Bee Gees
Encyclopedia
The Bee Gees
are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry
, Robin
, and Maurice Gibb
. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a foremost act of the disco
music era in the late 1970s. The group sang three-part tight harmonies
that were instantly recognisable; Robin's clear vibrato
lead was a hallmark of their earlier hits, while Barry's R&B falsetto
became their signature sound during the late 1970s and 1980s. The brothers co-wrote all of their own hits, as well as writing and producing several major hits for other artists.
Born in the Isle of Man
to English parents, the Gibb brothers lived their first few years in Chorlton
, Manchester, England, then moved in the late 1950s to Redcliffe, Queensland
, Australia, where they began their musical careers. After achieving their first chart success in Australia with "Spicks and Specks
" (their 12th single), they returned to the United Kingdom in January 1967 where producer Robert Stigwood
began promoting them to a worldwide audience. It has been estimated that the Bee Gees' career record sales total more than 220 million, making them one of the best-selling music artists of all time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
in 1997; the presenter of the award to "Britain's first family of harmony" was Brian Wilson
, historical leader of the Beach Boys, a "family act" also featuring three harmonising brothers. The Bee Gees' Hall of Fame
citation says "Only Elvis Presley
, The Beatles
, Michael Jackson
, Garth Brooks
and Paul McCartney
have outsold the Bee Gees".
Following Maurice's sudden death in January 2003, Barry and Robin Gibb ended the group after 45 years of activity. In 2009, however, Robin announced that he and Barry had agreed that the Bee Gees would re-form and perform again.
Barry Gibb (born 1946) and twin brothers Robin (born 1949) and Maurice Gibb (1949–2003) were born on the Isle of Man
, but the family returned to father Hugh Gibb's home town of Chorlton-cum-Hardy
, Manchester, England
where they went to Oswald Road Primary School, in the early 1950s where the boys began to sing in harmony. The story is told that they were going to lip sync
to a record in the local Gaumont cinema (as other children had done on previous weeks) and as they were running to the theatre, the heavy 78-RPM record broke. The brothers had to sing live and received such a positive response from the audience that they decided to pursue a singing career.
In 1958 the Gibb family, including infant brother, Andy
(1958–1988), emigrated to Redcliffe
in Queensland, Australia. The young brothers began performing where they could to raise pocket money. First called the Rattlesnakes, later Wee Johnny Hayes & the Bluecats, they were introduced to radio DJ Bill Gates by racetrack promoter Bill Goode (who saw them perform at Brisbane's Speedway Circuit). Gates renamed them the "Bee Gees" after his and Goode's initials – thus the name was not specifically a reference to "Brothers Gibb", despite popular belief.
By 1960 the Bee Gees were featured on television shows. In the next few years they began working regularly at resorts on the Queensland coast. Barry drew the attention of Australian star, Col Joye
, for his songwriting. Joye helped them get a record deal with Festival Records
subsidiary, Leedon Records
, in 1963 under the name "Bee Gees." The three released two or three singles a year, while Barry supplied additional songs to other Australian artists.
A minor hit in 1965, "Wine and Women
", led to the group's first LP The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs
. By 1966 Festival was, however, on the verge of dropping them from the Leedon roster because of their perceived lack of commercial success. It was at this time that they met American-born songwriter, producer and entrepreneur, Nat Kipner, who had just been appointed A&R manager of a new independent label, Spin Records
. Kipner briefly took over as the group's manager and successfully negotiated their transfer to Spin in exchange for Festival being granted the Australian distribution rights to the group's recordings.
Through Kipner the Bee Gees met engineer-producer, Ossie Byrne
. He produced (or co-produced with Kipner) many of the earlier Spin recordings, most of which were cut at his own small self-built St Clair Studio in the Sydney suburb of Hurstville. Byrne gave the Gibb brothers virtually unlimited access to St Clair Studio over a period of several months in mid-1966. The group later acknowledged that this enabled them to greatly improve their skills as recording artists. During this productive time they recorded a large batch of original material—including the song that would become their first major hit, "Spicks and Specks
" (on which Byrne played the trumpet coda) – as well as cover versions of current hits by overseas acts such as The Beatles. They regularly collaborated with other local musicians, including members of beat band Steve & The Board, led by Steve Kipner
, Nat's teenage son.
Frustrated by their lack of success, the Gibbs decided to return to England in late 1966. Ossie Byrne travelled with them, and Colin Petersen, who eventually became the group's drummer, followed soon after. While at sea in January 1967, they learned that "Spicks and Specks
", a No. 1 hit in October 1966 had been awarded Best Single of the Year by Go-Set
, Australia's most popular and influential music newspaper.
who managed The Beatles
and was director of NEMS, a British music store and promoter. Brian Epstein had passed the demo tapes to Robert Stigwood
, who had recently joined NEMS. After an audition with Stigwood in February 1967, the Bee Gees were signed to a five-year contract whereby Polydor Records
would be the Bee Gees' record label in the United Kingdom, and ATCO Records
would be the United States distributor. Work quickly began on the group's first international album, and Robert Stigwood launched a promotional campaign to coincide with its release.
Stigwood proclaimed that the Bee Gees were "The Most Significant New Talent Of 1967" and thus began the immediate comparison to The Beatles. Their second British single (their first UK 45 rpm
issued was "Spicks and Specks
"), "New York Mining Disaster 1941
", was issued to radio stations with a blank white label listing only the song title. Some DJs immediately assumed this was a new Beatles' single and started playing the song in heavy rotation. This helped the song climb into the Top 20 in both the United Kingdom and the United States. No such chicanery was needed to boost the Bee Gees' second single, "To Love Somebody
", into the US Top 20. Originally written for Otis Redding
, "To Love Somebody" was a soulful ballad sung by Barry, which has since become a pop standard covered by hundreds of artists including Gram Parsons
, Rod Stewart
, Bonnie Tyler
, Janis Joplin
, The Animals
, Nina Simone
, and Michael Bolton
. Another single, "Holiday
" was released in the United States, peaking at No. 16. The parent album, the erroneously titled Bee Gees 1st, peaked at No. 7 in the United States and No. 8 in the United Kingdom.
Following the success of Bee Gees 1st, the band (which now consisted of Barry on rhythm guitar, Maurice on bass, Vince Melouney
on lead guitar and Colin Petersen
on drums),. began work on the act's second album. Released in late 1967, Horizontal
repeated the success of their first album, featuring the No. 1 UK single "Massachusetts
" (a No. 11 US hit), and the No. 7 UK single "World
". The sound of the album Horizontal had a more "rock" sound than their previous release, though ballads like "And The Sun Will Shine" and "Really And Sincerely" were also prominent. The Horizontal album reached No. 12 in the US, and No. 16 in the UK promoting the record, the Bee Gees made their first appearances in America, playing live concerts and television shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show
and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
.
Two more singles followed in early 1968, the ballad "Words
" (No. 15 US, No. 8 UK) and the double A-sided single "Jumbo
" b/w "The Singer Sang His Song". "Jumbo" was the Bee Gees' least successful single to date only reaching No. 57 in the US, and No. 25 in the UK. The Bee Gees felt that "The Singer Sang His Song" was the stronger of the two sides, an opinion shared by listeners in the Netherlands, who made it a No. 3 hit. Further Bee Gees chart singles followed: "I've Gotta Get a Message to You
" (No. 8 US, No. 1 UK) and "I Started A Joke
" (No. 6 US), both culled from the band's third album Idea
. Idea was another Top 20 album in the US (No. 17) and the UK (No. 4). Following the tour and TV special to promote the album, Vince Melouney left the group, feeling that he wanted to play more of a blues style music than the Gibbs were writing. Melouney did achieve one feat while with the Bee Gees—his composition "Such A Shame" (from Idea) is the only song on any Bee Gees album not written by a Gibb brother.
By 1969, the cracks began to show within the group. Robin began to feel that Stigwood had been favouring Barry as the frontman. Their next album, which was to have been a concept album called Masterpeace, evolved into the double-album Odessa
. Most rock critics felt this was the best Bee Gees album of the 60s, with its progressive rock feel on the title track, the country-flavoured "Marley Purt Drive" and "Give Your Best", and signature ballads such as "Melody Fair" and "First Of May
"; the last of which became the only single from the album, and was a minor hit. Feeling that the flipside, "Lamplight" should have been the A-side, Robin quit the group in mid-1969 and launched a solo career. Robin Gibb saw brief success in Europe with the No. 2 hit "Saved By The Bell" and the album Robin's Reign. Barry and Maurice continued as the Bee Gees, even recruiting their sister Lesley to appear with them on stage.
The first of many Bee Gees compilations, Best of Bee Gees was released, featuring the non-LP single "Words
" plus the Australian hit "Spicks and Specks
" The CD release replaces "Spicks and Specks" with another non-LP single "Tomorrow Tomorrow
", because Polydor could no longer secure the rights to the Australian track. "Tomorrow Tomorrow" was a moderate hit in the UK reaching No. 23, but stalled at No. 54 in the US. The compilation reached the Top Ten in both the US and the UK.
While Robin was off on his own, Barry, Maurice, and Colin continued on as the Bee Gees, recording their next album, Cucumber Castle
. There was also a TV special filmed to accompany the album, which aired on the BBC in 1971. Colin Petersen played drums on the tracks recorded for the album, but was fired from the group after filming began and his parts were edited out of the final cut of the film. After Colin was fired, Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford was recruited to complete the recording of songs for Cucumber Castle. The leadoff single, "Don't Forget to Remember
" was a big hit in the UK reaching No. 2, but a disappointment in the US, only reaching No. 73. The next 2 singles, "I.O.I.O.
" and "If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else
" barely scraped the charts, and following the release of the album, Barry and Maurice parted ways. It seemed that the Bee Gees were finished. Barry recorded a solo album which never saw official release, though "I'll Kiss Your Memory" was released as a single, without much interest. Meanwhile, Maurice released the single "Railroad", and starred in the West End musical Sing A Rude Song.
During this period they became a four piece band joined again by Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford who after playing on the 2 Years On album and Trafalgar album became the last non-Gibb brother to be a member of the Bee Gees. Although they had lost traction on the British charts, the Bee Gees hit No. 3 in America with "Lonely Days
" (from the reunion LP 2 Years On
) and had their first US No. 1 with "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (from Trafalgar
). The trio's talents were included in the soundtrack for the 1971 film Melody
as they performed several songs for the title. In 1972, they hit No. 16 in America with the single "My World
" and "Run To Me" from the LP To Whom It May Concern
; the latter also returned them to the British top ten for the first time in three years.
By 1973, however, the Bee Gees were in a rut. The album, Life in a Tin Can
, released on RSO Records
and its lead-off single, "Saw a New Morning
," sold poorly with the single peaking at No. 94. This was followed by an unreleased album (known as A Kick in the Head Is Worth Eight in the Pants). A second compilation album, Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
was released in 1973, though it did not repeat the success of Volume 1.
On the advice of Ahmet Ertegün
, head of their US label Atlantic Records
, Stigwood arranged for the group to record with famed soul music producer Arif Mardin
. The resulting LP, Mr. Natural, included fewer ballads and foreshadowed the R&B
direction of the rest of their career. But when it too failed to attract much interest, Mardin encouraged them to work with the soul music style.
The brothers attempted to assemble a live stage band that could replicate their studio sound. Lead guitarist Alan Kendall
had come on board in 1971, but did not have much to do until Mr. Natural. For that album, they added drummer Dennis Bryon, and they later added ex-Strawbs keyboard player Blue Weaver, completing the late 1970s "Bee Gees band". Maurice, who had previously performed on piano, guitar, organ, mellotron
, and bass guitar, as well as exotica like mandolin
and Moog synthesiser
, now confined himself to bass onstage.
At Eric Clapton
's suggestion, the brothers relocated to Miami, Florida, early in 1975 to record. After starting off with ballads, they eventually heeded the urging of Mardin and Stigwood and crafted more rhythmic disco
songs, including their second US No. 1, "Jive Talkin'
", along with US No. 7 "Nights on Broadway
." The band liked the resulting new sound, and this time the public agreed, sending the LP Main Course
up the charts. This was their second album to have two US top-10 singles since 1968's Idea. Main Course also became their first charting R&B album. Mardin was unable to work with the group afterwards, but the Bee Gees enlisted Albhy Galuten
and Karl Richardson who had worked with Mardin during the Main Course sessions. This production team would carry the Bee Gees through the rest of the 1970s.
The next album, Children of the World
, was drenched in Barry's newfound falsetto and Weaver's synthesiser disco licks. Led off by the single "You Should Be Dancing
," it pushed the Bee Gees to a level of stardom they had not previously achieved in the US, though their new R&B/disco sound was not as popular with some die hard fans from the 1960s. The Bee Gees' band was now closer to a rock act, with rhythm guitar and real drums behind the falsetto.
, the Bee Gees agreed with Stigwood to participate in the creation of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack
. It would be the turning point of their career. The cultural impact of both the film and the soundtrack was seismic, not only in the United States, but in the rest of the world as well, bringing the nascent disco
scene mainstream.
The band's involvement in the film did not begin until post-production. As John Travolta
asserted, "The Bee Gees weren't even involved in the movie in the beginning ... I was dancing to Stevie Wonder
and Boz Scaggs
." Producer Robert Stigwood commissioned the Bee Gees to create the songs for the film. The brothers wrote the songs "virtually in a single weekend" at France's Château d'Hérouville studio
. Barry Gibb remembered the reaction when Stigwood and music supervisor Bill Oakes arrived and listened to the demos:
Bill Oakes, who supervised the soundtrack, asserts that Saturday Night Fever
did not begin the disco craze; rather, it prolonged it: "Disco had run its course. These days, Fever is credited with kicking off the whole disco thing–-it really didn't. Truth is, it breathed new life into a genre that was actually dying."
