Thai music lovers are some of the most fanatical in the world; you only have to watch the TV news whenever a rock or pop act arrives. In the West, major artists can usually manage to slip through customs unnoticed. This is not the case in Bangkok. Chaos ensues as kids, teens, mums, dads and sometimes even grandparents, mob the airport arrivals hall to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars.
If you look carefully at this rock and roll circus, you’ll usually notice a serious-looking farang guy with short cropped hair and ‘access all areas’ amulets hanging around his neck. Who is this guy? Is he a freelance bouncer or some star-struck airport official? Maybe he’s just a lucky, well-connected groupie.
He’s neither. The man is question is one of the people responsible for bringing some of the biggest names in rock to our shores – Neil Thompson, Deputy GM of BEC-Tero, Thailand’s most successful concert promoter.
Originally from New Zealand, Thompson came of age, musically speaking, in neighbouring Australia, where he worked from 1979-92 as a production manager with some of the biggest Aussie names in music including Midnight Oil and INXS.
In the early 90s the Australian government was actively promoting closer ties with Asia. Thompson saw Thailand, with its booming youth market, as the land of opportunity so he packed up his favourite cassettes and headed off to carve out his niche in the concert industry here.
Not long after arriving he was fortunate enough to be introduced to Brian Marcar, the founding force behind the then fledgling music promoter Tero Entertainment. Thompson’s timing could not have been better as Tero had just booked what was to be, and probably still is, the biggest concert ever in Thailand - Michael Jackson’s Dangerous tour. This massive undertaking required as much experience as could be mustered and he was promptly recruited to join the team.
The outdoor concert, scheduled for two nights at the National Stadium, was indeed a mammoth undertaking, involving six containers of equipment, a crew half the size of the audience and an artist up to his sculpted nose in litigation. Allegations, cancellations and audience frustration combined to make Thompson’s first job in the Asian entertainment industry a true baptism of fire.
So how has the market changed since these early
days? “There hasn’t been one single big change. It’s been more of a
natural progression.” says Thompson. “The general concert market has
grown from putting on events for 3,000 people to staging concerts for
over 30,000 [as witnessed at the recent Linkin Park event].
“As
pioneers in concert promotion, we had to build the necessary
infrastructure. In the early days there was no support. When we started
there was no real ticketing agencies so we had to set up our own.
Security was also a problem. We had to change the whole attitude of our
security staff to one of service: making sure the audience was
comfortable, safe and able to have a good time.”
1997 was a
crunch year for both Thailand and Tero. With the bottom falling out of
the baht it was an almost impossible business proposition to bring
bands in, pay them in hard currency and still make a profit. But this
was also a blessing in disguise. Thompson is pretty fatalistic about
this period. “Everything has a purpose; life is a journey. During this
difficult time, Tero joined with BEC World to become BEC-Tero, which
gave us an even bigger platform to be able to do what we want to do,”
he says.
Today, he is more upbeat than ever. “It’s been a
wonderful journey and the company has diversified as it has grown.
We’re now involved in concerts, shows, TV production and even sporting
events. I am fortunate to work with a great team who are passionate
about what they do. It is a privilege to work with these people.”
As
someone involved in music on a day-to-day basis, the obvious question
has to be what kind of music does he like to listen to? “I’ve got a
broad taste in music but with my indie background I am attracted to
anything that is cutting edge,” he explains. “One of the first albums I
ever bought was Lou Reed’s Transformer. I like bands with energy; bands
that really push the envelope.”
And there’s nothing Thompson
likes better that a good concert. He cites The Highwaymen (country/folk
legends Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and Waylon
Jennings), The Eagles and Santana (both in Bangkok), early Prince (in
the US) and even Jane’s Addiction as some of the best concerts he’s
seen.
So what’s it like being able to get up close and
personal with the stars? “Most of them are pretty normal people,” he
says. “I try to just leave them alone as much as possible. Thailand is
usually just one leg on their tour. Some of them want to go out and
play, while others want to visit all the temples. Each artist has his
or her own peculiarities.”
When pushed to name favourites,
Thompson admits to being completely charmed by The Eagles on their
recent visit. “They were here for nine days and there wasn’t anything
they wouldn’t do to help.” Like many Thai music fans, he’s also got a
soft spot for Carlos Santana. “Carlos is an absolute gentleman,” he
enthuses.
Being a gentleman himself, Thompson refuses to dig the
dirt on the more troublesome artists he’s worked with. “Ask me when I
leave the industry,” he says diplomatically.
So what acts
would he love to bring to Thailand? “Eminem would be great, also
Madonna and U2. It’s a combination of the right time and the right
price,” he says. He would also love to introduce Thai audiences to
musical legends like James Brown, Tina Turner, Lou Reed and David
Bowie.
While BEC-Tero missed out on Bowie during his recent
world tour, Thompson is pleased to announce that one of the legends on
his ‘must see’ list will be coming to Thailand early next year.
BEC-Tero has recently confirmed the Godfather of Soul, James Brown,
will play a concert in February 2005. Before this, concert goers can
also look forward to Sting, who plays Impact Arena on January 13. Also
expect Susanne Vega in February.
One act you can be sure
BEC-Tero won’t be bringing back to Thailand for some time, however, is
the Moscow State Circus, another of Thompson’s early logistical
nightmares in Asia. “A large troupe of performers and live animals –
all during the fall of communism, no thanks,” he laughs.
