CARAVAN – American Antarai. Strawberry Rain SR 006-CD. FACTORY SEALED NEW CD. Originally issued 1976. This edition issued in 2012. Limited edition of 1000 copies and comes in a gatefold mini-jacket, includes an insert booklet; point of sale sticker on the front of the shrink wrap states this is a hand numbered edition of 1000 copies, the number is listed on the inside. As this comes sealed I can’t supply the number of this copy. TRACKS: American Antarai, Letter From Farmer, Tens Deaths Growing Up Hundred Thousand, Come Together, Common Please, Up Raising, Mr. Kum, Lam Plern Jarern Jai, Serng E-Sah, and Khula. DESCRIPTION: American Antatarai is an album of protest songs by Thai music group Caravan against US military actions in the seventies. In May of 1976, an incident involving the American container ship SS Mayaguez prompted US forces, including 1,000 Marine Corps, to use the U-Tapao airbase in Thailand as a base for a rescue mission against the Cambodian Government’s (Khemer Rouge) forces. This was done without the permission of the Thai Government which said the act was a violation of Thai Soveignty and sparked fierce protests outside the US Embassy. Gerald Ford, the then current US president (remember, he replaced Nixon), only issued a very short ‘apology’ which acted as the catalyst for Caravan to join the public protest. Caravan wrote political songs against the US and used them in a mass protest in March 1976. The band members all came back to work together amid the heated political atmosphere and protests to drive out the American militia, during which there were many bombings, shootings, fatalities and much blood-shed. The American Antarai album was ready for release before the mass public protest to demand that the Kukrit Pramoj Government’s promise of calling for the withdrawal of all US forces from Thailand by 20th March 1976 be honored. You may not understand the language (let alone comprehend the lyric’s meaning), but the mood and purpose make it clear that there is a message to be heard in this music. Sadly, the government declared martial law later in 1976 which resulted in the band having to flee their homeland which they fought so hard to protect.
For your further reading enjoyment and enlightenment I provide the following, as written by Michael Klausman (February 13, 2013), which I included for the listing of their 1975 debut album, Man and Buffalo:
Caravan were a 1970s Thai folk group comprised of students who helped lead the opposition to their homeland's then corrupt and brutal military dictatorship, who for a brief time at least, beginning in 1973, managed to depose the dictatorship's leader, Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn. Between then and late 1976, when Kittikachorn returned to power in a military coup and declared martial law, and in the process massacred one hundred students and imprisoned several thousand more, the group had coalesced around four activist musicians influenced equally by the Western protest music of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, as well as the songs and musical heritage of Thailand's peasant working class. Touring widely across the countryside and often appearing at political rallies, they wrote and performed songs with a deep political conscience sympathetic to the poverty of peasants, and which continued to courageously confront the corruptness of the lingering regime, in addition to American imperialism. Kon Gap Kwai (Man & Buffalo), recorded in 1975, was the group's debut, and it brilliantly melds Western folk music forms and melodies with indigenous Thai instruments like the phin, saw, and wut. Primarily acoustic, with intertwining layers of acoustic guitars and dirge-like percussive rhythms, the combination proved hugely influential and established the band as the leaders of the Songs for Life movement, with its opening and most famous track having been written by a poet and a militant farmer and which supplied the protest generation's anthem. It's a beguiling, richly shaded listen of plaintive anthems whose purpose and conviction seems clear to whomever the listener (even sung in the native tongue). In 1976, upon installation of martial law, the junta declared these tunes and anyone singing them illegal and the band was forced to flee to Laos where they lived in exile for several years, while their songs nevertheless lived on clandestinely in the prison camps and farmer's field thereafter.
THIS ITEM IS NEW AND UNPLAYED. Used items will include condition details for inserts, disc, and jewel case/digi-pak/mini-jacket.
NOTE TO POTENTIAL BUYERS: If the tray card, bar code, jewel case, insert, or digi-pak is punched, marked, or cut in any manner, denoting a promotional/review copy, I will state that as part of the item description. Also if an issue is a "music club" edition, that will be noted in the item description. (The below information last updated 10/08/22)
If you have any questions or if you have additional information, especially corrections, to the description, please e-mail me. I particularly enjoy when an artist, band member, or someone who has personal background knowledge of a particular album/artist and offers their insight/information of that recording, which I will include with the description for future listings of that release. As a collector of many years, part of the hobby side for me is to learn about the background of the artists and music that I collect. Hopefully, sharing some of this information in my descriptions will help educate and enhance your listening experience.
PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER CURRENTLY LISTED ITEMS AND EBAY STORE.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
All CDs come sealed in standard jewel cases and are US releases unless noted otherwise. Mini-Jackets, digi-paks, and variable packaging will also be noted. Any item that does not come sealed or include an outer sleeve will be placed inside of an outer sleeve at the time it is received by me. All items that do not come in an outer packaging wrap are inspected by me prior to shipping. It is not unusual to find small/tiny imperfections on the play side of the CD disc, especially on European manufactured CDs; these small imperfections do no affect the playback of the disc. Also an unsealed jewel case may show light signs of warehouse/transit storage wear on the outer surface of the jewel case. If an unsealed jewel case is received by me broken, it will be replaced with a new jewel case before shipping; sealed CDs received with minor cracked/damaged jewel cases will be noted as such in the item’s description and will be shipped as is.