Three Bee Gees singles ("How Deep Is Your Love
", "Stayin' Alive
", and "Night Fever
") reached No. 1 in the United States and most countries around the world, launching the most popular period of the disco era. They also penned the song "If I Can't Have You
" which became a No. 1 hit for Yvonne Elliman
, while the Bee Gees' own version was the B-Side of "Stayin' Alive." Such was the popularity of Saturday Night Fever that two different versions of the song "More Than a Woman
" received airplay, one by the Bee Gees, which was relegated to album track, and another by Tavares, which was the hit. The Gibb sound was inescapable. During an eight-month period beginning in the Christmas season of 1977, the brothers wrote six songs that held the No. 1 position on the US charts for 25 of 32 consecutive weeks—three under their own name, two for brother Andy Gibb, and the Yvonne Elliman single.
Fueled by the movie's success, the soundtrack broke multiple industry records, becoming the highest-selling album in recording history to that point. With more than 40 million copies sold, Saturday Night Fever is among music's top five best selling soundtrack albums. It is currently calculated as the 4th highest-selling album worldwide.
During this era, Barry and Robin also wrote "Emotion" for an old friend, Australian vocalist Samantha Sang
, who made it a Top Ten hit (the Bee Gees sang back-up vocals). Barry also wrote the title song to the movie version of the Broadway musical Grease
for Frankie Valli
to perform, which went to No. 1. During this period, the Bee Gees' younger brother Andy
followed his older siblings into a music career, and enjoyed considerable success. Produced by Barry, Andy Gibb's first three singles all topped the US charts. In March 1978, the Bee Gees held the top 2 positions on the US Charts with "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive", the first time this had happened since the Beatles. On the US Billboard Hot 100
chart for 25 March 1978, five songs written by the Gibbs were in the US top ten at the same time: "Night Fever", "Stayin' Alive", "If I Can't Have You", "Emotion" and "Love is Thicker Than Water". Such chart dominance hadn't been seen since April 1964, when the Beatles had all five of the top five American singles. Barry Gibb became the only songwriter to have four consecutive number one hits in the US breaking the John Lennon and Paul McCartney 1964 record. These songs were "Stayin' Alive", "Love Is Thicker Than Water", "Night Fever", "If I Can't Have You".
The Bee Gees also co-starred with Peter Frampton
in the movie Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
(1978) loosely inspired by the classic 1967 Beatles album. The film had been heavily promoted prior to release, and was expected to enjoy great commercial success. However, the disjointed film was savaged by the movie critics, and ignored by the public. Though some of its tracks charted, the soundtrack too was a high-profile flop. The single "Oh! Darling
", credited to Robin Gibb, reached No. 15 in the US. Previously, the Bee Gees had recorded three Beatles covers—"Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight
", "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window
" and "Sun King
" – for the transitory musical documentary All This and World War II
.
The Bee Gees' follow-up to Saturday Night Fever was the Spirits Having Flown
album. It yielded three more No. 1 hits: "Too Much Heaven
", "Tragedy
", and "Love You Inside Out
." This gave the act six consecutive No. No. 1 singles in America within a year and a half (a record surpassed only by Whitney Houston
). "Too Much Heaven" ended up as the Bee Gees' musical contribution to the Music for UNICEF Concert
at the United Nations General Assembly
in January 1979, a benefit organised by the Bee Gees, Robert Stigwood
, and David Frost
for UNICEF that was broadcast worldwide. The brothers donated the royalties from the song to the charity. Up to 2007, this song has earned over $11 million for UNICEF. During the summer of 1979, the Bee Gees embarked on their largest concert tour covering the US and Canada. The Spirits Having Flown tour
capitalised on Bee Gees fever that was sweeping the nation, with sold out concerts in 38 cities. The Bee Gees produced a video for the title track of "Too Much Heaven
" directed by Miami-based film-maker, Martin Pitts and produced by Charles Allen. With this video, Pitts and Allen began a long association with the brothers.
The Bee Gees even had a country hit in 1979 with "Rest Your Love On Me", the flip side of their pop hit "Too Much Heaven
", which made Top 40 on the country charts. In 1981, Conway Twitty
's version of "Rest Your Love On Me" topped the country
charts.
The Bee Gees' overwhelming success rose and fell with the disco bubble. By the end of 1979, disco was rapidly declining in popularity, and the backlash against disco put the Bee Gees' American career in a tailspin. Radio stations around America began promoting "Bee Gee Free Weekends". Following their remarkable run from 1975 to 1979, the act would have only one more top ten single in the US, and that would not come until 1989. The Bee Gees' international popularity sustained somewhat less damage. Barry Gibb considered the success of the Saturday Night Fever
soundtrack both a blessing and a curse:
on her album Guilty
. He co-produced and wrote or co-wrote all nine of the album's tracks (four of them written with Robin and the title track with both Robin and Maurice). Barry also appeared on the album's cover with Streisand, and duetted with her on two tracks. The album reached No.1 in both the US and the UK, as did the single "Woman in Love
" (written by Barry and Robin), becoming Streisand's most successful single and album to date.
In 1981 the Bee Gees released the album Living Eyes, their last release on RSO. This album was the first CD ever played in public, when it was played to viewers of the BBC show Tomorrow's World. With the disco backlash still running strong, the album failed to make the UK or US Top 40. Two singles from the album fared little better - "He's a Liar
" reached No. 30 in the US and "Living Eyes
" reached No. 45, breaking the Bee Gees' Top 40 streak which started in 1975 with "Jive Talkin'
".
In 1982 Dionne Warwick
enjoyed a UK No.2 and US Adult Contemporary No. 1 with her comeback single, "Heartbreaker
", taken from her album of the same name
written largely by the Bee Gees and co-produced by Barry Gibb. The album reached No.3 in the UK and the Top 30 in the US where it was certified Gold.
A year later Dolly Parton
and Kenny Rogers
recorded the Bee Gees-penned track "Islands in the Stream
", which became a US No. 1 hit and Top 10 in the UK. Rogers' 1983 album, Eyes That See In The Dark
, was written entirely by the Bee Gees and co-produced by Barry. The album was a Top 10 hit in the US and was certified Double Platinum.
The Bee Gees had greater success with the soundtrack to Staying Alive
in 1983, the sequel to Saturday Night Fever
. The soundtrack was certified platinum in the US, and included their Top 30 hit "The Woman in You
".
Also in 1983 the band were sued by Chicago songwriter Ronald Selle, who claimed that the brothers stole melodic material from one of his songs, "Let It End", and used it in "How Deep Is Your Love
". At first, the Bee Gees lost the case; one juror said that a factor in the jury's decision was the Gibbs' failure to introduce expert testimony rebutting the plaintiff's expert testimony that it was "impossible" for the two songs to have been written independently. However, the verdict was overturned a few months later.
In 1985 Diana Ross
released the album Eaten Alive
, written by the Bee Gees, with the title track co-written with Michael Jackson
(who also performed on the track). The album was again co-produced by Barry Gibb and the single "Chain Reaction
" gave Ross a UK and Australian No.1 hit.
The Bee Gees released the album E.S.P.
in 1987, which sold over 3 million copies. It was their first album in six years, and their first for Warner Bros. Records
. The single "You Win Again" went to No. 1 in numerous countries, including Britain, but was a disappointment in the US, charting at No. 75. The Bee Gees voiced their frustration over American radio stations not playing their new European hit single, an omission which the group felt led to poor sales of their current album in the States.
On 10 March 1988, younger brother Andy
died, aged 30, as a result of myocarditis
, an inflammation of the heart muscle due to a recent viral infection. His brothers acknowledge that Andy's past drug and alcohol use probably made his heart more susceptible to the ailment. Just before Andy's death, it was decided by the group that Andy would join them, which would have made the group a four-piece group. The Bee Gees' following album, One
(1989), featured a song dedicated to Andy, "Wish You Were Here". The album also contained their first US top ten hit (No. 7) in a decade, "One". After the album's release, they embarked on their first world tour in ten years.
issued the box set Tales from the Brothers Gibb: A History in Song, which contained all of the group's singles (except 1981's "Living Eyes"), rare B-sides, unreleased tracks, solo material, and live performances. Many songs received new stereo mixes by Bill Inglot
with some songs making their CD debut. At the time of its release, Tales was one of the first box sets issued in the music business and it was considered an honour for a group to have one. In the UK, Polydor issued a single disc hits collection from Tales called The Very Best of the Bee Gees
, which contained their biggest UK hits. The album became one of their best selling albums in that country, eventually being certified Triple Platinum.
Following their next album, High Civilization
(1991), which contained the UK top five hit "Secret Love", the Bee Gees went on a European tour. After the tour, Barry Gibb began to battle a serious back problem, which required surgery. In addition, he also suffered from arthritis
, and at one point, it was so severe that it was doubtful that he would be able to play guitar for much longer. Also in the early 1990s, Maurice Gibb finally sought treatment for his alcoholism, which he had battled for many years, with the help of Alcoholics Anonymous
.
In 1993, the group returned to the Polydor label, and released the album Size Isn't Everything
, which contained the UK top five hit "For Whom the Bell Tolls". Success still eluded them in the US, however, as the first single released, "Paying the Price of Love
" only managed to reach No. 74 on the Billboard Hot 100
while the parent album stalled at No. 153.
In 1997, they released the album Still Waters, which sold over four million copies, and reached No.2 in the UK (their highest album chart position there since 1979) and No.11 in the US. The album's first single, "Alone
", gave them another UK Top 5 hit and a top 30 hit in the US. Still Waters would be the band's most successful US release of their post-RSO era.
On 14 November 1997, the Bee Gees performed a live concert in Las Vegas
called One Night Only
. The show included a performance of "Our Love (Don't Throw It All Away)" synchronised with a vocal by their deceased brother Andy and a cameo appearance by Celine Dion
singing "Immortality
". The CD of the performance sold over 5 million copies. The "One Night Only" name grew out of the band's declaration that, due to Barry's health issues, the Las Vegas show was to be the final live performance of their career. After the immensely positive audience response to the Vegas concert, Barry decided to continue despite the pain, and the concert expanded into their last full-blown world tour of "One Night Only" concerts. The tour included playing to 56,000 people at London's Wembley Stadium on 5 September 1998 and concluded in the newly built Olympic Stadium in Sydney, Australia on 27 March 1999 to an audience exceeding 105,000.
In 1998, the group's soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever was incorporated into a stage production
produced first in the West End and then on Broadway. They wrote three new songs for the adaptation. Also in 1998 the brothers recorded Ellan Vannin
for Isle of Man
charities. Known as the unofficial national anthem of the Isle of Man, the brothers performed the song during their world tour to reflect their pride in the place of their birth.
The Bee Gees closed the decade with what turned out to be their last full-sized concert, known as BG2K, on 31 December 1999.
. The album was another success, reaching the Top 10 in the UK (being certified Gold), and the Top 20 in the US. The title track was also a UK Top 20 hit single. The album gave each member of the group a chance to write in his own way, as well as composing songs together. For example, Maurice's compositions and leads are the "Man in the Middle" and "Walking on Air," while Robin contributed "Déjà Vu," "Promise the Earth," and "Embrace," and Barry contributed "Loose Talk Costs Lives," "Technicolour Dreams", and "Voice in the Wilderness". The other songs are collaborative in writing and vocals. They performed many tracks from This Is Where I Came In, plus many of their biggest hits, on the live televised concert series Live by Request
, shown on the A&E Network
. The last concert of the Bee Gees as a trio was at the Love and Hope Ball in 2002.
Maurice, who had been the musical director of the Bee Gees during their final years as a group, died unexpectedly on 12 January 2003 at the age of 53 from a heart attack, while awaiting emergency surgery to repair a strangulated intestine
. Initially, his surviving brothers announced that they intended to carry on the name "Bee Gees" in his memory. But as time passed they decided to retire the group name, leaving it to represent the three brothers together.
The same week that Maurice died, Robin's solo album Magnet was released. On 23 February 2003, the Bee Gees received the Grammy Legend Award
. Barry and Robin accepted as well as Maurice's son, Adam, in a tearful ceremony.
Although there was talk of a memorial concert featuring both surviving brothers and invited guests, nothing materialised. Barry and Robin continued to work independently, and both released recordings with other artists, occasionally coming together to perform at special events.
recorded "Grief Never Grows Old," the official tsunami relief record for the Disasters Emergency Committee
. Later that year, Barry reunited with Barbra Streisand
for her top-selling album Guilty Pleasures, released as Guilty Too in the UK as a sequel album to the previous Guilty
. Robin continued touring in Europe. Also in 2004, Barry recorded his song "I Cannot Give You My Love" with Cliff Richard
, which became a UK top 20 hit single.
In February 2006, Barry and Robin reunited on stage for a Miami charity concert to benefit the Diabetes Research Institute. It was their first public performance together since the death of brother Maurice. Barry and Robin also played at the 30th annual Prince's Trust Concert in the UK on 20 May 2006.
In October 2008, Robin performed a couple of songs in London as part of the BBC Electric Proms Saturday Night Fever performance. This involved various other performers and the BBC Concert Orchestra and was screened on the BBC and BBC interactive services.
that he had been in touch with Barry Gibb and that they had agreed that the Bee Gees would re-form and "perform again".
Barry and Robin performed on the BBC
's Strictly Come Dancing
on 31 October 2009 and appeared on ABC-TV
's Dancing with the Stars on 17 November 2009.
On 15 March 2010, Barry and Robin inducted the Swedish group ABBA
into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
. On 26 May 2010, the two made a surprise appearance on the ninth season finale of American Idol
.
In October 2010, Robin Gibb was interviewed by the Daily Mail
, and confirmed that the story of the Bee Gees is to be made into a Hollywood movie by Steven Spielberg
. The Oscar-winning director believes the group’s journey from unknowns in Manchester to worldwide fame will prove box-office gold. Robin told the Daily Mail: "The movie is going to be done by some very important people. It will be our life story. Barry and I will be involved in the technical side". One of the challenges for Spielberg will be replicating the brothers’ distinctive three-part harmonies and Barry’s falsetto voice. Robin said: "I’d like our original recordings to be used because it’s very hard to emulate them." On 20 November 2011 it was announced that Robin Gibb, at 61 years old, was diagnosed with liver cancer, a condition he became aware of several months earlier. He had become noticeably thinner in previous months and had to cancel several appearances due to issues with severe abdominal pain.
