Barry Gibb
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Barry Gibb CBE |
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Barry Gibb in 1973
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Background information | |
Birth name | Barry Alan Crompton Gibb[1][2] |
Also known as | Johnny Hayes |
Born | 1 September 1946 Douglas, Isle of Man |
Origin | Manchester, Lancashire, England |
Genres | Rock, psychedelic rock,[3] baroque pop,[4] disco,[5] country |
Occupations | Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer |
Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
Years active | 1955–present |
Labels | Polydor, Atco, MCA |
Associated acts | The Rattlesnakes, Bee Gees |
Website | barrygibb.com |
Notable instruments | |
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Born in Isle of Man,[6] and raised in Manchester where he became involved in the skiffle craze, forming his first band, the Rattlesnakes, which evolved into the Bee Gees in 1960 when they moved to Redcliffe, Queensland, Australia.[7] They returned to England where they achieved worldwide fame. He was also known for his high-pitched falsetto singing voice. Gibb shares the record with John Lennon and Sir Paul McCartney for consecutive Billboard Hot 100 number ones as a writer with six. Guinness World Records lists Gibb as the second most successful songwriter in history behind Sir Paul McCartney.[8]
Gibb's career has spanned over fifty years. In 1994, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame with his brothers. In 1997, as a member of the Bee Gees, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. Barry is a fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors.[9]
Contents
Biography
1946–54: Early years
Further information: Hugh Gibb
Gibb was born in Jane Crookall Maternity Home at Douglas, Isle of Man to Hugh, an English drummer of Scottish descent, and Barbara Gibb (née Pass) of Irish and Scottish descent.[10]
He has an older sister, Lesley Evans. He was named Barry Alan Crompton
Gibb after his father's youngest brother Alan, who died in infancy.
According to Hugh, in a mix of fact and fiction, the third name was
given to Barry to honor the Gibbs' illustrious ancestor, Isaac Crompton.
When Gibb was born, his father was busy with his music working at
various hotels in Douglas, while his mother stayed at home looking after
the children. Later, the Gibbs moved to Chapel House on Strang Road.
When he was almost two years old, he was badly burned. His mother had
just made tea which she had put on the table; he climbed up and pulled
the tea pot down and got the tea all over him. He was in Nobles Hospital
for about two-and-a-half months. That period is gone out of his memory.
Only the physical scars remain.In 1949, the Gibb family relocated to 50 St. Catherine's Drive. Later on 22 December, his two younger brothers Robin and Maurice were born. When the twins were young, they moved to Smedley Cottage, Spring Valley, also in Douglas.[11] Gibb started school on 4 September 1951, three days after his fifth birthday, attending Braddan school. In 1952, the Gibb family relocated to 43 Snaefell Road, Willaston, which became their home for the next two years. The same year, he went to Tynwald Street Infants School. On his seventh birthday in 1953, he went to Desmesne Road Boys School.
