artist: ศิริพร อำไพพงษ์ (siriphon amphaiphong)
album: ไม่เอาพระเจ้าก็แจก (mai ao phra chao ko chaek)
tracklist:
01. หัวอกคนคอย (hua ok khon khoi)
02. ไม่เอาพระเจ้าก็แจก (mai ao phra chao ko chaek)
03. ถึงช้ำก็พอใจ (thueng cham ko pho chai)
04. จากด้วยความเข้าใจ (chak duai khwam khao chai)
05. อยากจะมีปีกบิน (yak cha mi pik bin)
06. เธอคือดวงใจ (thoe khue duang chai)
07. ไม่โกรธถือว่าครู (mai krot thue wa khru)
08. กลัวจะทนไม่ไหว (klua cha thon mai wai)
09. ศรรักมีสนิม (son rak mi sanim)
10. มือถือไมค์ใจห่วงแม่ (mue thue mic chai huang mae)
11. เงินหรือจะซื้อใจ (ngoen rue cha sue chai)
12. กอดเข่าเหงาใจ (kot khao ngao chai)

this week, some early classics from the great siriphon amphaiphong! born and raised in udon thani, siriphon left school at a young age to help out on her family's farm. when not working the fields, she studied lam klon with her father, leader of the kongmi saeng-arunsin troupe. she began performing onstage at 16, eventually being discovered by doi inthanon and invited to join the suthep daoduangmai band. today's cassette was her eighth with krung thai audio (via subsidiary phin-khaen promotions) and features songwriting from khamkoeng thongchan and music by a. num phuthai. it dates from 1990, shortly before her break-out with "bow rak si dam" after she moved to pgm records the following year. 12 tracks of excellent molam pop.. enjoy!

artist: ลุงแนบ (lung naep)
album: 21 ค่ำ ลุงแนบตะลุยโลก (21 kham lung naep talui lok)
tracklist:
01. 21 ค่ำ ลุงแนบตะลุยโลก ตอน 1 (21 kham lung naep talui lok, pt. 1)
02. 21 ค่ำ ลุงแนบตะลุยโลก ตอน 2 (21 kham lung naep talui lok, pt. 2)

this week, classic isan comedy from lung naep and friends! a founding member of nopphadon duangphon's legendary phet phin thong troupe, lung naep (narong kotsaphon) was not only lead joke-man but also a prolific songwriter behind the scenes, penning many of the hit tunes associated with the band. he was a musician as well, one of the first to introduce the phin into luk thung music via his recordings with samai onwong's band, and apparently was the very person who gave the name "phin" to the instrument formerly known locally as "sung"¹. on this 1989 tape he's joined by an all-star roster of guests, including molam khen dalao, bunpheng faiphiochai, sunthon khangphae, p. suatluat, and saengduean prakaikham, alongside luk thung stars onuma singsiri, atsawin sithong, saksiam phetchomphu, and chinnakon krailat (who also handled the recording at his mangkon thong studio in bangkok). num phuthai (and lung naep himself) take up phin duties, while thongchan sonchai handles the khaen. enjoy!

artist: รุ่งฟ้า กุลาชัย (rungfa kulachai)
album: อกหักตอนแก่ (ok hak ton kae)
tracklist:
01. อกหักตอนแก่ (ok hak ton kae)
02. เมาหนักเพราะรักสาวดา (mao nak phro rak sao da)
03. ดื่มเพื่อลืมเธอ (duem phuea luem thoe)
04. น้องไปเพราะอ้ายจน (nong pai phro ai chon)
05. ลูกเขยออกแสง (luk khoei ok saeng)
06. รักอ้ายลองเบิ่ง (rak ai long boeng)
07. มอบใจให้นาง (mop chai hai nang)
08. รักสาวใต้ (rak sao tai)
09. ผู้หวังดี (phu wang di)
10. ซิ่งสลับสอย (sing salap soi)
11. ลำซิ่งลำสอย (lam sing lam soi)
12. แท็กซี่คนใหม่ (taxi khon mai)

