singer: พร ภิรมย์ (phon phirom)
album: เห่ฉิมพลี (he chimphali)
tracklist:
01. เห่ฉิมพลี (he chimphali)
02. ชมดง (chom dong)
03. รจนา (rotchana)
04. พ่อหม้ายตามเมีย (pho mai tam mia)
05. ชาละวัน (cha la wan)
06. ไกรทอง (kraithong)
07. พรหมบุปผา (phrom buppha)
08. เมียจ๋า (mia cha)
09. รักเดียวใจเดียว (rak dieow chai dieow)
10. พ่อกับแม่ (pho kap mae)
11. ลูกเมือ 25 น. (luk muea 25 n.)
12. แหล่ใจโจร (lae chai chon)
13. ลูกโจรกลับใจ (luk chon klap chai)
14. ไฟบาป (fai bap)
15. ไม้หลักปักเลน (mai lak pak len)
16. เมียจาก (mia chak)

a really great tape this week, one from the magnificent singer & songwriter phon phirom. born into a ลิเก (liké) theatre family in phra nakhon si ayutthaya, phon was from a young age fascinated by the world of thai classical music. growing up, he studied numerous genres of artsong, gaining proficiency in piphat instrumentation, chinese opera & thai theatrical vocal forms. after a number of years with a traveling liké troupe, he was persuaded by famed "chularat" band-leader mongkhon amatayakun to apply his talents on the burgeoning luk thung pop stage. following a series of minor releases, both of his own recordings & tunes he penned for others, phon scored his first hit, "บัวตูมบัวบาน (buatum buaban)" in the year 1960 (พ.ศ. 2503). emboldened by this success, phon set about on a vision of integrating the beloved "pleng thai doem" of his past into contemporary popular music. by employing instruments & rhythms from classical dance & piphat ensemble, as well as florid poetic language & lyrical content derived from thai folktales, phon forged a syncretic musical movement, similar in spirit to the javanese jaipong, and one which became much respected throughout the kingdom. now, the great phon phirom can entertain and delight you as well.. enjoy!

artist: พร ภิรมย์ (phon phirom)
album: น้ำตาลาไทร (nam ta la sai)
tracklist:
01. น้ำตาลาไทร (nam ta la sai)
02. กระท่อมทองกวาว (krathom thong kwao)
03. บัวตูม บัวบาน (buatum buaban)
04. น้องนุชสุดท้อง (nong nut sut thong)
05. สุดสวยทั้งสอง (sut suai thang song)
06. บัวหลวง (bua luang)
07. แววตา (waew ta)
08. สวรรค์สวาท (sawan sawat)
09. ลานรักลานเท (lan rak lan the)
10. ลมจ๋า (lom cha)
11. ฝากใจไว้กับจันทร์ (fak chai wai kap chan)
12. รักคุต (rak khut)
13. หลานรักวัยรุ่น (lan rak wairun)
14. เห็นใจสาวสาว (hen cha sao sao)

i'm very sad to report that this past week the great phon phirom passed away, at the age of 82. i thought it would be nice to honor his legacy by sharing one of my favorite luk thung albums, this collection of his earliest singles, dating from around 1962. phon was born into a theatre family from phra nakhon si ayutthaya, and from a young age was fascinated by the world of thai classical music. growing up, he studied the arts of the piphat ensemble and chinese opera, in addition to traditional thai vocal forms. after touring for a number of years with a traveling liké troupe, he was persuaded by famed chularat bandleader mongkhon amatayakun to apply his talents on the burgeoning luk thung stage. phon found a way to integrate the folk & classical styles he so loved into the framework of the latin-inspired pop styles of the day, and became an inspiration for generations of future stars. since the early 80's, however, phon had left the entertainment world behind to join the buddhist priesthood, taking the monastic name phra punyawangso. he lived out his last days at wat rattanachai in his home province of ayutthaya.

a farewell concert will be held on dec. 17th at the thailand cultural center in bangkok. also, you can purchase a beautifully remastered version of this album (with a number of different tracks!) from maemaiplengthai

this week's post comes courtesy of bangkok's dj maft sai, the world's foremost representative of vintage thai funk! together with chris menist, he hosts the bi-annual "paradise bangkok" & bi-monthly "isan dancehall" events in thailand & japan. the duo also helped put together the fantastic compilations the sound of siam (on soundway) and thai? dai! (on finder's keepers). stop by the zudrangma records store in bangkok, or visit the webstore from anywhere!


