Okay I heard Hangin' Tough this morning and it prompted me to think of other new kids songs. This one is probablly my favorite although other than I'll Be Loving You Forever I cannot even think of one of their songs.
Can anyone help me out here?
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
How about "The Right Stuff" and "Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time?"
Posted by Ali_with_an_i (Member # 27) on :
Their remake of "Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time" was awesome. I also liked this slow song that Donnie sang but I can't remember what it's called. Maybe I will think of it later.
Posted by logan5 (Member # 1467) on :
"This one's for the children", "I'll be loving you forever", "Tonight", "Step by step", "Please don't go girl", "If you go away".
Jabeen, it sounds like you preferred the love songs... ahhh!
Personally, I thought they were dire, a real low point in music. Though if I was forced to choose a song... I'd say that "Covergirl" had the most 'pop' appeal.
Posted by Rainbowbrite22 (Member # 2288) on :
omg i have the new kids on the block greatest hits cd i love tonight, step by step. the right stuff. and cover girl Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I have to admit, I wasn't digging their boy band sound back in the late 80's and early 90's. I guess I was too much into alternative rock or whatever. Never thought they would be a group that others would emulate in the 90's. If I had to pick a song I remotely like it would be Tonight, because they were trying to change their sound and make it sound kind of Beatlesque.
Posted by logan5 (Member # 1467) on :
Oh, Jabeen. I wasn't judging you for liking the love songs, I like love songs myself. Besides, it's all part of being a girl and growing up, I can understand that.
Over here in the UK though, the New Kids got big about a year after they did in the States. So the record company just crammed all of their previous releases together with their new stuff. In one year we had eight different hit singles, and four different hit albums. If you didn't happen to like them, that onslaught just made you sick to death of them.
Also, they were the beginning of the bad-boy-hip-hop attitude in pop. Suddenly, Girls were screaming at boys who honestly didn't seem to like their fans. Speaking specifically about Donnie, he started out with a smile, and ended up as some kind of ghetto-gangsta wannabe. To me, that just didn't work.
As for 'dire'. The reason I say they were a low point in music, is because they were manufactured in every sense. They didn't write (a couple of token credits on later albums), and they certainly didn't play. Joey himself admitted that they didn't always sing live, they mimed, and if the tape broke, they just went out and got another one from a store. The record companies had tried throughout the 80's to achieve what they did in earlier decades - puppet artists, the modern (at the time) equivalent of the Partridge Family. They did it with the New Kids. It was a successful marketing formula, and they stuck with it for years: an assortment of different 'styles' of boy, fronting someone else's songs.
As for their songs, sure, some were fairly catchy and enjoyable, and sugar-pop has it's place. But the band's career exactly mirrored their worth as artists - a big explosion, and then they fizzled out very quickly. They didn't stop selling because they weren't good looking anymore, they stopped selling becasue they weren't good, period. Nostalgia won't change what the New Kids were: a marketing ploy to carry teenage girls through puberty, whilst making as much cash as possible. Remember, the record company didn't just dump the New Kids, the fan's dumped them first.
Not that they were complaining. They made $800 million dollars in one year, didn't they?! Posted by ISIS (Member # 1780) on :
My favorite song was "Covergirl".
There is a song they did towards the end, it might have even be in 1990...it was almost like a rap song, and they used the name NKOTB...and I remember the video was kind of in a club or something...I remember liking it, but that it wasn't around long, and I don't even remember the name of it...does anyone know what I am talking about?
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
All throughout second and third grades, their trading card series was a popular sharing item among my female classmates during recess. Thus, when I would occasionally borrow one or two, I became aware of all sorts of arcane New Kid trvia that few people would find any use for, such as what their favorite foods are, what they hope to do after they crested, who's the tallest one, and the like.
They weren't too keen on their Saturday morning cartoon series, I recall (I think the producers made it solely to combat MC Hammer's cartoon). I think it was Joey complained about California voice actors trying horribly to imitate Bostonian accents (and honestly, it didn't floor me either; I frequently prayed for the clock to speed up to 11 and bring on the Looney Tunes often).
Posted by ISIS (Member # 1780) on :
Thanks Jabeen!
Now...I will be on a search for it...cause I remember I liked it. Does anyone else remember it, and did you like it too??