this week, some fantastic molam pop from rungfa kulachai! a native of yasothon, rungfa made his way to bangkok to study at the poh-chang academy of arts, where he helped establish the school's first isan club. his success leading the club's molam group eventually landed him a recording contract, with his earliest works (under the name "rung dao-isan") helmed by producers don chedi (sawat si-udon) and phayung chamchong, backed by samai onwong & his group, and alongside fellow molam banyen rakkaen, pritsana wongsiri, and suprani sisuphat^[1]. he would later go on to be famous for embodying the role of khun phaen from thai literature on stage, with sword and full regalia, earning him the somewhat tongue-twisting title, "khun phon lam phaen, khun phaen lam phloen" (lord of lam phaen, khun phaen of lam phloen). this cassette comes after his earliest era but before his popular heyday, on prasit sukchai's short-lived label p.s. sound.. not too sure about the year or the backing band here, unfortunately. enjoy! 

artist: หงษ์ทอง ดาวอุดร (hongthong dao-udon)
album: หงษ์ทองคนองลำ (hongthong khanong lam)
tracklist:
01. หงษ์ทองคนองลำ (hongthong khanong lam)
02. หงษ์ทองตามแฟน (hongthong tam faen)
03. หงษ์ทองลำเพลิน (hongthong lam phloen)
04. หงษ์ทองรอคู่ (hongthong ro khu)
05. ลำรอรักจากซาอุดีฯ (lam ro rak chak saudi)
06. ตีกลองน้ำลำเพลิน (ti klong nam lam phloen)
07. ซึ้งเสียงแคน (sueng siang khaen)
08. ผู้ชายหลายบ้าน (phu chai lai ban)
09. บ่มีพี่ที่อีสาน (bo mi phi thi isan)
10. รักติ๋มแน่หรือ (rak tim nae rue)
11. กลัวใจไม่จริง (klua chai mai ching)
12. น้องนางบ้านนา (nong nang ban na)
13. อยู่ที่ความพอใจ (yu thi khwam pho chai)
14. ขวัญใจคนเลว (khwan chai khon leo)
15. บั๊มพ์ลำเพลิน (bump lam phloen)
16. เร่รักลำเพลิน (re rak lam phloen)

this week, an upgrade (in lieu of a re-upload request) for a molam-luk thung classic! hongthong dao-udon, as her stage-name suggests, hails from isan's udon thani province. a star of local temple fairs since childhood, she was picked up by luk thung star siphrai chaiphra to join his troupe in bangkok at age 10. she had a number of hits penned by songwriter doi inthanon, toured extensively throughout the country, and even landed some film roles. in the 90's, however, she tragically lost her voice after a thyroid operation. since then, she had been working steadily at regaining it, hosting a popular radio show in her home town meanwhile. unfortunately, following the red shirt protests in 2010, hongthong spent time in prison after being found guilty of incitement to riot through her radio platform. she's long since out, but has effectively retired from the music industry. this cassette features her biggest hits from the late 70s, in lam phloen and luk thung style, with heavy funk and disco influences and brilliant vocal performances. enjoy!

artist: พิมพ์ใจ เพชรพลาญชัย + ดาว บ้านดอน (phimchai phetphalanchai & dao bandon)
album: 16 กลอนยอดฮิต (16 klon yot hit)
tracklist:
01. หนุ่มยาวสาวสั้น 1 (num yao sao san 1)
02. หนุ่มยาวสาวสั้น 2 (num yao sao san 2)
03. จีบสาวเลี้ยงเป็ด (chip sao liang pet)
04. จีบสาวขายไข่ (chip sai khai khai)
05. หนุ่มลำชีสาวลำโขง (num lam chi sao lam khong)
06. พาต้อยลอยกระทง (pha toi loi krathong)
07. เฮือนน้อยนางเมิน (huean noi nang moen)
08. คน ป. 4 (khon p. 4)
09. อีหวึ่งตายแน่ (i wueng tai nae)
10. น้ำตาสาวหวึ่ง (nam ta sao wueng)
11. รักจริงอย่าหลอก (rak ching ya lok)
12. เต็มใจให้หลอก (tem chai hai lok)
13. พาน้องล่องแหย่ง (pha nong long yaeng)
14. พาน้องดิสโก้ (pha nong disco)
15. คนบ่มีเก๋ง (khon bo mi keng)
16. ขอดังเบาๆ (kho dang bao bao)

this week, two major molam unite! legendary luk thung crossover star dao bandon and sam phalang sao leader phimchai phetphalanchai come together on this 1988 duets collection from ocean sound. dao himself handles the songwriting, and the late, great a. num phuthai leads the band. the music is classic late-80's isan-style, with prominent electric bass and live drums under the alternating phin, sax, and synth leads, plus an occasional extended khaen-backed kroen intro. extra flourishes adorn one themed number, "taking my girl to the disco" (track 14), where a hi-nrg beat and hard rock guitar solo added to the mix. excellent stuff.. enjoy!