1955–2003, 2009–2012: The Rattlesnakes to the Bee Gees
Further information: The Rattlesnakes (1955 band), Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb, Robert Stigwood, Bee Gees and The Bee Gees' concerts in 1967 and 1968
Formation, popularity and touring years
In 1955, Gibb became part of the skiffle craze as he formed a band The Rattlesnakes with himself on guitar and vocals, Robin and Maurice on vocals, and their neighbours Paul Frost on drums and Kenny Horrocks on tea-chest bass. Their debut performance was on 28 December 1957. According to Barry, his first composition was "Turtle Dove" in 1956, but he recalls only the title.[12] However, Horrocks said that Gibb's first song was "Hopscotch Polka". He said: "Barry was just making up words aloud, while strumming his guitar in the Gibbs' front garden, for several days until the song was finished". Horrocks also says that the song was good. Around the same time, fellow Rattlesnakes member Paul Frost accidentally broke Gibb's guitar. The house was dark because Gibb's father had been unable to pay the electricity bill, and Frost accidentally sat on the guitar, leaving it "broken in the middle." In May 1958, the Gibb family moved to Northen Grove leaving Horrocks and Frost, but the pair would maintain close contact with their former neighbours. The name The Rattlesnakes was changed to Johnny Hayes and the Blue Cats. Robin said: "We did the Palatine [Cinema] as Wee Johnny Hayes and the Blue Cats, Barry was Johnny Hayes". Horrocks recalls that Barry did a solo spot as Wee Johnny Hayes at a "Minor 15", a talent contest for under age fifteen held in Chorlton. On 5 March 1958, the last of the five Gibb children, Andrew Roy Gibb, was born. In August, the family travelled to Brisbane, Australia, arriving on 1 September, Barry's 12th birthday. They settled in one of the city's poorest suburbs, Cribb Island, which was later bulldozed to make way for Brisbane Airport. While in Australia, their father was working as a photographer while Barry, the eldest, had a job working for a tailor. And it was in Australia that the three Gibb brothers started performing as the Bee Gees. His 1959 other compositions, "The Echo of Your Love", "Twenty Miles to Blueland", "Let Me Love You" and "(Underneath the) Starlight of Love" were on Bill Gates and Col Joye's tape.[12] The Bee Gees made their first television appearance in March 1960, the time of the start of the television in Australia. By that time, Gibb was writing songs but few titles from this time have survived. Barry quit school at age fifteen in September 1961, and the Gibbs moved to the beach resort area of Surfers Paradise at about that time. In September 1962, Gibb managed to audition songs to Col Joye. In January 1963, the Gibbs moved to the Sydney area, and signed to Festival Records but they were assigned to Leedon Records, and Gibb started his second career as a songwriter. In March 1963, the Bee Gees' first single, "The Battle of the Blue and the Grey" backed by "The Three Kisses of Love" was released; both songs were written by Gibb. And in the same year, Gibb and his brothers worked with other Australian artists such as Judy Stone, Johnny Devlin and Jimmy Hannan. At the start of 1964, the influence of the Beatles reached Australia. The concept of the Beatles writing and recording their own songs would be inspirational to the Bee Gees, who were at this time still a vocal group rather than a band. Barry worked with other artists such as Johnny Devlin and Trevor Gordon. His first composition which was charted was the song "One Road", a song popularised by Jimmy Little, and the second was "I Just Don't Like to Be Alone" by Bryan Davies. In 1965, Gibb wrote a Chuck Berry style track, "Little Miss Rhythm and Blues" as performed by Trevor Gordon. Gibb also worked with Michelle Rae and Noeleen Batley that year.In 1966, the Bee Gees moved to Spin Records. Gibb's father, acting as the group's manager, argued with Fred Marks of Festival Records, claiming poor promotion, while Marks claimed there was a lack of public interest. The solution came when producer Nat Kipner offered to sign the boys to his newly formed label, Spin Records. Festival got distribution rights for Spin, the brothers got promises of studio time and a producer who was going out of his way to work with them, and Kipner got what he considered potentially the best group in Australia, built on the foundation of Gibb's proven talents. Their first single in 1966 was a rock number "I Want Home" backed with a love ballad "Cherry Red". Also in 1966, the Bee Gees released their first successful single "Spicks and Specks", which was charted in Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands and in the UK between 1966 and 1967. Gibb worked for other artists such as Bip Addison, Sandy Summers, Anne Shelton, Vince Maloney (who became later a member of the Bee Gees), April Bryon, MPD Ltd, Ray Brown and the Whispers, Ronnie Burns, Lori Balmer, Marthy Rhone, Vyt, Phyton Lee Jackson, Dennis Knight, Barrington Davis, Jenene and Jon Blanchfield. But later in October, the Bee Gees decided to leave Australia and moved back to their hometown in England. Kipner agreed to let them go but he reserved the Australian rights to whatever they managed to record over the next several years.[13]
The Gibbs family and record producer Ossie Byrne all set sail for England on 3 January 1967, aboard the ship Fairsky, reaching Southampton on 6 February. The Bee Gees performed on the boat in exchange for passage. When they were in England, Gibb's father optimistically sent off a package to NEMS, the Beatles' management company, with press clippings and two disks: the Spicks and Specks album and an acetate with more songs from St Clair Studios in Australia. The Bee Gees were already under consideration by Polydor Records. Managing director Ronald Rennie recalls being contacted late in 1966 by someone from Gibb's publisher in Australia. The publisher sent "Spicks and Specks" and other songs and Rennie liked them. The boys passed a live audition with Robert Stigwood and were then signed to the Robert Stigwood Organisation on 24 February. The Bee Gees' first recording session after they moved back to England was in Billy J. Kramer's studio in March; the song was "Town of Tuxley Toymaker, Part 1", released as a single in April.
