Sounds of up-country Thailand ....

[Smiles]

I love slow Isaan country love songs more than any other . . . and this one below is one of my favourites. The guy singing it does a wonderful job, his voice chockablock full of all the different voice acrobatics which Isaan music demands.
Listening to music lke this transports me straight back to the heart of Thailand, and makes me itch for time to speed up 'till this coming November.

Suphot has this same sweet and evocative song on a disc and I was surprised what a great job he does singing it. Just about every Isaan guy or girl knows all the words to all these songs ... they never miss a beat.

( You'll have to hit the word "LINK" under the picture on this first one. It will only play when linked directly to YouTube.
All the others will play right inside this post by simply double-clicking on the arrow image in the middle of the picture ).


http://youtube.com/watch?v=44RPlMz9m5w


The video production on this one below is pretty hokey ~ all maudlin gauzy photography ~ but the song, and his voice are sweet once you get into it. Listen for the distinctive Isaan voice trill and the unusual kind of abrupt stop in between certain words and then immediately back into with a guttural "ughewww" (only way I can describe it)


http://youtube.com/watch?v=-ZZdbZoxMpE&mode=related&search=


I really like this guy's voice. My beloved once ~ outta the blue ~ jumped up on the stage of a small music bar in Cha Am and sang a song very much like this and with the same easy grace as this guy does. That was the first time I'd ever seen him do this and it was highly impressive, almost professional. Later I asked him where he'd learned to sing so well (in the shower he's only mediocre) and he said all Isaan people can do this . . . some better than others.


http://youtube.com/watch?v=GZxoaP0yrH4&mode=related&search=


This song below is quintessential Issan music. A mix of modern and traditional instruments (the 'Khen' and the 'Pin' and often a Thai version of the xylophone), and the use of an unusual 'trilling' voice sound. Most of the faster Isaan country songs have a beat and 'style' similar to this.
After awhile of listening to Thai (traditional) songs you'll be able to tell the difference in 'tone' between Isaan and Chiang Mai area music, and between Isaan and 'Central' (Bangkok) music. There are others, but these are the three I seem to be able to do not too badly in identifying.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Uc43W9tVL8M&mode=related&search=


Dig the grace of these dancers, both women & men, in this slow and languid song.

If you travel up country and spend enough time there, you'll surely end up finding yourself at some country fair. At night, they'll have this big stage rigged up (like the one in this video) and singer after singer and dance troupe after dance troupe will entertain you and hundreds ~ sometimes a few thousand ~ of Thai folks.

You can catch a small version of this type of musical event every night at Charm Esarn in Pattaya, and at dozens of places in Bangkok . . . in little dumps behind Chatachuk Market, or great monstrous venues out on Petchburi Rd or New Satorn. But the real deal happens at country fairs all over Thailand, in places like Surin, Loei, Nong Khai, Korat, Buri Ram, Ubon, etc etc etc.

If you say you'd like to learn more about Thailand (and especially Isaan), then ask your favourite guy if he would take you to a music party like the one below, one day. Then ~ when says he'd love to ~ hop on a bus, or rent a car, pay his off fee for a few days, throw him in, and go and do it!


http://youtube.com/watch?v=F9kGgPTVavo&mode=related&search=


Hope you can enjoy.

Cheers ...

Thanks for those Smiles.
I really like Thai music even though i haven't a clue what they are singing!
I could sit and listen to it all night - strange for a westerner maybe?
I sat back and listened to all the clips while I sipped my G&T here in wet, soggy UK!. Most enjoyable :bounce:

Thanks for those Smiles.
I really like Thai music even though i haven't a clue what they are singing!
I could sit and listen to it all night - strange for a westerner maybe?
I sat back and listened to all the clips while I sipped my G&T here in wet, soggy UK!. Most enjoyable :bounce:

[Thai_Faen-old]

Smiles well it took me back to Thailand listening to the music, and likewise can't wait until I get back there, you will be back a bit before me though so have a good trip when you go, thanks for putting the links to the music on here it made me forget that it was a boring Wednesday night... oh early Thursday morning now I suppose, time for bed soon.

Thai_Faen :bounce:

[GWMinUS]

Thanks Smiles!!

I liked these so much, I had to send one along to Somsak.
He is the guy who went to visit the Khmer Temples with me and your Beloved!!!
By the way, your Guy is much more handsome and any of these singers...

:cheers:

[Michael]

Ah Smiles, I love you! What a great post.

It took me straight back to my holiday last year. Tucked away in a delightful guesthouse near Ubon Rat Damn, my friend, Oh and I enjoyed a peaceful, tourist free retreat. We had the guesthouse and itтАЩs fantastic views to ourselves, at least until Christmas Eve, when at midday, a stage was hastily constructed next to the restaurant, and the guesthouse was gradually swamped by at least 100 staff from тАЬThailand No 1 Chicken CompanyтАЭ.
The entertainment started and it became clear that there was no chance to avoid the noise, so we gate crashed the party. On stage there were 3 very attractive young women together with 1 slightly over weight middle aged man who struggled to climb the stairs to the stage. He sang live, accompanied by a decent band. There was a great mix of styles and the 3 women danced energetically to the livelier tunes.
I attracted the attention of several men who, describing themselves as managers, were keen to get me up and dancing at the front of the stage with them. They kept plying me with drinks and, of course, chicken.
It was great to see Thai men behaving exactly like their western counterparts: getting pissed at their staff Christmas parties and then making complete fools of themselves!

[bao-bao]

Those were lovely clips. They reminded me of humid evenings in Isaan, swatting at the flying insects and listening to musicians fill the night with songs like these. Ahh, what memories!

Thank you, thank you. Wonderful to hear.

BTW, there's a site - dlthis.com - that will allow you to download YouTube clips and save them as Flash Video (.flv) files. You need a player like MediaPlayer Classic to play them, but it's worth the fussing around for some of the clips unavailable otherwise.

bao-bao

Love them smiles. I always buy a vcd or 3 to take home and play in background while working.