contributes lead vocals, khaen, angkalung, flute, guitar and percussion. the music is an eclectic mix of folk-rock, reggae, country, bluegrass, etc., all mixed with various samplings of local thai styles.. enjoy!

preview:

khon dan kwian: ai khong

artist: คนด่านเกวียน (khon dan kwian)
album: ไอ้โข่ง (ai khong)
tracklist:
01. ล้างลิ้นคอยเลีย (lang lin khoi lia)
02. ไอ้โข่ง (ai khong)
03. มะหน่อ (mano)
04. นางแบบ (nang baep)
05. ถังแตก (thang taek)
06. ลอยลมบน (loi lom bon)
07. หำน้อย (ham noi)
08. ข่าวเก่า (khao kao)
09. คนขายไข่ (khon khai khai)
10. คนด่านเกวียน (khon dan kwian)

this week, some classic thai rock music, courtesy of the khon dan kwian band! fronted by "siphueak" isara anantathat, a native of bueng kan, khon dan kwian were among the first wave of prominent phuea chiwit groups. phuea chiwit or "songs for life" is a genre of (usually) politically engaged popular music, with roots in thailand's 70s protest movement and a musical grounding in anglo/american folk-rock from bob dylan to traffic. siphueak, a veteran of the 14 october 1973 popular uprising and the communist party of thailand, founded the band in 1983 and together with the legendary carabao helped bring phuea chiwit music to the mainstream, blending their international folk-rock origins with luk thung's latin dance rhythms and indigenous melodies. this cassette features their fourth album from 1987. enjoy!

preview:

surachai folksong: luk thung klong yao

artist: สุรชัย โฟล์คซอง (surachai folksong)
album: ลูกทุ่งกลองยาว (luk thung klong yao)
tracklist:
01. ลูกทุ่งเลือดสุพรรณ (luk thung lueat suphan)
02. ลูกทุ่งกลองยาว (luk thung klong yao)
03. หนุ่มสวนแตง (num suan taeng)
04. อยากเป็นเจ้าบ่าว (yak pen chao bao)
05. กระท่อมพ่อหมาย (krathom pho mai)
06. น้ำตาลาไทร (nam ta la sai)
07. โลกของคนรวย (lok khong khon ruai)
08. อุทยานผลไม้ (utthayan phonlamai)
09. กว๊านพะเยา (kwan phayao)
10. วันที่แม่รอ (wan thi mae ro)
11. จากน้องไปทะเล (chak nong pai thale)
12. ความรักล่องแล่ง (khwam rak long laeng)

7-12 performed by สุรชาติ สมบัติเจริญ (surachat sombatcharoen)

last week, we heard from surachai sombatcharoen.. this week we have another "surachai", and another "sombatcharoen"! following the murder of suraphon sombatcharoen in 1968, a number of similar-sounding singers came out to fill the void, but none proved ultimately satisfactory. however, when suraphon's son surachai rose to stardom in the 1980s (with a unique voice of his own) the search for his father's sound-alikes began anew. finally, surachai folksong (surachai charoenkitchaichana), a guitar-playing singer-songwriter working as house performer at villa café on new phetburi road in bangkok^[1], was discovered, with a voice that was a real echo of the legendary singer. after a string of albums featuring folk rock-oriented rewrites of suraphon's hits, surachai folksong faded back into obscurity, although his songs still circulate online today (often mistakenly attributed to surachai sombatcharoen). rounding out our cassette's second side is surachat, a lesser-known sibling of the sombatcharoen clan.

preview:

the isn't: sarawan

artist: อิสซึ่น (the isn't)
album: สาระวัน (sarawan)
tracklist:
01. สาระวัน (sarawan)
02. พบกันหน้าสยามแสควร์ (phop kan na siam square)
03. คนบวม (khon buam)
04. สิ่งที่พ่อให้มา (sing thi pho hai ma)
05. เขาดินวนา (khao din wana)
06. ไม่มีที่ว่างสำหรับเรา (mai mi thi wang samrap rao)
07. เจ็บดีแท้รัก (chep di thae rak)
08. รักที่แสนเศร้า (rak thi saen sao)
09. เขาลืมเราได้ เราก็ลืมได้ (khao luem rao dai rao ko luem dai)
10. บนเส้นทางรัก (bon sen thang rak)
11. ทัศนาจร (thatsanachon)
12. แม่สาวตางาม (mae sao ta ngam)
13. เซิ้งสากล (soeng sakon)
14. วิญญาณในภาพถ่าย (winyan nai phap thai)
15. ศรีราชา (sriracha)
16. ชาวดง (chao dong)
17. เลือกดูซิ (lueak du si)
18. คอยเธออยู่ (khoi thoe yu)
19. แกะเจ้าเล่ห์ (kae chao le)
20. หนึ่งมิตรชิดใกล้ (nueng mit chit klai)

this week, some 1970s folk-rock fusion from the isn't! the group was founded by brothers asanee & wasan chotikul from the northeastern province of loei ("isn't" being a referance to "isan"). much of their material was a light folk-rock in the style of simon & garfunkel (with a good amount of copy-songs present), but they recorded a few numbers with a heavier guitar sound as well, and even made some attempts to integrate thai/lao folk influences in addition to the anglo-american. they broke up after these recordings were released, with asanee playing alongside rewat buddhinan in the oriental funk and butterfly for a time, before coming back together as simply asanee-wasan and thereafter topping the charts for at least a decade.