artist: มลฤดี พรหมจักร์ (monruedi phromchak)
album: ที่เด็ด 2 ลำตังหวาย (thi det 2 lam tangwai)
tracklist:
01. สาว ม. 5 บ้ารัก (sao m. 5 ba rak)
02. สายสัมพันธ์ ไทย-ลาว (sai samphan thai-lao)
03. สาวเย็บผ้าหารัก (sao yep pha ha rak)
04. อยากดำให้สะใจ (yak dam hai sachai)
05. น้ำตาแม่ค้า (nam ta mae kha)
06. งานไหลเรือไฟ (ngan lai ruea fai)
07. รักจากจ่ยหล่ย (rak chak choi loi)
08. ของแท้มูนแม่ให้มา (khong thae mum mae hai ma)
09. ตามแฟน (tam faen)
10. มลฤดีมาแล้ว (monruedi ma laeo)
11. ผ้าป่ามาแล้ว (pha pa ma laeo)
12. สาวหมอลำครวญ (sao molam khruan)
 
this week, i'm sad to report a great loss to the molam world in the recent departing of monruedi phromchak. hailing from ubon ratchathani, monruedi grew up idolizing stars like angkhanang khunchai and chawiwan damnoen. she started performing with a local troupe at age 16, and was introduced to the siang siam label by molam thongkham phaengdi¹. monruedi helped to bring more locally-based styles of molam to prominence, becoming particularly known for her lam phu thai and lam tang wai, the latter of which she explores on this 1994 nok kaeo cassette. she passed away peacefully at the age of 68 on july 29th, after a long battle with multiple health problems². 

artist: สุภาพ ดาวดวงเด่น (suphap daoduangden)
album: ลำเพลิน ยุคใหม่ (lam phloen yuk mai)
tracklist:
01. ลำเพลิน ยุคใหม่ (lam phloen yuk mai)
02. ลำเพลิน สุภาพหาคู่ (lam phloen suphap ha khu)
03. ลำเพลินเกี้ยวลำเพลิน (lam phloen kiao lam phloen)
04. ลำเพลิน เดินนิทาน (lam phloen doen nithan)
05. ลำเพลิน อีสานสามัคคี (lam phloen isan samakkhi)
06. ลำเพลินสลับเดินกลอน (lam phloen salap doen klon)
07. ลำเพลิน หนังบักตื้อ (lam phloen nang bak tue)
08. หมอลำหาคู่ (molam ha khu)

this week, some excellent lam phloen from suphap daoduangden! a native of roi-et, suphap trained from a young age as a molam with achan buapha phansaen of ubon. she was first picked up by pho mahan nakhonchai for his troupe, and later by the phet burapha group, playing the lead parts in their lam rueang to klon performances¹. she would go on to work with thepphabut satirotchomphu and the siang siam label, making classic recordings of both molam and luk thung isan, including today's selections.. enjoy!

artist: เดชา นิตะอินทร์ (decha nita-in)
album: ผีดิบ (phi dip)
tracklist:
01. ผีดิบ ตอน 1 (phi dip, pt. 1)
02. ผีดิบ ตอน 2 (phi dip, pt. 2)

this week, more classic ubon lam! from the esteemed ratchabut stereo label, we'll once again be hearing beloved molam decha nita-in; i have several of his cassettes and his name is spelled differently on every one, making the metadata (and research) a bit trickier. i can tell you though that decha, from ubon, was the son of molam teacher chanphen nita-in, and an early partner to banyen rakkaen, placing him in an esteemed lineage. this recording is classic voice and khaen, with a good deal of humourous dialogue between decha and several interlocutors, creating an atmosphere as like to a social drinking session as to a studio recording. enjoy!

