Thongchai McIntyre ( th, ธงไชย แมคอินไตย์, ; born Albert Thongchai McIntyre; 8 December 1958) is a Thai singer and actor. He is also sometimes known as Bird Thongchai, Phi Bird ("elder brother Bird") or simply Bird (). He finished high diploma management major from Thonburi Commercial College. Considered to be Thailand's No.1 superstar, he is one of the most successful singers in Thailand's history, having sold more than 25 million albums. He is best known for his string (Thai pop) and luk thung music. He has also acted in numerous films, on television, musicals, and in commercials. He is of Mon, Scottish and Thai descent.

Early life

McIntyre was born in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

to parents Udom and James McIntyre. He was the youngest of nine siblings, and his life in the slums did not give him much of a head start, thus his childhood was filled with struggle to supplement the income of his family. As a child, he sometimes taught English to other children in the slum in exchange for 5 to 10 baht. Raised in a music-loving family, Bird McIntyre loved to sing and dance, and showcased his talents in school. His father died when Bird was still a child, He then started working as a bank officer.

Career

While still working as a bank officer, he met the famous Thai TV producer "Kai Varayuth" who recognised Bird's talent. Bird débuted in his first TV series with the help of Kai. His most memorable role was that of Captain Kobori in the 1990 television series ''

Khu Kam ''Koo Kam'' (Thai: คู่กรรม) is a Thai novel written by Thommayanti. It was adapted into a 1996 film, '' Sunset at Chaopraya'', and a 2013 remake that shared the same name. Plot summary Set in 1939, the early days of World War II ...

'', a tragic love story about a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

soldier (Bird) and a local Thai girl during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He reprised this role in the 1996 film adaptation, '' Sunset at Chaophraya''. He reached the height of his musical career in the early nineties. Among his best-known songs are ''Duay Rak Lae Pook Pan'', ''Koo Gud'', ''Sabai Sabai'' and ''Kob Jai Jing Jing''. His popular singles released recently include luk thung singles ''Mah Tummai'' (with

Jintara Poonlarp Jintara Poonlarp ( th, จินตหรา พูนลาภ, , ; b. 6 March 1969, Kaset Wisai district, Roi Et province, Thailand) is a Thai mor lam, luk thung and pop music singer. She is one of the most popular and prolific of the artist ...

), ''Fan Ja'' (with Jintara and Jarin B. ( Joey Boy), Nat Myria Benedetti, and

Katreeya English Katreeya English ( th, แคทรียา อิงลิช; born 4 September 1976) is a Thai singer, actress and model. She has released 5 albums, the most recent of which is Sassy K on GMM Grammy. In 2015, she recorded "They Call Us The Ro ...

), ''Lao Su Kan Fang'', and ''Yak Tham Kor Tob'' and ''Mai Kang Ying Pae'' from his album "Volume One". In the mid-nineties, he became the first Thai artist to receive an International MTV Award for his performance in '' Sunset at Chaophraya''. He was featured on CNN and in ''Variety'' magazine. An award-winning documentary of his life entitled ''Crossing Borders'', directed by Phanjanit Garnploog, can be seen at St. John's University in New York. In 2010, Bird made his first international tour in Los Angeles and the 50th Anniversary of Lincoln Center in New York. In late 2007, he released another album entitled " Simply Bird", which features songs such as Chuay Rap Tee and Mee Tae Kid Tueng.

Discography

Albums and singles

TV dramas

* Numtarn Maai (น้ำตาลไหม้) * Mongkut Fang (มงกุฏฟาง) * Tayaat khun pooying (ทายาทท่านผู้หญิง) * Ruk nai sai mok (รักในสายหมอก) * Muer ruk rao (เมื่อรักร้าว) * Kamin kup poon (ขมิ้นกับปูน) * Wong wean hua jai (วงเวียนหัวใจ) * Baan soi dao (บ้านสอยดาว) * Plub pleung see chompoo (พลับพลึงสีชมพู) * Duang fai yai mai song chan (ดวงไฟไยไม่ส่องฉัน) * Neu Nang (เนื้อนาง) * Khu Kam (คู่กรรม) as Kobori * Wan née tee ror koy (วันนี้ที่รอคอย) * Niramit (นิรมิต) * Kuam song jum mai hua jai duem (ความทรงจำใหม่ หัวใจเดิม) * Kol Kimono (กลกิโมโน)

Awards

Covers by other artists

In 2012, the popular Japanese girl group

Berryz Kobo was a Japanese girl group formed by Up-Front Promotion in 2004 and associated with Hello! Project. The group's members consisted of Hello! Project Kids members Saki Shimizu, Momoko Tsugunaga, Miyabi Natsuyaki, Chinami Tokunaga, Maasa Sudo, Y ...

released a song titled " Cha Cha Sing" as a single. The title track is a cover of the song "Row Mah Sing" by Bird Thongchai. The first coupling track "Loving You Too Much" is also a cover of a Bird Thongchai's song, "Too Much So Much Very Much". Both were translated into Japanese. The single debuted at number 6 on the Japanese

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in ...

weekly singles chart. In 2013, Japanese girl group

released a single titled "

Asian Celebration is Berryz Kobo's 31st single. It was released on March 13, 2013, in 5 editions: 1 regular and 4 limited editions. The titled track is the cheer song for a future ''Pretty Cure Allstars'' anime movie. The single ranked #8 in the weekly Oricon ch ...

". The coupling track of the Limited Edition B and Limited Edition D, "I like a Picnic" is a cover of a Bird Thongchai's song, "กอดกัน(Gaud-gun)". Koo Gud was covered in Chinese by Hong Kong Cantopop band Grasshopper as ''Club Broken Heart'' (Chinese: 失戀陣線聯盟), which became a smash hit throughout Asia. It's also covered in Vietnamese as ''Thất Tình'' by Vietnamese duo Minh Thuận and Nhật Hào.

Honours

Tongchai has received the following royal decorations in the

Honours System An order is a visible honour awarded by a sovereign state, monarch, dynastic house or organisation to a person, typically in recognition of individual merit, that often comes with distinctive insignia such as collars, medals, badges, and sashes ...

of Thailand: * Order of the White Elephant - 3rd Class (Thailand) ribbon

1991 – Commander (Third Class) of the Most Exalted

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่เชิดชูยิ่งช้างเผือก; ) is an order of Thailand. It wa ...

Order of the Direkgunabhorn (Thailand) ribbon

2005 – Silver Medalist (Seventh Class) of the Most Admirable

Order of the Direkgunabhorn __NOTOC__ The Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่สรรเสริญยิ่งดิเรกคุณาภรณ์; ) was establi ...

Red Cross Medal of Appreciation (Thailand) ribbon

2012 – First Class (Gold Medal) of Red Cross Medal of Appreciation

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McIntyre, Thongchai 1958 births Living people

Thongchai McIntyre Thongchai McIntyre ( th, ธงไชย แมคอินไตย์, ; born Albert Thongchai McIntyre; 8 December 1958) is a Thai singer and actor. He is also sometimes known as Bird Thongchai, Phi Bird ("elder brother Bird") or simply Bir ...