At least 2,500 artists have recorded their songs. Their most popular composition is "How Deep Is Your Love", with 400 versions by other artists in existence. Among the artists who have covered their songs are Elvis Presley
, Janis Joplin
, Al Green
, Eric Clapton
, Lulu
, Elton John
, Tom Jones
, Nina Simone
, John Frusciante
(who has covered "How Deep Is Your Love" during Red Hot Chili Peppers
concerts), Feist, Billy Corgan
, Michael Bolton
, Take That
, Robert Smith
, Ardijah
, Jinusean
, Faith No More
, The Flaming Lips
and Destiny's Child
. The band's music has also been sampled by dozens of hip hop artists.
Songs written by the Gibbs, but largely better known through versions by other artists, include:
The Bee Gees' major non-UK/US breathrough hit "Spicks and Specks
" – a 1966 chart success in Australia (top five) and New Zealand (number one), and in Holland (top five) in 1967 — was coverd by British rock-pop band Status Quo for their 1968 debut album. And Al Green's
1972 non-single cover of the Bee Gees' massive 1971 North American number one "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" enjoys a certainly critical and popular following, particularly in the UK.
was playing. A similar launch was held in New York shortly after to coincide with the show opening across the Atlantic. The songs depicted on the stamps are "Massachusetts", "Words", "I've Gotta Get A Message To You", "Night Fever", "Stayin' Alive" and "Immortality".
All three brothers (including Maurice, posthumously) were appointed Commanders in the Order of the British Empire
, one level underneath knighthood, in December 2001 with the ceremony taking place on 27 May 2004.
On 10 July 2009, the Isle of Man's capital bestowed the Freedom of the Borough of Douglas
honour on Barry and Robin, as well as posthumously on Maurice. On 20 November 2009, Douglas Borough Council released a limited edition commemorative DVD to mark their naming as Freemen of the Borough.
Additionally, more recent titles such as Still Waters and This Is Where I Came In
were among the first batch of re-releases. The band's three Warner Bros.
releases, E. S. P., One and High Civilisation were also made available on iTunes for the first time since the albums went out of print in North America in the mid-90s.
According to Robin Gibb's website, three more reissues were planned for the 2008 holiday season: Best of Bee Gees, Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
and Love Songs
. The double album Odessa
was released on 13 January 2009 in a special 3-disc deluxe edition complete with the original red velvet cover with remastered stereo and mono versions of the album as well as alternate versions and unreleased tracks.
Since the remastered release of Odessa, Rhino has stopped reissuing original Bee Gees albums and there has not been any announcement as to when the remaining albums will be remastered.
charities. The song was featured in the Bee Gees World Tour and on ITV
's "An Evening With ..." but to date has not been released generally. The single was subsequently also available as part of the 1999 Bee Gees Stamp issue.
is a four-disc collection highlighting each brother, including Andy, with tracks personally selected by Barry, Robin, Maurice's wife Yvonne (with his children Adam and Samantha), and Andy's daughter Peta. Maurice's disc contains two unreleased tracks called "Angel Of Mercy" and "The Bridge". Andy's disc contains the unreleased track "Arrow Through The Heart". Mythology also features a scrapbook of family photos, many never-before published, along with tributes from artists such as George Martin
, Brian Wilson
, Elton John
, Graham Nash
and the band's longtime manager Robert Stigwood
.
The second collection, The Ultimate Bee Gees
is a more modest two-disc, 40-track collection highlighting their biggest hits which includes a bonus DVD of unreleased videos, previously unreleased television appearances, live performances, and promo videos. Each disc is themed with the first disc being the more upbeat songs called 'A Night Out' and the second disc being more ballad focused called 'A Night In'.
During the early 1970s, Robin Gibb played piano and violin occasionally, but most of the time he only sang. Although he keeps on playing strings and keyboards privately, he has not played any instrument on stage since mid-'70s.
Maurice Gibb played bass guitar, rhythm and lead guitar, piano, organ, harpsichord, electric piano, mellotron, and electronic keyboards, synthesisers and drum tracks. From 1966 to 1972 he played multiple instruments on many records. During the late 1970s he played mainly bass guitar. From about 1986 onward he usually played keyboards and guitars. Maurice was credited by the brothers as being the most technologically savvy member of the band, and had built his own home studio. The bootleg CD ESP Demos allegedly includes rough versions of tracks from the album of the same name that were recorded at that studio.
These musicians were considered members of the band:
are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry
Barry Gibb
Barry Alan Crompton Gibb, CBE , is a singer, songwriter and producer. He was born in the Isle of Man to English parents. With his brothers Robin and Maurice, he formed The Bee Gees, one of the most successful pop groups of all time. The trio got their start in Australia, and found their major...
, Robin
Robin Gibb
Robin Hugh Gibb, CBE is a British singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of the Bee Gees, co-founded with his twin brother Maurice , and elder brother Barry....
, and Maurice Gibb
Maurice Gibb
Maurice Ernest Gibb, CBE was a musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He was born on the Isle of Man, the twin brother of Robin Gibb, and younger brother to Barry. He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee Gees, formed with his brothers...
. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a foremost act of the disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
music era in the late 1970s. The group sang three-part tight harmonies
Close harmony
Close harmony is an arrangement of the notes of chords within a narrow range. It is different from open harmony or voicing in that it uses each part on the closest harmonizing note , while the open voicing uses a broader pitch array expanding the harmonic range past the octave...
that were instantly recognisable; Robin's clear vibrato
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
lead was a hallmark of their earlier hits, while Barry's R&B falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
became their signature sound during the late 1970s and 1980s. The brothers co-wrote all of their own hits, as well as writing and producing several major hits for other artists.
Born in the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
to English parents, the Gibb brothers lived their first few years in Chorlton
Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Chorlton-cum-Hardy is a suburban area of the city of Manchester, England. It is known locally as Chorlton. It is situated about four miles southwest of Manchester city centre. Pronunciation varies: and are both common....
, Manchester, England, then moved in the late 1950s to Redcliffe, Queensland
Redcliffe, Queensland
Redcliffe is a residential suburb of the Moreton Bay Region in the north-east of the Redcliffe peninsula, approximately north-northeast of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia...
, Australia, where they began their musical careers. After achieving their first chart success in Australia with "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
" (their 12th single), they returned to the United Kingdom in January 1967 where producer Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
began promoting them to a worldwide audience. It has been estimated that the Bee Gees' career record sales total more than 220 million, making them one of the best-selling music artists of all time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
in 1997; the presenter of the award to "Britain's first family of harmony" was Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, historical leader of the Beach Boys, a "family act" also featuring three harmonising brothers. The Bee Gees' Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame
A hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field...
citation says "Only Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...
and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
have outsold the Bee Gees".
Following Maurice's sudden death in January 2003, Barry and Robin Gibb ended the group after 45 years of activity. In 2009, however, Robin announced that he and Barry had agreed that the Bee Gees would re-form and perform again.
Early years
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, but the family returned to father Hugh Gibb's home town of Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Chorlton-cum-Hardy is a suburban area of the city of Manchester, England. It is known locally as Chorlton. It is situated about four miles southwest of Manchester city centre. Pronunciation varies: and are both common....
, Manchester, England
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
where they went to Oswald Road Primary School, in the early 1950s where the boys began to sing in harmony. The story is told that they were going to lip sync
Lip sync
Lip sync, lip-sync, lip-synch is a technical term for matching lip movements with sung or spoken vocals...
to a record in the local Gaumont cinema (as other children had done on previous weeks) and as they were running to the theatre, the heavy 78-RPM record broke. The brothers had to sing live and received such a positive response from the audience that they decided to pursue a singing career.
In 1958 the Gibb family, including infant brother, Andy
Andy Gibb
Andy Gibb was an English singer and teen idol, and the youngest brother of the family whose other male siblings formed the Bee Gees: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb.-The early years:...
(1958–1988), emigrated to Redcliffe
Redcliffe, Queensland
Redcliffe is a residential suburb of the Moreton Bay Region in the north-east of the Redcliffe peninsula, approximately north-northeast of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia...
in Queensland, Australia. The young brothers began performing where they could to raise pocket money. First called the Rattlesnakes, later Wee Johnny Hayes & the Bluecats, they were introduced to radio DJ Bill Gates by racetrack promoter Bill Goode (who saw them perform at Brisbane's Speedway Circuit). Gates renamed them the "Bee Gees" after his and Goode's initials – thus the name was not specifically a reference to "Brothers Gibb", despite popular belief.
By 1960 the Bee Gees were featured on television shows. In the next few years they began working regularly at resorts on the Queensland coast. Barry drew the attention of Australian star, Col Joye
Col Joye
Colin Frederick Jacobsen AM , better known by his stage name Col Joye, is an Australian popular entertainer and entrepreneur...
, for his songwriting. Joye helped them get a record deal with Festival Records
Festival Records (Australia)
Festival Records was an Australian music recording and publishing company which was founded in Sydney in 1952 and operated until 2005....
subsidiary, Leedon Records
Leedon Records
Leedon Records was an Australian record label active from 1958 to 1969. It was founded by American entrepreneur Lee Gordon in early 1958.-Establishment and early releases:...
, in 1963 under the name "Bee Gees." The three released two or three singles a year, while Barry supplied additional songs to other Australian artists.
A minor hit in 1965, "Wine and Women
Wine and Women
"Wine and Women" is the fifth single by the Bee Gees from their LP The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs...
", led to the group's first LP The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs
The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs
The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs is the Bee Gees' debut LP , released under the artist title "Barry Gibb & the Bee Gee's [sic]"...
. By 1966 Festival was, however, on the verge of dropping them from the Leedon roster because of their perceived lack of commercial success. It was at this time that they met American-born songwriter, producer and entrepreneur, Nat Kipner, who had just been appointed A&R manager of a new independent label, Spin Records
Spin Records
Spin Records was an Australian popular music label of the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was established in late 1966 by Clyde Packer and a group of partners including entrepreneur Harry M. Miller. The label's first A&R manager was Nat Kipner who produced several early Spin releases...
. Kipner briefly took over as the group's manager and successfully negotiated their transfer to Spin in exchange for Festival being granted the Australian distribution rights to the group's recordings.
Through Kipner the Bee Gees met engineer-producer, Ossie Byrne
Ossie Byrne
Oswald Russell "Ossie" Byrne was an Australian record producer, best known for producing the early recordings of The Bee Gees, including their first international hit, "New York Mining Disaster 1941"....
. He produced (or co-produced with Kipner) many of the earlier Spin recordings, most of which were cut at his own small self-built St Clair Studio in the Sydney suburb of Hurstville. Byrne gave the Gibb brothers virtually unlimited access to St Clair Studio over a period of several months in mid-1966. The group later acknowledged that this enabled them to greatly improve their skills as recording artists. During this productive time they recorded a large batch of original material—including the song that would become their first major hit, "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
" (on which Byrne played the trumpet coda) – as well as cover versions of current hits by overseas acts such as The Beatles. They regularly collaborated with other local musicians, including members of beat band Steve & The Board, led by Steve Kipner
Steve Kipner
Steve Kipner is a multi-platinum-selling songwriter and record producer with hits spanning over a 40 year history, including chart-topping songs such as Olivia Newton-John's "Physical", Chicago's Grammy-nominated "Hard Habit to Break", "Genie In A Bottle" by Christina Aguilera, for which he won an...
, Nat's teenage son.
Frustrated by their lack of success, the Gibbs decided to return to England in late 1966. Ossie Byrne travelled with them, and Colin Petersen, who eventually became the group's drummer, followed soon after. While at sea in January 1967, they learned that "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
", a No. 1 hit in October 1966 had been awarded Best Single of the Year by Go-Set
Go-Set
Go-Set was the first Australian pop music newspaper, published weekly from 2 February 1966 to 24 August 1974, and was founded in Melbourne by Phillip Frazer, Peter Raphael and Tony Schauble...
, Australia's most popular and influential music newspaper.
Late 1960s – first international fame
Before their departure from Australia to England, Hugh Gibb sent demos to Brian EpsteinBrian Epstein
Brian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...
who managed The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
and was director of NEMS, a British music store and promoter. Brian Epstein had passed the demo tapes to Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
, who had recently joined NEMS. After an audition with Stigwood in February 1967, the Bee Gees were signed to a five-year contract whereby Polydor Records
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
would be the Bee Gees' record label in the United Kingdom, and ATCO Records
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment.-Beginnings:Atco Records was founded in 1955 as a division of Atlantic Records. It was devised as an outlet for productions by one of Atlantic's founders, Herb Abramson, who...
would be the United States distributor. Work quickly began on the group's first international album, and Robert Stigwood launched a promotional campaign to coincide with its release.
Stigwood proclaimed that the Bee Gees were "The Most Significant New Talent Of 1967" and thus began the immediate comparison to The Beatles. Their second British single (their first UK 45 rpm
Revolutions per minute
Revolutions per minute is a measure of the frequency of a rotation. It annotates the number of full rotations completed in one minute around a fixed axis...
issued was "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
"), "New York Mining Disaster 1941
New York Mining Disaster 1941
"New York Mining Disaster 1941" was the first song to be released by the Bee Gees in the United States , and their first song to hit the charts in the US or UK...
", was issued to radio stations with a blank white label listing only the song title. Some DJs immediately assumed this was a new Beatles' single and started playing the song in heavy rotation. This helped the song climb into the Top 20 in both the United Kingdom and the United States. No such chicanery was needed to boost the Bee Gees' second single, "To Love Somebody
To Love Somebody (song)
"To Love Somebody" is the second single released by the Bee Gees from their third LP, Bee Gees 1st.The band's manager Robert Stigwood wanted Barry Gibb to write a soul song for Otis Redding. Barry, along with Robin wrote "To Love Somebody," a soulful ballad in the style of Sam & Dave or The Rascals...
", into the US Top 20. Originally written for Otis Redding
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding, Jr. was an American soul singer-songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the major figures in soul and R&B...
, "To Love Somebody" was a soulful ballad sung by Barry, which has since become a pop standard covered by hundreds of artists including Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist. Parsons is best known for his work within the country genre; he also mixed blues, folk, and rock to create what he called "Cosmic American Music"...
, Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart
Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....
