Love, life and peace

For the thousands of concert-goers who rolled into Hua Mark last Sunday to watch Pongsit “Poo” Kampee and his band perform live, getting into the Indoor Stadium was akin to entering a high security jail.

They had to pass through three rounds of screening and were surrounded by scores of policemen and Military Police officers.

Most of the male audience members were frisked, and many of them had their belts with big buckles (popular among vocational students) confiscated at the entrance to be returned at the end. Plastic bottles, lighters, and cigarettes were banned.

And for many of the audience members, it was the first concert that involved walking through a body-screening gate.

But there was a good reason for what might seem like over-the-top security. Pongsit’s concert last December at Muang Thong Thani’s outdoor Aktiv Square was forced to end prematurely when fighting broke out between rival groups of youths. Sunday’s concert was held to make amends for the “incomplete” show. 

Possibly due to the right security, Sunday’s concert was almost an hour late getting underway but there were few signs of impatience and the songs-for-lifer drew laughter from the crowd when he thanked them for “having the courage to come”.

The concert began with guest singer/guitarist Preecha “Lek Carabao” Chanaphai performing Poo’s song “Kid Thueng” (“Missing You”). Lek, who is often described by Poo as his teacher and benefactor, was joined by the multi-talented musician for the next song “Yod Chai”.

Another guest was Surachai Chanthimathorn, the 65-year-old songs-for-life legend who is better known as “Nga Caravan”. Nga on guitar joined Poo on Caravan’s “Num Pa-nejon” (“Wandering Man”) and Poo’s “Thai Ther Kuen Ma” (“Buying Her Back”), a song about a young woman from the North sold into prostitution by her parents. Nga’s 18-year-old son Kantruem was also on stage and showed he’d inherited his dad’s talent for the guitar.

Actor and musician Arak “Pe” Amornsupasiri was yet another guest and performed two songs, one of them his own and the other a Pongsit number from an old album.

Poo, 45, had the audience on their feet in an early set that featured his faster tempo songs, lively guitar-playing, and powerful singing. He was backed not just by his band but also two female chorus singers and violinist Suwan Manosorn.

Fans sang and danced along enthusiastically. Those standing near the stage were treated to a closer encounter with Poo, who is sometimes referred to as “king of love songs-for-life”, as he moved to a small raised platform at the centre of the standing audience’s zone, which was divided into four sections separated by steel fences.

Poo slowed down the tempo for the second half of the show, singing many of his best known hits including “Sud Jai” (“With All My Heart”), “Talod Wela” (“All the Time”), and “Yoo Trong Nee” (I Am Here) and encouraging fans to sing along. He also removed his mouth organ from its holder and treated the crowd to a harmonica solo that was rewarded with long and loud applause and screams for more. 

He ended his concert with “Samer” (Always), another of his hits from yesteryear and the audience, still surrounded by men in uniforms, left the stadium peacefully.