In the early 1980s, along with Eric Rosser and the “human video”, Rudi McToots, Robert Priest formed The Boinks, a musical group for children, which took its name from the sound of an idea happening “Boink!”. (It might be easier if you imagine the light bulb going on over someone’s head.) For two seasons Robert and Rosser were resident topical song writers on the CBC radio show “Is Anybody Home”. Here they wrote two children’s songs a week dealing with the news of the day.
The Boinks also appeared on the cover of Quill & Quire in acknowledgement of their innovative Artists in the Schools Program. Getting students to invent fantastical, lyrical or satirical products and then write “commercials” for them, an approach which the Boinks invented to stimulate music, poetry and art in young children, has since gone on to be a standard in teacher training manuals “Boink!” after all, is the sound of an idea happening. The group went on to make several very popular “appearances” on CBC radio’s Morningside, where they wrote and performed “commercials” for listener inventions such as “Tasty plates”, “Hardhats for Seals” and “The All White Rubic’s Cube”.
In 1984, the Boinks’ album, Summerlong, was produced by Alan Guettel to rave reviews and serialized on CBC Radio’s Morningside. The album is now available on Spotify.
“Wonderful exercises for the imagination. The Boinks’ Summerlong L.P. is sensational.”
– The Toronto Sun