Showing 1 - 10 of 14
Rhythms of the Northeast
Life, John Clewley, Published on 21/02/2026
» The first Maha Morlum Festival, a showcase soft power event, was held in Maha Sarakham from Feb 13-14 and World Beat travelled to the Isan province to enjoy the two-day, one-night immersive experience promised by the event's organisers.
Jewish classic revisited
Life, John Clewley, Published on 25/10/2025
» Good news fans of klezmer music. The groundbreaking, award-winning klezmer outfit The Klezmatics have reissued their classic album Rhythm + Jews: Revisited (Piranha, Germany), which was recorded in 1990 and released in 1991. The reissue is part of the band's 40th anniversary celebrations.
Isan sound goes global
Life, John Clewley, Published on 13/09/2025
» Last month, World Beat was invited to join a government sponsored event to promote molam music from Isan on the international stage. The event was held on Aug 12 at Queen Sirikit National Convention Center in Bangkok as part of the National Science and Technology Fair 2025.
Remembering an icon
Life, John Clewley, Published on 01/08/2023
» On July 13, luk thung singer, actor, movie/TV producer and label owner Phanom Nopporn passed away in hospital at the age of 77. One of the giants of the "country music" genre, fans and stars of the luk thung industry attended his funeral on July 18 at Wat Bang Rak Noi Ban Sai in Nonthaburi.
When two worlds collide
Life, John Clewley, Published on 14/03/2023
» In 1978, Lebanese band Ferkat Al Ard released their debut album Oghneya in Beirut. It was a groundbreaking release that brought together Lebanese folk music, Arabic strings, Brazilian bossanova and jazz (mainly fusion) into a gloriously lush sound that requires the listener to reconsider Lebanese music. Brazil in Beirut? How did that happen?
Preserving heritage
Life, John Clewley, Published on 22/11/2022
» Field recordings of ancient, traditional music in the Southeast Asia feature in this column. Northern Khmer Spirit Music in Thailand – Kantrum Dongman (Animist Records, 2022) covers the traditional music of "Northern Khmer" people in provinces like Surin, Buri Ram and Si Sa Ket that straddle the Thai-Cambodian border in Thailand's lower Northeast, while Exploring Gong Culture Of Southeast Asia: Massif And Archipelago (Sub Rosa, 2022) covers traditional gong music from 50 different ethnic groups in the Philippines, Borneo, Sulawesi, Vietnam's highlands and northeast Cambodia.
Nostalgia from Somalia
Life, John Clewley, Published on 25/10/2022
» Mogadishu in Somalia in the mid-1980s was a crossroads where Africa, Asia and Europe joined, where hotels like the Al-Uruba competed with other luxury venues to host some of the Indian Ocean's most potent popular music. Situated right on Lido beach, the distinctive Al-Uruba building with Arabic and Somali architectural influences had a little-known recording studio.
Bangkok loses stalwart of city's music scene
Life, John Clewley, Published on 16/08/2022
» Bangkok's local Irish music scene has been in in mourning since news reached the City of Angels that resident Irish music expert Dr Mick Moloney passed away in his Greenwich Village apartment in New York on July 27. He was 77. Mick had been a part-time resident in the city for more than 20 years. Irish President Michael D. Higgins released a statement noting that "his passing is a loss to the musical heritage of Ireland, to Irish America, and to Irish music worldwide".
A woman in a man's world
Life, John Clewley, Published on 19/07/2022
» US R&B legend Big Mama Thornton is one of the forgotten "originators", to use Dr John's term for Professor Longhair, of rock'n'roll. The late Alabama native, who died almost exactly 38 years ago on July 25, 1984, recorded the first version of Leiber and Stoller's Hound Dog in 1952. After the record was released in 1953, it reached the top spot on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues Records Chart and sold 2 million copies. It was her biggest hit, but it paled in comparison to young Elvis Presley's version, which sold more than 10 million copies and helped propel Presley to global fame.
The sounds of the jungle
Life, John Clewley, Published on 10/05/2022
» The acclaimed traditional music ensemble Fong Naam was founded in 1981 by American Bruce Gaston and "Teacher" Boonyong Khetkong. Even after the death of some of the original masters, all of whom were national artists, the band remains Thailand's most well-known musical group internationally.