Jabeen...don't throw stuff away...not sentimental stuff like that. Lately I have been thinking alot about the stuff that people hang on to, and what their reason is for what they don't seem to be able to part with.
I think certain things should be kept...I have spent a fortune on Ebay trying to get back stuff that I miss, I am sure my toys I had...I plain wore them out playing with them, but I saved all my record albums, and every once and awhile I will play them. Right now I actually have a bid on a 45 record holder. I want to get several of them to organize all my 45 records that I have in a box, so they don't get broken, cause I never plan on ever giving them up now.
Posted by cindymancini (Member # 679) on :
Okay, if anybody should post on this topic, I suppose it should be me. I have to give you credit Jessie for bringing this one up. To answer your question, my favorite NKOTB songs were "If You Go Away," "Call It What You Want" (which might be the song Isis is looking for), "Mrs. Right," "Baby I Believe In You," and "Favorite Girl" (as poppy as it was).
Jabeen, I had no idea that you were a big fan. When I saw your choices for songs, I couldn't help but smile. I listened to those songs over and over. "Let's Try It Again" and "Where Do I Go From Here" bring back so many good memories. You were right, it was a huge part of my life back then too.
I saw the guys perform live so many times and I'll tell you what, during their heyday, their concerts were unbelievable. They had the audience in the palm of their hands. I never saw girls react the way they did. The excitement level was insane. I've been to countless concerts and nothing before or since has ever come close in that department. It was truly like getting on a ride and having the best time you could possibly imagine.
Were the guys "put together"? To some degree yes, but four of the five members were friends prior to the group. Joe was the only one recruited so to speak. Maurice Starr had the background and cash to get them off the ground. Were the songs great? Not really. There were a few glimmering moments here and there but it was how hard they worked that impressed me.
I saw it personally. These guys exhausted themseleves for 4+ years and dealt with the craziest of crazies. They did show after show, interview after interview, charity function after function. They lived in a bubble. It was impossible for them to have any time alone. I actually felt bad for them because having money is great but not being able to go out and be normal and enjoy it is no fun.
In terms of talent, Jordan had/has an amazing voice, especially when he sings falsetto. He could give Prince a run for his money. Donnie was a great vocalist as well, but his true abilities were in producing. Listen to Marky's "Good Vibrations" today and you'll see what I mean. It's still a great song that makes you want to dance. Joe had a stage presence that was very theatrical in nature. It's no wonder that he did so well on Broadway last year during his run in Wicked. Danny was a good dancer and had a decent amount of involvement in their production. Finally, Jon brought a sense of humility to the band when things were at an all time hype.
As much as people want to make fun or discount them, they were undoubtedly instrumental in setting the stage for Backstreet Boys, N'Sync and all the other pop artists that exploded in the late 90's. Guys like Justin Timberlake should be praising NKOTB. While it is certainly an era that has long passed, it is nice to revist it once and awhile and remember the thrill of it all.
[ 30. September 2005, 21:30: Message edited by: cindymancini ]
Posted by Stitch (Member # 2895) on :
At the time, "Tonight" was definately my favorite. I still love it, but given the filter of time, I would say that "Step by Step" is their best song. It definately stands up to the test of time. I heard it at work the other day and it sounds like it could still be released today. The only part I would change is having Danny sing a line - "We can have lots of fun" - He was the Posh of NKOTB, in that he was there to make up the numbers rather than for his singing abilities.
Posted by Stitch (Member # 2895) on :
Oh, and "Dirty Dawg" from a few years later too.
Posted by Devolution (Member # 1731) on :
Devolution here,
"Have a funky funky Christmas" man, the new kids were mostly dreadful.
We are DEVO
Posted by logan5 (Member # 1467) on :
Maybe "put together" was the wrong thing to say. But they were certainly puppets. They've recently admitted pretty much everything people had accused them of at the time in terms of their manipulation. Like the endless touring; they all wanted to take breaks, but Maurice Starr wouldn't let them (which is part of the reason they left him).
They were just one of those bands where, if you didn't happen to find them attractive, there wasn't that much reason in being a fan. Jordan did have a good falsetto though.
As for setting the stage for the Backstreet Boys and N'Synch... well, let's just say that it wasn't necessarily a good thing, was it? Like I said, the record company had found the formula, and they used it...
