Showing 1 - 8 of 8
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.
Tunes for the chill season
Life, John Clewley, Published on 09/11/2022
» The music scene has been given a boost this year with the return of tourists and the reopening of entertainment venues. Festivals are returning to the provinces this month and the local circuits for rock and luk thung are back, too. The summer festival season in Europe, Japan and North America also returned and coincided with lots of summer and now winter music releases. The World Beat desk is groaning under the weight of new music.
Protest songs make comeback
Life, John Clewley, Published on 23/06/2020
» Street protests against racial injustice and police brutality that erupted across US towns and cities in the past few weeks have gone global as similar protests have been held in cities in many countries.
Motown memories
Life, John Clewley, Published on 22/10/2019
» Songwriters pen the hits but the singers or bands are the big stars, and sometimes the producers are the ones who get the credit. I grew up with the Great American Songbook or "American Standards" at home, played on the piano by my father while we sang the lyrics. These were the songs that featured in Broadway theatre and in Hollywood musicals. What are now known as standards were crafted by George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Johnny Mercer and Richard Rogers.
Keeping a culture alive
Life, John Clewley, Published on 25/06/2019
» How do you make folk music relevant in these postmodern times? Traditional music is under threat everywhere you look, as are minority languages, arts and crafts and the habitat and environment that helped create them.
Bangkok Sh-Boom!
Life, John Clewley, Published on 18/11/2014
» The year 1954 was a busy one for R&B. Seminal and influential songs such as blues shouter Big Joe Turner’s Shake, Rattle And Roll; It Should Have Been Me by Ray Charles; Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite by the Spaniels; Sh-Boom by The Chords; and Just Make Love To Me by Muddy Waters dominated the R&B charts.
The Wild Sound of New Orleans
Life, John Clewley, Published on 26/08/2014
» Piano master, producer and arranger, composer and songwriter Allen Toussaint has done more than most to promote the musical legacy of New Orleans. With his partner Marshall Sehorn, he set up the Sansu label which brought the focus back to the city after musicians moved away in the 1960s, and proceeded to write and record hundreds of songs for such artists as Irma Thomas, Dr. John, Lee Dorsey and Ernie K-Doe. Later, he developed the New Orleans funk sound with the Meters, Dr. John and the Wild Tchoupitoulas, while rock'n'roll and pop stars from the Rolling Stones to The Searchers, The Hollies, Robert Palmer and even The Who covered his songs. He's also had a stellar solo career as well.
Look to the skies... Paradise Bangkok & North Mississippi Allstars
Life, John Clewley, Published on 25/03/2014
» The founding DJs of the popular Paradise Bangkok nights, Chris Menist and Maft Sai, are back with a bang this week with a Fifth Anniversary at Mongkhol Studio RCA on Friday night. I spoke with Maft Sai last month about the preparations and he said that this would be the biggest event of the series so far. Both DJs will be spinning vinyl from all corners of the planet but the highlight will certainly be the Paradise Bangkok Molam International band performing with luk thung and lae legend Kwanjit Sriprajan and molam star Yenjit Porntawi.