Bee Gees single by single thread

Great 45! Both sides too!
Both would have been great featured in their acoustic medley's, my favourite part of their
live shows.
W&W has a great sound to it, it's almost 'grungy' like the tape machine is really tracking hot
to the tape. Interesting seeing 'Spicks n Specks' licensed to Capitol too in a post up above.
Does this mean all of their Festival material is now licensed through Capitol?

 

This is a decent track. Plods a bit. There's definitely something about them by this point, though.

 

Check out Toast And Marmalade For Tea by the Australian band Tin Tin. A Maurice Gibb production from 1970 as well as a US top 20 single that I only hear occasionally.

 

Sidebar 3: Two U.S. artists record Barry Gibb songs in 1965

As noted many times, Barry Gibb was already a prolific songwriter during the Australia years. In that period, far more of his songs were recorded and released by others than by the Bee Gees.

In 1963, he signed a songwriting deal with Belinda Music, and the firm was aggressive in trying to place the glut of Gibb compositions with appropriate artists. In so doing, two unique Barry Gibb songs ended up with American recording artists in 1965 -- two years before a true Bee Gees 45 made it to the U.S.

In November 1964, Wayne Newton -- best known at the time for his '63 hit "Danke Schoen" -- was touring Australia. Accompanying him was Terry Melcher, the producer and musician who also had his own publishing/production house, cleverly known as T.M. Music. (Originally known as Trinity Music, the firm was bought by Bobby Darin around 1963, and Melcher was brought in to run it. Coincidentally, T.M. Music was the U.S. publisher of "Beach Ball," the song Jimmy Hannan recorded in 1963 with the Bee Gees on backing vocals that was released in the U.S. in 1964.) A representative of Belinda Music contacted Melcher with some of Gibb's unrecorded compositions to see if any of them could be placed with artists in the States. In early 1965, two Barry Gibb songs indeed were recorded and released in the U.S.

The first, "They'll Never Know," was the more successful. It served as an album cut on the Wayne Newton album Red Roses for a Blue Lady (Capitol T/ST 2335); released in April 1965, the LP was the highest-charting album of Newton's career, with a #17 peak in Billboard. The song probably gave Gibb a steady stream of songwriter royalties, as the LP sold reasonably well over time and remained in print well into the 1970s. Also, "They'll Never Know" was included on the Wayne Newton Capitol Collector's Series CD in 1989.



The second Gibb song to see release in the U.S. was "That's What I'll Give to You," recorded by Jimmy Boyd and released on Vee-Jay 686 in early May 1965. Produced by Terry Melcher, the 45 was mentioned in the May 15, 1965 Billboard singles review column and also in a large ad that Vee-Jay took out in the same issue. The song failed to chart.

Boyd was best-known for his 1952 #1 smash, "I Saw Momny Kissing Santa Claus," which he recorded when he was 13 years old. He followed it up with the top-5 hit "Tell Me a Story," a duet with Frankie Laine, but never had another hit despite many years of trying. In 1964, after bouncing around with several post-Columbia labels, Boyd signed to Vee-Jay, which was still on its temporary high after getting lucky with 16 early Beatles songs. By the time "That's What I'll Give to You" was issued, though, Vee-Jay was in near free-fall. The 45 is more common as a promo than as a stock copy.

Here is Boyd's recording:

Jimmy Boyd - That's What I'll Give To You

 

That Wayne Newton song sounds like it was specifically written for Gene Pitney, but wound up with the wrong singer. The Jimmy Boyd tune is very Freddy Cannonesque, both in style and vocal delivery.

 

The first one can hear the sound created by Barrys open D tuning with Maurice playing standard tuning.

 

I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men (1965)

Released: November 1965
B-side: And The Children Laughing
Charts: #85 (Australia)

 

The moderate success of ‘Wine and Women’ together with Bill Shepherd’s influence finally got Festival to approve release of an album, named 'The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs', but without paying the full expense of recording one. Barry could have supplied fourteen new songs. Instead just five new songs were recorded, two of them issued also on a single, and the rest of the LP was filled with existing Bee Gees recordings.