artist: various
album: วิวาห์พาฝัน (wiwa pha fan)
tracklist:
01. วิวาห์พาฝัน (wiwa pha fan)
sung by สวลี ผกาพันธุ์ (sawali phakaphan)
02. เลิกสุรา (loek sura)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + รุจน์ รณภพ (sombat methani & rut ronphop)
03. ชีวิตใหม่ (chiwit mai)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + อรัญญา นามวงศ์ (sombat methani & aranya namwong)
04. ปักษีสู่รัง (paksi su rang)
sung by อรัญญา นามวงศ์ (aranya namwong)
05. อยากจะดู (yak cha du)
sung by สุดา ชื่นบาน + อดุลย์ กรีน (suda chuenban & adun green)
06. ทหารผ่านศึก (thahan phan suek)
sung by สังข์ทอง สีใส (sangthong sisai)
07. ไทยเขียว (thai khieow)
sung by นพดล ดวงพร (nophadon duangphon)
08. แม้เพียงหนึ่งนาที (mae phiang nueng nathi)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + อรัญญา นามวงศ์ (sombat methani & aranya namwong)
09. ไม่ต้องมาพูดกัน (mai tong ma phut kan)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี, อรัญญา นามวงศ์ + รุจน์ รณภพ (sombat methani, aranya namwong & rut ronphop)
10. ฉันไม่ง้อ (chan mai ngo)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + รุจน์ รณภพ (sombat methani & rut ronphop)
11. ง้องอน (ngo ngon)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี (sombat methani)
12. ต้องคิด (tong khit)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + รุจน์ รณภพ (sombat methani & rut ronphop)
13. โจร (chon)
sung by พร ภิรมย์ (phon phirom)
14. สื่อรักจากสวรรค์ (sue rak chak sawan)
sung by สมบัติ เมทะนี + อรัญญา นามวงศ์ (sombat methani & aranya namwong)

our album today is the soundtrack to the film "wiwa pha fan", a 1971 star vehicle for sombat methani & aranya namwong. i'm not sure whether the film can be seen these days (i've never spotted any vcd's floating around), but i think the soundtrack was the most memorable aspect, anyhow. the song selection is quite eclectic, featuring an oddball liké-style comic number from the inimitable sangthong sisai, a heavy cha cha cha from suda chuenban & adun green, a great isan luk thung romp from nophadon duangphon and a rare rock'n'roll offering from the (typically) traditionally-minded phon phirom, alongside a bunch of slightly less interesting numbers from the film's stars. enjoy!!

artist: ชาย เมืองสิงห์ (chai mueangsing)
album: พี่ไปหลายวัน (phi pai lai wan)
tracklist:
01. พี่ไปหลายวัน (phi pai lai wan)
02. เพื่อนเราเผาเรือน (phuean rao phao ruean)
03. บ้านนอกบอกรัก (ban nok bok rak)
04. แฟชั่นมีชู้ (fashion mi chu)
05. เมียจ๋า (mia cha)
06. แม่ยก (mae yok)
07. แม่ผักตบในตม (mae phak top nai tom)
08. สุนัขไม่มีเจ้าของ (sunak mai mi chao khong)
09. หนามยอกอก (nam yo kok)
10. แม่มันยกล่อง (mae man yok long)
11. โอ้ชีวิตคิดไฉน (oh chiwit khit chanai)
12. โทนบ๊ะโทน ๆ (thon ba thon thon)
13. คนรักเมีย (khon rak mia)
14. เมียจ๋ารักผัวไหม (mia cha rak phua mai)
15. ผมไม่มีเวลารักคุณ (phom mai mi wela rak khun)
16. ตำราปราบผี (tamra prap phi)
17. วันของพี่ (wan khong phi)
18. คุณนาย (khun nai)

this week we have a fantastic old album from "man city lion", chai mueangsing! chai grew up in sing buri province, and like so many others, left for bangkok at a young age. in the city, he studied at a school of agriculture while he could afford it, but eventually dropped out to sing with local ramwong groups and work as a sign painter & market seller in talat phlu. in the early 60s he fell in with mongkhon amatayakun's famous chularat band and made his first recordings. audiences loved chai's odd voice, commanding stage presence and his good looks.. he was popularly known as "the alain delon of thailand"! following a dispute with fellow chularat member phon phirom, chai left the band to front a number of his own combos, playing mostly disco & lounge music under the name "man city lion" (the literal translation of his stage name). eventually he left music altogether and headed home to become a farmer. in the late 80's, however, he returned to the stage to lead a luk thung revival, and today is recognized as a ศิลปินแห่งชาติ (silapin haeng chat) or "national artist" of thailand. the songs here seem to be quite rare, i've never seen them on any other release.. enjoy some deep luk thung courtesy of chai mueangsing!