The new member of the group, drummer Colin Petersen had already worked with the Bee Gees: his drum work was featured on the Spicks and Specks album and the other unreleased songs in 1966. The next was guitarist Vince Melouney, who had already collaborated with the brothers in 1966. In July 1967, the Bee Gees released their first international album Bee Gees' 1st, which featured three singles. That summer the Gibb brothers sang backup vocals on Johnny Young's cover version of the Bee Gees' "Craise Finton Kirk Royal Academy of Arts" and they did the same on Paul Nicholas' cover version of the Bee Gees' "Holiday". Around the same time, the Gibb brothers contributed backing vocals on the track "Cowman, Milk Your Cow", a song written by Gibb and Robin. The guitar work is by Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac.[14] At the end of 1967, fame was taking its toll and the group were at odds with each other. At the start of 1968, the Gibbs were vying for influence in determining the musical direction of the group, creating tension in the studio and on stage. In 1968, Gibb co-wrote the song "Only One Woman", which became a well-known single for the Marbles. Also in 1968, Gibb collaborated with Lori Balmer playing guitar and producing "Treacle Brown" and "Four Faces West". Between 1968 and 1969, the Bee Gees released three albums: Horizontal, Idea and Odessa.[15] In early 1969, the four Bee Gees collaborated, singing background vocals and playing instruments on the Marbles' three songs, including the single "The Walls Fell Down" and the B-sides, "Love You" and "Little Boy", Around the same time, the Bee Gees released "First of May" as the A-side, with the flip side being "Lamplight" on which Robin sang the lead. Robert Stigwood chose "First of May" to be the A-side. No other songs were released from the album Odessa. Shortly after Robin announced his solo plans, the Bee Gees released their first single without him, "Tomorrow Tomorrow". Barry also worked with Samantha Sang, co-writing and producing the songs "The Love of a Woman" and "Don't Let It Happen Again" and producing songs for P.P. Arnold including "Bury Me Down By the River" and "Give a Hand, Take a Hand", which were originally recorded by the Bee Gees for their 1970 album. In the summer of 1969, drummer Colin Petersen left the group which now only featured Barry and Maurice as the Bee Gees. Pentangle drummer Terry Cox replaced Petersen to complete another 12 songs, but only five songs were released in the album.[15]
Solo work and return
In December 1969, Gibb announced that he was leaving the Bee Gees to carry on as a solo artist.[16] In February 1970, he started to record his first solo album, The Kid's No Good; he released his first solo single, "I'll Kiss Your Memory", but the rest of the songs that were supposed to be on the album were never released. In April 1970 the album Cucumber Castle was released, featuring only Barry and Maurice, as Robin was working on his solo career.[17] In August, the Bee Gees would reunite and record together again, writing "Lonely Days" and "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" at their first reunion session.[17] In 1971, the group released Trafalgar featuring the song "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" which was their first American #1 hit. In October 1971, Gibb recorded three songs for his fan club called Barry Gibb Fan Club; one of the songs, "King Kathy" was released as a single on Lyntone Records.