THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,398) Fourmyula — “Nature”
WARNING — If you are a New Zealander, read no further regarding this “now-iconic” (New Zealand Music Hall of Fame, https://www.musichall.co.nz/portfolio/the-fourmyula/) song which “can’t be topped for sheer atmosphere, and harmonious amalgamation of lyric and melody” (Graham Reid, https://timberjackdonoghue.com/157435146/157435161), as it reached #1 in New Zealand and “has been voted the best New Zealand song ever written”! (Graham Reid, https://timberjackdonoghue.com/157435146/157435161) “Nature” is Fourmyula’s (see #977) “masterstroke” (Richard Thorne, https://web.archive.org/web/20141030010334/http://www.nzmusician.co.nz/index.php/ps_pagename/article/pi_articleid/1895), “superb” (Jack Rabid, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-very-best-of-fourmyula-mw0001302169) “folk-tinged” pop rock “with [a] uniquely gleeful sing-along chorus.” (NZ History (adapted from an article by Redmer Yska in North and South, June 1995), https://nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/wayne-mason-and-the-song-nature/) “Doo-doo-doo doo doo-doo doo doo, doo-doo-doo-doo-doo doo Dee-dee-dee-dee dee dee-dee dee-dee-dee-dee”
“This song is amazing!! I was listening to it stoned when i first heard it and could not believe how amazing this band was. Now that im sober it sounds even better!!” (eektherigo, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlhBkM0zNV4) You can’t get a higher endorsement than that!
NZ History (Adapted from an article by Redmer Yska in North and South, June 1995) tells us that:
In 2001, to celebrate 75 years of its existence, the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) invited its members and an academy to vote for what they believed to be New Zealand’s top songs of all time. The clear winner from 900 entries was “Nature” by [the Fourmyula’s] Wayne Mason. It reached number one on the charts in January 1970 and became a hit again in 1992 when it was recorded by New Zealand band the Mutton Birds. . . . Mason’s band, the Fourmyula, which was from Upper Hutt, had already established itself as the most creative and energetic local band of its day. The band recorded a string of original compositions that changed the face of local pop. . . . In November 1969 they recorded a new album, Creation, which included [“Nature”]. For the song, the band chose autoharp and soft percussive effects rather than a full drum kit. “We decided to use a wooden organ lid as the kick drum, the sole of a leather shoe as the hi-hat and a full box of matches for the snare drum. People were laughing deliriously in the control room as we took off our shoes and beat them with a stick, trying to find the right sound,” Mason recalled. Producer Peter Dawkins played back the track and knew it would be the band’s next single. Mason was shocked. He didn’t think it was a commercial number at all. Dawkins was adamant, even though Mason believed the single would flop. A month later, while touring England, the Fourmyula learned that the song had reached number one on the New Zealand charts, with sales of around 17,000. “Nature” earned Mason the APRA Silver Scroll in 1970 . . . . Somewhat ironically the Fourmyula never played ‘Nature’ live. Mason argued that local audiences weren’t ready for local bands performing original material, but the amplification equipment also made it nearly impossible for live bands to use acoustic instruments on stage. . . . Mason’s song echoed the psychedelic, pastoral imagery of the times . . . but the Fourmyula never identified with the so-called counter-culture. “We were just a bunch of well-adjusted teenagers in love. I wrote ‘Nature’ in an hour on the front porch of my mum’s house, looking out on a beautiful day with trees and stuff. Bees were buzzing and my heart was fluttering,” Mason recalled. It was “a nice, happy song which I wrote as a 19-year-old. I do sort of cringe a bit at the words.[“]
https://nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/wayne-mason-and-the-song-nature/
As to Fourmyula, Jason Ankeny writes:
The success of Fourmyula marked a major turning point in the development of New Zealand rock: to an industry long dependent on cover versions of international hits, this Hutt Valley-based quintet offered proof positive that native talent could reach the national charts on the strength of their own original material. Fourmyula evolved in early 1967 from the ranks of the Insect, a fixture of area high school dances and other social gatherings . . . . [T]heir popularity soared after they took home top honors in a “National Battle of the Sounds” competition, although the consensus was that they needed a stronger lead vocalist. Toward that aim, singer Carl Evensen was recruited . . . with [Martin] Hope now focusing solely on guitar duties. After buying