NY Post- Bee Gees Still Staying Alive
JACKSON739
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NO tallying of rock 'n' roll royalty is complete without the Bee Gees, who have
built a major musical dynasty.It's unlikely that anyone will ever equal their
1977 feat of having five songs - "Staying Alive," "Night Fever," "Shadow
Dancing," "How Deep Is Our Love" and "Emotion" - chart in the top 10
simultaneously. During their 35-year career, these Rock and Roll Hall of Famers
have sold an amazing 110 million albums. They've been nominated for 16 Grammys
- and won seven - and turned out six consecutive No. 1 hits in one stretch.
Their secret? It's simple: incredible harmonies hitched to a gift for writing
the perfect pop song.
It all started in Australia in 1955, when the three Gibb brothers - Barry, now
53, and the twins, Robin and Maurice, 51, broke a phonograph record they were
to lip-synch to in a local show and had to perform the tune live. They did,
wowed a radio deejay and the rest is history.
While the glory days for many Bee Gees fans was the disco-driven '70s, when
America was in the grip of "Saturday Night Fever," the Brothers Gibb have been
unrelenting, writing pop songs, producing, recording and performing.
Every show on their 1999 world tour was sold out. They have had No. 1 songs in
four successive decades and they will attempt to continue their run with
Tuesday's release of "This Is Where I Came In."
Robin Gibb told The Post, "The idea of the album was for us to get back to our
musical roots. Like 'Bee Gees 1st' [1967], this record has a live feel; a human
feel."
In a rare interview, Robin spoke with The Post about the Bee Gees' history and
musical method, but he was reluctant to speak about himself. When pressed, he
did reveal in a series of quick questions that he prefers to vacation at the
sea rather than the mountains, he'd take a classic Bentley over a new Ferrari
and he'd watch the news instead of the Simpsons. No city penthouses for this
Gibb bro. He prefers to live in the country, and would choose a dog over a cat
as a pet. Oh, yeah. If he comes calling, offer the lad a cup of hot tea.
Post: "This is Where I Came In" sounds as if you and your brothers were trying
give the album a retro element. Was that the concept?
Robin Gibb: We really felt less would be more - less production, less dubbing -
and that would make it more accessible. Retro? No, the music is very now.
Post: Did your back-to-basics method bring you and your brothers closer, like
in the old days, when you'd sit around the kitchen table, playing guitar and
singing?
Gibb: I hope it sounds that way, but the album wasn't recorded that way.
Post: How was it recorded?
Gibb: We each went in our own directions, recorded in separate studios in
different countries - as individuals - and then we got together to record five
of the songs together. What we were after was the live "kitchen table" feel and
individual expression. You know, this is the way The Beatles worked in their
early days.
Post: It's hard to be an individual in a band, especially being brothers. What
are your individual traits?
Gibb: I am more rebellious. For instance, in songs, I like to change things
around a lot more. I kick a song and then shake it to see what comes out. I
don't stick to any formulas. Not that Barry and Maurice write by formula, but
I'm more likely to try something from left field.
Post: What kind of guys are your brothers? Can they take criticism?
Gibb: Yes, but you've got to remember, as writers, we all have a certain amount
of ego. If they don't agree with me, or there is strong resistance to an idea,
I've got to honor that.
Post: The first time many in America heard the Bee Gees music was "The New York
Mining Disaster 1941." It's such a sad song, but there was no mining disaster
here in New York in 1941.
Gibb: It's a sad song, based on a sad story. The year before we wrote that song
(1966), there was a disaster in the mining town of Aberfan, Wales, where 150
school children were killed. It was a coal town and the school was built at the
base of a coal pit, and was buried when one of the walls of the pit slid into
it.
Post: So why move the disaster to New York in 1941?
Gibb: We wanted a tribute song to this disaster, but we didn't feel it was
right to do a song directly about the event. It was better to get some distance
with a fictitious story. It was abstract in its connection with Aberfan, but it
had the proper mood. You know, we never mention New York in the actual lyrics.
Post: That's the song that made people start comparing you guys with The
Beatles.
Gibb: The reason for that was because it created images in your mind, like
Beatles music did. Creating a mental picture is something artists do less and
less these days, but we grew up in the era of song, rather than grooves.
Post: Do you consider that a problem with contemporary music?
Gibb: No doubt about it. That's why music has that manufactured sound; why
today's music is so disposable. The words are just a means to an end - that is,
they are there just to wrap around the groove.
Post: Would you speculate for a moment if the Bee Gees would have made it in
today's music climate?
Gibb: I can't answer that. I've always believed in what we do, but I've never
considered what would have happened if we were starting now. I can tell you, I
have spoken with big music publishing executives and I've asked if they would
sign a talented 15-year-old boy with a guitar who walks into their office and
says, "I sing and write all of my own songs." I was given a categorical "no."
They said that kind of act doesn't suit the times. That means trend is more
important than talent. That's very sad.
Sherry
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