Through his years of super stardom and the pressures of each new release, Bird Thongchai McIntyre has never forgotten how to keep both feet on the ground.
It's 1.30 in the afternoon on the 31st floor of CMIC Tower. We have been ushered into a meeting room where the staff of Grammy Entertainment's photo section has efficiently already set up lights to ensure that our photographs will come out well.
We have just one hour to interview the superstar Bird Thongchai McIntyre.
Bird appears in a black outfit sporting a chic pair of eyeglass. He still looks fresh and younger than his age of 41, though he has been faced with a demanding schedule to promote his latest album Tuu Pleang Saman Prajumbaan ("First-aid Jukebox").
The pop singer has been with the Grammy label since the company's beginnings and remains its best-selling artist, adding dizzying figures to the company's accounts.
From his debut album Hadsai Sailom Songrao ("Beach, Wind And The Two Of Us") in 1985, his work soared to popular and critical acclaim, quickly putting him on the road to superstardom. His Boomerang album released in 1990 and his last album Thongchai Service went on to sell over 2 millions copies.
"The actual figures may be even much higher, especially due to the piracy. We've managed to make many men the new owners of buildings," says the singer with a wry smile. "Piracy is a big problem, it's really sad". He pauses, then adds humourously, "It is worse than AIDS, worse than communism, too."
It's time for the photo session and the famous singer shows no reluctant to pose without a cameraman's suggestions. Of course, being a professional, clicking shutters, tape recorders and fielding questions are all a part of the job ? but when it comes time to talk about his life and his new album, Bird displays a genuine enthusiam and the charm that has endeared him to millions.
How different is the concept of your new album from the old one?
It is not very different, the focus is on very simple and easy listening. But as the concept of the album is 'jukebox', I try to provide a variety of songs, the style of each song differing. Eleven tracks in eleven styles.
The title of your last album was Thongchai Service and this new album's title is Tuu Pleang Saman Prajumbaan. Is it your gimmick to serve as a handyman who can solve any problems?
No, no, that's not the case, it is just the name of the album. The range of my listeners is rather wide, so I have to take into the account their tastes and what they want. Like a jukebox, they can choose whatever song they want to listen to. It is just a menu where anything can be ordered from according to an individual's mood.
There are an increasing number of magazines and films designed to cater to certain market niches, while you seem to keep in mind a range of audiences and types.
Yes. There is no specific label to describe the types of the songs on my album. They're just easy listening songs; songs that people can relax to while listening.
Why are there latin songs on the album? To follow the world music trend?
I've always liked latin-styled songs. I like Santana. Actually, I've been using bits of the latin style since my early albums. When I was working with Phi Ter (Rewat Bhudhinan, the late executive producer of Grammy), he knew what kinds of music I was comfortable working with. My voice actually suits the accompaniment of wind instruments, and I'm also comfortable with the rhythmic sounds of latin percussion.
But on this album, there are more ballads than up-tempo songs.
Yes, because I personally like ballads and those songs are more attractive to the general public. First-aid Jukebox is suitable for all ages, with ballads for the elders and faster, dance-style beats for the younger audience.
Did you study music in order to help develop your singing techniques?
I have learnt by doing most of the time. I didn't study music theory to expand my technique. I'm like a male Phumphueang Duangchan (the late legendary look thung diva), the feedback from my listeners, and my audiences when I perform live, help me to grow each time. Criticism from the media, too, plays an important role. Through those experiences, you know what works and that's how you measure the mass.
How do you best measure the mass? From your concerts, or from your sales?
Ummm. That's a good question. I don't consider the number of copies an album sells as a gauge on which I can measure success.
There are 70 million people and only a million copies sold does not provide a good basis for judgement whether or not the album is successful. Maybe the people, the feedback and media criticism help me feel confident in my work.
There was a period when
your albums weren't successful,
particularly the album Dream (released in
1996). Why was the response so cold? Have you ever pondered its
failure?
During that time, I was losing my confidence since my mentor Phi Ter was seriously ill. When I was doing the Dream album, I didn't' have the strength nor the feeling I needed to complete the album. Such feelings don't only happen with me, but also all of the Grammy artists. During that time, the R&B trend was in, and the album is performed in R&B style. But finally, that's not what my listeners want, though trying it satisfied the artist in me.
Have you considered that your fans can't accept you in another style that is not pop?
I think many of the buyers of the Dream album must have bought it for keeping it as a collector's item, and not to enjoy what is in it. Actually, my fans don't expect much from me, just singing simple songs which are not too hard to understand. That was why I have decided to stop doing things that were too difficult for my fans to adjust to, and moved back toward easy listening.