The single ‘I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men’ was built around a strong rhythm guitar sound, like ‘Wine and women’. The B side ‘And the Children Laughing’ is a somewhat awkward attempt at a Dylan-like protest song featuring a mostly solo vocal by Barry.

source: Gibb Songs : 1965

 

Another great early Bee Gees single. They had come a long way since "THREE KISSES OF LOVE".

 

I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men:

Another fantastic track that was definitely similar to Wine and Women's style. I imagine they thought if the style worked once, why not try it again? You can definitely hear what would later become their signature harmony vocals in this one.

Not much of a fan of the B-side. It's a good track, just not one I care for.

 

Off the top of my head, I certainly can't think of any other act that released two consecutive A-sides in ¾ time in the 1960s. The B-side proves that while Barry Gibb could be many things and many people, P.F. Sloan obviously wasn't one of them. Thankfully there would be no more awkward attempts at jumping on the protest bandwagon.

 

I absolutely love "I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men."

I first heard it in 1979 on the Pickwick LP Take Hold of That Star; it caught my ear immediately. Earlier in the thread, I related my experience of hearing the first CD of Brilliant from Birth in a Minneapolis-area record store; only when I heard "I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men" did I realize that all of this good to excellent music was early Bee Gees. I knew that one, and I loved that one.

It's one of the longest songs the Bee Gees recorded in their Australia years, clocking in at over 3:30. Even though, rhythmically, it's a stylistic clone of "Wine and Women," I find it a better song. The strummed guitar opening; the "Ah" following; the great first line "I was a lover, a leader of men" -- all of that already had my attention. The singer is a guy who had it all by worldly standards except what he wanted the most and couldn't have -- the love of someone who didn't love him back. At least that's what it sounds like; there could be more to it than that. For example, the repeated line "it's only a game"; but for whom? The singer, or the object of his affection? I'm probably overthinking that, because the key line to me is the one line sung after the instrumental break: "'Cause you... don't feel the same." He has power and money, but he doesn't have the one he truly loves.

Unlike with "Wine and Women," the repeated first verse of "I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men" doesn't feel redundant. And then, after the last "Ah," out of nowhere comes an organ coda, with a completely different melody than the rest of the song, and more "Ah" vocals as the organ starts to fade out. It's almost as if it was a song fragment flown in from an unfinished idea, but it works. This wouldn't be the last time the Gibbs used this technique; "Gilbert Green," as recorded by Gerry Marsden, ends with a long unrelated instrumental, which I think on the Bee Gees' formerly unreleased 1967 original was called "The End of Gilbert Green." But on Marsden's 45, it has one title.

Barry Gibb won an industry award for "I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men." Radio 5KA of Adelaide gave him its "Top Talent Award" in the category "Composer of the Year." It formally acknowledged what the Australia music world already knew: Barry Gibb was one of the country's top songwriters.

The B-side, "And the Children Laughing," seems as if it was more directly influenced not by Bob Dylan, who had pretty much moved on from overt protest music by 1965, but by Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction." It's OK for what it is, but the A-side far overshadows it.

 

The next two singles didn't chart in Australia. Their last two flops before their first worldwide hit.

I Want Home (1966)

Released: February 1966
B-side: Cherry Red

 

Monday's Rain (1966)

Released: June 1966
B-side: All of My Life

 

'I Want Home/ Cherry Red':

The Bee Gees’ last single on Leedon was not a hit. The credit ‘Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees’ used on the last several disks now reverted to simply ‘Bee Gees’.

Promotional material for the single asks radio to play both sides, but ‘I Want Home’ is listed first and it has the lower number matrix number, usually indicating the A side.

‘Cherry Red’ is slow ballad with a lot of harmony singing, a bit of a throwback to their old sound. It featured the Farfisa organ (which got a credit on the label of the single) played by Maurice (who did not). ‘I Want Home’ was definitely not the old sound, the most thumping rock the group had ever done. The lead guitar is probably Maurice. Colin Petersen thinks he played drums on these two songs.

With these two songs the Bee Gees inaugurated Festival’s new four-track recording equipment. If the master tapes had been kept, stereo mixes would be possible, but instead only the mono mixdowns survived.

source: Gibb Songs : 1966

 

'Monday's Rain/ All of My Life':

This single, the Bee Gees’ first on Spin, was criticized as being not original enough. The B side ‘All of My Life’ certainly is very Beatlesque.

