Suraphol Sombatcharoen
| Suraphol Sombatcharoen | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lamduan Sombatcharoen |
| Born |
September 25, 1930 Suphan Buri, Thailand |
| Died | August 16, 1968 (aged 37) Nakhon Pathom, Thailand |
| Genres | Luk thung |
| Instruments | Singer |
Suraphol Sombatcharoen (September 25, 1930 – August 16, 1968) (Thai: สุรพล สมบัติเจริญ, also Surapon Sombatjalern) was a Thai luk thung singer. Dubbed the "King of Luk Thung", he was one of the first major stars of Thailand's own country music genre. He was fatally shot after a live performance in Nakhon Pathom.
Born Lamduan Sombatcharoen in Suphan Buri Province, he took the name Suraphol as a stage name. His first hit was in 1954 with "Nam Da Sow Vienne" ("Tears of a Lao Girl"). It marked the emergence of luk thung, a Thai counterpart to such crooning styles as Japanese enka and Indonesian kroncong, and embodied such influences as Hollywood film music, American country music, Malay pop and Afro-Cuban rhythms.
Enjoying popularity at the same time when Elvis Presley and The Beatles were popular in Western world, Suraphol was sometimes referred to as the "Thai Elvis".
Suraphol composed more than 100 songs. Among his most well-known numbers are "Sao Suan Taeng" ("The Girl from the Cucumber Orchard"), "Mong" ("Look"), "Nam Ta Ja Tho" ("The Tears of a Corporal"), "Khong Plom" ("Fake Stuff") and "Muai Cham" ("Broken-Hearted Chinese Girl").
Shortly before he was killed, he released his last and most memorable song, "Siphok Pi Haeng Khuam Lang" ("สิบหกปีแห่งความหลัง" or "16 Years of Our Past"), in which he wrote sadly about the end of his 16-year marriage, reflecting on the happiness and bitterness of the union.
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