Rasseru

Well, well, well, I sure got a few good talkings to! By nature I am not one who buys easily into the consensus view of things, but in this case I think that the consensus view has a lot to be said for it, and that an apology is due from me.

I would like to apologise for the offence and upset caused caused to many by my undefendable, holier-than-thou, nitpicking, dismal, rude, condescending and sneering post. I did not mean it to be all of those things, but that is the way it came across, and in this case, at least, I think the proof is in the pudding. I apologise.

I would also like to say I that I am grateful to Steve2UK for his understanding.

It is a great song, but vastly overplayed!

Expressed differently, I suppose, the problem is that the song is heard too often by some. Not a problem in my case. It had been years since I had heard it last.

I am looking for a carpenter or a handyman for something very simple. I guess they are hard to find in Chiang Mai ?

Not hard to find, there are lots of them that are quite good in a variety of areas. I use one guy that sells joke from a push cart in front of a market in the mornings but does good cement and carpentry work.

. . . . .

Now these people work only with Thais so their prices are Thai prices. Someone who frequently works Farang housing areas will have an entirely different pricing schedule, so..... use your Thai contacts to find one. . . . .

Does the guy sell any blond jokes? Those are my favorite!

If he does, I would be curious as to the difference between his Thai and Farang prices for blond jokes.

. . . . . there was no playing of Hotel California any of the times I was there, so I didn't have to suffer through that. I'd advise a little generosity on that front, though, as both bands get and play a lot of audience requests. I have trouble imagining that they would choose of their own accord to play that particular tune. . . . .

I take it back! I went yet again to The Good View last night, and they played Hotel California and I had a moment of enlightenment when I realized: hey, you know, that's a dam_n good song.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say ..."

"I'm going to crawl out on that limb a little further and opine ..."

"Okay, further out on a limb, I will opine that ..."

"I will also go out on the limb..."

I want to know what kind of tree this is that can hold all of you?

. . .

Not a tree. Kali. Any more folks get a hankering to join them, of course, they'll have to call in Mahakali.

Heck...I did it TWICE!

So . . . did I hear you raise your offer to 100?

Yes..

Darn it.

In that case . . . you have yourself a deal!

Heck...I did it TWICE!

So . . . did I hear you raise your offer to 100?

Hey, I said I was of Dutch desent . . .

Yes, you did, and on the chance that any untrained and impressionable minds are reading this thread and would prefer to learn decent spelling, I will point out that you meant to say, both then and now, that you are of Dutch descent.

'Blinky Bill'

There is a guy called 'Took' who plays late in the Brassiere, which he also owns and he is probably the best lead guitarist in Thailand. His backing band were also fantastic, so if you like Rock and Blues this is the bar to visit.

His rendition of Hendrix 'Voodoo Child was utterly amazing.

I have been to see Took at least four or five times over the last couple of years and like him very, very much. What he and the guys who play with him do, though, is very different from what the bands at The Good View that are the subject of this thread do. Musically more skillful and amazing, yes, but The Good View bands (wish I knew their names) have a pure pleasure and fun factor -- a kind of lightness -- that is very different and, for me at least, sometimes preferable to what can be a heavy and intense seriousness down the street at the Brasserie. Only sometimes, though.

Apologies, clokwise, but a truth is beginning to dawn: you are evidently a discerning and knowledgeable musician with entirely different qualities as a gourmet!

Could it have changed so much?

I have no idea. I haven't eaten there. Just had drinks and listened to the bands.

Cat Stevens, pre-religion.

Ummmmm . . . no.

Yeah, I always wished I could have been a musician.

At least when I have had to much to drink, I think I can play and sing just like David Gilmore!

I'm thinking you must not ever have that much to drink. Me, if I were in that frame of mind, I would pick as my fantasy object someone who can really play and sing.

Glad you enjoyed your time at The Goodview, gpdjohn and clokwise, and sorry, clokwise, that you did not (that is, were not able to) enjoy the music part of it more. I should perhaps have mentioned it in my first post, but like gpdjohn, I am fortunate in not being a musician (fortunate, that is, in this case; it was one of my dreams in life to be a musician, before my efforts toward that end were confronted decisively by an unignorable lack of talent).

Also, there was no playing of Hotel California any of the times I was there, so I didn't have to suffer through that. I'd advise a little generosity on that front, though, as both bands get and play a lot of audience requests. I have trouble imagining that they would choose of their own accord to play that particular tune.