[18] Gibb had remained a constant creative force for the group, and by 1972 had set aside the idea of a parallel solo career and was ready to devote full attention to the band. The 1972 song "Paper Mache, Cabbages and Kings" was the last track that was released featuring Geoff Bridgford on drums as Bridgford left the group before the Bee Gees' tour of East Asia. He was replaced on tour by Chris Karan but Karan did not record with the Bee Gees. To Whom It May Concern was the last album recorded fully at IBC Studios and their last album arranged by Bill Shepherd who had worked with the group since 1964. Also in 1972, Gibb moved to Los Angeles to record in The Record Plant studio. Later in October, the Bee Gees started to record A Kick in the Head Is Worth Eight in the Pants but that album was not released except the single "Wouldn't I Be Someone".[19] In 1973, the Bee Gees moved to Robert Stigwood's RSO Records and released their first singles for Stigwood, "Saw a New Morning" and Life in a Tin Can. Stigwood was not ready to give up on the group, but he did not believe in the musical direction they were taking. At the suggestion of Jerry Wexler and Ahmet Ertegun of Atlantic Records, Stigwood sent them to work with Atlantic producer and arranger Arif Mardin who produced the next Bee Gees album in 1974.[20] After a United States tour early in 1974, the band started to performed at small clubs in England. The same year, they released Mr. Natural.[21]Disco, funk and R&B era
At the start of 1975, the band moved to Miami to work on their new album with Arif Mardin in Criteria Studios. The first song featuring Gibb's falsetto was "Nights on Broadway". He explains on The Larry King Show in 2002:"It came to me in a dream, there was a request by Arif Mardin, who was like an uncle to us, he was a great record producer during the song 'Nights On Broadway,' for the Main Course album, which is previous to the 'Fever' syndrome. And he said, 'Can any of you scream, scream in falsetto.' So, you know, give us an ad lib or a scream at the end. So from screaming, it turned into things like 'blaming it all'."[22]At the start of 1976, Gibb recorded songs for the Bee Gees' album Children of the World. Also in that year Gibb wrote "I Just Want to Be Your Everything", Andy Gibb's first US No. 1, and provided backup vocals.[23] In 1977, Gibb took the lead vocals on the songs "How Deep Is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever"; these songs all reached No. 1 in the US. Gibb co-wrote "Emotion", which remains Samantha Sang's best-known hit. Around the same time, Gibb and Galuten wrote "Save Me, Save Me" as recorded by the group Network from New York City. In May to September 1977, Gibb along with Robin and Maurice started to record songs for the film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, produced by George Martin.[24] In 1978, Andy Gibb recorded his second album Shadow Dancing; the song of the same name, which was credited to all four brothers, was also a US No. 1 single. Barry sang backup vocals, arranged and produced the album. In 1978, Gibb wrote "Grease" for the stage musical of the same name; later the song was recorded by Frankie Valli. Also in February 1978, Gibb participated with Teri DeSario recording "Ain't Nothing Gonna Keep Me From You" which he wrote in 1977. In 1979, the Bee Gees' 1979 album Spirits Having Flown reached No. 1 in the US and other countries, with most of the songs performed by Barry. After the Bee Gees' 1979 Spirits Having Flown Tour, he started to record demos for Barbra Streisand. Also in that year, he sang backup vocals, played guitar and synthesiser and produced Andy Gibb's 1980 album After Dark.