, Bonnie Tyler
Bonnie Tyler
Bonnie Tyler is a Welsh singer, most notable for her hits in the 1970s and 1980s including "It's a Heartache", "Holding Out for a Hero" and "Total Eclipse of the Heart".-Early life:...
, Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, The Animals
The Animals
The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...
, Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
, and Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...
. Another single, "Holiday
Holiday (Bee Gees song)
"Holiday" is a song by the Bee Gees. The song is haunting, even eerie, having been composed primarily in the minor key with a strong organ presence. Brothers Barry Gibb and Robin Gibb who also wrote the song share lead vocals...
" was released in the United States, peaking at No. 16. The parent album, the erroneously titled Bee Gees 1st, peaked at No. 7 in the United States and No. 8 in the United Kingdom.
Following the success of Bee Gees 1st, the band (which now consisted of Barry on rhythm guitar, Maurice on bass, Vince Melouney
Vince Melouney
Vince Melouney was a founding member of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, playing with the band as lead guitarist from 1963 to 1965, which was followed by a short-lived duo with fellow Aztec Tony Barber, called Vince & Tony's Two.In 1967, after moving to the UK, he was invited to join the Bee Gees...
on lead guitar and Colin Petersen
Colin Petersen
Colin Petersen is a former child actor and rock drummer. He played as a member of the Bee Gees on their first five albums.-Biography:Petersen began his acting career at the age of seven...
on drums),. began work on the act's second album. Released in late 1967, Horizontal
Horizontal (album)
Horizontal is the Bee Gees' fourth studio album, and second to seek an international release. The LP was released in early 1968, and included the international hit singles "Massachusetts" and "World"....
repeated the success of their first album, featuring the No. 1 UK single "Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Bee Gees song)
"Massachusetts" is a song written, recorded, and released by the Bee Gees in 1967 and later appearing on their 1968 album, Horizontal. It was their first Number 1 hit in the UK and eventually became one of the best selling singles of all times....
" (a No. 11 US hit), and the No. 7 UK single "World
World (Bee Gees song)
"World" is the second UK single from the Bee Gees second album Horizontal, released in 1967 in the United Kingdom. Though it was a big hit in Europe, Atco Records did not issue it as a single in the United States...
". The sound of the album Horizontal had a more "rock" sound than their previous release, though ballads like "And The Sun Will Shine" and "Really And Sincerely" were also prominent. The Horizontal album reached No. 12 in the US, and No. 16 in the UK promoting the record, the Bee Gees made their first appearances in America, playing live concerts and television shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In is an American sketch comedy television program which ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to May 14, 1973. It was hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin and was broadcast over NBC...
.
Two more singles followed in early 1968, the ballad "Words
Words (Bee Gees song)
"Words" is a song written and sung by the Bee Gees, released in the beginning of 1968. Barry Gibb said in 1996 on the VH1 Storytellers television show that it was written for their manager Robert Stigwood. It was originally intended for Cliff Richard, but he never got round to recording the track...
" (No. 15 US, No. 8 UK) and the double A-sided single "Jumbo
Jumbo (Bee Gees song)
"Jumbo" is a single released in 1968 by English band Bee Gees.Following a string of Top 20 singles on both sides of the Atlantic, "Jumbo" was the first A-side to miss that mark in both the United Kingdom and the United States. It's a peppy guitar-heavy number with two tracks of guitar laid done by...
" b/w "The Singer Sang His Song". "Jumbo" was the Bee Gees' least successful single to date only reaching No. 57 in the US, and No. 25 in the UK. The Bee Gees felt that "The Singer Sang His Song" was the stronger of the two sides, an opinion shared by listeners in the Netherlands, who made it a No. 3 hit. Further Bee Gees chart singles followed: "I've Gotta Get a Message to You
I've Gotta Get a Message to You
"I've Gotta Get a Message to You" is a song recorded by The Bee Gees in 1968, which became their second number-one single on the UK Singles Chart, and reached number eight on the U.S. pop chart....
" (No. 8 US, No. 1 UK) and "I Started A Joke
I Started a Joke
"I Started a Joke" is a 1968 song by the Bee Gees from their album Idea, which was released in September of that year.Curiously, it was not released as a single in the UK, where buyers who could not afford the album had to content themselves with a Polydor version by Heath...
" (No. 6 US), both culled from the band's third album Idea
Idea (album)
Idea is the Bee Gees' fifth studio album, and their third international release on the ATCO label in the US and Polydor in the UK. Released in August, 1968, the album sold over a million copies worldwide. This album features "Such a Shame", the only Bee Gees song where lead vocals aren't sung by a...
. Idea was another Top 20 album in the US (No. 17) and the UK (No. 4). Following the tour and TV special to promote the album, Vince Melouney left the group, feeling that he wanted to play more of a blues style music than the Gibbs were writing. Melouney did achieve one feat while with the Bee Gees—his composition "Such A Shame" (from Idea) is the only song on any Bee Gees album not written by a Gibb brother.
By 1969, the cracks began to show within the group. Robin began to feel that Stigwood had been favouring Barry as the frontman. Their next album, which was to have been a concept album called Masterpeace, evolved into the double-album Odessa
Odessa (album)
Odessa is the sixth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1969. It was the group's fourth album released internationally, and their first released as a double LP. Odessa is noted in Robert Dimery's book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die....
. Most rock critics felt this was the best Bee Gees album of the 60s, with its progressive rock feel on the title track, the country-flavoured "Marley Purt Drive" and "Give Your Best", and signature ballads such as "Melody Fair" and "First Of May
First of May
First of May may refer to:*A reference to May Day in the context of a fertility or Spring holiday*"First of May" , a 1969 song by the Bee Gees*First of May, a 2007 song by Jonathan Coulton*The First of May , a 1998 independent film...
"; the last of which became the only single from the album, and was a minor hit. Feeling that the flipside, "Lamplight" should have been the A-side, Robin quit the group in mid-1969 and launched a solo career. Robin Gibb saw brief success in Europe with the No. 2 hit "Saved By The Bell" and the album Robin's Reign. Barry and Maurice continued as the Bee Gees, even recruiting their sister Lesley to appear with them on stage.
The first of many Bee Gees compilations, Best of Bee Gees was released, featuring the non-LP single "Words
Words (Bee Gees song)
"Words" is a song written and sung by the Bee Gees, released in the beginning of 1968. Barry Gibb said in 1996 on the VH1 Storytellers television show that it was written for their manager Robert Stigwood. It was originally intended for Cliff Richard, but he never got round to recording the track...
" plus the Australian hit "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
" The CD release replaces "Spicks and Specks" with another non-LP single "Tomorrow Tomorrow
Tomorrow Tomorrow (Bee Gees song)
"Tomorrow Tomorrow" is a song by the Bee Gees and was originally intended for singer Joe Cocker. It is the first Bee Gees single released after Robin Gibb had quit the group which was now down to a trio featuring Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, and Colin Petersen on drums...
", because Polydor could no longer secure the rights to the Australian track. "Tomorrow Tomorrow" was a moderate hit in the UK reaching No. 23, but stalled at No. 54 in the US. The compilation reached the Top Ten in both the US and the UK.
While Robin was off on his own, Barry, Maurice, and Colin continued on as the Bee Gees, recording their next album, Cucumber Castle
Cucumber Castle
Cucumber Castle is the Bee Gees' seventh album, released in 1970 and produced by Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, and Robert Stigwood. It consists of songs from their television special of the same name, which was named after a song on their 1967 album Bee Gees' 1st...
. There was also a TV special filmed to accompany the album, which aired on the BBC in 1971. Colin Petersen played drums on the tracks recorded for the album, but was fired from the group after filming began and his parts were edited out of the final cut of the film. After Colin was fired, Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford was recruited to complete the recording of songs for Cucumber Castle. The leadoff single, "Don't Forget to Remember
Don't Forget to Remember
"Don't Forget to Remember" is a country ballad from the Bee Gees.It was released as a single in August 1969...
" was a big hit in the UK reaching No. 2, but a disappointment in the US, only reaching No. 73. The next 2 singles, "I.O.I.O.
I.O.I.O.
"I.O.I.O." is the second single from the Bee Gees album, Cucumber Castle. Maurice Gibb described this as "Barry's African jaunt" as the opening has African-type percussion that leads into Barry Gibb singing the verse, joined by Maurice in the chorus.The single was a relative success mainly on...
" and "If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else
If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else
"If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else" is the second single from the Bee Gees Cucumber Castle album featuring Barry & Maurice. A U.S. only single, it failed to make any impact and stalled out at #91. Following this, Barry and Maurice went their separate ways, both releasing solo singles with...
" barely scraped the charts, and following the release of the album, Barry and Maurice parted ways. It seemed that the Bee Gees were finished. Barry recorded a solo album which never saw official release, though "I'll Kiss Your Memory" was released as a single, without much interest. Meanwhile, Maurice released the single "Railroad", and starred in the West End musical Sing A Rude Song.
Early 1970s
The three brothers reunited in the later part of 1970 penning a series of songs about heartache and loneliness.During this period they became a four piece band joined again by Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford who after playing on the 2 Years On album and Trafalgar album became the last non-Gibb brother to be a member of the Bee Gees. Although they had lost traction on the British charts, the Bee Gees hit No. 3 in America with "Lonely Days
Lonely Days
"Lonely Days" is a 1970 song by the Bee Gees, featured on their album 2 Years On. The song incorporated the innovative structure and knack for changing tempos exemplified by the second side of The Beatles' Abbey Road album, released the previous year and a clear influence on this single...
" (from the reunion LP 2 Years On
2 Years On
2 Years On is the Bee Gees' eighth album released in December 1970. The album reached #32 on the U.S. charts, and sold 375,000 copies worldwide...
) and had their first US No. 1 with "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (from Trafalgar
Trafalgar (album)
Trafalgar is the Bee Gees' ninth album, released in September 1971. The album was a moderate hit in the United States, and peaked at #34. The lead single "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" was the first Bee Gees' #1 single in the United States...
). The trio's talents were included in the soundtrack for the 1971 film Melody
Melody (1971 film)
Melody is a 1971 British film directed by Waris Hussein about "puppy love". It was released as S.W.A.L.K. in the United Kingdom . The film starred Jack Wild, Mark Lester and Tracy Hyde...
as they performed several songs for the title. In 1972, they hit No. 16 in America with the single "My World
My World (Bee Gees song)
"My World" was recording and released while The Bee Gees were recording their new album To Whom It May Concern during the winter of 1972. This single reached #16 on the USA charts and #16 and #41 on the U.K. and Germany charts, respectively...
" and "Run To Me" from the LP To Whom It May Concern
To Whom It May Concern (Bee Gees album)
To Whom It May Concern is the Bee Gees' tenth studio album, released in October 1972. It was the follow-up of their American successful LP Trafalgar, and continued its melancholic and personal sound. The album was recognised as "a farewell to the old Bee Gees"...
; the latter also returned them to the British top ten for the first time in three years.
By 1973, however, the Bee Gees were in a rut. The album, Life in a Tin Can
Life in a Tin Can
Life in a Tin Can is the Bee Gees' eleventh studio album, released in January 1973. The Bee Gees moved their base of operations from England, UK to Los Angeles, California to record Life in a Tin Can. However, it was unable to prevent a commercial decline with the album criticized for a lack of...
, released on RSO Records
RSO Records
RSO Records was a record label, formed by rock and roll and musical theatre impresario Robert Stigwood in 1973. The "RSO" stands for the Robert Stigwood Organisation. The company's main headquarters were at 67 Brook Street, in London's Mayfair...
and its lead-off single, "Saw a New Morning
Saw a New Morning
"Saw a New Morning" was the Bee Gees first single released on Robert Stigwood's newly created records label RSO Records. The Bee Gees moved to Los Angeles in 1972 to record the album Life in a Tin Can which was a new direction for the group, which had been recording in England since 1967...
," sold poorly with the single peaking at No. 94. This was followed by an unreleased album (known as A Kick in the Head Is Worth Eight in the Pants). A second compilation album, Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
Best of Bee Gees Volume 2 is a compilation album of hits by the Bee Gees. The album, briefly revived on CD in the late 1980s, went out of print, but was reissued by Rhino in November 2008.-Track listing:...
was released in 1973, though it did not repeat the success of Volume 1.
On the advice of Ahmet Ertegün
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...
, head of their US label Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, Stigwood arranged for the group to record with famed soul music producer Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...
. The resulting LP, Mr. Natural, included fewer ballads and foreshadowed the R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
direction of the rest of their career. But when it too failed to attract much interest, Mardin encouraged them to work with the soul music style.
The brothers attempted to assemble a live stage band that could replicate their studio sound. Lead guitarist Alan Kendall
Alan Kendall
Alan Kendall is an English musician and was the lead guitarist for the popular band the Bee Gees, before they retired the band name due to the death of Maurice Gibb in 2003...
had come on board in 1971, but did not have much to do until Mr. Natural. For that album, they added drummer Dennis Bryon, and they later added ex-Strawbs keyboard player Blue Weaver, completing the late 1970s "Bee Gees band". Maurice, who had previously performed on piano, guitar, organ, mellotron
Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
, and bass guitar, as well as exotica like mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
and Moog synthesiser
Moog synthesizer
Moog synthesizer may refer to any number of analog synthesizers designed by Dr. Robert Moog or manufactured by Moog Music, and is commonly used as a generic term for older-generation analog music synthesizers. The Moog company pioneered the commercial manufacture of modular voltage-controlled...
, now confined himself to bass onstage.
At Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
's suggestion, the brothers relocated to Miami, Florida, early in 1975 to record. After starting off with ballads, they eventually heeded the urging of Mardin and Stigwood and crafted more rhythmic disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
songs, including their second US No. 1, "Jive Talkin'
Jive Talkin'
"Jive Talkin" is a song by the Bee Gees, which hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top-five on the UK singles chart in the summer of 1975. Largely recognized as the group's "comeback" song, it was their first U.S. top ten hit since "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" in...
", along with US No. 7 "Nights on Broadway
Nights on Broadway
"Nights on Broadway" is a song by the Bee Gees for the Main Course album in 1975. The second single release from the album, it immediately followed their number-one hit "Jive Talkin'"....
