TEEN YOUR ENTHUSIASM (10)
By:
April 29, 2023
One in a series of 25 enthusiastic posts, contributed by 25 HILOBROW friends and regulars, on the topic of heartthrobs from our adolescences). Series edited by Heather Quinlan.
NKOTB
It wasn’t Joe’s stunning blue eyes, nor Jordan’s gentle manner, nor Jon’s timid smile. Neither was it Donnie’s courageous words, spiced up by his rebellious style. In my opinion, “The Right Stuff” of New Kids on the Block lay in the dexterity of their footwork. Consequently, my heartthrob could be none other than Danny Wood, who always added his special flair to the group’s famous choreography.
Going back in time: the year was 1990 and MTV had not yet come to Brazil. Those who were into pop music had to bet all their chips on the second-rate TV shows that aired 10 clips around lunchtime. One day, sandwiched between endless replays of Roxette, Bon Jovi, and Rick Astley, the “Hangin’ Tough” video popped up. It was love at first step… and soon I had put together my own collection of shoddy recordings of all their available songs.
Among the many rewinds and fast forwards, 1991 came along. With it, a new trend emerged on our side of the Americas: cover bands that imitated international artists. One March Sunday, an ad in the classified section of O Estado de São Paulo announced that some girls were planning to put together a female cover band for NKOTB. It was my chance to make good on the many hours I’d spent in front of the VCR. Lucky for me, those solitary efforts now paid off! Our Fab5 consisted of Michelle, Laura, Karina, Marcia, and me. In the same month, we rolled up our sleeves and threw ourselves into rehearsals, every single weekend. Once in one girl’s living room, next in another’s backyard, until we finally garnered a few gigs at neighborhood parties, where we showed off our dance mimicries, a bit of lip sync ability and a whole jumble of copycat clothes, sewn by our loving moms.
For fans like us, that was the best tribute we could pay to our dancing heroes.
The photo above is one of the few (and last) records I have of this adventure. We were trying to replicate the No More Games album cover in an audacious attempt to create a portfolio to submit to the producers of Saturday afternoon musical shows. What we didn’t know until that analogue photo had been developed, is that it was too late for our brilliant idea… As soon as the calendar turned its pages to 1992, our well-choreographed dream dissolved. A new smell was in the air, hovering over the Gen X’s teen spirit. It meant goodbye to Boston’s well-rehearsed footwork and hello to Seattle’s headbanging.
Grunge killed the Step by Step style.
TEEN YOUR ENTHUSIASM: INTRODUCTION by Heather Quinlan | Adam McGovern on ANDY GIBB | Crockett Doob on DREW BARRYMORE | Kathy Biehl on THE MONKEES | Josh Glenn on SHAUN CASSIDY | Catherine Christman on ELI WALLACH | Carlo Rotella on VALERIE BERTINELLI | Miranda Mellis on EDDIE VAN HALEN | Paul Finnegan on KIM WILDE | Heather Quinlan on MIKE PATTON | Mariane Cara on NKOTB | Mimi Lipson on ARLO GUTHRIE | Gabriela Pedranti on GUSTAVO CERATI | Michele Carlo on MICHAEL JACKSON | Ingrid Schorr on PAUL McCARTNEY | Carolyn Campbell on ROBERT REDFORD | Erin M. Routson on JOHNNY KNOXVILLE | Amy Keyishian on JIM MORRISON | Fran Pado on TONY DEFRANCO | Krista Margies Kunkle on LUKE PERRY | Lucy Sante on FRANÇOISE HARDY | Lynn Peril on DANNY BONADUCE | Jack Silbert on CHERYL TIEGS | Kelly Jean Fitzsimmons on CHRISTIAN SLATER | Cynthia Scott on LEONARD WHITING | Elizabeth Foy Larsen on OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN.
JACK KIRBY PANELS | CAPTAIN KIRK SCENES | OLD-SCHOOL HIP HOP | TYPEFACES | NEW WAVE | SQUADS | PUNK | NEO-NOIR MOVIES | COMICS | SCI-FI MOVIES | SIDEKICKS | CARTOONS | TV DEATHS | COUNTRY | PROTO-PUNK | METAL | & more enthusiasms!