 | |
| Ms. Huoy Meas |
 |
| Karaoke actress Meas Somavatey is allegedly Ms. Huoy Meas' daughter |
Sunday, August 07, 2011
By P. from Long Beach
Every time I think about Huoy Meas, I couldn’t help but remembering watching her on a black and white TV set sometime in the 60s. I was not sure why, as a young child, I was so smitten with her, a woman who could easily be my mother. Come to think of it, maybe it was her voice with that sweet Battambang accent that always made swoon. You see, my father was also from Battambang, near the border with Thailand in what is now known as Banteay Meanchey province. In those days, when school was over, my father would send us to spend a few weeks with my Grandfather (in fact, my Great-Grand Uncle) there. Usually, in the morning, my grandfather would take me along with him to the pagoda. On the way, we sometime stoppped by the market to buy some boiled taro and then, we would rest by a shady tree nearby the road. There, he would pull out some granular sugar wrapped in a old sheet of newspaper that he brought with him from home and we would sit there to peel the taro skin, dipping it in the sugar and stuffing ourselves while gawking at the bustling hubbub in the market. It was most likely that idyllic image that I kept from my childhood in Battambang that made me so fond of Ms. Huoy Meas.
To those of you who are too young to know Ms. Huoy Meas, there’s a chance that you may have heard about Meas Somavatey, the karaoke actress in the 90s and early 2000s. I was told that Meas Somavatey is Ms. Huoy Meas daughter, although, I wouldn’t be able to tell that they are related to each other because it is seem to me that Somavatey does not look much like her mother at all.
Beside her singing career, Ms. Huoy Meas was also a very popular “soap” story (“Pheak Nitean”) actress broadcasted on radio in the late 60s and 70s. After 1970, she also worked as a DJ on Cambodia’s national radio.
I am not sure what happened to her after the KR took over Phnom Penh in 1975, until somebody posted the following snippet on the Camdisc bulletin board: “Bang Huoy Meas was with me in Khmer Rouge time in Battambang. She was taken away and never returned in the early 1977, the same year when the Yuon-trained Khmer Rouge tied my mother's arms and pulled her to the mass grave and beat her to death.” When asked where Ms. Huoy Meas was killed by the KR, the same author added: “Yes, I was in the Youth Mobile Team (Kang Yuveak-Jun Cha-latt) in Phum Chrey, Srok Maung Russey, Battambang after a long train-ride from the Eastern part of Cambodia. You're right, Bang Huoy Meas was taken to Wat Soriya. The last word she told me was that the Angkar Leu invited her to sing for the Radio. We didn't know the Khmer Rouge have mastered the skills of lying from somewhere. Hun Sen, Pen Sovan, Chea Sim, Nuon Chea, Heng Samrin, Khiev Samphan and some people here in Camdisc probably can tell us whom they've learned to trick, to cheat, and to lie from.”
The same author also provided a glimpse of Ms. Huoy Meas tempestuous marriage to Yel, a drummer in the national radio band: “When I was eleven, I biked to see my girl friend who lived next door to Pou ‘Chel or Yel’, the drummer for the ‘Vithiyuk-Jeat-Dantrey’, who was Bang Huoy Meas' husband. We saw them fight (verbally) over jealousy. A week later, Pou Yel wrote a song titled ‘Srey Ka-ngok Meas’ for Im Song Seum to sing. Bang Huoy Meas returned with ‘Chet Khos Pi Mun’ to Pou Yel. Im Song Seum sang another one for Pou Yel (I forgot the name of it), then, Bang Huoy Meas launched ‘Sam-Dei [Boross?]’, then, ‘Kaun Nouv Et Pa’ ... When Pou Yel got a new girl friend, a beautiful blond Khmer-mix Barang, selling flower at ‘Phsar Chass’, he cooled down.”
In dedication to the memory of Ms. Huoy Meas, please find below a few of her oldies song.
Until next time, fare well!
P from Long Beach
Huoy Meas - Neuk Heuy Neuk Tiet (Missing you over and over)
A word about “Neuk Heuy Neuk Tiet”: The original song (1962) was interpreted by French singer Johnny Haliday in the movie “Sophie” with Catherine Deneuve, a clip of which is shown below.