." The band liked the resulting new sound, and this time the public agreed, sending the LP Main Course
Main course
A main dish is the featured or primary dish in a meal consisting of several courses. It usually follows the entrée course, and the salad course. In North American usage it may in fact be called the "entree"....
up the charts. This was their second album to have two US top-10 singles since 1968's Idea. Main Course also became their first charting R&B album. Mardin was unable to work with the group afterwards, but the Bee Gees enlisted Albhy Galuten
Albhy Galuten
Albhy Galuten is a Grammy Award-winning American record producer, composer, musician, orchestrator and technology executive.He produced 18 number 1 singles with songs and albums selling over 100,000,000 copies...
and Karl Richardson who had worked with Mardin during the Main Course sessions. This production team would carry the Bee Gees through the rest of the 1970s.
The next album, Children of the World
Children of the World
Children of the World is the Bee Gees' fourteenth album, released in September 1976. The first single, "You Should Be Dancing", went to number one in the US and Canada, and was a top ten hit in numerous other territories. The album has sold over 2.5 million copies.Because their manager Robert...
, was drenched in Barry's newfound falsetto and Weaver's synthesiser disco licks. Led off by the single "You Should Be Dancing
You Should Be Dancing
"You Should Be Dancing" is a single by the Bee Gees, from the album, Children of the World, in 1976. The single hit number one for one week on the American Billboard Hot 100, number one for seven weeks on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart, and in July the same year, reached number five on the UK...
," it pushed the Bee Gees to a level of stardom they had not previously achieved in the US, though their new R&B/disco sound was not as popular with some die hard fans from the 1960s. The Bee Gees' band was now closer to a rock act, with rhythm guitar and real drums behind the falsetto.
Late 1970s: Saturday Night Fever
Following a successful live album, Here at Last... Bee Gees... LiveHere at Last... Bee Gees... Live
Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live is the sixteenth album by the Bee Gees. It was released in May 1977 . It reached #8 in the USA, #8 in Australia, #1 in New Zealand and #2 in Spain, and sold 4.6 million copies worldwide....
, the Bee Gees agreed with Stigwood to participate in the creation of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack
Saturday Night Fever (soundtrack)
Original Vinyl ReleaseSide A:#"Stayin' Alive" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:45#"How Deep Is Your Love" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:05...
. It would be the turning point of their career. The cultural impact of both the film and the soundtrack was seismic, not only in the United States, but in the rest of the world as well, bringing the nascent disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
scene mainstream.
The band's involvement in the film did not begin until post-production. As John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
asserted, "The Bee Gees weren't even involved in the movie in the beginning ... I was dancing to Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
and Boz Scaggs
Boz Scaggs
William Royce "Boz" Scaggs is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He gained fame in the 1970s with several Top 20 hit singles in the United States, along with the #2 album, Silk Degrees. Scaggs continues to write, record music and tour.-Early life and career:Scaggs was born in Canton,...
." Producer Robert Stigwood commissioned the Bee Gees to create the songs for the film. The brothers wrote the songs "virtually in a single weekend" at France's Château d'Hérouville studio
Château d'Hérouville
The Château d'Hérouville is a French château of the 18th century located in the village of Hérouville, in the Oise valley near Paris. The castle was built in 1740 by Gaudot, an architect of the school of Rome. In the 19th century, it was used as courier relay station and stabled a hundred...
. Barry Gibb remembered the reaction when Stigwood and music supervisor Bill Oakes arrived and listened to the demos:
Bill Oakes, who supervised the soundtrack, asserts that Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
did not begin the disco craze; rather, it prolonged it: "Disco had run its course. These days, Fever is credited with kicking off the whole disco thing–-it really didn't. Truth is, it breathed new life into a genre that was actually dying."
Three Bee Gees singles ("How Deep Is Your Love
How Deep Is Your Love
"How Deep Is Your Love" is a pop song recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 and released as a single in September. Originally intended for Yvonne Elliman, it was ultimately used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever. It was a number three hit in the United Kingdom and Australia...
", "Stayin' Alive
Stayin' Alive
"Stayin' Alive" is a song by the pop group Bee Gees from the Saturday Night Fever motion picture soundtrack. The song was written by the Bee Gees and produced by the Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson. It was released on 13 December 1977, as the second single from the Saturday Night Fever...
", and "Night Fever
Night Fever
"Night Fever" is a disco song, written and performed by The Bee Gees. It first appeared on the soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever. Producer Robert Stigwood wanted to call the film Saturday Night, but singer Robin Gibb expressed hesitation at the title. Stigwood liked the title Night Fever but was...
") reached No. 1 in the United States and most countries around the world, launching the most popular period of the disco era. They also penned the song "If I Can't Have You
If I Can't Have You
"If I Can't Have You" is a song written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees. It was most famously recorded by Yvonne Elliman for the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.-Background:...
" which became a No. 1 hit for Yvonne Elliman
Yvonne Elliman
Yvonne Marianne Elliman is an American singer who performed for four years in the first cast of Jesus Christ Superstar...
, while the Bee Gees' own version was the B-Side of "Stayin' Alive." Such was the popularity of Saturday Night Fever that two different versions of the song "More Than a Woman
More Than a Woman (Bee Gees song)
"More Than a Woman" is a disco song written by the Bee Gees for the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever....
" received airplay, one by the Bee Gees, which was relegated to album track, and another by Tavares, which was the hit. The Gibb sound was inescapable. During an eight-month period beginning in the Christmas season of 1977, the brothers wrote six songs that held the No. 1 position on the US charts for 25 of 32 consecutive weeks—three under their own name, two for brother Andy Gibb, and the Yvonne Elliman single.
Fueled by the movie's success, the soundtrack broke multiple industry records, becoming the highest-selling album in recording history to that point. With more than 40 million copies sold, Saturday Night Fever is among music's top five best selling soundtrack albums. It is currently calculated as the 4th highest-selling album worldwide.
During this era, Barry and Robin also wrote "Emotion" for an old friend, Australian vocalist Samantha Sang
Samantha Sang
Samantha Sang is a stage name of Australian singer, Cheryl Lau Sang, from Melbourne, who had an earlier career as Cheryl Gray. She had a number eight hit in Australia with "You Made Me What I Am" in 1967. By 1969, she had relocated to United Kingdom and worked with Bee Gees but then returned...
, who made it a Top Ten hit (the Bee Gees sang back-up vocals). Barry also wrote the title song to the movie version of the Broadway musical Grease
Grease (musical)
Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...
for Frankie Valli
Frankie Valli
Frankie Valli is an American musician, most famous as frontman of The Four Seasons. He is well-known for his unusually powerful falsetto singing voice...
to perform, which went to No. 1. During this period, the Bee Gees' younger brother Andy
Andy Gibb
Andy Gibb was an English singer and teen idol, and the youngest brother of the family whose other male siblings formed the Bee Gees: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb.-The early years:...
followed his older siblings into a music career, and enjoyed considerable success. Produced by Barry, Andy Gibb's first three singles all topped the US charts. In March 1978, the Bee Gees held the top 2 positions on the US Charts with "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive", the first time this had happened since the Beatles. On the US Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart for 25 March 1978, five songs written by the Gibbs were in the US top ten at the same time: "Night Fever", "Stayin' Alive", "If I Can't Have You", "Emotion" and "Love is Thicker Than Water". Such chart dominance hadn't been seen since April 1964, when the Beatles had all five of the top five American singles. Barry Gibb became the only songwriter to have four consecutive number one hits in the US breaking the John Lennon and Paul McCartney 1964 record. These songs were "Stayin' Alive", "Love Is Thicker Than Water", "Night Fever", "If I Can't Have You".
The Bee Gees also co-starred with Peter Frampton
Peter Frampton
Peter Kenneth Frampton is an English musician, singer, producer, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. He was previously associated with the bands Humble Pie and The Herd. Frampton's international breakthrough album was his live release, Frampton Comes Alive!. The album sold over 6 million copies...
in the movie Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...
(1978) loosely inspired by the classic 1967 Beatles album. The film had been heavily promoted prior to release, and was expected to enjoy great commercial success. However, the disjointed film was savaged by the movie critics, and ignored by the public. Though some of its tracks charted, the soundtrack too was a high-profile flop. The single "Oh! Darling
Oh! Darling
"Oh! Darling" is a song by The Beatles composed by Paul McCartney and appearing as the fourth song on the album, Abbey Road, in 1969. Its working title was "Oh! Darling "...
", credited to Robin Gibb, reached No. 15 in the US. Previously, the Bee Gees had recorded three Beatles covers—"Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight
Carry That Weight
"Carry That Weight" is a song by The Beatles. Released on Abbey Road and part of the long, climactic medley that closes the album, it features vocals from all four Beatles...
", "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window
She Came in Through the Bathroom Window
"She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" is a song written by Paul McCartney and performed by The Beatles on their album Abbey Road as part of the Abbey Road medley.-Origin:...
" and "Sun King
Sun King (song)
"Sun King" is a song written primarily by John Lennon, but credited to Lennon–McCartney and recorded by The Beatles for their 1969 album, Abbey Road. It is the second song of the B-side's climactic medley.-History:...
" – for the transitory musical documentary All This and World War II
All This and World War II
All This and World War II is a 1976 musical documentary that juxtaposes Beatles songs, performed by a number of musicians, with World War II newsreel footage and 20th Century Fox films from the 1940s...
.
The Bee Gees' follow-up to Saturday Night Fever was the Spirits Having Flown
Spirits Having Flown
Spirits Having Flown is the Bee Gees' fifteenth original album, released in 1979. It was the group's first album after their collaboration on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The album's first three tracks were released as singles which all went to no.1 in the US...
album. It yielded three more No. 1 hits: "Too Much Heaven
Too Much Heaven
"Too Much Heaven" is a song by the Bee Gees, which was the band's contribution to the "Music for UNICEF" fund. They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979. The song later found its way to the group's thirteenth original album, Spirits Having Flown...
", "Tragedy
Tragedy (song)
"Tragedy" is a song recorded by the Bee Gees, included on their 1979 album Spirits Having Flown. The single reached number one in the UK in February 1979 and repeated the feat the following month on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100...
", and "Love You Inside Out
Love You Inside Out
"Love You Inside Out" is a 1979 hit single for the Bee Gees, from their album Spirits Having Flown. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for one week in June 1979...
." This gave the act six consecutive No. No. 1 singles in America within a year and a half (a record surpassed only by Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
). "Too Much Heaven" ended up as the Bee Gees' musical contribution to the Music for UNICEF Concert
Music for UNICEF Concert
The Music for UNICEF Concert: A Gift of Song was a benefit concert of popular music held in the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on January 9, 1979. It was intended to raise money for UNICEF world hunger programs and to mark the beginning of the International Year of the Child. The...
at the United Nations General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
in January 1979, a benefit organised by the Bee Gees, Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
, and David Frost
David Frost (broadcaster)
Sir David Paradine Frost, OBE is a British journalist, comedian, writer, media personality and daytime TV game show host best known for his two decades as host of Through the Keyhole and serious interviews with various political figures, the most notable being Richard Nixon...
for UNICEF that was broadcast worldwide. The brothers donated the royalties from the song to the charity. Up to 2007, this song has earned over $11 million for UNICEF. During the summer of 1979, the Bee Gees embarked on their largest concert tour covering the US and Canada. The Spirits Having Flown tour
1979 Spirits Having Flown Tour
Following the release of the Spirits Having Flown album in February 1979, The Bee Gees set out on their most lavish and successful tour during the height of their popularity following two straight number one albums and six straight number one singles.-History:...
capitalised on Bee Gees fever that was sweeping the nation, with sold out concerts in 38 cities. The Bee Gees produced a video for the title track of "Too Much Heaven
Too Much Heaven
"Too Much Heaven" is a song by the Bee Gees, which was the band's contribution to the "Music for UNICEF" fund. They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979. The song later found its way to the group's thirteenth original album, Spirits Having Flown...
" directed by Miami-based film-maker, Martin Pitts and produced by Charles Allen. With this video, Pitts and Allen began a long association with the brothers.
The Bee Gees even had a country hit in 1979 with "Rest Your Love On Me", the flip side of their pop hit "Too Much Heaven
Too Much Heaven
"Too Much Heaven" is a song by the Bee Gees, which was the band's contribution to the "Music for UNICEF" fund. They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979. The song later found its way to the group's thirteenth original album, Spirits Having Flown...
", which made Top 40 on the country charts. In 1981, Conway Twitty
Conway Twitty
Conway Twitty , born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was an American country music artist. He also had success in early rock and roll, R&B, and pop music. He held the record for the most number one singles of any act with 55 No. 1 Billboard country hits until George Strait broke the record in 2006...
's version of "Rest Your Love On Me" topped the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
charts.
The Bee Gees' overwhelming success rose and fell with the disco bubble. By the end of 1979, disco was rapidly declining in popularity, and the backlash against disco put the Bee Gees' American career in a tailspin. Radio stations around America began promoting "Bee Gee Free Weekends". Following their remarkable run from 1975 to 1979, the act would have only one more top ten single in the US, and that would not come until 1989. The Bee Gees' international popularity sustained somewhat less damage. Barry Gibb considered the success of the Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
soundtrack both a blessing and a curse:
1980s
Robin and Barry Gibb released various solo albums in the 1980s but only with sporadic and moderate chart success. The brothers had continuing success behind the scenes, however, writing and producing for several artists. In 1980 Barry Gibb worked with Barbra StreisandBarbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
on her album Guilty
Guilty (Barbra Streisand album)
Guilty is an album released by Barbra Streisand in 1980. After the success of the Bee Gees in 1977/1978 there was some time to perform songwriting for other artists and Barbra Streisand asked Barry Gibb to write an album for her...
. He co-produced and wrote or co-wrote all nine of the album's tracks (four of them written with Robin and the title track with both Robin and Maurice). Barry also appeared on the album's cover with Streisand, and duetted with her on two tracks. The album reached No.1 in both the US and the UK, as did the single "Woman in Love
Woman in Love
"Woman in Love" is a popular song performed by Barbra Streisand and taken from her 1980 album, Guilty. The song was written by Barry and Robin Gibb of The Bee Gees....
" (written by Barry and Robin), becoming Streisand's most successful single and album to date.
