RFI: Early Bee Gees

Unfortunately I'm not familiar with it, maybe some other ILxers can confirm or deny it's excellence.

all great songs

The way in which the music, literally, dies, leaving Barry Gibb humming, as though on his way to the scaffold of "Gotta Get A Message To You." And then he starts singing, again, alone but for his own echo:

"Don't ask me why," he addresses us, before turning back to the Other: "but time has passed us by."

"Someone else moved in from far away"

The charts of '68/69. Apocalyptic. Eloise, Bad Moon Rising, Man Of The World, Those Were The Days, All Along The Watchtower, Grapevine...it really seemed like everything was about to end.

The gluten might be disguised strychnine.

"Odessa", though ... an astonishing record. I was misinformed about that era of the Bee Gees, definitely, and I can certainly see how the structure might have influenced something like "Tiger Bay". I wonder how the title track would have been regarded as they'd released it as a single - might have totally altered all instant perceptions of the Gibb brothers forever, although in what direction I honestly can't say. 1968/69, though ... the moment of "where next?" ("The British Opera" = the sweeping landscapes of Betjeman's "Beside The Seaside", ultimately dissolving into the snow scenes which I can only trace instantly to his 1977 "Queen's Realm" documentary but which were nevertheless filmed in the late 60s)

"I got 15 kids and a family on the skids / I'm gonna go for a country drive!"

Inspired by what RC had to say about Odessa on RC's blog this week, I'm discussing it in depth on my blog this weekend (probably will be posting it up on Monday rather than Sunday; things are hectic...).

*weirder, in any event

if you don't believe me, listen to "harry braff"

"I Started A Joke," "Massachusetts," "I just Gotta Get A Message to You," "Lonely Days"
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, October 12, 2002 5:42 PM (6 years ago) Bookmark

OTM^^^^^^

I have only just discovered Odessa. I don't know how I missed it all these years. I see this thread, start listening to it and then's it's mentioned to-day on Counterpoint. Ain't that always the way?

can't get over how much of this stuff is genius.

I think this is noted elsewhere, but anyone who's looking for more like early Bee Gees should track down the two Tin Tin albums, which sound as much like the Bee Gees as anyone could ever ask (and have Bee Gee involvement). They're very good too. Not on CD, so find a bootleg or download.

did anyone mention this album on here?

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1055/640683407_fab5a0a221.jpg?v=0

cuz, you know, it's good.

i like tin tin too! those records are cool.

Yeah! And you what I noticed by thumbing through the search-engine? No Andy Gibb thread! That guy had some good singles, too. And good hair, as my wife reminds me.

I just Gotta Get A Message to You came on in the bottleshop last night. <3 that song!

ok actual title is I've Gotta Get A Message To You

Been highly into this VVVVVVVVV of late

http://i31.tinypic.com/28c0k0n.jpg

<3

I love side 2 of Odessa, the rest has that over-vibrato that's really irritating!"

Oh, and is "Marley Purt Drive" totally a 'country style' rendition of "Let it be"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwoGxErKHpg

<3<3<3

whoah Robin's Reign!! I had neglected to hunt this down up til now... love the drum machine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbkbGF27JyY

<3 they cleaned up pretty well

scott seward, do you have a decent copy of that robin gibb LP on mp3? all i can find are shitty tinny-sounding MP3s. ok, i grant that the LP is probably a bit tinny-sounding.

what's up with the same drum machine pattern--even at the same tempo!--on every track on "robin's reign"?

also, the grasp of american geography in "massachusetts" is LOL.

<3

also, the grasp of american geography in "massachusetts" is LOL.

Why, b/c he says he tried to hitch a ride to San Francisco? I gues it may be hard to do, but it's not exactly like he's looking for the basement of the Alamo...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bj9Ns_mAyh8

The way in which the music, literally, dies, leaving Barry Gibb humming, as though on his way to the scaffold of "Gotta Get A Message To You." And then he starts singing, again, alone but for his own echo:

At the end of "Message" it sounds like Robyn was too choked up to continue for the very last round after the modulation... Barry notices and sings it for him so that they could nail it within 1 take, and Robyn quietly says "thank you" as the song fades out. Am I hearing this right?

I mean Robin. lul

haha yeah there is something squirrelly going on in the fade but I'm not sure what the spoken asides say. someone (Robin?) tries to hit the high harmony on the next to last "hold on" and misses it

"Saved By The Bell" was apparently the first major pop hit to feature a drum machine, way back in 1969