artist: ชาย เมืองสิงห์ (chai mueangsing)
album: จุ๋มจิ๋ม (chum chim)
tracklist:
01. จุ๋มจิ๋ม (chum chim)
02. สถานีรวมรัก (sathani ruam rak)
03. แฟชั่นมีชู้ (fashion mi chu)
04. ก้างขวางคอ (kang khwang kho)
with เรไร ณ โคราช (rerai na khorat)
05. คนรักเมีย (khon rak mia)
06. หน้าชื่นตาบาน (na chuen ta ban)
07. สุดแสนเสียดาย (sut saen sia dai)
08. แม่นกประหลอดท้องลาย (mae nok pralot thong lai)
09. ผีเข้าผีออก (phi khao phi ok)
10. เมรี (meri)
11. เมียพี่มีชู้ [ดนตรี] (mia phi mi chu [instrumental])

this week's cassette is part of a generous bequest gifted to us by educator cliff sloane, a former professor of ethnomusicology and founder of asianclassicalmp3.org, a major influence behind this blog.

this week, another set of classics from the "man city lion", mr. chai mueangsing! chai grew up in singburi province, although he left for bangkok at a young age. in the city, he studied at a school of agriculture while he could afford it, but eventually dropped out to sing with local ramwong groups and work as a sign painter and market seller in talat phlu. in the early 1960s he fell in with mongkhon amatayakun's famous chularat band and made his first recordings. audiences loved chai's odd voice, commanding stage presence and his good looks.. he even styled himself "the alain delon of thailand"! following a public dispute (maybe staged, maybe genuine) with fellow chularat member phon phirom, chai left the band to front a number of his own combos, playing mostly disco and lounge music under the name "man city lion" (the literal english translation of his stage name). eventually he left music altogether, heading home to become a farmer. in the late 80's, however, he returned to the stage to lead a luk thung revival, and today is recognized as a national artist of thailand. today's idiosyncratic compilation from the bangkok cassette co., ltd. (currently existing as maemaiplengthai), provides a snapshot from several stages of his career, from his early latin-tinged folk-pop, to driving rock'n'roll, to full-fledged disco.. enjoy!

preview:

singers: various
album: ค่าน้ำนม (kha nam nom)
tracklist:
01. ค่าน้ำนม (kha nam nom)
sung by พนม นพพร (phanom nopphon)
02. หยดน้ำนมหยาดน้ำตา (yot nam nom yat nam ta)
sung by ชินกร ไกรลาศ (chinakon krailat)
03. โอ้..บุพการี (oh.. bupphakari)
sung by ลัดดา ศรีวรนันท์ (ladda siworanan)
04. ครวญหาแม่ (khruan ha mae)
sung by สุชาติ เทียนทอง (suchat thianthong)
05. สามรัก (sam rak)
sung by ก้าน แก้วสุพรรณ (kan kaewsuphan)
06. โซ่ชีวิต (so chiwit)
sung by สมยศ ทัศนพันธ์ (somyot thasanaphan)
07. คุณแม่จ๋า (khun mae cha)
sung by พรทิพา บูรณกิจบำรุง (phonthipha buranakitbamrung)
08. พ่อกับแม่ (pho kap mae)
sung by พร ภิรมย์ (phon phirom)
09. แม่จ๋า (mae cha)
sung by พริ้ว แพรชมภู (phriw phraechomphu)
10. บวชแทนพระคุณพ่อแม่ 1 (buat thaen phra khun pho mae 1)
sung by ชัยชนะ บุญนะโชติ (chaichana bunnachot)
11. บวชแทนพระคุณพ่อแม่ 2 (buat thaen phra khun pho mae 2)
sung by ชัยชนะ บุญนะโชติ (chaichana bunnachot)
12. อ้อมอกแม่ (om ok mae)
sung by พนม นพพร (phanom nopphon)

with mother's day coming up (in america, that is.. in thailand it won't be til august 12th!) i thought it would be nice to post some old songs about moms. many of the tunes are by famed song writer ไพบูลย์ บุตรขัน (phaibun butkhan), whose work has been featured a number of times on this site. what's interesting is that most of these sweet, slow ballads extolling filial piety were released closely after his more counter-hegemonic anthems about class disparity, in order to curry favor with the censors of the military regime. nowadays they are probably best for currying favor with moms.. hope they work!

(the cassette you see pictured, in spite of its beautiful krishna & devika cover art, was of basically unlistenable quality, but i happened to have a similar collection on cd, so that's what you'll be hearing.. hope no one minds the discrepancy!)