In 1981 the Bee Gees released the album Living Eyes, their last release on RSO. This album was the first CD ever played in public, when it was played to viewers of the BBC show Tomorrow's World. With the disco backlash still running strong, the album failed to make the UK or US Top 40. Two singles from the album fared little better - "He's a Liar
He's A Liar
"He's a Liar" was the first single from The Bee Gees album Living Eyes released in 1981. It had been approximately 2 years since the last Bee Gees single had been released and although this song sounded nothing like the Bee Gees' disco-era singles, the backlash had pigeonholed the Bee Gees as a...
" reached No. 30 in the US and "Living Eyes
Living Eyes (song)
"Living Eyes" is the second single released from the 1981 Bee Gees album of the same name. The sound of this single was closer musically to the rest of the album than its predecessor, "He's a Liar"....
" reached No. 45, breaking the Bee Gees' Top 40 streak which started in 1975 with "Jive Talkin'
Jive Talkin'
"Jive Talkin" is a song by the Bee Gees, which hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top-five on the UK singles chart in the summer of 1975. Largely recognized as the group's "comeback" song, it was their first U.S. top ten hit since "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" in...
".
In 1982 Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
enjoyed a UK No.2 and US Adult Contemporary No. 1 with her comeback single, "Heartbreaker
Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick song)
"Heartbreaker" is a 1982 single released by American pop and soul singer Dionne Warwick. The song was written by The Bee Gees' Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb, with Barry Gibb's distinctive backing vocal being heard on the chorus...
", taken from her album of the same name
Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick album)
Heartbreaker is an album by Dionne Warwick, her fourth for the Arista label. It was released in 1982 and features the hit single "Heartbreaker", penned by the Bee Gees. Barry Gibb produced the album with Karl Richardson and Albhy Galuten. The album was certified gold in the United States for sales...
written largely by the Bee Gees and co-produced by Barry Gibb. The album reached No.3 in the UK and the Top 30 in the US where it was certified Gold.
A year later Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
and Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
recorded the Bee Gees-penned track "Islands in the Stream
Islands in the Stream
"Islands in the Stream" is the title of a song written by the Bee Gees and sung by American country music artists Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. It was released in August 1983 as the first single from Rogers' album Eyes That See in the Dark and the second pop number-one for both Rogers and Parton...
", which became a US No. 1 hit and Top 10 in the UK. Rogers' 1983 album, Eyes That See In The Dark
Eyes That See in the Dark
- Notes :The version of "I Will Always Love You" featured on this album was written by Barry and Maurice Gibb, and is hence not the same as the more famous song of the same name, which was written by Dolly Parton...
, was written entirely by the Bee Gees and co-produced by Barry. The album was a Top 10 hit in the US and was certified Double Platinum.
The Bee Gees had greater success with the soundtrack to Staying Alive
Staying Alive
Staying Alive is the 1983 film sequel to Saturday Night Fever, starring John Travolta as dancer Tony Manero, with Cynthia Rhodes, Finola Hughes, Joyce Hyser, Steve Inwood, Julie Bovasso, and dancers Viktor Manoel, Kate Ann Wright, Kevyn Morrow and Nanette Tarpey...
in 1983, the sequel to Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
. The soundtrack was certified platinum in the US, and included their Top 30 hit "The Woman in You
The Woman in You
"The Woman in You" is one of five songs the Bee Gees contributed to the film, Staying Alive, the sequel to Saturday Night Fever. Director Sylvester Stallone used the Bee Gees songs in the movie more as background music rather than the prominent way Saturday Night Fever had featured them...
".
Also in 1983 the band were sued by Chicago songwriter Ronald Selle, who claimed that the brothers stole melodic material from one of his songs, "Let It End", and used it in "How Deep Is Your Love
How Deep Is Your Love
"How Deep Is Your Love" is a pop song recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 and released as a single in September. Originally intended for Yvonne Elliman, it was ultimately used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever. It was a number three hit in the United Kingdom and Australia...
". At first, the Bee Gees lost the case; one juror said that a factor in the jury's decision was the Gibbs' failure to introduce expert testimony rebutting the plaintiff's expert testimony that it was "impossible" for the two songs to have been written independently. However, the verdict was overturned a few months later.
In 1985 Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
released the album Eaten Alive
Eaten Alive (album)
Eaten Alive is a 1985 album by Diana Ross, released on the RCA label.-Overview:The album was conceived by the members of the Bee Gees and includes the UK and Australian #1 hit, "Chain Reaction" along with the #10 R&B title track—written and co-produced with Michael Jackson—which stalled...
, written by the Bee Gees, with the title track co-written with Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
(who also performed on the track). The album was again co-produced by Barry Gibb and the single "Chain Reaction
Chain Reaction (song)
"Chain Reaction" is a melodic Pop song, sung by Diana Ross, written by the Bee Gees, who also provided the backing vocals for the single. The track was released on the album Eaten Alive in 1985 and as a single twice - in 1985 and again in 1986....
" gave Ross a UK and Australian No.1 hit.
The Bee Gees released the album E.S.P.
E.S.P. (Bee Gees album)
E.S.P. is the Bee Gees' seventeenth original album. Released in 1987, it was the band's first studio album in six years, and the first album they released under their new contract with Warner Bros...
in 1987, which sold over 3 million copies. It was their first album in six years, and their first for Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
. The single "You Win Again" went to No. 1 in numerous countries, including Britain, but was a disappointment in the US, charting at No. 75. The Bee Gees voiced their frustration over American radio stations not playing their new European hit single, an omission which the group felt led to poor sales of their current album in the States.
On 10 March 1988, younger brother Andy
Andy Gibb
Andy Gibb was an English singer and teen idol, and the youngest brother of the family whose other male siblings formed the Bee Gees: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb.-The early years:...
died, aged 30, as a result of myocarditis
Myocarditis
Myocarditis is inflammation of heart muscle . It resembles a heart attack but coronary arteries are not blocked.Myocarditis is most often due to infection by common viruses, such as parvovirus B19, less commonly non-viral pathogens such as Borrelia burgdorferi or Trypanosoma cruzi, or as a...
, an inflammation of the heart muscle due to a recent viral infection. His brothers acknowledge that Andy's past drug and alcohol use probably made his heart more susceptible to the ailment. Just before Andy's death, it was decided by the group that Andy would join them, which would have made the group a four-piece group. The Bee Gees' following album, One
One (Bee Gees album)
One is the Bee Gees' eighteenth studio album, released in April 1989 . After the European success of their previous album, E.S.P., the Gibb brothers began to work on the One album in early 1988. In March, their brother Andy suddenly died and the Bee Gees took a break until November when they...
(1989), featured a song dedicated to Andy, "Wish You Were Here". The album also contained their first US top ten hit (No. 7) in a decade, "One". After the album's release, they embarked on their first world tour in ten years.
1990s
In 1990, Polydor RecordsPolydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
issued the box set Tales from the Brothers Gibb: A History in Song, which contained all of the group's singles (except 1981's "Living Eyes"), rare B-sides, unreleased tracks, solo material, and live performances. Many songs received new stereo mixes by Bill Inglot
Bill Inglot
Bill Inglot is an American music engineer and producer, best known for remastering older recordings to high quality digital standards.Inglot worked for Rhino Entertainment and other Warner Music Group labels from 1982 to 2007. He was largely responsible for reintroducing historically popular pop...
with some songs making their CD debut. At the time of its release, Tales was one of the first box sets issued in the music business and it was considered an honour for a group to have one. In the UK, Polydor issued a single disc hits collection from Tales called The Very Best of the Bee Gees
The Very Best of the Bee Gees
The Very Best of the Bee Gees is a compilation album of the Bee Gees' most popular tracks aimed at the European market. Missing are the US hits I Started A Joke, Lonely Days, and How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?. It was released in 1990 in conjunction with the Tales from the Brothers Gibb box set...
, which contained their biggest UK hits. The album became one of their best selling albums in that country, eventually being certified Triple Platinum.
Following their next album, High Civilization
High Civilization
High Civilization is the Bee Gees' nineteenth original album, released in 1991. It was their last album recorded for Warner Bros. Records, after a four-year contract. Possibly in reaction to firm resistance from U.S...
(1991), which contained the UK top five hit "Secret Love", the Bee Gees went on a European tour. After the tour, Barry Gibb began to battle a serious back problem, which required surgery. In addition, he also suffered from arthritis
Arthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
, and at one point, it was so severe that it was doubtful that he would be able to play guitar for much longer. Also in the early 1990s, Maurice Gibb finally sought treatment for his alcoholism, which he had battled for many years, with the help of Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous is an international mutual aid movement which says its "primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety." Now claiming more than 2 million members, AA was founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio...
.
In 1993, the group returned to the Polydor label, and released the album Size Isn't Everything
Size Isn't Everything
Size Isn't Everything is the Bee Gees' twentieth studio album. It was released in the UK on September 13, 1993, and in the United States on November 2, 1993.-History:...
, which contained the UK top five hit "For Whom the Bell Tolls". Success still eluded them in the US, however, as the first single released, "Paying the Price of Love
Paying the Price of Love
"Paying the Price of Love" is the first single off the Bee Gees' album, Size Isn't Everything. It was more reminiscent of the Bee Gees disco era than recent singles. With an uptempo hip-hop beat and soaring falsetto vocals, it was too heavy for adult contemporary radio, which is where the Bee Gees...
" only managed to reach No. 74 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
while the parent album stalled at No. 153.
In 1997, they released the album Still Waters, which sold over four million copies, and reached No.2 in the UK (their highest album chart position there since 1979) and No.11 in the US. The album's first single, "Alone
Alone (Bee Gees song)
"Alone" is a song by the Bee Gees. It is the opening track on the multi-platinum Still Waters album released by the Bee Gees in 1997, and the first single from the album. The song is a pop ballad written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb and recorded in 1996. The track was a big hit worldwide,...
", gave them another UK Top 5 hit and a top 30 hit in the US. Still Waters would be the band's most successful US release of their post-RSO era.
On 14 November 1997, the Bee Gees performed a live concert in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
called One Night Only
One Night Only (Bee Gees album)
One Night Only is a live album and DVD by the Bee Gees. It features the group's concert at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in 1997 and includes many of their greatest hits....
. The show included a performance of "Our Love (Don't Throw It All Away)" synchronised with a vocal by their deceased brother Andy and a cameo appearance by Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
singing "Immortality
Immortality (Celine Dion song)
"Immortality" is a single from Céline Dion's album Let's Talk About Love. It was released on June 8, 1998 outside the United States. The Bee Gees can be heard on the background vocals....
". The CD of the performance sold over 5 million copies. The "One Night Only" name grew out of the band's declaration that, due to Barry's health issues, the Las Vegas show was to be the final live performance of their career. After the immensely positive audience response to the Vegas concert, Barry decided to continue despite the pain, and the concert expanded into their last full-blown world tour of "One Night Only" concerts. The tour included playing to 56,000 people at London's Wembley Stadium on 5 September 1998 and concluded in the newly built Olympic Stadium in Sydney, Australia on 27 March 1999 to an audience exceeding 105,000.
In 1998, the group's soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever was incorporated into a stage production
Saturday Night Fever (musical)
This is an article about the stage musical. For the article on the 1977 film, see Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a musical with a book by Nan Knighton and music and lyrics by the Bee Gees.Based on Nik Cohn's 1975 New York Magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night" and...
produced first in the West End and then on Broadway. They wrote three new songs for the adaptation. Also in 1998 the brothers recorded Ellan Vannin
Ellan Vannin (poem)
Ellan Vannin is the title of a poem and song, often referred to as "the alternative Manx national anthem", the words of which were written by Eliza Craven Green in 1854 and later set to music by someone called either J. Townsend or F. H...
for Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
charities. Known as the unofficial national anthem of the Isle of Man, the brothers performed the song during their world tour to reflect their pride in the place of their birth.
The Bee Gees closed the decade with what turned out to be their last full-sized concert, known as BG2K, on 31 December 1999.
2000s
In 2001, the group released what turned out to be their final album of new material as a group, This Is Where I Came InThis Is Where I Came In
This Is Where I Came In is the Bee Gees' twenty-second studio album, released in 2001. It was the final album released by the group before the death of brother Maurice Gibb in 2003, and the only album of all-new material released by them on the Universal Music label This Is Where I Came In is the...
. The album was another success, reaching the Top 10 in the UK (being certified Gold), and the Top 20 in the US. The title track was also a UK Top 20 hit single. The album gave each member of the group a chance to write in his own way, as well as composing songs together. For example, Maurice's compositions and leads are the "Man in the Middle" and "Walking on Air," while Robin contributed "Déjà Vu," "Promise the Earth," and "Embrace," and Barry contributed "Loose Talk Costs Lives," "Technicolour Dreams", and "Voice in the Wilderness". The other songs are collaborative in writing and vocals. They performed many tracks from This Is Where I Came In, plus many of their biggest hits, on the live televised concert series Live by Request
Live by Request
Live by Request is a television show on the A&E Network. On it, notable artists hold concerts where the set list would be determined by viewer phone calls. The show was created based on an idea by Tony Bennett. Bennett starred in its first episode, which ran on Valentine's Day 1997; during that...
, shown on the A&E Network
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
. The last concert of the Bee Gees as a trio was at the Love and Hope Ball in 2002.
Maurice, who had been the musical director of the Bee Gees during their final years as a group, died unexpectedly on 12 January 2003 at the age of 53 from a heart attack, while awaiting emergency surgery to repair a strangulated intestine
Bowel infarction
Bowel infarction or "bowel death" results from a severely restricted blood supply to part of the bowel; this can in turn be due to an uncorrected bowel twist or bowel strangulation, or to occlusion of one of the mesenteric arteries....
. Initially, his surviving brothers announced that they intended to carry on the name "Bee Gees" in his memory. But as time passed they decided to retire the group name, leaving it to represent the three brothers together.
The same week that Maurice died, Robin's solo album Magnet was released. On 23 February 2003, the Bee Gees received the Grammy Legend Award
Grammy Legend Award
The Grammy Legend Award, or the Grammy Living Legend Award, is a special award of merit given to recording artists by the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards...
. Barry and Robin accepted as well as Maurice's son, Adam, in a tearful ceremony.