artist: ร็อคแสลง (rock salaeng)

this week, classic rock isan-style northeastern pop! rock salaeng was a project of teacher(/songwriter/producer) sanyalak donsi of ban salaeng thon school in buriram¹. the group was assembled from his former students and pitched to topline-diamond records as one of many rock isan groups formed in the late '90s, following the runaway success of thai-khmer band rock khong khoi (see also: rock ah-yah, rock sadaeo, rock sadoet, etc.). this cassette from 2000 features their surprise smash "motorcy' hang" (sung by choet, who we sadly lost last year) alongside a mix of lesser-known numbers, and also happens to feature future star-producer sawat sarakham on guitar, phin and bass. enjoy!

artist: มลฤดี พรหมจักร (monruedi phromchak)
album: คอยอ้ายคืนนา (khoi ai khuen na)
tracklist:
01. คอยอ้ายคืนนา (khoi ai khuen na)
02. ฮักอ้ายแท้เด (hak ai thae de)
03. น้องย้าน (nong yan)
04. เสียใจเสียดาย (sia chai sia dai)
05. อยากเห็นอ้ายเด (yak hen ai de)
06. โรคแพ้ความหล่อ (rok phae khwam lo)
07. อยู่อย่างไทย (yu yang thai)
08. ลืมน้องแล้วบ่ (luem nong laeo bo)
09. ย่านถูกหลอก (yan thuk lok)
10. ฮัก 6 ประโยค (hak 6 prayok)
11. นิทานพิมพาสุรวงค์ ตอน 1 (nithan phimpha surawong, pt. 1)
12. นิทานพิมพาสุรวงค์ ตอน 2 (nithan phimpha surawong, pt. 2)

this week: electronic lam from monruedi phromchak on ratchabut stereo! hailing from ubon ratchathani, monruedi grew up idolizing stars like angkhanang khunchai and chawiwan damnoen. she began performing with her own local troupe at age 16, and was introduced to the siang siam label by molam thongkham phaengdi¹. monruedi helped to bring more locally-based styles of molam to prominence, becoming particularly known for her lam phu thai and lam tang wai. on this cassette, however, she explores two styles closely associated with neighbouring laos, namely lam klom thung (a.k.a. khap thum) on side a, and lam siphandon on the b-side. enjoy!

artist: เฉลิมพล มาลาคำ (chaloemphon malakham)
album: อ้อนน้องกลับนา (on nong klap na)
tracklist:
01. อ้อนน้องกลับนา (on nong klap na)
02. กลับสะเด้อหล่า (klap sa doe la)
03. พยานรัก (phayan rak)
04. อยากกลั้นใจตาย (yak klan chai tai)
05. พี่ดีใจด้วย (phi di chai duai)
06. เสร็จเขาย่านเจ้ามุ่น (set khao yan chao mun)
07. ลืมใจไว้เมืองเลย (luem chai wai mueang loei)
08. น้ำตาทหารเกณฑ์ (nam ta thahan ken)
09. อวยชัยจดหมายก้อม (uai chai chotmai kom)
10. เดนใครไม่สน (den khrai mai son)
11. ซื่อซื่อแน่เป็นหยัง (sue sue na pen yang)
12. จำลาอาวรณ์ (cham la awon)

this week, we'll hear from mr. chaloemphon malakham, bringing us the sound of the 80s northeast! chaloemphon, from surin province in south isan, made his way to the stage through local singing contests. he recorded his first album in 1985 and quickly became a top singer of the molam-influenced luk thung that still dominates radio today. in addition to his solo work and string of duet albums with phimpha phonsiri, chaloemphon is also a noted songwriter for the likes of poifai malaiphon and other stars from the siang isan band. this excellent early cassette features his own songwriting as well as that of banthit phonmongkhon, with music by a. num phuthai. enjoy!