“Retiens la nuit” (Hold the night) by Johnny Haliday
Retiens la nuit … avec toi, elle parait si belle
(Hold the night … ‘cause with you, it’s so marvelous)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sl7yzLuK_g
Huoy Meas - Somdey Boross (Man's words)
Huoy Meas - Sneha Del Ke Boss Bang (Spurned love)
Huoy Meas - Meul Moat Tonle (Gazing at the river bank)
Huoy Meas - Komsan Srah Srang (Visiting Srah Srang in Siem Reap)
Huoy Meas - Chit Kramom (A damsel's feeling)
Huoy Meas - Chumrieng Reatrey (Song of the night)
Huoy Meas - Sa'ek Heuy Sa'ek Tiet (The morrow, again and again)
16 comments:
Dear Ta P-LB,
Your memory of these songs is well written. I think you should write your bio. when you were young in Cambodia. I love to read the story you had written and I am sure that many others would want to know your story as well. I am not sure if there anybody from your generation had written their bio, of course I saw a lot of gen-ex written their experiences from the KR. I want to know more about the Khmer life before 1975. I always heard from my father that he feel sorry for my generation because we don't know what it is like to have a happiness in one own country! My generation is only know war, refugee and living in a foreign countries. I am always wonder of what it is like to have a happiness in one own country!
Thanks ta P-LB for your sharing!
Love them. Thank you for sharing.
I am also a Huoy Meas's fan.I love to hear her voice all the time during midday soap opera.Her sweet voice is definitely irreplaceable.I think, she was married to Om Sophanourak, who was also an artist.When they got separated , Om Sophanourak did produce a song and he sank it by himself on national television.I still have the song until today but forgot the title.
Every time i remember about our past,one person that i despise the most is traitor sihanouk.
Dear Mr. P from Long Beach,
Once again, thank you so much for your story and the songs by Ms Huoy Meas. They have certainly brought me back to the 60s when I enjoyed my childhood in Phnom Penh very much. I really miss those days with my friends. Cambodia was back then quite unique and the souvenirs from that time are impossible to erase from the mind.
King Sihanouk could be given the credits for peaceful Cambodia and her development of the 60s, but he can also be held responsible for all the destruction upon Cambodia in all fields by the unimaginably idiotic and dangerously fanatical Khmer Rouge leadership through the reversal of his policy to support his former enemies at all cost to our beautiful Cambodia.
If I were Sihanouk, I would not even be able to show my face in public for my own conscience would have certainly killed me to even have my name mentioned again. Any way, enough with stupid Cambodian politics; things have not changed!
Huoy Meas is certainly irreplaceable when it comes to her speaking voice. Like you have mentioned beside her singing career, Ms. Huoy Meas was also a very popular “soap” story actress or narrator.
I am still in love with her beautiful voice. I have not yet found anyone that I would consider even close to her.
Once again, thank you for sharing the songs.
Anet Khmer
Dear Mr. P from Long Beach,
I was one of the million people who marched out of PP on 18 April 1975. No need to recall those tragedy days but just want to share that I saw Houy Meas on National R#5, near Wat Krous? about 15km from PP when KR took her away. She was wearing a sarong with her long sleeve shirt. There were full of poeple in the GMC millitary truck. I did not know why she was taking away but Since then I never hear any from her until today.
Ah Choy Maray ah si hanouk ,Ah choy maray Ah hun sen are fucking Youn's dogs .they kill my king sin si sa mouth ,and my best queen Huy meas ,Ros serey sothear..ect.
Tia Chieu Khmer
As I come to Ki often read some of good comments of our bloggers. I find Ta P-LB and Anet Khmer had made consistant comments and much reasonable relate to the subjects/topics. I found the elder generation are quite well thoughtout with their comment. I found this to be a strenght of our Cambodian community that are willing to come out and share! This is indeed a Cambodian human capital resources that are left out and uncultivate, as of which I found this to be wastful to our Khmer society if it is just keep to oneself!