Although there was talk of a memorial concert featuring both surviving brothers and invited guests, nothing materialised. Barry and Robin continued to work independently, and both released recordings with other artists, occasionally coming together to perform at special events.
After the Bee Gees
In late 2004, Robin embarked on a solo tour of Germany, Russia and Asia. During January 2005, Barry, Robin and several legendary rock artistsOne World Project
One World Project was a musical supergroup which recorded a song for the 2004 Asian Tsunami relief effort. It featured Russell Watson, Boy George, Steve Winwood, Barry Gibb, Brian Wilson, Cliff Richard, Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley and Robin Gibb on vocals with Jeffrey Foskett and Randell Kirsch...
recorded "Grief Never Grows Old," the official tsunami relief record for the Disasters Emergency Committee
Disasters Emergency Committee
The Disasters Emergency Committee is an umbrella group comprising fourteen UK charities. These charities are all associated with disaster related issues such as providing clean water, humanitarian aid and medical care....
. Later that year, Barry reunited with Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
for her top-selling album Guilty Pleasures, released as Guilty Too in the UK as a sequel album to the previous Guilty
Guilty (Barbra Streisand album)
Guilty is an album released by Barbra Streisand in 1980. After the success of the Bee Gees in 1977/1978 there was some time to perform songwriting for other artists and Barbra Streisand asked Barry Gibb to write an album for her...
. Robin continued touring in Europe. Also in 2004, Barry recorded his song "I Cannot Give You My Love" with Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
, which became a UK top 20 hit single.
In February 2006, Barry and Robin reunited on stage for a Miami charity concert to benefit the Diabetes Research Institute. It was their first public performance together since the death of brother Maurice. Barry and Robin also played at the 30th annual Prince's Trust Concert in the UK on 20 May 2006.
In October 2008, Robin performed a couple of songs in London as part of the BBC Electric Proms Saturday Night Fever performance. This involved various other performers and the BBC Concert Orchestra and was screened on the BBC and BBC interactive services.
Return to performing
On 1 September 2009, Barry Gibb, in an interview with Easy Mix radio host Tim Roxborough, mentioned on the subject of future tours that "they will be back"; but in an agreement with Warner/Rhino they would not make an announcement at that time. On 7 September 2009, Robin Gibb disclosed to Jonathan AgnewJonathan Agnew
Jonathan Philip Agnew is an English cricket broadcaster and former professional cricketer. He was born in Macclesfield, Cheshire and educated at Uppingham School. He is nicknamed "Aggers", and, less commonly, "Spiro"....
that he had been in touch with Barry Gibb and that they had agreed that the Bee Gees would re-form and "perform again".
Barry and Robin performed on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
on 31 October 2009 and appeared on ABC-TV
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's Dancing with the Stars on 17 November 2009.
On 15 March 2010, Barry and Robin inducted the Swedish group ABBA
ABBA
ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
. On 26 May 2010, the two made a surprise appearance on the ninth season finale of American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
.
In October 2010, Robin Gibb was interviewed by the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, and confirmed that the story of the Bee Gees is to be made into a Hollywood movie by Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
. The Oscar-winning director believes the group’s journey from unknowns in Manchester to worldwide fame will prove box-office gold. Robin told the Daily Mail: "The movie is going to be done by some very important people. It will be our life story. Barry and I will be involved in the technical side". One of the challenges for Spielberg will be replicating the brothers’ distinctive three-part harmonies and Barry’s falsetto voice. Robin said: "I’d like our original recordings to be used because it’s very hard to emulate them." On 20 November 2011 it was announced that Robin Gibb, at 61 years old, was diagnosed with liver cancer, a condition he became aware of several months earlier. He had become noticeably thinner in previous months and had to cancel several appearances due to issues with severe abdominal pain.
Songwriting success
The Bee Gees have sold in excess of 220 million records worldwide. At one point in 1978, the Gibb brothers were responsible for writing and/or performing 9 of the songs in the Billboard Hot 100. In all, the Gibbs placed 13 singles onto the Hot 100 in 1978, with 12 making the Top 40.At least 2,500 artists have recorded their songs. Their most popular composition is "How Deep Is Your Love", with 400 versions by other artists in existence. Among the artists who have covered their songs are Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, Al Green
Al Green
Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...
, Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, Lulu
Lulu (singer)
Lulu Kennedy-Cairns, OBE , best known by her stage name Lulu, is a Scottish singer, actress, and television personality who has been successful in the entertainment business from the 1960s through to the present day...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
, Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...
, John Frusciante
John Frusciante
John Anthony Frusciante is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, record and film producer. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he had been for a number of years and recorded five studio albums...
(who has covered "How Deep Is Your Love" during Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
concerts), Feist, Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the...
, Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...
, Take That
Take That
Take That are a British five-piece vocal pop group comprising Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Barlow acts as the lead singer and primary songwriter...
, Robert Smith
Robert Smith (musician)
Robert James Smith is an English musician. He is the lead singer, guitar player and principal songwriter of the rock band The Cure, and its only constant member since its founding in 1976...
, Ardijah
Ardijah
-History:Ardijah formed in 1979 and spent the early part of the Eighties playing the Auckland Pub and Club scene honing their skills as a covers band. They released their first single in 1986, Give Me Your Number which was followed in 1987 with Your Love Is Blind...
, Jinusean
Jinusean
Jinusean is a well-known Korean hip hop duo from YG Family. The duo is made up by Jin-woo Kim and Noh Seung-hwan .-History:In 1994, Jinu debuted in Korea as a solo artist with the popular song: "I Was the Captain"...
, Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
, The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips are an American alternative rock band, formed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1983.Melodically, their sound contains lush, multi-layered, psychedelic rock arrangements, but lyrically their compositions show elements of space rock, including unusual song and album titles—such as "What...
and Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme...
. The band's music has also been sampled by dozens of hip hop artists.
Songs written by the Gibbs, but largely better known through versions by other artists, include:
- "ImmortalityImmortality (Celine Dion song)"Immortality" is a single from Céline Dion's album Let's Talk About Love. It was released on June 8, 1998 outside the United States. The Bee Gees can be heard on the background vocals....
" by Celine DionCeline DionCéline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record... - "If I Can't Have YouIf I Can't Have You"If I Can't Have You" is a song written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees. It was most famously recorded by Yvonne Elliman for the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.-Background:...
" by Yvonne EllimanYvonne EllimanYvonne Marianne Elliman is an American singer who performed for four years in the first cast of Jesus Christ Superstar... - "Chain ReactionChain Reaction (song)"Chain Reaction" is a melodic Pop song, sung by Diana Ross, written by the Bee Gees, who also provided the backing vocals for the single. The track was released on the album Eaten Alive in 1985 and as a single twice - in 1985 and again in 1986....
" by Diana RossDiana RossDiana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway... - "Emotion" by Samantha SangSamantha SangSamantha Sang is a stage name of Australian singer, Cheryl Lau Sang, from Melbourne, who had an earlier career as Cheryl Gray. She had a number eight hit in Australia with "You Made Me What I Am" in 1967. By 1969, she had relocated to United Kingdom and worked with Bee Gees but then returned...
and by Destiny's ChildDestiny's ChildDestiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme... - "Come on OverCome on Over (Olivia Newton-John album)Come On Over is an album by Olivia Newton-John, released in 1976. It peaked at #2 on the Country album charts, and #13 on the all-genre chart....
" by Olivia Newton-JohnOlivia Newton-JohnOlivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA... - "Warm RideWarm Ride"Warm Ride" was a song written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees during the 1977 Saturday Night Fever sessions in France. The Bee Gees original, if unfinished, recording from 1978 was mixed and included on a reissue of the Bee Gees Greatest album in 2007.The song sounded like the...
" by Graham BonnetGraham BonnetGraham Bonnet is an English rock vocalist, and songwriter. He has recorded and performed as a solo artist, and as a member of several hard rock and heavy metal bands including Rainbow, the Michael Schenker Group, Alcatrazz, and Impellitteri.-Early days:Bonnet was born in Skegness in 1947...
and by Rare EarthRare Earth (band)Rare Earth is an American rock band affiliated with Motown's Rare Earth record label , who prospered in 1970-1972. Although not the first white band signed to Motown, Rare Earth was the first big hit-making act signed by Motown that consisted only of white members... - "Guilty" and "Woman in LoveWoman in Love"Woman in Love" is a popular song performed by Barbra Streisand and taken from her 1980 album, Guilty. The song was written by Barry and Robin Gibb of The Bee Gees....
" by Barbra StreisandBarbra StreisandBarbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,... - "HeartbreakerHeartbreaker (Dionne Warwick song)"Heartbreaker" is a 1982 single released by American pop and soul singer Dionne Warwick. The song was written by The Bee Gees' Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb, with Barry Gibb's distinctive backing vocal being heard on the chorus...
" & "All the Love in the WorldAll the Love in the World"All the Love in the World" was a 1982 single by Dionne Warwick. The song was written by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb, and was featured on Warwick's hit album Heartbreaker, produced by Barry Gibb, Karl Richardson, and Albhy Galuten....
" by Dionne WarwickDionne WarwickDionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health.... - "Islands in the StreamIslands in the Stream"Islands in the Stream" is the title of a song written by the Bee Gees and sung by American country music artists Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. It was released in August 1983 as the first single from Rogers' album Eyes That See in the Dark and the second pop number-one for both Rogers and Parton...
" by Kenny RogersKenny RogersKenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
and Dolly PartonDolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk... - "GreaseGrease (song)"Grease" is the title song for the musical motion picture Grease, which was based on the stage play of the same name. The song was sung by Frankie Valli and was featured twice on the film's soundtrack, as the first track and reprised as the final track. It became a No. 1 single in the United States...
" by Frankie ValliFrankie ValliFrankie Valli is an American musician, most famous as frontman of The Four Seasons. He is well-known for his unusually powerful falsetto singing voice... - "Sacred Trust" by One True VoiceOne True VoiceOne True Voice were a British boyband created on the ITV television series Popstars: The Rivals, which also produced girl group Girls Aloud. The band was created by the public, who voted for their favourite hopefuls each week...
- "Hold On to My Love" by Jimmy RuffinJimmy RuffinJimmy Ruffin is an American soul singer, and elder brother of the late David Ruffin of The Temptations. He had several hit records between the 1960s and 1980s, the most successful being "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted."-Life:...
- "Only One WomanOnly One Woman"Only One Woman" is a rock ballad written by Barry ,Robin and Maurice Gibb which became a hit by The Marbles in 1968.This song was a non-album single, only buy at vinyl, but later this song was also included on their self-titled album The Marbles.-Personnel:...
" by The Marbles - "Morning of My Life" by Abi and Esther Ofarim
- "Rest Your Love on Me" by Conway TwittyConway TwittyConway Twitty , born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was an American country music artist. He also had success in early rock and roll, R&B, and pop music. He held the record for the most number one singles of any act with 55 No. 1 Billboard country hits until George Strait broke the record in 2006...
- "Buried Treasure" by Kenny Rogers (backing vocals The Gatlin BrothersLarry GatlinLarry Wayne Gatlin is an American country music singer/songwriter. He is perhaps best known for teaming up with his brothers Steve and Rudy in the late 1970s, becoming one of country music's most successful acts of the 1970s and 1980s. Gatlin has had a total of 33 Top 40 singles...
) - "Ain't Nothing Gonna Keep Me From You" by Teri DeSarioTeri DeSarioTeri DeSario is a singer/songwriter from Miami, Florida. DeSario worked within several music genres out of high school. She was vocalist, played recorder and harp from 1970 - 1977 with a Medieval and Renaissance music group, the Early Music Consort, headed by scholar and Pro Musica member Arnold...
- "I Will Be There" by Tina TurnerTina TurnerTina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
The Bee Gees' major non-UK/US breathrough hit "Spicks and Specks
Spicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
" – a 1966 chart success in Australia (top five) and New Zealand (number one), and in Holland (top five) in 1967 — was coverd by British rock-pop band Status Quo for their 1968 debut album. And Al Green's
Al Green
Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...
1972 non-single cover of the Bee Gees' massive 1971 North American number one "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" enjoys a certainly critical and popular following, particularly in the UK.
Awards and recognition
Inductions
- 1979 Hollywood Walk of Fame
- 1994 Songwriters Hall of Fame
- 1995 Florida's Artists Hall of Fame
- 1997 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
- 1997 ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Hall of Fame
- 2001 Vocal Group Hall of Fame
- 2004 Dance Music Hall of Fame
- 2005 London's Walk of Fame
Grammy Awards
- 1978 Best Pop Vocal Performance By A Group – "How Deep Is Your LoveHow Deep Is Your Love"How Deep Is Your Love" is a pop song recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 and released as a single in September. Originally intended for Yvonne Elliman, it was ultimately used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever. It was a number three hit in the United Kingdom and Australia...
" - 1979 Best Pop Vocal Performance By A Duo Or Group – "Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever (soundtrack)Original Vinyl ReleaseSide A:#"Stayin' Alive" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:45#"How Deep Is Your Love" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:05...
" - 1979 Best Arrangement Of Voices – "Stayin' Alive"
- 1979 Album Of The Year – "Saturday Night Fever"
- 1979 Producer Of The YearGrammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-ClassicalThe Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical has been awarded since 1975. The award had several minor name changes:*from 1975 to 1977, the award was known as Best Producer of the Year...
– "Saturday Night Fever" - 1981 Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal – "Guilty" (Barry Gibb with Barbra Streisand)
- 2000 Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2003 Legend AwardGrammy Legend AwardThe Grammy Legend Award, or the Grammy Living Legend Award, is a special award of merit given to recording artists by the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards...
- 2004 Hall Of Fame Award – "Saturday Night Fever"
American Music Awards
- 1979 Favorite Pop / Rock Band, Duo Or Group
- 1979 Favorite Soul / R&B Album – "Saturday Night Fever"
- 1980 Favorite Pop / Rock Band, Duo Or Group
- 1980 Favorite Pop / Rock Album – "Spirits Having Flown"
- 1997 International Artist Award
BMI Awards
- On 15 May 2007, the Bee Gees were named BMI IconsBroadcast Music IncorporatedBroadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
at the 55th annual BMI Pop Awards. Collectively, Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb have earned 109 BMI Pop, Country and Latin Awards.