Breakaway from disco sound, hiatus and return
In September 1980, Gibb produced the new songs—including a cover version of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow"—on Andy Gibb's first compilation album, Greatest Hits. In October 1980, Gibb produced Barbra Streisand's Guilty. Songs from the album include the hits "What Kind of Fool" and title track, both of which were vocal duets between Streisand and Gibb.[25] In 1981, the Bee Gees released Living Eyes. The two singles from the album were not in the disco genre. The album was not a commercial success. In 1982, Clive Davis intervened and asked Gibb to write solely for Dionne Warwick, who was on his Arista label. Around February, Gibb recorded the 12 demos for Dionne Warwick, but eight were used by Warwick and included on Gibb's demo album in 2006. As he produced Warwick's 1982 album Heartbreaker, the songs were all written with Gibb except "Our Day Will Come". About August, after Gibb met Kenny Rogers and asked for some songs, Gibb recorded his first demo for Rogers entitled "Eyes That See in the Dark". While at that time, Robin working on his How Old Are You? album with Maurice playing instruments. The other songs intended for Kenny Rogers were written in late 1982,[26] then at the start of 1983, he continued to record the demos until April 1983, while also recording songs with the Bee Gees for the film Staying Alive. In August 1983, he produced Rogers' new album Eyes That See in the Dark, which includes the song "Islands in the Stream" by Rogers and Dolly Parton. Also in August, Irving Azoff signed Gibb to the MCA Records for North America. Gibb was signed for a few million dollars to a multi-album deal. Polydor still had rights to Gibb's songs outside North America.[27] In September 1984, his album Now Voyager was released. Two singles from the album include "Shine, Shine" and the dance number "Fine Line". A film of the same name was directed by Storm Thorgerson, in which Gibb is the protagonist, with actor Michael Hordern as his guide through a confusing world between life and death. The film includes a music video of "Fine Line" featuring Gibb without his trademark beard, and was filmed in black and white.[28] In 1985, Gibb started to record demos for Diana Ross, for her album Eaten Alive. Also in 1985, Gibb co-wrote some songs on Robin Gibb's album Walls Have Eyes.[29]In late-1985 and early-1986, Gibb wrote new songs for his next album, though his third album Moonlight Madness was not released, and most of the songs on that album was later released in 1988. Producer Randy Jackson plays bass on all of the tracks. Gibb co-wrote, "When Two Worlds Collide", "Lost in the Crowd" and "Spread Your Wings" for Swedish singer Carola on her album Runaway. Also in 1985, Gibb participated with the Bunburys with David English.[30] In early 1987, the Bee Gees started to record their first album in six years. In June and July 1987, Gibb and Maurice produced Andy Gibb's four new songs; one of them is "Arrow Through the Heart" which was later released in 2010. In 1987, Gibb co-wrote "Up the Revolution" by Elton John.[31] And in 1988, Gibb recorded two new songs for the Hawks film. In September 1988, the film soundtrack of the film was released by Polydor only in the UK. The songs were all performed by Gibb except "Chain Reaction" (Diana Ross). The single from the soundtrack, "Childhood Days", reached only No. 60 in Germany.[32]
Around 1990, the Bee Gees recorded High Civilization. In September 1990, Gibb played guitar and produced "Born to Be Loved by You" by Kelli Wolfe, which was released as an unreleased B-side in August 1993.[33] Around 1992, Gibb played guitar on Lulu's "Let Me Wake Up in Your Arms", released in 1993.[34] In 1993, the Bee Gees recorded and released Size Isn't Everything.[35] In 1994, the Bee Gees and Polydor planned a tour to promote Size Isn't Everything, but it was off in February, due to Gibb's trouble with arthritis in the back, right hand and right knee.[36] Gibb co-wrote "I Will Be There" which was recorded as a demo for Tina Turner, and was released on Turner's album Twenty Four Seven. In 2001, Gibb co-wrote "I Cannot Give You My Love" with Ashley Gibb, which was intended for Cliff Richard. In September 2001, the Bee Gees re-recorded "Islands in the Stream", which became their last session as a group, as Gibb did not seem to be present on the session in Middle Ear Studios, Miami Beach, Florida.[37] In 2002, Gibb and Michael Jackson recorded "All In Your Name". Also in 2002, Gibb sings background vocals on Michael Bublé's version of the 1971 song "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart".[38]
2003–present: Solo career