artist: สมโภชน์ ดวงสมพงษ์ (somphot duangsomphong)
album: เมียป๋าเพราะซาอุฯ (mia pa phro sa-u)
tracklist:
01. เมียป๋าเพราะซาอุฯ (mia pa phro sa-u)
02. รู้ว่าเขาหลอก (ru wa khao lok)
03. จองไว้ก่อน (chong wai kon)
04. หมอลำพ่อลูกอ่อน (molam pho luk on)
05. สุราดีกว่านารี (sura di kwa nari)
06. เอิ้นหาน้องแดง (oen ha nong daeng)
07. พ่ายรัก (phai rak)
08. ลำเต้ยฮักน้องอีหลี (lam toei hak nong i-li)
09. ทหารห่วงแฟน (thahan huang faen)
10. ตายหยังเขียด (tai yang khiat)

this week, classic isan pop from somphot duangsomphong! the lead single here is somphot's 1985 response to phimpha phonsiri's "nam ta mia sa-u" of 1982, a famous song bemoaning the lives of wives whose husbands have gone to labor in saudi arabia. sharing a songwriter (soraphet phinyo) with the earlier tune, the lyrics offer a male perspective to contradict the original (though i think phimpha's remained the bigger hit). the style as advertised is lam klon khon kaen (prayuk), "khon kaen-stlye lam klon (modernized)". musical backing is by the grand band, with some perfectly 80's synthesizers taking the khaen parts during the introductory kroen sections. enjoy!

preview:

artist: เดชา นิตะอินทร์ (decha nita-in)
album: ล่องสิงค์โปร (long singapore)
tracklist:
01. ล่องสิงค์โปร ตอน 1 (long singapore, pt. 1)
02. ล่องสิงค์โปร ตอน 2 (long singapore, pt. 2)

this week, some classic ubon lam! from the esteemed ratchabut stereo label, we'll be hearing beloved molam decha nita-in. i have several of his cassettes and his name is spelled differently on every one, making the metadata (and research) a bit trickier. i can tell you though that decha, from ubon, was the son of molam teacher chanphen nita-in, and an early partner to banyen rakkaen, placing him in an esteemed lineage. this recording is classic voice and khaen, with a good deal of humorous dialogue between decha and several interlocutors, creating an atmosphere as like to a social drinking session as to a recording session. there's also a subtle metallic chirp going on, and while i prefer to imagine that some nearby cicada singing bled into the recording, more likely it's just some tape defect that i haven't run into before. anyhow, enjoy!

preview:

artist: อ้อยใจ แดนอีสาน (oichai daen-isan)
album: หมอลำเบรคแตก (molam brake taek)
tracklist:
01. เด็กในโอ (dek nai o)
02. สาววันบ่กล้าเสี่ยง (sao wan bo kla siang)
03. อิสานบ้านเฮา (isan ban hao)
04. ผัวสามสไตล์ (phua sam style)
05. น้ำตาปรี่ที่ญี่ปุ่น (nam ta pri thi yipun)
06. ครูบุญธรรมจำบ่ได้ (khru buntham cham bo dai)
07. สาวดำรำพัน (sao dam ramphan)
08. จีบพี่โก๋ (chip phi ko)
09. แฟนหายใจละห้อย (faen hai chai la hoi)
10. โฉนดหัวใจ (chanot hua chai)
11. มอเตอร์ไซค์ทำแสบ (motorsai tham saep)
12. คิดถึงทุ่งลุยลาย (khit thueng thung lui lai)
13. อยู่ก็เสียใจไปดีกว่า (yu ko sia chai pai di kwa)

this week, the first from our batch of recent acquisitions: we've got oichai daen-isan with a set of non-stop molam-luk thung! oichai is from chaiyaphum, the daughter of very poor itinerant peddlers, and had little formal schooling. her love of singing, however, brought her family advantage; as they traveled from town to town selling charcoal, oichai would sing songs to attract customers. after her father's death, she struck off on her own and lived a turbulent young life, sneaking to bangkok with a singing group who cast her out, cutting her hair short to avoid harassment in the slums, further disguising herself as a boy to live on temple grounds, and generally hustling to get by in the city as a dishwasher, street vendor, and finally nightclub singer. at last she met narong rotcharoen, president of topline diamond. although she considered herself a luk thung singer, the label saw potential for her in the modern molam scene, and particularly their brake taek or "brake failure" style, marked by continuous medley-type sets. achan num phuthai was brought in to lead the band, and the album was a best-seller. according to oichai, though, so many people were involved in the recording that no one made much money off it individually, and her follow-ups failed to repeat its success. she lost interest in a musical career as a main income, and went back to food service¹. today, you can find her selling yam naem (crispy rice salad) from a street stall in the bangkok suburbs, although she still performs occasionally as a singer. enjoy!