Commemorative stamps
In October 1999 the Isle of Man Post Office unveiled a set of 6 stamps honouring their native sons' music. The official launch took place at the London Palladium where the stage show of Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever (musical)
This is an article about the stage musical. For the article on the 1977 film, see Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a musical with a book by Nan Knighton and music and lyrics by the Bee Gees.Based on Nik Cohn's 1975 New York Magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night" and...
was playing. A similar launch was held in New York shortly after to coincide with the show opening across the Atlantic. The songs depicted on the stamps are "Massachusetts", "Words", "I've Gotta Get A Message To You", "Night Fever", "Stayin' Alive" and "Immortality".
Civic honours
In 1978, following the success of Saturday Night Fever, and the single "Night Fever" in particular, Reubin Askew, the Governor of the US state of Florida, named the Bee Gees honorary citizens of the state, since they resided in Miami at the time.All three brothers (including Maurice, posthumously) were appointed Commanders in the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, one level underneath knighthood, in December 2001 with the ceremony taking place on 27 May 2004.
On 10 July 2009, the Isle of Man's capital bestowed the Freedom of the Borough of Douglas
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
honour on Barry and Robin, as well as posthumously on Maurice. On 20 November 2009, Douglas Borough Council released a limited edition commemorative DVD to mark their naming as Freemen of the Borough.
Studio albums
| Year | Title | US Chart Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs is the Bee Gees' debut LP , released under the artist title "Barry Gibb & the Bee Gee's [sic]"... |
— | — |
| 1966 | Spicks and Specks Spicks and Specks (album) Spicks and Specks is the Bee Gees' second album. It was released in Australia in 1966 as Monday's Rain with "Spicks and Specks" released as the album's first single. The album was quickly re-released as Spicks and Specks to capitalize on the success of the single... |
— | — |
| 1967 | Bee Gees 1st | 7 | 8 |
| 1968 | Horizontal Horizontal (album) Horizontal is the Bee Gees' fourth studio album, and second to seek an international release. The LP was released in early 1968, and included the international hit singles "Massachusetts" and "World".... |
12 | 16 |
| 1968 | Idea Idea (album) Idea is the Bee Gees' fifth studio album, and their third international release on the ATCO label in the US and Polydor in the UK. Released in August, 1968, the album sold over a million copies worldwide. This album features "Such a Shame", the only Bee Gees song where lead vocals aren't sung by a... |
17 | 4 |
| 1969 | Odessa Odessa (album) Odessa is the sixth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1969. It was the group's fourth album released internationally, and their first released as a double LP. Odessa is noted in Robert Dimery's book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.... |
20 | 10 |
| 1970 | Cucumber Castle Cucumber Castle Cucumber Castle is the Bee Gees' seventh album, released in 1970 and produced by Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, and Robert Stigwood. It consists of songs from their television special of the same name, which was named after a song on their 1967 album Bee Gees' 1st... |
94 | 57 |
| 1970 | 2 Years On 2 Years On 2 Years On is the Bee Gees' eighth album released in December 1970. The album reached #32 on the U.S. charts, and sold 375,000 copies worldwide... |
32 | — |
| 1971 | Trafalgar Trafalgar (album) Trafalgar is the Bee Gees' ninth album, released in September 1971. The album was a moderate hit in the United States, and peaked at #34. The lead single "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" was the first Bee Gees' #1 single in the United States... |
34 | — |
| 1972 | To Whom It May Concern To Whom It May Concern (Bee Gees album) To Whom It May Concern is the Bee Gees' tenth studio album, released in October 1972. It was the follow-up of their American successful LP Trafalgar, and continued its melancholic and personal sound. The album was recognised as "a farewell to the old Bee Gees"... |
35 | — |
| 1973 | Life in a Tin Can Life in a Tin Can Life in a Tin Can is the Bee Gees' eleventh studio album, released in January 1973. The Bee Gees moved their base of operations from England, UK to Los Angeles, California to record Life in a Tin Can. However, it was unable to prevent a commercial decline with the album criticized for a lack of... |
68 | — |
| 1974 | Mr. Natural | 178 | — |
| 1975 | Main Course Main course A main dish is the featured or primary dish in a meal consisting of several courses. It usually follows the entrée course, and the salad course. In North American usage it may in fact be called the "entree".... |
14 | — |
| 1976 | Children of the World Children of the World Children of the World is the Bee Gees' fourteenth album, released in September 1976. The first single, "You Should Be Dancing", went to number one in the US and Canada, and was a top ten hit in numerous other territories. The album has sold over 2.5 million copies.Because their manager Robert... |
8 | — |
| 1979 | Spirits Having Flown Spirits Having Flown Spirits Having Flown is the Bee Gees' fifteenth original album, released in 1979. It was the group's first album after their collaboration on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The album's first three tracks were released as singles which all went to no.1 in the US... |
1 | 1 |
| 1981 | Living Eyes | 41 | 73 |
| 1987 | E.S.P. E.S.P. (Bee Gees album) E.S.P. is the Bee Gees' seventeenth original album. Released in 1987, it was the band's first studio album in six years, and the first album they released under their new contract with Warner Bros... |
96 | 5 |
| 1989 | One One (Bee Gees album) One is the Bee Gees' eighteenth studio album, released in April 1989 . After the European success of their previous album, E.S.P., the Gibb brothers began to work on the One album in early 1988. In March, their brother Andy suddenly died and the Bee Gees took a break until November when they... |
68 | 29 |
| 1991 | High Civilization High Civilization High Civilization is the Bee Gees' nineteenth original album, released in 1991. It was their last album recorded for Warner Bros. Records, after a four-year contract. Possibly in reaction to firm resistance from U.S... |
— | 24 |
| 1993 | Size Isn't Everything Size Isn't Everything Size Isn't Everything is the Bee Gees' twentieth studio album. It was released in the UK on September 13, 1993, and in the United States on November 2, 1993.-History:... |
153 | 23 |
| 1997 | Still Waters | 11 | 2 |
| 2001 | This Is Where I Came In This Is Where I Came In This Is Where I Came In is the Bee Gees' twenty-second studio album, released in 2001. It was the final album released by the group before the death of brother Maurice Gibb in 2003, and the only album of all-new material released by them on the Universal Music label This Is Where I Came In is the... |
16 | 6 |
Live albums
| Year | Title | US Chart Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live is the sixteenth album by the Bee Gees. It was released in May 1977 . It reached #8 in the USA, #8 in Australia, #1 in New Zealand and #2 in Spain, and sold 4.6 million copies worldwide.... |
8 | — |
| 1998 | One Night Only One Night Only (Bee Gees album) One Night Only is a live album and DVD by the Bee Gees. It features the group's concert at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in 1997 and includes many of their greatest hits.... |
72 | 4 |
Soundtrack releases
| Year | Title | US Chart Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Saturday Night Fever Saturday Night Fever (soundtrack) Original Vinyl ReleaseSide A:#"Stayin' Alive" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:45#"How Deep Is Your Love" performed by Bee Gees, produced by Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson – 4:05... |
1 | 1 |
| 1978 | Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band | 5 | 38 |
| 1983 | Staying Alive | 6 | 14 |
Catalogue reissue
The Gibbs recently gained ownership rights to their back catalogue, and set up a new distribution arrangement with Warner/Rhino/Reprise Records where they have since reissued digitally remastered versions of Saturday Night Fever, their later Bee Gees Greatest album, and a new boxed set: The Studio Albums: 1967–1968.Additionally, more recent titles such as Still Waters and This Is Where I Came In
This Is Where I Came In
This Is Where I Came In is the Bee Gees' twenty-second studio album, released in 2001. It was the final album released by the group before the death of brother Maurice Gibb in 2003, and the only album of all-new material released by them on the Universal Music label This Is Where I Came In is the...
were among the first batch of re-releases. The band's three Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
releases, E. S. P., One and High Civilisation were also made available on iTunes for the first time since the albums went out of print in North America in the mid-90s.
According to Robin Gibb's website, three more reissues were planned for the 2008 holiday season: Best of Bee Gees, Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2
Best of Bee Gees Volume 2 is a compilation album of hits by the Bee Gees. The album, briefly revived on CD in the late 1980s, went out of print, but was reissued by Rhino in November 2008.-Track listing:...
and Love Songs
Love Songs (Bee Gees album)
Love Songs was the third Bee Gees compilation album in four years, though the first to cover a specific musical style. A proposed album of love songs was in the works around 1995 when the Bee Gees recorded old hits like "Heartbreaker" and "Emotion" from the late '90s, but that project was soon...
. The double album Odessa
Odessa (album)
Odessa is the sixth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1969. It was the group's fourth album released internationally, and their first released as a double LP. Odessa is noted in Robert Dimery's book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die....
was released on 13 January 2009 in a special 3-disc deluxe edition complete with the original red velvet cover with remastered stereo and mono versions of the album as well as alternate versions and unreleased tracks.
Since the remastered release of Odessa, Rhino has stopped reissuing original Bee Gees albums and there has not been any announcement as to when the remaining albums will be remastered.
Limited edition
was recorded in 1997 as a 1,000 quantity limited edition single for Isle of ManIsle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
charities. The song was featured in the Bee Gees World Tour and on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's "An Evening With ..." but to date has not been released generally. The single was subsequently also available as part of the 1999 Bee Gees Stamp issue.
50th anniversary collections
In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the Bee Gees (when they started calling themselves 'Bee Gees' in 1959), Rhino Records have released two new collections. MythologyMythology (Bee Gees album)
Mythology is a box set compilation of recordings by the Gibb Brothers, mostly performed as The Bee Gees, arranged in a four disc set each highlighting each Gibb brother. Barry and Robin chose their own songs , with Maurice's songs selected by his widow Yvonne and Andy's songs selected by his...
is a four-disc collection highlighting each brother, including Andy, with tracks personally selected by Barry, Robin, Maurice's wife Yvonne (with his children Adam and Samantha), and Andy's daughter Peta. Maurice's disc contains two unreleased tracks called "Angel Of Mercy" and "The Bridge". Andy's disc contains the unreleased track "Arrow Through The Heart". Mythology also features a scrapbook of family photos, many never-before published, along with tributes from artists such as George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
and the band's longtime manager Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
.
The second collection, The Ultimate Bee Gees
The Ultimate Bee Gees
The Ultimate Bee Gees is a compilation album released to coincide with the 50'th anniversary of the Bee Gees. Though the group did not start recording until 1963 on Festival Records in Australia, they began calling themselves the "Bee Gees" in 1959 after several name changes such as "Wee Johnny...
is a more modest two-disc, 40-track collection highlighting their biggest hits which includes a bonus DVD of unreleased videos, previously unreleased television appearances, live performances, and promo videos. Each disc is themed with the first disc being the more upbeat songs called 'A Night Out' and the second disc being more ballad focused called 'A Night In'.
Band instrumentalists
Barry Gibb played rhythm guitar.During the early 1970s, Robin Gibb played piano and violin occasionally, but most of the time he only sang. Although he keeps on playing strings and keyboards privately, he has not played any instrument on stage since mid-'70s.
Maurice Gibb played bass guitar, rhythm and lead guitar, piano, organ, harpsichord, electric piano, mellotron, and electronic keyboards, synthesisers and drum tracks. From 1966 to 1972 he played multiple instruments on many records. During the late 1970s he played mainly bass guitar. From about 1986 onward he usually played keyboards and guitars. Maurice was credited by the brothers as being the most technologically savvy member of the band, and had built his own home studio. The bootleg CD ESP Demos allegedly includes rough versions of tracks from the album of the same name that were recorded at that studio.
These musicians were considered members of the band:
- Colin PetersenColin PetersenColin Petersen is a former child actor and rock drummer. He played as a member of the Bee Gees on their first five albums.-Biography:Petersen began his acting career at the age of seven...
– drums 1967–69 - Vince MelouneyVince MelouneyVince Melouney was a founding member of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, playing with the band as lead guitarist from 1963 to 1965, which was followed by a short-lived duo with fellow Aztec Tony Barber, called Vince & Tony's Two.In 1967, after moving to the UK, he was invited to join the Bee Gees...
– lead guitar 1967–68 - Geoff Bridgford – drums 1969–72
- Alan KendallAlan KendallAlan Kendall is an English musician and was the lead guitarist for the popular band the Bee Gees, before they retired the band name due to the death of Maurice Gibb in 2003...
– lead guitar 1971–80, 87–01 - Dennis Bryon – drums 1974–80
- Blue WeaverBlue WeaverBlue Weaver is a British keyboard player, session musician, songwriter and record producer.-Biography:...
– keyboards 1975–80
Filmography
- 1969: Cucumber CastleCucumber Castle (film)Cucumber Castle is a British comedy film starring The Bee Gees that aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1970.-Overview:The plot revolves around two heirs, Prince Frederick and his brother Prince Marmaduke , and their dying father...
- 1978: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...
- 1979: The Bee Gees SpecialThe Bee Gees SpecialThe Bee Gees Special was a 90-minute television special broadcasted by NBC on November 15, 1979. The program featured footage from the Bee Gees' July 10, 1979 concert in Oakland, California captured by a film crew that accompanied them during their 1979 Spirits Having Flown Tour...
- 1990: One For All TourOne For All TourOne For All Tour is a concert video from The Bee Gees recorded live at the National Tennis Center in Melbourne, Australia in November 1989. Melbourne was the final stop on their 1989 One For All World Tour, which included the United States, the first time The Bee Gees played live there since their...
- 1997: Keppel Road
- 1998: One Night Only
- 2001: This Is Where I Came In
- 2002: Live By Request
- 2010: In Our Own TimeIn Our Own TimeIn Our Own Time is a biography of the rock group The Bee Gees. The story follows the Brothers Gibb, Barry, Robin and Maurice from their roots in Manchester, England through their emmigration to Australia in 1958 to their international stardom in 1967, right up to the present, with new interviews...
External links
- Bee Gees – official website
- Barry Gibb – official website
- Robin Gibb – official website
- Bee Gees at Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
- Bee Gees' Vocal Group Hall of Fame webpage
- Bee Gees at bmi.com