The Brothers Gibb – Part 2

One of my favorite things about Bee Gees is their endless creativity. Not only did the Gibb brothers release over 20 studio albums during their half-century, worldwide reign but they were also master songwriters and wrote all their own material. They even wrote songs for other artists including Otis Redding, Jimmy Ruffin, Frankie Valli, Barbara Streisand, Dionne Warwick, Céline Dion, Andy Gibb, Diana Ross, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly Parton. Bee Gees didn’t care about race, creed, or genre- the brothers followed their shared love of music wherever it led them- and these white boys had soul.

By the mid-‘70s, Bee Gees had begun experimenting with funkier and more urban sounds. Barry had found his falsetto and when the group was asked to contribute new music to Saturday Night Fever- well, the rest is disco history. Bee Gees’ lyrics from this period seem to reflect a growing interest in navigating and surviving the stresses of big city life. On “Subway”- a song about getting lucky during the morning commute- Barry’s falsetto challenges a saxophone to a dual- and wins. Sure, they may have sung a good game about dancing the night away in NYC, but by the height of the disco era the brothers Gibb had already relocated to sunny Florida. Here are some (more) of my favorite Bee Gees songs. Enjoy!

01. Bee Gees – “Marley Purt Drive” (1969)
02. Bee Gees – “Holiday” (1967)
03. Bee Gees – “How to Fall in Love, Pt. 1” (1993)
04. Bee Gees – “Islands in the Stream (Live)” (1997)
05. Bee Gees – “Run to Me” (1972)
06. Bee Gees – “Spicks and Specks (Live)” (1990)
07. Bee Gees – “Heartbreaker (Live)” (1997)
08. Bee Gees – “Subway” (1975)
09. Bee Gees – “Stayin’ Alive” (1977)
10. Bee Gees – “Tragedy” (1979)

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...