Remembering The Best Years

The Netherworld Dancing Toys were New Zealand idols but they didn't get a single vote. Taranaki lad Nick Sampson wrote a hit song and the Toys took off. This was in the 1980s and the song was so good you still hear it on radio stations today.

The Netherworld Dancing Toys

For Today was Single of the Year and Song of the Year in 1986. The Netherworld Dancing Toys was Band of the Year and their album Painted Years won Album of the Year. This week two stories tell you about the band and their songs.

Rewind to the 1980s

True or false?

1. What's in? Multi coloured tube socks, Doc Martins with fat neon laces, sweat bands, feathered earrings, and chain belts.

2. Teenage Mutant Turtles are muscling in on the once popular Cabbage Patch Dolls and Packman.

3. CDs outsell vinyl records for the first time.

4. Teachers blame text messaging for poor spelling.

5. Primary school children can be strapped and secondary students can be caned.

Follow the fashion

The 80s had some top fashion items. Choose from the list below and draw a self portrait in 80s gear.

Ug boots, scrunch socks ( big bright baggy socks), Egyptian sandals laced to the knee, boiler suits, denim jackets with the sleeves rolled up, Hawaiian shirts, legwarmers, rolled up ripped at the knee stone washed jeans, brightly coloured bike shorts, long metal earrings, brightly coloured mirrored sunglasses, Mohawk hairstyles, overalls with shoulder straps, Princess Di hairstyles, mullet hairstyles (short on top and long at the back),headbands, press on long nails, T shirts tied on one side, a bandana worn around the knee, multi-coloured bangles worn halfway up the arm, sweater dresses, British flag.

 T shirts, Mickey/Minnie Mouse sweatshirts, fingerless gloves, a comb in the back pocket.

Talk the talk

Pair up with a classmate and each draw a speech bubble for your self portraits. Use some of the 80s phrases below and your own words to make up a conversation. Print it inside the speech bubbles and display the two characters so they are talking to each other.

"As if!" "Awesome!" "Bogus" (not good) "Chill" "Dude" (someone who is cool) "Dweeb" someone who is not cool) "Gross me out" "Heinous" (not good), stoked (very exited) "way cool" (very cool).

Read on!

This week we link two stories. The first tells of the band and the second their songs.

Click here for the Netherworld Dancing Toys and read the first two parts of the story down to "Alleyways lead to The Clean".

Read on

Nick talks about the "commonsense bell". Decide which of the following would ring this bell for Nick. Decide which ones would ring it for Nick's parents. Compare your ideas with a classmate's.

1. Leave school and run away with a rock and roll band.

2. Leave school and go to university.

3. Form a band in a university town, study and play all at the same time.

4. Give up study to become a better band.

5. Play other band's songs and write some of your own.

6. Write all your own songs and only play them.

7. Have a four piece band with drums and electric guitars.

8. Have a big band mixing electric guitars and drums, with trombones trumpets and saxophones.

Design a gig poster

The next three parts of the story tell how the band was formed and how they launched themselves. A good launch is important. It can mean instant success!

Design the gig poster for "The Netherworld Dancing Toys Consummation Party". As well as essential details like date, time, venue, and costs you need the name of the band and something to draw people in. Don't write too many words. These posters might have to be displayed outside and gig goers won't want to stand in the cold reading too much.

What a party!

Go to the story and read "Debut a tremendous shambles" to see how the first gig went and why so many people turned up for the second.

Smart lads

"Up the charts with Flying Nun," tells how the "Toys" were discovered by a record company while "Such nice boys" looks at this band's image. Image is important for a band. Read these two parts of the story and then write speech or thought bubbles to match each of the band members in the photo above. They should be saying or thinking something about their next record or the importance of the band's image.

Switch stories

Read the next two parts of the story but stop when you get to "Kinsley discovers 3D music". Now you know the band, find out about the songs by clicking on this story.

Word wise?

The words below are all in this second story. Choose (a) or (b) to show the best meaning and then check your answers when you read on.

1. classic (a)sophisticated or (b) worthwhile and long lasting

2. sundries (a) a mixture of items or (b) unusual items

3. rehearsal (a) practice session or (b) workout

4. industrial (a) smoggy or (b) factory-like

5. abuzz (a) bustling or (b) tired

6. flourish (a) do well or (b) dry tasting

7. components (a) innards or (b) bits and pieces

8. undulating (a) rising and falling or (b) rippling

9. core (a) the main part (b) the centre

10. condescending (a) friendly and helpful or (b) snooty and smart

I remember your smile

This song was a huge hit for the Netherworld Dancing Toys. Read on through to "Love my denim jacket" and find out where the song began.

What if the words to I Remember Your Smile were made into a rap? Have a go in pairs and then perform your version to the class. Listen to the original version if you get the chance. It's a great song.

Song for the hard hats

The next song in this story tells a bit of Taranaki history. Read about the big loads that came to town and the denim jacketed army that worked on them. Read through to, "In a sleepy little town."

Big brass instruments like trombones, trumpets and saxophones combined with electric guitars and drums to give the Netherworld Dancing Toys a unique sound. The story gives you some idea where they were used in the song This Town. Print out the song and show where you would use them.

Use different colours for the different instruments and make up some symbols to show how they could be used. A wavy line for example could be wailing of the siren.

In a sleepy little town

Finish the story now and then pair up with a classmate to decide what Nick the songwriter is saying in these lines from the song Everyone In This Place Is Sleeping.

Dreams are hung out to dry on payment days.

And DB temples shine in glazing eyes.

No one seems to want to open up their eyes.

Want more?

Click here if you want to find out what happened to the Netherworld Dancing toys.

Find the part you read up to and then finish the story.

Fast forward to 2004

What if the New Zealand Idol contestants had to sing an original song for part of the competition and you were the songwriter? Be like Nick Sampson and get your inspiration from the Waitara freezing works. Read the true story below and give it a go.

ANZCO Foods wants to turn the old Waitara freezing works into a factory making beef patties, salamis and sausages. They plan to spend $20 million on building their complex and say it will create 70 new jobs by the end of this year.

This is good news for Waitara but Afco, the former owners of the freezing works don't want a meat company opening where they used to be. They say they have a legal agreement with the person that bought the old works and meat can't be processed there for 20 years.

Afco probably wants to stop the competition but if a court decides their agreement is legal, Waitara people will miss out on a lot of good jobs. It's enough to write a protest song about!