In November 2003, ten months after Maurice's death, Gibb produced and contributed background vocals and guitar to two songs performed by Cliff Richard, "I Cannot Give You My Love" and "How Many Sleeps?"; Maurice Gibb's keyboard work from a 2001 demo version was included in this 2003 version.[39] On 2 May 2004, Barry and Robin Gibb received the CBE award at Buckingham Palace; their nephew Adam accepted his father Maurice's posthumous award.[40] Also in 2004, Gibb co-wrote and sang background vocals on his son Steve Gibb's solo single "Living in the Rain".In January 2005, along with many artists, Gibb and his brother Robin recorded vocal parts for the charity single "Grief Never Grows Old" on behalf of victims of the tsunami in the Indian Ocean on 26 December 2004. In April and May 2005, Barbra Streisand recorded songs for her new album produced by Gibb.[41] In August 2006, two Gibb singles, "Doctor Mann" and "Underworld", were released on iTunes. "Underworld" was featured on the film soundtrack of Arctic Tale but not in the film.[42] On 7 December 2006, Gibb joined 4,500 other musicians in a full-page advertisement in the Financial Times newspaper, calling for the British Government to extend the existing 50-year copyright protection of sound recordings in the United Kingdom. The fair play for musicians advertisement proposed that the copyright be extended to the American standard of 95 years, and was a direct response to the Gowers Review (published by the British Government on 6 December 2006), which recommended the retention of the 50 year protection for sound recordings.[43]
In 2007, "Drown On the River" was released as a single on iTunes. The song later appeared on the soundtrack of Deal. Also in the same year, Gibb sang background vocals on Jamie Jo's song "U Turn Me On"[44] and wrote the theme music for ITV's Grease Is the Word. Also in 2007 Gibb appeared as a mentor in season six of American Idol.
On 14 March 2009, Gibb teamed with Olivia Newton-John to present the one-hour finale performance at a star-studded 12-hour live concert at Sydney's Sydney Cricket Ground, part of Sound Relief, a fundraiser to aid victims of the February 2009 Victorian Bushfires that devastated large tracts of heavily wooded and populated south-eastern Australia, where the Gibb family once lived. The concert was televised live nationally across Australia on the Max TV cable network. On 10 July 2009, Gibb was made a Freeman of the Borough of Douglas (Isle of Man). The award was also bestowed upon his brother Robin, and posthumously upon his brother Maurice.[45] Also in 2009, Barry and Linda Gibb became US citizens; they retain their British citizenship. In late 2009, Barry and Robin announced plans to record and perform together once again as the Bee Gees.[46]
In 2010, Gibb withdrew from a planned appearance on the Gorillaz album Plastic Beach which was released in March.[47] In December 2011, his two songs, "Grey Ghost" and "Daddy's Little Girl" were released.[48] On 21 February 2012, Gibb performed his first solo concert in the US at the Seminole Hard Rock Cafe in Florida.[49] He sang "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" with Maurice's daughter, Samantha Gibb, who is a singer in her own band. Barry's son Steve was also on stage as lead guitarist and sang a Maurice composition, "On Time". Ricky Skaggs recorded "Soldier's Son" on which Gibb added vocals for Skaggs' album Music to My Ears released in 2012.[50] Gibb made his debut performance at the Grand Ole Opry on 27 July 2012, performing three songs.[51]
On 20 May 2012, Robin Gibb died, making Barry the sole surviving Gibb brother. He commenced a world tour in 2013 in Australia called Mythology Tour, featuring the Bee Gees anthology set album of the same name.[52] He was joined on stage by his son Steve and Maurice's daughter Samantha.[53] On that tour, for the first time on stage, Gibb performed "Playdown" (1966), "Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You" (1967), "I Started a Joke" (1969) and "With the Sun in My Eyes" (1968). Also, for the first time, the music video of the Bee Gees' 2001 song "Technicolor Dreams", written by Gibb, was shown before the show began. This short tour inspired Festival Records to release a box set of the Bee Gees' three Australian albums, The Festival Albums Collection, 1965-1967, and a 'best of' compilation of the group's Australian era songs titled Morning of My Life.[54]
On 27 October 2013, Gibb appeared at the Country Music Hall of Fame with Kenny Rogers, Bobby Bare and Cowboy Jack Clement; Gibb performed "Islands in the Stream" with Kelly Lang. In October, Gibb performed at the Grand Ole Opry for the second time with Ricky Skaggs.[55] On 21 December 2013, Barry Gibb made a surprise appearance on the US television show Saturday Night Live at the end of the "Barry Gibb Talk Show" skit with Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake and Madonna. Also appearing that night was Paul McCartney who shared the stage with Gibb during the closing credits where they embraced each other.