ABBREVIATIONS:
SS or SLD: Still Sealed or Sealed. Short abbreviation that will appear in the title line of my listings. This item is new and unplayed. Also appears in the listing description as Sealed CD or Factory Sealed CD.
NEW CD: This item is new and unplayed, but was received from a supplier without being shrink wrapped or cellophane wrapped; more common on imports but also many of the smaller independent US labels do not seal their CDs; some have it both ways (for which I have no prior knowledge of or choice when placing my orders). Other companies use resealable clear outer sleeves which are used on some import and domestic releases. If I receive an item this way it will be shipped as I received it and not opened up. Items received unwrapped are placed inside of a resealable clear outer mylar sleeve at the time they are received.
GFC or GF: Gate fold cover, refers to a style of mini-jacket CDs.
S/T: Self-Titled
2/1: This denotes that 2 albums are on 1 single CD.
REMAST: Remastered. More specific sourcing will follow within the item’s description when available.
OOP: Out Of Print.
MIX: This sometimes appears in my title line and refers to a group's/artist's music having a mix of styles such a rock track with jazz then followed by a straight rock track followed by a psych rock track, etc., as opposed to a blues album with the album's tracks having predominantly one style.
XT, XTKS, or #XTKS: Usually in lower case type as part of the title line, denotes bonus tracks on this release (extra track, extra tracks, or the number of extra tracks).
ULC, LRC, etc.: Upper Left Corner, Lower Right Corner, etc. used in referencing the area of a defect or blemish to the jewel case or packaging.
MULTIPLE ITEM PURCHASERS:
My automatically generated invoices do not apply discounted shipping for multiple items purchased. I recommend that you request an invoice for the discounted shipping amount to make your payment. If you make your purchase and pay the full shipping charges for each item I will issue the shipping discount refund once your package has been posted. If you are outside the US you can e-mail me prior to your purchase for a shipping total, include the specific titles you are interested in purchasing. US customers whose purchases include CD(s) along with LP(s) will be shipped via media mail in a single package. Purchases of 4 or more CDs exceeding the first class weight limit of 1lb. and box-sets will ship via media mail. Please e-mail me with any questions you may have.
TERMS OF AUCTION/SALE:
Buyer pays for POSTAGE & HANDLING:
US and INTERNATIONAL shipping rates are as of October 2022. Any subsequent increase in shipping costs will take precedence over the below rates.
U.S. Shipping:
$3.90 via USPS media mail for the first single or double CD set
$4.95 via USPS first class mail for the first single or double CD set.
$1.25 for each additional single CD set and/or
$1.50 for each additional double CD set.
All US packages are processed for shipping via eBay and include a tracking number. Check your purchases folder to monitor your tracking number.
Items are shipped in professional corrugated mailers. If there are any other needs of your purchase please e-mail me before you make your payment and I will do my best to accommodate them; an additional charge may apply.
INTERNATIONAL Shipping:
I ship worldwide. All packages are shipped using eBay Standard International Delivery service except for Canada for which I ship via USPS First Class Package International Service. Multiple item purchases of 4 pounds or more must ship USPS Priority Package International Service. Both above methods include tracking which may be monitored via your purchases folder.
Single CD Shipping Rate as of October 2022; any subsequent rate increase takes precedent over the below prices.
Canada: $14.50
Europe: $17.00
Asia, Japan, Australia, New Zealand: $19.00
Mexico, Central and South America: $20.00
NOTE: Multiple item shipping charges will be determined by weight at the current rate.
I have been shipping records and CDs around the world for over 35 years, so purchase with confidence. Items are shipped in professional corrugated mailers with additional inside packing layer. If you have any questions please e-mail me. If there are any other needs of your purchase please e-mail me prior to making your payment and I will do my best to accommodate them; an additional charge may apply.
*ALL CUSTOMERS*
HANDLING TIME:
Packages are usually shipped with in 24-hours, excepting weekends and holidays.
RETURN POLICY:
Please e-mail me with specific details and I will get back to you with your options. I ask that if there is a problem with the item that you contact me as soon as possible after receiving it. You can initiate a return request and print out a prepaid mailing label for your return through your eBay Purchases folder. Any refund, exchange, or substitution/credit will be at the buyer’s choice.
NON-ARRIVAL OF PACKAGES AND OTHER ISSUES:
US Customers: Please wait at least two weeks from the confirmed shipping date before contacting me about the non-arrival of your package. All packages are shipped with confirmation/tracking via eBay’s shipping program with the USPS.
INTERNATIONAL Customers: Please wait at least 3 weeks from the confirmed shipping date before contacting me about the non-arrival of your package. Packages these days can take up to 8-weeks for delivery.
ALL CUSTOMERS: If there is a problem with your purchase please e-mail me first with details before filing a resolution.