Urban Simulations and Soundscapes of a Thai Beatles Tribute Band

Abstract

This article employs observations, interviews, and participatory experiences to explore a Thai Beatles tribute band ethnographically from the perspective of its members, critics, and fans. “The Better” have simulated the formative moments of the Beatles’ mythology in Hamburg’s Reeperbahn clubs through more than a decade of relentless weekly gigs at an Irish pub in Bangkok’s Patpong red light district. The Better’s performances and biographies are filtered through local music history and Thai soundscapes. This article argues that, through their Thai simulation of the Beatles, the Better’s performances in Bangkok’s present simultaneously resonate with audience experiences of the Beatles’ historical legacy.

Acknowledgments

The author thanks the members of the Better and its numerous incarnations, past and present, for their music, help, and friendship: Aisoon Thivavarnvong, Sitthiporn Amornphan, Jiew Prajaksin, Anusorn Phatanakul, David Eng, Sopon Juntaramittree, Pol “Oh” Chulanon, and Danai “Yong” Saewaneea. He also thanks Dr Graham St. John at the Griffith Centre for Cultural Research of Griffith University, Australia, and Dr Natalie Porter at the Department of Anthropology of the University of Notre Dame, USA, for their comments and consideration. Finally, he thanks two anonymous reviewers for their comments on this article, as well as Professor Dr Judith Schlehe and the Southeast Asian Studies group at the University of Freiburg, Germany, and the International Association for the Study of Popular Music for accepting a preliminary version presented at their 17th annual conference at the Universidad de Oviedo in Gijón, Spain.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1 In many of my interviews with the members of the Better, kinship networks, especially within the Thai business and music community, are extremely important to the band’s numerous incarnations and shape its performances. For example, Sopon was recruited in 2004 through kinship connections to a longstanding cover band playing in the Thong Lor music clubs, before he was recruited to the band by another family friend (interview by author, Sopon Juntaramittree, Sitthiporn Amornphan, Pol “Oh” Chulanon, David Eng, Anusorn Phatanakul, O’Reilly’s, Bangkok, 24 Sept. 2010). In another example, Danai “Yong” Saewaneea, who replaced Anusorn as drummer after he retired, is a friend and bandmate of Sopon’s younger brother, and Sopon recruited Pol, who replaced Sitthiporn (interview by author, Sopon Juntaramittree, Pol “Oh” Chulanon, David Eng, Danai “Yong” Saewaneea,” Aisoon Thivavarnvong, O’Reilly’s, Bangkok, 29 July and 12 Aug. 2011).

2 Certainly, while Bangkok’s Patpong and Hamburg’s Reeperbahn are both perennial destinations for foreign tourists, in early 1960s Germany, a majority of the Reeperbahn’s customers were working-class students or transient sailors. This audience contrasts sharply with the early 21st-century middle- to upper-class Thai and expatriate audiences at the Betters’ shows.

3 For further discussion of tribute band economies and their relationship to Baudrillard, see Andy Bennett and Homan (Access 11).