On 27 January 2014, Gibb appeared on the American television show Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to announce the start of his first solo tour of the US. He performed "You Should Be Dancing" with help from Fallon's backing band, The Roots.[56] Gibb and Fallon sang some Everly Brothers songs, including "Bye Bye Love" and "Wake Up Little Susie". Gibb also sang "To Love Somebody" as a bonus online performance.[57] On 28 January, Gibb was interviewed by the CNN about his brothers, and in that same interview, Gibb talks about Justin Bieber saying he is "heading for a brick wall".[58]
Personal life
Gibb's first marriage was to Maureen Bates, whom he married on 22 August 1966, when he was 19 years old. The couple lived together for only a short time, and were divorced in 1970.[59] During the taping of the BBC's Top of the Pops in London, Gibb met the former Miss Edinburgh, Linda Gray as Gray explained: "Barry and I we are so in love". And on 1 September 1970 (his 24th birthday), Gibb married Gray and they have five children, Stephen (born 1973), Ashley (born 1977), Travis (born 1981), Michael (born 1984) and Alexandra (born 1991).[11]After all stresses of their personal and professional lives, both Barry and Robin collapsed from nervous exhaustion on a flight from Australia to Turkey in 1967. On 23 December 1967, Barry and Robin left England for Australia as Gibb explained: "But due to time difference we arrived on Christmas Day, We missed Christmas eve altogether!". The pair celebrated Christmas with their manager Robert Stigwood's family as Gibb said: "We went on to Sydney".[11]
On 2 May 2004, Barry and Robin Gibb received the CBE award at Buckingham Palace, along with their nephew Adam, who collected the posthumous award in honour of his father, Maurice.[40]
In January 2006, Gibb purchased the former home of country singers Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash in Hendersonville, Tennessee, intending to restore it and turn it into a songwriting retreat.[60] The house was destroyed by fire on 10 April 2007 while under renovation.[61] On 10 July 2009, Gibb was made a Freeman of the Borough of Douglas (Isle of Man). The award was also bestowed upon his brother Robin, and posthumously upon his brother Maurice.[45] Also in 2009, Barry and Linda Gibb became US citizens. They have dual citizenship. Barry has homes in Miami, Florida, and in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, set in 90 acres of English countryside.[62]
Influences
Gibb's influences when he was in the Rattlesnakes were The Everly Brothers, Paul Anka and Cliff Richard.[11] The Bee Gees acknowledged that they would sing in the style of the Everlys and then add a third harmony and the result was "New York Mining Disaster 1941" (1967). When Gibb heard Roy Orbison's song "Crying" he said: "That was it. To me that was the voice of God."[63]Gibb also acknowledges Sir Paul McCartney as an influence. He admitted that they have only met twice, the first time in 1967 in London after the Bee Gees had a bad show, and again in 2013 in New York. He said about McCartney that "He's my hero. He's the kind of songwriter that we follow all our lives."
