BANGKOK EYES PRESENTS -
|
BANGKOK EYES PRESENTS -
|
  
|
 Expat perceptions of Bangkok's Night Entertainment World is, unsurprisingly, almost entirely derived through the eyes of the expats themselves, be they residents or tourists. Those short time visitors' views on our Nitelife are usually overly cynical, while residents' and regular returnees' views most often mellow over time. This month we take a comparative look at early Bangkok Nitelife (1969) through the eyes of Thailand's own citizenry.
Thanks to an archival clipping from an October 1969 Standard Bangkok Magazine we present an (unabridged) look at what might be best described as "Niteclubs For Dummies" - occasionally amusing, other times revealing. We are quite confident this would not have made it into today's mainstream publications... The article, An Evening Out : Bangkok Nightclubs by Pannob Wati will, surprisingly, provide insights into today's Nitelife, if at times indirectly...
 
BOOKS ...worth a read !
( Click on book covers or links for details & to order. )
MIDNITE HOUR
MAIL BOX
Dave is BACK... 
Let the Follies begin-
Seeing their new neon, it appears that the King's Castle (ex: old King's Castle II) is planning to remain the second King's Castle on Patpong 1 Road. Nope, we don't know why, either...
 PATPONG 1
What's with the French Kiss signage being changed to Bussi Bussi? Is this really a 'name change'? (Pronounced "Boosy Boosy") We checked upstairs on The Ramp and around, and found no other Venues which might claim the sign.... Definitely need to have another look...
PATPONG 2
The tiny Tanoshii Bar has toppled into the Abyss, and the My Friend Bar has moved in, taking over lock, stock and chrome barstools... Welcome them to the nightbeat... Located on 'The Island'.
PATPONG 2
More and more, dynamic LED signage is taking over the facades of the Nitespots. We -being 'old school'- prefer real neon, but it looks like there's no turning back... The below appears amongst other signage of the Penny Black. TURN DOWN THE VOLUME FOR THIS ONE...
VIDEO CLIP SOI COWBOY
Gone, but not gone, Straps (second level) has wrested back their corner spot from Star. Welcome them back to the machine...
NANA PLAZA
We note the Bunny Balcony (second level) had gone dark. No chatter yet on what it might become...
After long deliberations, the Las Vegas opened at ground level in the Nana Hotel frontage, taking over both the Golden Beer Bar and the Rak Siam Massage digs. They are operating with curtained alcove entrances similar to the Crazy House on Soi 23 at Cowboy. Let the good times roll.
SOI NANA - (SOI 4 SUKHUMVIT) At the Soi 6 junction, Beats Bar has taken over, lock, stock and pool tables from what was the Live - and they are already looking busy. Welcome them to the nightcircus...
SOI NANA - (SOI 4 SUKHUMVIT) Deep in Soi Nana, down a small lane - one can find the brand-new Fin 69 Massage. Rub-a-dub-dub...
SOI NANA - (SOI 4 SUKHUMVIT) Since the winding down of the Covid Paranoiademic, the talk of The Tavern's demise had been more than rumor - less than fact. Until this last month. The 'Small Slice of the States' has faded into the heat and rain after a very long run. Sometime between our 2003 survey and our 2009 survey of Soi Nana, The Tavern took over the reins from The Alley Bar. May they find greener pastures...
SOI NANA - (SOI 4 SUKHUMVIT) 
We saw no change in the inventory of Soi Katoey (Silom Soi 4) venues this last month, and for whatever reason, it was quieter than in months past...
SOI KATOEY (Silom Soi 4)
What are we going to call these Venues that are both indoor and outdoor club-discos? Unique to Khao San Road, more and more of the indoor-outdoor bar/restaurants are converting to this format. The below Khao San Center is just one example - may they continue to thump and grind.
VIDEO CLIP KHAO SAN ROAD
Gone but not gone, the long-standing The Club (last month closed) has opened full-bore once again. Welcome back to the frenzied bazaar...
VIDEO CLIP KHAO SAN ROAD
Nowhere to be seen last month, The Back has opened at 'the back' of a small alleyway. We have kept the below video clip short, as we wouldn't want the "music" (we use the term in its broadest definition) to cause brain-damage to our readers....
VIDEO CLIP KHAO SAN ROAD
At last month's survey, we thought the Kater Claw Disco would be opening in a few days. Well, it did, and it didn't... The large outdoor patio has opened for drinks and order-in food, but the disco (photo below) will not be opening until Songkran.
KHAO SAN ROAD
Brand new on the Khao San S
trip is the Green House - yet another indoor-outdoor bar-disco... May lady luck smile as they cast the dice against that pitted wall...
KHAO SAN ROAD
The most comfortable Bar Roam (that's not a misspelling), tucked away deep in a small lane where absolutely no one can see them, gets busy 'late'. The custom mostly regulars, all are welcome. May they keep on keeping on...