That's why on this new album, you have bits of latin and jazz flavours, but in totality it's still pop songs. So, are there times when you feel uncomfortable to sing a particular style of song that the market demands?
Of course, there may be times when I need to sing in another style, but working as a team there are rules. The company that I work for may decide there are limitations to what I can do and what I shouldn't be doing. You can teach a child to draw by holding his or her fingers a few times, but not forever. So, in the end, I think we have to try and be ourselves at some stage of our lives and still follow the rules.
While working with Phi Ter, I was kind of a receiver because he fed me everything. Without him, I now want to guide younger singers. And being a senior artist, I do have the privilege of many times choosing what I want to do and what I don't. Since the album Thongchai Service, I have been feeling very light, becoming more involved in production process.
Do you ever think of becoming an international artist?
If I have to go international, I can. But I will not try too hard to become internationally known. It's not my aim. I feel very good where I am now with the Thai people. There have been some offers, but I haven't quickly packed my bags and decided to leave.
Has your image been changed in order to make you look a little younger than your years?
Will I be able to fool people about my age? (Laughs loudly) We have to have a certain amount of male maturity. Take a look at the song lyrics, they've changed. The lyrics are less innocent and more grown-up. I feel that I'm too old to speak shy words overly sweet and silly.
Why do you think children are attracted to your songs? Is it a marketing strategy?
I don't know why. I think there maybe some sort of volatile substance that evaporates from me which attracts them. I am not boasting or trying to say that I love kids or children. I don't wear a child lover's crown, but strangely enough they seem to like me. I've noticed it, too. Once I was sitting at a restaurant and three children walked straight up to me without reason.
Don't you feel threatened with the advent of so many new, fresh-faced youngsters in the music scene?
Not at all. I feel great to see that our industry is growing so well. In the past, it's been very difficult to make your place in the music scene, so I want the young singers to love and to be responsible to their work.
Will you ever retire?
Never, In my definition, retirement means taking on selective projects and stop working as a routine, although I haven't worked in a routine fashion for ages. Even if I quit singing I will stay busy doing something else. I don't like to sit idle. Retirement means working in my own style. I am looking forward to my new concert, which is not exactly a concert, but rather a musical play. (The play is expected to be held in March.) I really want to act in a musical and sing live, not lip sync.
Whenever someone asks you about the upcoming movie 2049 by Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar Wai, it seems you're still hesitant to talk about it.
I am confident about the project, but Wong Kar Wai's movie is very different from the usual stuff. His movie gives me space to do things that I usually don't get to do. The shooting begin in December.
Are you playing the lead role in the film?
Wong Kar Wai's film has a great distribution of character roles.
I am asking you because in one of his movies titled Days of Being Wild, the famous Hong Kong actor Tony Leung was onscreen for just a minute at the end of the film. Will you, too, come out only at the end to show your face?
No way, I won't be shown just for a minute. If that's the case I will kick the director (Laughs). It is true that in his films characters walk in and walk out with no reason, just like watching people move about in the natural environment. Wong Kar Wai assures me that the film is not the 'art film' that I often misquote it as during interviews.
Are you bored of being called Khon Khong Prachachon ("A man of the people")?
I can't afford to be fed up or bored of being called that. I am what I am today, and whatever asset I hold is due to that word. I have to live with it. A lot depends on how you present yourself to the people and try to keep yourself sane.
Are you superstitious? I see you wear a blue-stoned ring on your finger. Is it a talisman?
It's a lapis. It's actually a very cheap stone, bought from a small shop in Switzerland. I like to wear blue jeans, and it suits the outfit too. (He hands out the ring to the group surrounding him). I can't afford to be superstitious. I have to keep my concentration while I'm working.
In the past, we've had a number of superstars, including yourself. With so many popular singers, the term "superstar" is being categorised according to genre, and there's a tendency to be no more supreme superstars. If you weren't counted as a superstar anymore, how would you feel?
Even now I don't feel like a superstar. I work hard, and if working hard means being a superstar, then I accept it happily. You have to be very disciplined and sincere with whatever you are doing. I never felt tired of singing, not once. I still enjoy it and I'm passionate about it. I think the audience and listeners know what I have to offer to them while I am performing.
The tape-recorder's record button pops up signaling the end of interview and, as we pack our equipment, Bird bids us a cheerful good-bye.
He begins readying for the next interview, still full of the good humour we've come to know and expect from him. *
BY KHEED KHIAN
THE WEEK OF (FRIDAY, DEC 17-THURSDAY, DEC 23 )