Legacy
Gibb had a highly successful career as a member of the Bee Gees, a group near the top of the all-time top-sellers list. When the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, their citation read "Only Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks and Paul McCartney have outsold the Bee Gees".[64] The trio's contribution to Saturday Night Fever pushed the film's soundtrack past the 40 million mark in sales. It reigned as the top-selling album until Michael Jackson's Thriller. They are the only group in pop history to write, produce and record six straight No.1 hits. They have 16 Grammy nominations and nine Grammy wins.Barry Gibb is also a prolific and successful songwriter, and is a fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors.[9] In 1977, Gibb saw five of his songs simultaneously enter the Top Ten of the Billboard Hot 100, and for one week in March, four of the top five songs were written by him. His songs were No. 1 for 27 out of 37 weeks from 24 December 1977 to 2 September 1978. Gibb also holds a very unusual record, in that he is the only songwriter in history to write four successive US number one hits: in 1978, the Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive" was replaced at number one by Andy Gibb's single, "Love Is Thicker Than Water", followed by the Bee Gees' "Night Fever" for their longest run, seven weeks. This was then replaced by Yvonne Elliman's "If I Can't Have You".
As a songwriter Gibb has had No. 1 songs in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s 1990s and 2000s, when "Islands in the Stream" became No. 1 in the UK as the comic relief single for 2009. His songs have been recorded by numerous artists, including Jose Feliciano, Al Green, Wyclef Jean, Janis Joplin, Jimmy Little, Barry Manilow, Olivia Newton-John, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, Kenny Rogers, Diana Ross, Nina Simone, Barbra Streisand, Samantha Sang, Tina Turner, Conway Twitty, Frankie Valli, Luther Vandross, Sarah Vaughn, Jennifer Warnes, Dionne Warwick and Andy Williams. Gibb has also produced albums for Andy Gibb, Kenny Rogers, Diana Ross, Barbra Streisand and Dionne Warwick.
Discography
Studio albums
Year | Album details | UK | US |
---|---|---|---|
1970 | The Kid's No Good
|
— | — |
1984 | Now Voyager
|
— | 72 |
1986 | Moonlight Madness
|
— | — |
Demo albums
Year | Album details | UK | US |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | The Guilty Demos
|
— | — |
2006 | The Heartbreaker Demos
|
— | — |
2006 | The Eyes That See in the Dark Demos
|
— | — |
2006 | The Eaten Alive Demos
|
— | — |
Soundtracks
Year | Album details | UK | US |
---|---|---|---|
1988 | Hawks
|
— | — |
Singles
Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Album | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK | US | US Dance |
US AC |
GER | NOR | ||||
1970 | "I'll Kiss Your Memory" | — | — | — | — | — | — | The Kid's No Good | |
1970 | "One Bad Thing" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
1971 | "King Kathy" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Barry Gibb Fan Club | |
1978 | "A Day in the Life" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Sgt. Pepper (soundtrack) | |
1980 | "Guilty" (with Barbra Streisand) | 34[65] | 3 | — | 5 | — | 4 | Guilty (Barbra Streisand album) | |
1981 | "What Kind of Fool" (with Barbra Streisand) | — | 10 | — | 1 | — | — | ||
1984 | "Face to Face"(with Olivia Newton-John) | — | — | — | — | — | — | Now Voyager | |
1984 | "Shine, Shine" | 95 | 34 | — | 8 | 45 | — | ||
1984 | "Fine Line" | — | — | 50 | — | — | — | ||
1988 | "Childhood Days" | — | — | — | — | 60 | — | Hawks (soundtrack) | |
1988 | "Not in Love at All" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2006 | "Doctor Mann" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Singles only | |
2006 | "Underworld" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2007 | "Drown On the River" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2011 | "All In Your Name" (with Michael Jackson) | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2011 | "Grey Ghost" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2011 | "Daddy's Little Girl" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
"—" denotes releases did not chart |
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