On a side note; the Beatles are actually one of the only bands to start with a 'teeny' following and never lose popularity (in the band's active career). Maybe it was because of the social changes that happened while they were making music, maybe it was because they were the first real 'sensation' of a band, but they went out as big as they started... only with much much longer hair. Posted by Ali_with_an_i (Member # 27) on :
New Edition and The Jackson Five all helped to pave the way for boy groups (I will not call them bands cuz they dont play their own music). I dont think boy groups are a bad thing. I personaly dont like them, but they help make the music I do like sound better. Besides, some people just like a good poppy song to listen to and and thats a place they can find it.
Also, groups like NKOTB are better for younger kids to listen to. I mean some of the rock and hip-hop songs today are to filthy. I would not want my child listening to that.
Anyway, boy groups were always marketing themselves towards the younger crowd, not us cooler older and wiser people; so we have nothing to worry about. We're not supposed to like their music!
Posted by cindymancini (Member # 679) on :
logan, I'm not sure what you meant either about them admitting to accusations. All I've ever heard them say about their past is that yes, it was exhausting, they wanted more control over their creativity with Maurice and that they are not ashamed of that era by any means. I've heard them say they're grateful for having had the chance to see the world and perform and that overall, they had as much fun as the fans did! Jordan and Joe especially embrace it. They still do shows here and there as solo artists and they're cool with doing a few New Kids songs just for old times sake.
Posted by logan5 (Member # 1467) on :
Oh no, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying the New Kids are ashamed. The ones I've seen in interviews (which are Jordan and Joe) seem like pretty nice people, and they do say they had a blast and wouldn't change it. I just mean that at the time they were accused of being Maurice Starr's puppets, and not being responsible for the music they made. Joe in an interview about two years ago said that was true, and that was the reason they left Starr. It was the same interview where he said they often mimed live so they could dance around the stage more.
Coincidentally, Jordan is currently over here on a reality TV show about holiday reps.
Posted by kat27 (Member # 3979) on :
ok very embarrassed that when I eventually saw KOTB in concert I was in Grade 8 - admittedly they took their time getting here - I think it was 1990 before they got here. It was crazy that we weren't obsessed with them anymore but still got to see them in concert. Must admit that we screamed as much as anyone else.
Posted by Blanes Babe (Member # 4312) on :
I would have loved to have seen them in concert! Even more embarrassing I would still go see them in concert if they went on a reunion tour in a heart beat.
All time favorite NKOTB songs... I'd have to say, "Hanging Tough", "Didn't I Blow Your Mind", "Step by Step", "Favorite Girl", and I loved the rap part to "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again"...not sure if anyone else remembers it but its really funny...
"(Rap:) I'm never gonna fall 'cause I fell, loving you for me was like hell. How could you play me like a champ, a tramp, a cramp? Girl, you did me worse than a food stamp. You told me I could trust you, if I didn't I would crush you, but never thought that one day I'd bust you walking in the sand hand in hand with another man I know your game plan and now I understand love so deep is like sleep and it will leave you blind but I see how you're living so baby next time what'cha gonna do now that the tables are turned around I'm living swell and now you wanna be down Step off 'cause baby I've learned if you're messing with fire then you're gonna get burned You still look dope but a dope I'm not I can't get with you 'cause you're too hot"
Posted by cindymancini (Member # 679) on :
Hey Blanes Babe,
That was hilarious! Me and my girlfriends used to love that song, including the rap part. Danny used to have the Northside Boys come out and dance with him. Actually loved the choreography they used to do for it. I remember once before Mark was "Marky" he came out and started break dancing with them. Gotta love the memories ! So anyways, on that note here's a little more flavor for ya...
No more games boy so what chu sayin? Beat the deepness cause Donnie ain't playin' Witness the quickness, as I kick this I'm on a mission so listen as I dismiss All this negativity by takin' a stand Cause we're five bad brothers from the Beantown land No sell outs, so get the hell out, we do it our way Who gives a damn about what critics say? Said we wouldn't last, said our time would pass, said we're just a flash, but we're still kickin' a$$. The D-o-n-n-i-e the W-a-h-l a to the b-e-r-g has spoken and now the games must cease And to the non-believers, I say PEACE!