Finally, I did not think about it at the time, but every time we've gone to watch these bands, we've sat at the bar or one of the tables right in front. On reflection, yes, that would have to make the whole experience a lot more fun.

I am in the middle of a top-to-bottom renovation of a condominium with a contractor who came highly recommended by two different friends. He has proved himself deserving of their recommendations. If you are interested in learning more and send me your name and telephone number in a PM, I will call you to discuss.

I'm posting this as a recommendation.

Last month my wife and I felt like checking out some live music and stopped in, more or less by chance, at The Good View, located on the Ping River just a few hundred meters north of the Thapae Bridge.

There were two bands playing there that night, and they were both amazingly good. They both had great musical sense and taste and a lot of talent, and clearly loved and were having fun with what they were doing. They played a wide range of popular music, mostly Western but with some Thai pieces too, including rock, R&B, soul, reggae and plain old pop music. They played pieces by Amy Winehouse, Radiohead, James Brown, U2 and others I cannot remember. Both bands were entertaining and charming. Mostly this grew out of a low-key improvised sense of fun, with little dance moves and glances among themselves and the audience, but some times, especially in the case of the singers, they would go a bit further than that. It was in no way a formal 'show', mostly just an infectious playfulness, acted out in an improvised way by musicians who were, as I said, having a lot of fun. Both bands had drums, keyboards, bass and guitar (one of the bands had two guitarists) and most of the musicians also took turns singing, both lead and backup. Both bands also had two female lead vocalists, neither of whom was on stage all the time, and one of the bands had a male vocalist on stage much of the time too. He was especially good with soul, R&B and reggae pieces.

We loved the evening we spent listening to these bands so much that we have been back three more times since. The same groups were there every time we went and they only got better. They seem to be house bands who play there all the time, but I don't know that for certain and it could be that they are only there for a month or two or some such.

In any case, I cannot assure you that these bands will be there long (although my sense is that they will), but I highly recommend them to anyone interested in this kind of music scene.

Classical, steel string or electric?

I tried the advocado bacon (BLT w/advocado) at Bake and Bite today. Delish!

That appeals somehow to the lawyer in me.

It is not directly responsive to the OP's question, but it may be useful information, so I will add this comment. I much prefer the second class coach to the first class coach. One reason is that every time I have used one of the first class bunks, the (unadjustable) air con was set too high and the room was freezing. Apart from that, I find second class more comfortable and interesting, for the variety of people you can observe around you. I have always found the service to be somewhere between perfectly adequate and fine in both first and second class.

This is weird.

Why was my post saying "or it could be "must've" " removed?

I know I posted it cause, I was subscribed as of June 18th.

If it is any comfort to you, my terribly witty response to your same post has also disappeared into the twilight zone.

At the risk of having it once again beamed to an alternative universe , what was your witty response?

I'm sorry, but I was able to describe it as witty only once it was gone. That, along with the fact that I am losing my memory together with my mind, leaves me no choice but to disappoint you now.

But what if you get a better price from a Thai owned company...how far will your loyalty stretch?

If I have read this thread correctly, it is not a question so much of the loyalty mobs00 has to farangs as it is a lack of trust he has in Thais.

You are both wrong. It is about supporting other expats here in Chiang Mai.

Then your thinking appears to have changed from your opening post, where you said:

I just feel more comfortable supporting someone who has also decided to live here in Chiang Mai. There is a certain level of trust I have dealing with other expat owned businesses.

That means that you do not have as much trust dealing with Thai-owned businesses.

But what if you get a better price from a Thai owned company...how far will your loyalty stretch?

If I have read this thread correctly, it is not a question so much of the loyalty mobs00 has to farangs as it is a lack of trust he has in Thais.

This is weird.

Why was my post saying "or it could be "must've" " removed?

I know I posted it cause, I was subscribed as of June 18th.

If it is any comfort to you, my terribly witty response to your same post has also disappeared into the twilight zone.

Absolutely the best in CM is still Ajarn Akarawath Intanant.

I don't know that he is the best, because I have never worked with any others, but I have found him to be excellent. And his English is excellent too.

If you like a good (and cheap) cup of coffee, I recommend a place called "PERFECT BLEND". It's on Changkhlan Rd, in the Soi opposite the Kasikorn Bank.

The guy selects and roasts his own coffee beans.

Enjoy

Despite your being a mere newbie with only three posts, you take the trouble to promote yourself or a friend -- I mean, to provide us with such helpful information for our benefit -- that's just soooo sweet of you!