preview:

artist: พรศักดิ์ ส่องแสง (phonsak songsaeng)
album: เต้ยสาวจันทร์กั้งโกบ (toei sao chan kang kop)
tracklist:
01. เต้ยสาวจันทร์กั้งโกบ (toei sao chan kang kop)
02. เต้ยแล้วแต่วาสนา (toei laeo tae watsana)
03. เต้ยหนาวนี้พี่ตายแน่ (toei nao ni phi tai nae)
04. เต้ยมันสะเด็ดยาด (toei man sadet yat)
05. เต้ยเสียวไส้ (toei siao sai)
06. เต้ยหนุ่มนาลาแฟน (toei num na la faen)
07. เต้ยหัวอกสิบล้อ (toei hua ok sip lo)
08. เต้ยถึงบ้าก็น่ารัก (toei thueng ba ko na rak)
09. เต้ยสวรรค์บ้านนา (toei sawan ban na)
10. เต้ยนัดแต่งปีหน้า (toei nat taeng pi na)
11. เต้ยสาวบางกอก (toei sao bangkok)
12. เต้ยแดงจ๋าพี่มาแล้ว (toei daeng cha phi ma laeo)

a real treat for everyone this week: a classic cassette from one of my personal favorite molam-luk thung stars.. mr. phonsak songsaeng! hailing from a farming family in udon thani, phonsak left school after grade 4 to help his parents in the field. after a short gig as a boxer, he formed his first band, champ isan, in 1981 at age 21. from his first album forward he enjoyed a string of huge hits, the most enduring of which leads off this 1986 album on siang siam's kritsanathep imprint.

note: this album was gifted to me with a mismatched cassette in the case, so i'm offering a compact disc rip in its place.. apologies for any resulting increase in fidelity!

preview:

artist: จินตหรา พูนลาภ (chinthara phunlap)
album: หมอลำสะออน ชุด 3 น้ำตาหล่นบนเถียงนา (molam sa-on, vol. 3: nam ta lon bon thiang na)
tracklist:
01. น้ำตาหล่นบนเถียงนา (nam ta lon bon thiang na)
02. เหงาใจในต่างแดน (ngao chai nai tang daen)
03. นกตูมร้องน้องสะอื้น (nok tum rong nong sa-uen)
04. รักร้าวที่บึงพลาญ (rak rao thi bueng phalan)
05. เดือนหงายอ้ายสัญญา (duean ngai ai sanya)
06. นั่งซึมใต้ต้นมะยม (nang suem tai ton mayom)
07. หมอชิตสองน้องคอย (mochit song nong khoi)
08. อ้อนอ้ายขายนา (on ai khai na)
09. ซังผู้ชายหลายเมีย (sang phu chai lai mia)
10. ไร่ข้าวโพดโกรธพี่ (rai khao phot krot phi)
11. ปอสี่พี่ไม่มอง (po si phi mai mong)
12. คนสามใจไก่สามขา (khon sam chai kai sam kha)

back in may, we had a great compilation from the first decade of luk thung/molam star chinthara phunlap's career.. this week, we'll hear an entry from a half-decade later! for a quick refresher: chintara came from a farming family in roi-et province and worked her way up through singing contests and radio appearances in khon kaen, before signing to gmm grammy and quickly becoming a best-seller. her high tone and ornamented style of singing have earned her the nickname "the girl with the voice of a phin", and her short haircut and energetic presence made her an icon of her generation. this cassette is the third in her "molam sa-on (pleasing molam)" series, released on her own mastertape label in the year 2000, featuring songwriting from dao bandon and music from sawat sarakham. enjoy!