Posted by kat27 (Member # 3979) on :
Jabeen I totally forgot that they had a cartoon! I just loved Joey - ironically age has been about as kind to him as it has to Donny Osmond. Anyway it was totally embarrassing at school - try explaining why you LOVE The Cure, Kate Bush, The Clash, The Smashing Pumpkins, Jane's Addiction, etc and still love NKOTB. Not that I ever cared. I have always had a really eclectic taste in music. Provided it has a great melody and means something to me then I will love it.
Posted by Mane1980 (Member # 4240) on :
Man! I had my room covered with NKOTB posters, I even had al the dolls!
Didn't I blow your mind, Stop it girl, I wanna be loved by you, step by step, hangin' tough, Please don't go girl, Cover girl, The right stuff, games, tonight, my favorite girl, I'll be loving you, I need you, What'cha gonna do about it, hold on, Where do I go from here, etc...
Everythime I hear the songs playing I start singing them and everyone stares at me as if I were some crazy chic!
Posted by cindymancini (Member # 679) on :
Oh I can understand what you guys are saying. It was so easy to feel that way, like you had to be covert about liking them . Well, luckily I had my two girlfriends who went to all the concerts with me to back me up in school. I guess there's strength in numbers.
We were aware of that whole thing and just decided to turn it around. We would come back from a concert weekend and be all proud about it. We were insane . Took some flack here and there for it but it made us tight as friends.
We took it to the next level. I remember kinda dressing like a "fly" girl back then, with the big baggy jeans, the Doc Marten shoes with a ponytail and big gold hoop earings. That was not the style where we lived at the time but we'd see how the girls in NY and Philly dressed and we thought, wow, let's do that! We would keep all our NKOTB and Marky passes and stickers and stuff and hang them off our backpacks. We would wear hotel keys (not the card kind but the regular metal ones that we'd try and keep upon checking out of their hotel) around our neck on a necklace. People would ask and we'd just give them a look and a smile.
I actually felt pretty damn cool about the whole thing cause no matter what anyone said, I was not sitting at home twiddling my thumbs, I was hanging in 4 star hotels, in some of the biggest cities in the world, going to concerts and meeting new and interesting people. Blanesbabe, Mane, Kat and Jabeen, I would have loved to know you back then. We could have all gone along together!
[ 16. October 2005, 07:06: Message edited by: cindymancini ]
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Cool story Cindy! I think you should be proud that you got to hang with such a fun group of people. NKOTB is an example of what our society does at times, it builds you up to be bigger than life, then it turns it back on you and watches you crash and burn. It's true fans like Cindy, Kat, Mane, Blanes Babe, & Jabeen that makes it all worth it though.
Posted by jlynn9111 (Member # 4343) on :
I was a huge NKOTB fan. My walls in my bedroom were plastered with them, including my curtains, comforter, telephone, etc. I had everything from backpack, books, to dolls, which I still have the dolls. I was never able to see them in concert. Jordan Knight was my favorite! One of the songs that I really had liked was "This ones for the children". I thought it really showed J's talent. "The right stuff" and "Step by Step" are two of my faves. Other songs such as Games, Happy Birthday, Stay with me baby, Funny feeling, My favorite girl, Hold on, Cover girl, Popsicle, ETC. I hope that helps.
Posted by Mane1980 (Member # 4240) on :
I didn't have a problem with people making fun of us just for liking NKOTB or any other teen pop group for that matter, only some of the guys were making fun but that's because they were jealous, I mean Joey, Jordan, Jon ,etc were hotter than they where! *sigh* Joey MacIntyre was it for me!
Everytime there was a music video of them either my aunt or my parents used to call me to go and see it! I had the dolls, every Cassette, posters, The miniature stage, towels, I mean I was a hard core fan! I even watch the cartoons saturday mornings! If they get back together again I would definitely go and see them, they would bring good old memories back!
Oh yeah Nirvana, that was my rebelious phase, I was into protest music!
Posted by pettyfan (Member # 2260) on :
Just because I'm posting here doesn't mean I'm a fan. That would totally ruin my Metallica-image. But anyway, my favorite NKOTB songs were "The Right Stuff" and "Please Don't Go, Girl." And for the record, I thought Joey was good on Boston Public.
Posted by Mane1980 (Member # 4240) on :
quote:Originally posted by Jabeen: Hey Mane, Joey was for me too! I was mesmorized by his blue-eyes and baby face. It's funny because most all my ideal after that (well, Kidd Video was before) has always been the baby face. Sadly, I have YET to see any of their videos. I liked them so late that MTV just stopped playing their videos. I think I have seen "The Right Stuff" one time and possibly Hangin Tough. But that's it.