I am very much hope that the elder generation are willing to come out and share their knowledge and resources (memory) about Cambodian country so that the younger generation can learn more about their motherland/fatherland.
Generation that don't know much.
Hi Everyone,
One of KI-Media member who has his name in Facebook as Khmer Sovannaphumi but his real name is Pang Sokheoun, former political asylum and now living in Sweden. He always copies news from here to post in his facebook profile to promote himself, but right now, he tries to removed and blocked anyone who dares to reveal his con activity particular he tries to hide what he has cheated his wife (Sreypov Chea) by having a girlfriend (Sokunthear Som) behind his wife back. Now, his girlfriend had ran way from him after she knew his cheating.
A con man Pang Sokhoeun as well as KI-Media like to insult to the government officers who have affairs, but himself does even worse than other people. What a shame!
12:43 PM,
Very good points you have raised indeed!
To avoid other people to expose more about Pang Sokhoeun's affair, he has agreed with my suggestion not allow other people outside to comment as before. From now, only friends in his list can comment in his wall.
12:54 pm,
Thanks, yes, I am strongly agreed that for the elder generation that had been well educated and very well knowledgeble about our Khmer society/history/culture need to share with the younger generation that don't know much. In fact I think it is a duty and responsibility of the elder generation to pass down of what they know so that they don't have to reinvent the wheel of knowledge again. If each and everyone of the elder one are willing just to write and share a page of their knowledge of khmer culture/soceity/history....I can't imagine of how many pages of the knowledge that the elder generation that able to put out. And how the don't know much can generation can learn!
My father had always talk throughout dinner for the 13 yrs. I had to listen to the samething over and over again. I remember, I ate my dinner as fast as I could, so that I don't have to listen to him. And my father always complain that we don't want listen to him. But as I go through my life, I always recall of what my father said during those many dinner that I hat. Now I come to appreciate of what he taught use through those unbearable dinner.
To all elder out there, never under estimate how much the knowledge that you put out have an impact on indivitual Koun Khmer. Even just one Koun Khmer would read of what you put out --- you have done your job. And you never know of what that one Koun Khmer will do with that knowledge to help motherland/fatherland!
So 12:43 pm, I hope you will contribute!
Regards
អំពី អ្នកស្រី ហួយ មាស ៖
នៅឆ្នាំ១៩៧៦ឬ៧៧ នៅភូមិព្រែកក្រូច តំបន់៤ ខេត្តបាត់ដំបង ពួកអាមេខ្មែរក្រហមតូចតាច ជាអ្នក ចូលចិត្តលេងភ្លេង វាបានយកកាស់សែត ចម្រៀង មួយមកកន្លែងរោងបាយមុខវត្តព្រែក ក្រូច ហើយវានិយាយថា មានអ្នកណាចង់ស្តាប់ សម្លេងចម្រៀង ហួយ មាស ដែរឬទេ រួចវាក៏ចាក់ឱ្យស្តាប់។ ខ្ញុំធ្វើជាមិនយកចិត្តទុកដាក់ តែខំផ្ទៀងស្តាប់ តើជាសម្លេងគាត់មែនឬទេ។ គឺជាសម្លេងដែលគេបង្ខំឱ្យគាត់ច្រៀងបទអង្គការ គ្មានភ្លេងទេ គឺច្រៀងគោក ស្តាប់ទៅឮសម្លេង ស្ងួតក្រៀមក្រោះអស់សង្ឃឹមគួរឱ្យសង្វេកខ្លាំង ណាស់ គឺគេបង្ខំឱ្យគាត់ច្រៀងមុនយកទៅសម្លាប់!
How many daughters did Huy Meas have? I asked this question because I heard that about 15 years ago one
Huy Meas's daughter got married and went with her husband to either France or Swetzerland, and she did not look like the girl in the picture.
Her daughter lived in LONG Beach.Her name is Um Somvatey.
KR killed her period.
Neang Um Somavatey's Huoy Meas Daughter was student classic dance of Fines-Arts School,(Sala Rachana . Phnom Penh)during 1980.....?
S.V
Post a Comment