KHAO SAN ROAD
Located deep in a narrow subsoi, the BND BKK (Bar Next Door) has gone to some effort to put up substantial electronic signage. ...Only one problem, it's virtually impossible to see from Khao San Road. We had to find a spot in a pathway to get this partial pic. They need to work a deal to get some signage out on the main drag... Gotsta get paid...
KHAO SAN ROAD
The Empire has a number of signs, this one being 'graffiti-style'. Empire has Venues on both sides of the street - competing with themselves. ...But it seems to be working out... Oh, those big city nights...
KHAO SAN ROAD
A For-the-Archives photo of the long-running Chart Bar. One of the few times we have seen it without customers...
KHAO SAN ROAD
Looks like the Wakanda Club got dealt their aces and eights. However renovations are proceeding into the nights as we speak, so it looks like it will either reopen soon, or there'll be a brand new Venue on The Strip. We'll keep an ear to the ground and get back atcha. (File photo.)
KHAO SAN ROAD
'You aren't in Patpong anymore, Dorothy.'
KHAO SAN ROAD
The Thai Thai Massage on Soi 22 is the latest in a string of new massage parlors by that name in the Sukhumvit Road area. May they continue to slip and slide...
SOI 22 Sukhumvit Rd
It looks like the The Omen has found somewhere else it had to be. They were located so deep in Subsoi Titanium, when they closed nobody noticed... Greener grass, ladies...
SOI 22 Sukhumvit Rd
We've written off the Bit Style Massage several times, and each time they have surprised us by popping back. This time is no different. 'Same grind, different day'... Located in Subsoi Starlight.
SOI 22 Sukhumvit Rd
Private Bar keeps popping in and out of existence - it's as though they have their own portal to another Universe. We'll never know for sure, but this month they are 'back'. (File photo.)
SOI 22 Sukhumvit Rd
Det 5 Bar & Restaurant continues to be a crowd pleaser, in spite of having a faded sign.... May they continue to rock & roll.
SOI 8 Sukhumvit The 8 Bar has a new sign, small but (apparently) effective. May their candle continue to burn...
SOI 8 Sukhumvit 
The One Two Two looked darker than a poisoned well when we passed by the other (Saturday) night. Looks like they've faded into the rains and the heat for good this time... A pity, too, as they were a first-class nightclub.
SOI AMBASSADOR
(Sukhumvit Soi 11) 
The brand-new Paradise has rolled out the red carpet in what used to be one of two Happy Party Bars. Welcome to the vicissitudes...
7 CENTER POINT (Sukhumvit Soi 7)
The Up To You never had a sign, so they didn't need to take it down. Not only are they closed, but the structure has been removed (as part of the zillionth remodelling of 7 Center Point Night Entertainment Area). Another in the unending string of bars that have known Death by Darwin...
7 CENTER POINT (Sukhumvit Soi 7) The S.T. Hotel upstairs (old Bier Garten side) is now open. ''Ah, they come and they go...''
7 CENTER POINT (Sukhumvit Soi 7) Long Time No See has, after a brief lapse, reopened. But even when open, it is so dark it's difficult to tell. We surmise if the sign is turned on, one can assume it is open... May they continue to find their way...
SOI DEAD ARTIST (Sukhumvit Soi 33)
Soi Dead Artists is slowly coming back to life - if mostly large massage parlors and clubs - and mostly aimed at Japanese clientele.
SOI DEAD ARTIST (Sukhumvit Soi 33)
Not so active during the week, on weekends the Green Room has a number of local and visiting blues and rock performers dropping by to show their stuff...
SOI EDEN (Sukhumvit 7 / 1)
This month Midnite Hour continues to review Bangkok's Nightlife Scene offering live entertainment, both foreign and local, as found in the bigger hotels, as well as those entertainers performing in Night Entertainment Areas, and other locations within the City.
 
Helen Forrest was a popular singer of traditional pop and 'swing', performing until 1983. She sang as "the girl singer" with the "Big Three" popular bands and orchestras of the day (Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman and Harry James..). She passed away in 1999.
October 1968
|
Bangkok Eyes is an historically based news outlet, and as such, all graphic excerpts herein are considered, under current legal precedents and prevailing interpretations, 'Fair Use' under Copyright Law. Copyright of any original artwork resides exclusively with the creators.
Bangkok's original
 site !
SINCE 2005 
The MIDNITE HOUR Graffiti Page is prepared by Staff Contributor "Boge" Hartman. (Boge's photo, above, is not a graffiti per-se, although there are those who have insinuated.... - Ed)
|
|
--- Datzit Fernow 
William R. Morledge |
February's Nitelife News 
1989 - 2025