preview:

prawin songbandit: bot phleng haeng chiwit, vol. 3

artist: ประวิน ทรงบรรดิษฐ์ (prawin songbandit)
album: บทเพลงแห่งชีวิต ชุดที่ 3 (bot phleng haeng chiwit, vol. 3)
tracklist:
01. ใจร้องครวญ (chai rong khruan)
02. องค์พระเยซูผู้ใด (ong phra yesu phu dai)
03. ทางแห่งพระคริสต์นำ (thang haeng phra christ nam)
04. ร้องฮาเลลูยาแด่พระเจ้า (rong hallelujah dae phra chao)
05. เชือกสามเกลียว (chueak sam klieow)
06. ความรักของพระเจ้าดีกว่าชีวิต (khwam rak khong phra chao di kwa chiwit)
07. พรุ่งนี้ (phrung ni)
08. งามเมื่อยามพระคริสต์นำส่อง (ngam muea yam phra christ nam song)
09. รักนั้นมาจากพระองค์ (rak nan ma chak phra ong)
10. พระทรงรักเธอและฉัน (phra song rak thoe lae chan)
11. พระคริสต์วอน (phra christ won)
12. ขอให้ข้าเดินใกล้พระองค์ (kho hai kha doen klai phra ong)
13. รอยระลึก (roi raluek)
14. ความรัก (khwam rak)
15. ใต้ร่มพระคุณ (tai rom phra khun)
16. พระเจ้าทรงเป็นผู้เลี้ยงที่ดี (phra chao song pen phu liang thi di)
17. จิตข้าขอสรรเสริญ (chit kha kho sansoen)

with easter coming up, i figured now is a good time to share this curiosity with you!  although christians are not an especially visible group in thailand, comprising an estimated 0.7% of the total population, they nonetheless have had an historic presence in the country.  today's cassette features songs in praise of jesus & his dad, played in 1970's-style thai lite-folk.. if you've seen any movies of the period or heard some of the impossibles' lesser albums, you should be familiar with the sound.  the tape's producer is prof. han songbandit of the maitrichit chinese baptist church in bangkok's chinatown.. i assume it's his daughter assuming lead vocal responsibility?  enjoy!

preview:
MRPT171 by monrakplengthai

caravan: blacksmith

artist: คาราวาน (caravan)
album: คนตีเหล็ก (blacksmith)
tracklist:
01. หนุ่มพเนจร (num phanechon)
02. คนตีเหล็ก (khon ti lek)
03. กองเกวียนบ้านไพร (kong kwian ban phrai)
04. ข้าวลาลาน (khao la lan)
05. ชายคนนั้น (chai khon nan)
06. เหงา (ngao)
07. แด่... เจ้าดอกไม้ (dae... chao dok mai)
08. ใกล้ตาไกลตีน (klai ta klai tin)
09. ภูเขา (phu khao)
10. ฝันร้าย (fan rai)

as per request, here's another fantastic album from caravan... and this one comes courtesy of alexandra, so you know it's good!! caravan, of course, are the progenitors of the เพลงเพื่อชีวิต (pleng puea chiwit) or "songs for life" genre. the band was founded in the early '70s by student protest leaders surachai chanthimathon & wirasak sunthonsi. their tunes & lyrics were a vital force for bringing the messages of urban student activism out to the provinces. their music is fantastic, adapting folk-rock rhythms & melodies from american & british protest songs of the time and interlacing them with thai folk idioms & instrumentation. in the wake of the massacre at thammasat university, the band fled bangkok, some heading into the mountains of the northeast to join the communist insurgency in armed struggle. needless to say, their music was banned from radioplay for quite a while, broadcast only from pirate stations in the hills. this album is from 1983, shortly after their return from exile. very nice stuff, enjoy!

caravan: s/t

band: คาราวาน (caravan)
album: s/t
tracklist:
01. คนกับควาย (khon kap khwai)
02. เปิบข้าว (poep khao)
03. หมายเหตุจากหมู่บ้าน (maihet chak muban)
04. ชาวนา (chao na)
05. ข้าวคอยฝน (khao khoi fon)
06. คนภูเขา (khon phu khao)
07. จิตร ภูมิศักดิ์ (chit phumisak)
08. นกสีเหลือง (nok si lueang)
09. หยุดก่อน (yut kon)
10. กระต่ายกับเต่า (kratai kap tao)

earlier we heard from carabao, the band who popularized the เพลงเพื่อชีวิต (pleng puea chiwit) or "songs for life" genre; here we have the debut from its progenitors, caravan. this tape, issued in 1975 (พ.ศ. 2518) collects the songs with which band members สุรชัย จันทิมาธร (surachai chanthimathon) & วีระศักดิ์ สุนทรศรี (wirasak sunthonsi) had been leading protests for democracy throughout the country. their tunes & lyrics caught on quickly and were a vital force for bringing the messages of urban student activism out to the provinces. the music is fantastic, loosely adapting folk-rock rhythms & melodies from american & british protest songs of the time (listen for bob dylan, traffic), and interlacing them with thai folk idioms & instrumentation. shortly after the release of this album, in the wake of the massacre at thammasat university, the members fled bangkok, some heading into the mountains of the northeast to join the communist insurgency in armed struggle. needless to say, their music was banned from radioplay, broadcast only from pirate stations in the hills. these songs have since been reissued on smithsonian folkways, with fantastic liner notes.

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!