an instructional book on songwriting, Mason and [Ali] Richardson penned Fourmyula’s first original composition, “Come with Me” [see #977] . . . . [O]vernight, Fourmyula became superstars, and Mason and Richardson quickly wrote a dozen new songs for release as their self-titled 1968 LP debut. Demand for the group was so high that HMV even issued two new singles, “Alice Is There” and “I Know Why,” simultaneously; both rocketed into the Top Ten, and after quickly recording a sophomore album, Green B. Holiday, the band toured Britain . . . . Fourmyula spent four months overseas, catching live appearances from groups including Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Spooky Tooth; acknowledging that their mod aesthetic was out of touch with emerging trends, they grew their hair out and adopted a heavier, louder sound which they intended to introduce upon returning home. New Zealand audiences were baffled . . . however, and after just one disastrous gig, they returned to their trademark four-part harmonies and softly psychedelic pop. Their third LP, Creation, appeared in late 1969, followed by the chart-topping single “Nature”; Mason was now the group’s sole songwriter, and as the band returned to Europe to tour, his material again adopted a heavier approach. To avoid conflict with a similarly named group, Fourmyula rechristened themselves Pipp; after scoring a minor hit with the 1970 single “Otaki,” their fortunes dwindled, and by the following year, they were no more.
Deutros adds:
On February 8, 1969, the Fourmyula sailed to England on the Fairsky. Once there, they were soon faced with the realities of international rock’n’roll. With very little work available for them, they spent a lot of time watching some of the major acts that were performing at the time. They did get a few poor-paying gigs, and after a lot of pestering to Decca, they had a recording session at Abbey Road. The result was a cover of Hans Poulsen’s “Lady Scorpio” and it was released in New Zealand in August and reached number 7 on the charts. . . . While they were in England they realised there was new music around and that they were out of touch with current trends. They stayed in England for four months and returned to New Zealand with the best musical equipment available, their hair longer, their music louder and themselves a lot wiser. [At t]heir first gig back in New Zealand . . . the crowd was in for a big surprise. This was a totally different band to the one that left New Zealand six months earlier. Their clothes were different, they looked different, but when they plugged into their massive stack of equipment, heads jerked back as they opened with a version of Led Zeppelin’s “Good Times, Bad Times”. What followed was a set of covers from what they had heard in England and by the time they had finished, the audience just stood in total disbelief and silence. It wasn’t what the audience wanted and bowing to their pressure they had to revert to the style they had become famous for. . . . The Fourmyula spent most of October and November touring the country, trying to earn as much income as they could, so that they could return to England and have a decent go at making it big on the international circuit. They left in December . . . . [I]n the first few weeks of January 1970 [“Nature”] reached number 1 on the national charts. . . . Their third album [Creation] they had recorded before departure was also released. . . . When the boys received the news of the success of their single in New Zealand, they didn’t really care as that part of their life was behind them, as was the style of music that “Nature” represented. They were now free from audience demand and could concentrate their efforts on a more aggressive sound. . . . “Make Me Happy” . . . struggled on the charts, only making it to number 19. . . . Throughout 1970, Fourmyula performed extensively around Britain and Europe . . . . Their sound became heavier, but with Mason’s melodic touches, they could not be branded heavy metal. In mid-1970, Decca took a gamble and allowed the group to record an album. Out of those sessions came a track called “Otaki”. It was released in August 1970 . . . . [T]heir heaviest single[, it] made it to number 15. That was the last time the Fourmyula made it onto the New Zealand charts. Two more singles . . . were released and both failed miserably. . . . [“Otaki”] received no airplay and sold very few copies [in the UK]. Decca’s interest in the band waned and they kept postponing the release of the album, eventually advising the group that it would not be released at all. At that point enthusiasm in the band died. Wayne Mason was the first to leave. . . . The group continued as Pipp for a little while, but without success they slowly disbanded.
Here are the Mutton Birds:
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