30 Years Of Carabao

[webfact]

30 years of Carabao

By Thasong Asvasena

THE NATION

The songs-for-life band kicks off a year of celebrations by finishing what it started at Bangkok's velodrome in 1985

An event that was left unfinished 25 years ago but is known to all Carabao fans finally became complete last Saturday night, at the band's 30th anniversary concert, when the same last song, sung to "sedate" the crowd and usher them out of Bangkok's velodrome finally came to an end.

That folksong classic, "Roithai Prae" ("Changing Ploughing Marks"), played as the first song at the Velodrome Returns concert, sounded even more magical for those with direct experience of the 1985 incident.

The famous quote "lemme have a puff" by vocalist Yuenyong "Ad Carabao" Ophakul, smoking while singing the song without music in a video prelude, drew long and loud cheers from the audience. Prior to that though, the audience was treated to an overture featuring two new numbers, "Kamlang Jai Carabao Samsib Pee" and "Phoo Pid Thong Lang Phra".

The concert also brought together former members of the band and served to mark the auspicious 84th birthday of His Majesty the King in December, in addition to kicking off a year that celebrates the band's 30th anniversary with 77 free concerts across Thailand and in six other countries.

In 1985, a Carabao concert held at the same venue in Hua Mark - though the velodrome has long since given way to the outdoor arena - was prematurely stopped following brawls between fans as a result of overcrowding. Organisers called a halt to the show and to calm the fans down and usher them out of the old bicycle racetrack, Ad sang a number of songs, all without instrumental back with "Roithai Prae" being the sad finale.

At Saturday's three-hour-plus concert, 28 songs from all 26 Carabao's albums were played including a medley that comprised 17 others, each in short sections, that had the crowd up and dancing. A session held the following day was a sold-out charity event that generated Bt5 million in proceeds, Bt1 million of which was given to Japan in the wake of the twin tragedies on March 11.

In addition to quality performances coupled with sturdy sound and power, the concert had plenty of flair, worthy of a five-year wait after the ones marking the band's 25th anniversary, with a helicopter hovering above the audience in the prelude to "Thab Lang" a series of spectacular firework shows, as well as a hi-tech holographic display on the stage screen. The Supermoon backdrop made the concert and the night especially memorable.

The band rehearsed for two months prior to this concert and the coming tours, and the highlight for many die-hard fans was the chance to see and hear former members Kirati "Khiew" Phromsaakhaa na Sakon Nakhon and Thanis "Ajaan" Sriklindee . A number of guest musicians also featured.

After a number of songs that included "Num Suphan", Thanis performed a solo flute session to the melody of "Sukiyaki", and asked the audience to observe one minute's silence to mourn the Japan disasters."

Band members took turns singing their signature tunes, with Thierry Mekwattana covering his hit "Nang Ngarm Too Krajok" and or Preecha "Lek" Chanapai, opting for "Look Hin". The band also chose traditional instruments for many songs and jammed in an acoustic session on the ballad "Khon Keb Fuen".

After the medley, the concert revved up for high-tempo hits "Khon La Fun", "Phra Jao Tak" and "Bua Loi" before closing out the show with "Tam Roi Phor", a number written by Ad to honour His Majesty the King.

Among many events coming up is the marathon Carabao Expo event at Queen Sirikit Centre, where the band will perform for free for seven days and seven nights from November 9 to 15.

Each of the upcountry concerts will be performed in a Superdome - a colossal air-cushion dome that can comfortably house a stage and 5,000 people and takes 1,000 installers to erect and deflate. For security reasons, though, it has not yet been decided whether the Carabao concerts in the three strife-torn southern provinces will be performed at normal venues or in the Superdome.

One province,| one concert

Carabao plans to play in all 77 provinces in its OPOC (One Province One Concert) series. Just 5,000 tickets are available for each show. For details, visit www.Carabao30.com.

-- The Nation 2011-03-26

[kpmsprtd]

Everything about this tour sounds great. I hope they come to California, too.

[dunkin2012]

Carabao is toxic....

[whimsy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXoPXstEvdY

This band is a Thai institution. Enjoyed by people from all walks of life,

Made in Thailand is probably their song best known outside Thailand. Notice the phrase "thai ruk thai" is used in the lyrics.. At the time Thaksin was thinking about forming his TRT party this song would have been getting a lot of airplay. Coincidence?


Here is a cover version of the song with English subtitles.

[ib1b4]

These guy,s are legends in the THAI music industry, I will have to see one more of their concerts in the near future.

[Tywais]

A highly defamatory post, replies to it and comment on moderation have been removed. Careful.

[zzaa09]

Carabao is toxic....

Hypnotic.

[RKASA]

The best thing about hearing them in the back ground everywhere you go is - not missing all the Santana and Eagles tunes while away from the house.

[dunkin2012]

Carabao is toxic....

Hypnotic.

Nacotic ...................hash hash too.......haha