artist: จินตหรา พูนลาภ (chintara phunlap)
album: รวมฮิต 8 ปี เพลงรักจาก จินตหรา ชุดที่ 1 (ruam hit 8 pi phleng rak chak chintara, vol. 1)
tracklist:
01. ถูกหลอกออกโรงเรียน (thuk lok ok rong rian)
02. วานเพื่อนเขียนจดหมาย (wan phuean khian chot mai)
03. พลังรัก (phalang rak)
04. คอยรักต่างแดน (khoi rak tang daen)
05. บัวไร้บึง (bua rai bueng)
06. เฮือนสามน้ำสี่ (huean sam nam si)
07. เสียงเศร้าจากสาวนา (siang sao chak sao na)
08. แรงงานข้าวเหนียว (raeng ngan khao niaow)
09. อดีตรักบุญบั้งไฟ (adit rak bun bang fai)
10. สาวอีสานพลัดถิ่น (sao isan phlat thin)
11. สาวติ๋มคอยรัก (sao tim khoi rak)
12. ฝากใจไว้กับเสียงลำ (fak chai wai kap siang lam)

this week, early singles from one of luk thung/molam's most enduring artists! chintara came from a farming family in roi-et province and worked her way up through singing contests and radio appearances in khon kaen, before signing to gmm grammy and quickly becoming a best-seller. her high tone and ornamented style of singing have earned her the nickname "the girl with the voice of a phin", and her short haircut and energetic presence made her an icon of her generation. this cassette marks her first 'greatest hits' package, released on her own mastertape label, collecting material from the first 8 years of her career (1987-1995): a fantastic mix of sentimental luk thung and assertive lam phloen. as of writing, chintara is still topping the charts with her blockbuster single 'tao ngoi'.. hope you'll enjoy hearing the roots of this evergreen star!

artist: คณะ ลูกทุ่งดาวดวงใหม่ (khana luk thung dao duang mai)
album: ลำเพลินเรื่อง ลูกเขยขี้เหล้า พ่อเฒ่าบ้าเบอร์ (lam phloem rueang "luk khoei khi lao, pho tao ba 'ber")
tracklist:
01-08. ลูกเขยขี้เหล้า พ่อเฒ่าบ้าเบอร์ ตอน 1-8 (luk khoei khi lao, pho tao ba 'ber, pt. 1-8)

this week, a three-and-a-half-hour molam extravaganza! our recording today features the luk thung dao duang mai group in a performance from 1994, spinning the tale of ''the drunkard son-in-law & the venerable old gambler'', in an ubon-style lam, over a 4-cassette set from ratchabut stereo. the action unfolds as our troupe of molam enact their comical speak-singing routines between full-band lam phloen dance numbers, with prominent synthesizer displays. enjoy!

preview:

artist: เซียงแหลม แกมหมู่มั่ง (sianglaem kaemmumang)
album: อัจฉริยะหมอลำ # 1 ฟังเสียงเขียงฟักลาบ (atchariya molam #1 fang siang khiang fak lap)
tracklist:
01. ฟังเสียงเขียงฟักลาบ (fang siang khiang fak lap)
02. ฮักสาวอาชีวะ (hak sao achiwa)
03. ชีวิตฮ้างคือฮังมดแดง (chiwit hang khue hang mot daeng)
04. จักรยานพาเพ (chakkrayan pha phe)
05. วอนลมห่มใจ (won lom hom chai)
06. ฮักเลี้ยวลำเสียวเค็ม (hak liao lam siao khem)
07. ไซหลังหล่า (sai lang la)
08. โทษฆ่าแขวนคอ (thot kha khwaen kho)
09. อ่านกิน (an kin)
10. ฝากรักออกอากาศ (fak rak ok akat)
11. หนี้ (ni)
12. หลุมดักใจ (lum dak chai)

this week, some great molam prayuk from sianglaem kaemmumang! i don't know much about mr. sianglaem (real name: bunthiang suepsunthon), but a helpful youtube commenter¹ has identified this album as classic "kalasin-style", and the album is brought to us by the phairot phanit company out of neighbouring roi-et province, which seems to situate the music fairly efficiently. from a quick survey online, it looks like sianglaem was still performing, as part of the laemnarong promotions group, as recently as 2013. the singer is author of most all the lyrical content on this 1996 cassette, and music is provided by the consistently excellent a. num phuthai. enjoy!

preview: