Veteran singer and much-loved National Artist Pongsri Woranuch, often referred to as the first "Queen of Luk Thung", died on Sunday at the age of 85.
Blessed with a crystal clear and distinctive voice, she made her debut in 1955 at the tender age of 16. Her first song was Huajai Mai Mee Khrai Khrong, which became a hit. She then joined the genre's biggest star of the time, Suraphon Sombatcharoen and his band, creating a male-female lead singer style that proved popular in the 1960s. Her time with Suraphon led to her nickname as the "Queen of Luk Thung".
She released a string of hits including Wiman Nai Fun, Namta Mia Luang, Duan Pitsawat and later, her biggest hit Rot Duan. Many of her songs are used to train young luk thung singers and she became a role model for the likes of Pumpuang Duangjan, Buppa Saichon and Sunaree Ratchasima.
In one of several interviews I had with Pongsri over the years, she told me about her rift with Suraphon and how that led to a split between the two. In the end, she left to form her own band.
Interestingly, this move led to the creation of dancing chorus lines, which were called hang kruang (or "tail of the orchestra"). Suraphon brought male and female support on stage, each with a small percussion instrument, but they did not really move or dance. Pongsri was one of the first luk thung stars to introduce dancing by hang kruang on stage.
In addition to support for her fellow musicians, she also worked with charities and was always available for interviews. I can't recall a more gracious and welcoming luk thung artist. She guided me around her home in Phutthamonthon Sai 5, South Bangkok, which is a fascinating museum of her life and work. The museum has been run by her son for many years and is a must-visit for luk thung fans.
In her six-decade career, she garnered many awards. In 1992, she was made a National Artist in the Performing Arts (Thai Country Music) and according to Thai PBS, she received the Golden Record Award twice, and the Royal Award for Half-Century Of Thai Country Music twice.
Her funeral rites will be at Wat Rai Khing, Nakhon Pathom, on April 17.
News also reached the World Beat desk that another giant of popular music, this time Malian guitarist and singer-songwriter Amadou Bagayoko of the duo Amadou & Mariam, has passed away. He was 70. The duo were one of Africa's most commercially successful music acts, performing at festivals around the globe and with top musicians such as U2.
Amadou & Mariam met at a school for young blind people in Mali's capital Bamako. Despite the handicap, when they were young they began to play together and perform locally and for two decades struggled to develop their career until global star Manu Chao produced their album Dimanche A Bamako (Sunday In Bamako) in 2005 with its breakout global hit Senegal Fast Food. This album catapulted them to fame, selling half-a-million copies and led to performances at Glastonbury Festival, the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony for former US president Barack Obama and Damon Albarn's Africa Express.
The duo won Songlines magazine's inaugural World Music Award for Best Group.
Amadou wrote or co-wrote many of the duo's songs and he was a brilliant guitarist, effortlessly exploring the links between Malian guitar styles and those he listened to as a youngster like David Gilmour and Bad Company. His playing, which sometimes sounds a little like the late Zani Diabate, is what drives their music -- a kind of Malian blues-rock.
Readers might like to check out Dimanche A Bamako as it's an essential album and also Welcome To Mali (2008) and Folila (which means kusic in Bambara). The duo also appear on The Rough Guide To Malian Music.
John Clewley can be contacted at clewley.john@gmail.com.
