The Fourmyula

The Fourmyula were a New Zealand rock group formed in 1967 in Upper Hutt. They achieved considerable local success in the late 1960s, with ten of their fourteen singles reaching the New Zealand Top 20.

The Fourmyula
OriginUpper Hutt, New Zealand
GenresRock
Years active1967–1971, 2010
LabelsEMI (1992 - present)
Past membersWayne Mason
Martin Hope
Ali Richardson
Chris Parry
Carl Evensen

Career (1967–1971)

The group initially consisted of Wayne Mason (guitar, keyboards, vocals), Martin Hope (guitar and vocals), Ali Richardson (bass and vocals), and Chris Parry (drums), who founded Fiction Records (UK) in 1978. They were joined in 1968 by Carl Evensen as lead vocalist.

Their first release, "Come With Me" made it to number 2 in August 1968. They released fourteen singles (ten of which reached the New Zealand Top 20) and five albums and won the New Zealand Entertainers of the Year award in 1970.

The Fourmyula's best known song, "Nature", written by Wayne Mason and produced by Peter Dawkins, reached number one in the New Zealand charts in December 1969.[1] It won the APRA Silver Scroll Award for the year. The Mutton Birds released a rockier version of "Nature" in 1995, and in 2001 the original version was voted New Zealand's greatest pop song ever - becoming the title track of the best-selling Nature's Best compilation.

Reunion (2010)

In 2010 the band reformed to promote the compilation The Complete Fourmyula, a 4-CD set which includes a previously unreleased album Turn Your Back on the Wind, originally recorded for Decca. They played two concerts, one in Auckland on 18 February 2010 and another in Upper Hutt, on 20 March 2010.[2]

The Fourmyula was inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame at the 2010 APRA Silver Scroll Awards.[3]

Discography

Studio albums
Title Details
The Fourmyula
  • Released: 1968
  • Label: HMV (CSDM 6283)
Green B Holiday
  • Released: 1968
  • Label: HMV (CSDM 6296)
Creation
  • Released: 1969
  • Label: HMV (CSDM 6309)

Live albums
Title Details
A 'Live
(with Shane)
  • Released: 1970
  • Label: HMV (CSDM 6313)

Compilation albums
Title Details Chart Positions
NZ[4]
A Portrait of the Fourmyula
  • Released: 1974
  • Label: Axis (AXIS 2003)
 –
The Most of the Fourmyula
  • Released: 1992
  • Label: EMI (435403 2)
 –
The Very Best of the Fourmyula
  • Released: 1999
  • Label: EMI (521924 2)
 –
The Complete Fourmyula
  • Released: May 2010
  • Label: HMV (50999 6265042 7)
  • Note: 4xCD
 35
Turn Your Back on the Wind
  • Released: 2010
  • Label: HMV (CSDM 6324)
  • Note: Unreleased album recorded in London 1970
 -
Inside the Hutt: New Zealand's Pop-Psych Kingpins 1968–1969
  • Released: September 2013
  • Label: RPM Records (Retro932)
 –

Extended Plays
Title Details
Four Hits of the Fourmyula
  • Released: 1969
  • Label: HMV (GESM 6138)


Singles
Year Single Chart Positions
NZ[5]
1968 "Come with Me" 2
"Alice Is There" 4
"I Know Why" 7
1969 "Start by Giving to Me" 21
"Home" 8
"Forever" –
"Lady Scorpio" 7
"I'll Sing You a Song" 3
"Nature" 1
1970 "Make Me Happy" 19
"Otaki" 15
"Turn Your Back on the Wind" –
1971 "Lullaby" 21

Awards and nominations

Aotearoa Music Awards

The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously known as New Zealand Music Awards (NZMA)) are an annual awards night celebrating excellence in New Zealand music and have been presented annually since 1965.

Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
1968"Alice Is There"Single of the YearNominated[6]
1970"Nature"Single of the YearNominated
2010The FourmyulaNew Zealand Music Hall of Fameinductee[7]

See also

References
  1. "Wayne Mason and the song 'Nature'", New Zealand History online
  2. "The return of The Fourmyula". Stuff.co.nz. 18 March 2010. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  3. Sundae, Hugh (6 September 2010). "The Fourmyula to enter NZ music hall of fame". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  4. "charts.org.nz - The Fourmyula - Nature". charts.nz. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  5. "flavour of new zealand - search listener". www.flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  6. "Aotearoa Music Awards". aotearoamusicawards.nz. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  7. "HOME INDUCTEES". www.musichall.co.nz. Retrieved 16 August 2021.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.