I was able to get a hold of 3 nkotb vhs with their videos fron hangin tough and step by step and a live one! I forgot how I used to like "Please don't go girl" just for Joey!
Posted by Mane1980 (Member # 4240) on :
quote:Originally posted by Jabeen: "I used to like 'Please don't go girl' just for Joey"
HA! You an me both. Of course I never saw the video, but I knew what he looked like so of course that helped guide me while listening to his flute like voice.
The video was cool enough for the time! Very simple! But I love that song!
Posted by XViXeNX (Member # 4405) on :
my fave NKOTB song was and still is "please don't go girl".
Posted by BabyLove19781999 (Member # 2336) on :
I'll be loving you forever
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
made in 81.. here is an awesome NKOTB thread from the past you can sift through.
I actually like their more recent tune "Dirty Dancing" for more obvious reasons. Total guilty pleasure tune!
Posted by made in 81 (Member # 9099) on :
Haha awesome thread!! Does anyone have "The best of" dvd? There is a live version of "Baby I believe in you"...omg Jordan with an unbuttoned shirt..whit whew! Wow this site just keeps getting better and better. Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Hopefully, Cindy Mancini will stop by and share a few of her cool pics from back in the day.
Posted by Veronica Sawyer (Member # 2221) on :
I loved NKOTB in the 80's/early 90's. Joe McIntyre was my favorite, and I think he is still pretty hot! I had a huge poster of him on my bedroom wall. I can admit that I bought their newest album and I like a lot of the songs on it.
I remember going to summer camp in the mid 90's when grunge was all the rage, and this one girl there got picked on mercilessly because she wore NKOTB T-shirts all the time and blasted their music on her discman. Funny how quickly trends fade....Let's hope Justin Bieber fades away soon! Posted by Devolution (Member # 1731) on :
Devolution here,
I was working at McDonald's during the height of the New Kids craze, I remember them selling cups (plastic) that people went nuts for.
We are DEVO
Posted by Lovers with Cassie (Member # 7794) on :
quote:Originally posted by Valley: Hopefully, Cindy Mancini will stop by and share a few of her cool pics from back in the day.
Valley, I e-mailed Cindy.
She should now come on here and post her photographs.
I also thought you may like to look at their website.
i always liked Covergirl. it sounded so cheesy but i remember skating to that song at the roller rink when i was in 5th grade. i always liked when donnie starts singing, "don'tcha know...i only wanna be with youuuuuuu...." i also liked Favorite Girl and Please Don't Go Girl. i remember they did a remake of Didn't I Blow Your Mind, which i love the original.
i remember watching the cartoon at one time, and i had a Jordan sleeping bag that i got for my birthday one year. and i also saw them in concert but i barely remember it ...i was so young.
Posted by chimpanshane (Member # 8248) on :
I love "Step by Step"
Posted by Secret Admirer (Member # 3574) on :
There's too many to choose from.
Posted by oneyedwilly (Member # 8730) on :
the right stuff is played in my car from time to time (on shuffle). As a guy it was a little embarrassing for me to listen to at 14yrs of age but now its kinda cool i think. Another 80s fan at my work was singing it along with me in the staff room the other day...the reception we got kinda said 'Hey, thats so cheesy its just too cool'
Posted by Muffy Tepperman (Member # 1551) on :
There are so little to choose from for me (sorry Cindy) I never liked them.....probaly why I don't now even.....my little sis did...she even got a payperview special for her friends one year........she also used to kiss their crotches on her poster lol I just always thought they weren't attractive.....just normal looking.
Posted by Ronnie (Member # 465) on :
muffy, i agree about the music, i didn't like the majority of their songs. hangin tough, the right stuff, funky christmas, i'll be loving you, ...no thanks. i did like the ones i mentioned though. it reminds me of being that age and it's pretty hard for me to remember those times. all i remember is skating every weekend and most music around that time, takes me back to the roller rink days.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
i love tonight, step by step. the right stuff. and cover girl ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
Like I said, the record company had found the formula, and they used it... ![[Mad]](mad.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
![[Embarrassed]](redface.gif)
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
...i was so young.