An album with the title 'Monday's Rain' was proposed about July 1966. It would have followed the single ‘Monday’s Rain’. Some number of albums were actually manufactured, but it was not released, or possibly it was released and immediately withdrawn.

The song ‘Monday’s Rain’ has unusually low-voiced vocals by Robin and Barry, with a lead bass guitar break. The song appeared on a single and on the album 'Spicks and Specks' with two different vocal tracks. This happens to show clearly that all of the instrumental was on one track— Robin possibly manages the opening piano notes to allow Maurice to play bass, and all of the vocal including the backing vocal is on another track. Robin varies the lyrics slightly on the two vocal takes, and Barry varies his timing.

source: Gibb Songs : 1966

 

Love "I Want Home." Very much in line with what would have been on popular radio at the time. Very upbeat and catchy.

Not so much a fan of the flip side. It was okay. Just don't care for it.

"Monday's Rain" is another song I don't care for. I think it's more to do with the style of the song than the song itself.

"All My Life" I much prefer over "Monday's Rain." Definitely Beatlesque lol.

 

I like "MONDAY´S RAIN" - but for all the wrong reasons. The Bee Gees have to lower the voices so much it sounds like a parody of The Beatles or one of the other British groups that were ruling the airwaves at the time. I like listening to it, but I can´t say it´s a good song - or a very good recording. They would move on to better songs. So far, "CLAUSTROPHOBIA", "WINE & WOMEN" and "I WAS A LOVER, A LEADER OF MEN" are my favourites of the early singles.

 

The you tube album cover cracks me up. These songs aren't on my Tales boxset!

 

Whoa, lots to comment on here.

What's most notable about "I Want Home" is that it predates "Paperback Writer/Rain" by several months. In other words, what happens at 0:25, 0:58 and 1:38 was entirely original. Perhaps The Beatles might've even gotten some ideas from them. This sort of chanting with an emphasis on the dominant 7ths would also feature several years later in the bridge of The Four Seasons' "Electric Stories." So one can say that the Bee Gees had a hand in inventing psychedelia!

"Cherry Red" is a pleasant folk song, but one can't help but notice that melodically, it borrows a few measures from Chad & Jeremy's "Summer Song." The best part is the bridge, where they get into some seriously complex three-part harmony, particularly the Amajor7 chord on the word, "Me"

I've never understood why anybody thought it would be a good idea to make "Monday's Rain" an A-side. It's not a very strong melody, and that vibrato! It absolutely sounds like Robin is singing with his finger stuck in a light socket.

"All Of My Life" invented the Rutles. It is essentially "She Loves You," "It Won't Be Long" and "Not A Second Time" all morphed together into one tune, with a prominent distortion unit thrown in to remind people that it's 1966 and not 1963. They do the most accurate imitation of John Lennon I've ever heard on the words "Only Now." This brilliant send-up absolutely should've been the A-side!

 

I actually kind of like all 4 of the latest.
Not going to say they were missed mega hits but they show what is about to begin once they get some age and maybe direction.
The end of Mondays Rain foreshadows To Love Somebody that would come a year or so later with Robin singing in his high range.

 

If anything, their period with Spin is the most interesting. From having had limited recording time at Festival to getting pretty much free range at Ossie Byrne's studio they really got to cut their teeth in a fairly short but intense period of time, working not only on their own recordings but a host of other artists recording there at that time. The equipment may not have been state of the art but it certainly was an invaluable learning experience.

It's a shame that the album's worth of material they recorded there after the Monday's Rain album (that morphed into Spicks and Specks) would end up used as demo tracks for other artists and even largely used as backing tracks for Ronnie Burns only to later resurface as part of the Inception/Nostalgia set. It would have been interesting to see how a follow-up to Spicks and Specks would have fared had they not hopped on the ship back to the UK.

Hats off to Nat Kipner and Ossie Byrne, in my mind the Gibb brothers ows/owed you a lot!

 

For many years, "Cherry Red" was listed in discographies as the A-side of the last Leedon single (LK-1282), with "I Want Home" as the flip. I guess when neither side becomes a hit, eventually it becomes listed by the side with the lower matrix number by default, as neither side was on an album.

By the time this 45 continued the Bee Gees' almost-perfect record of flops, Hugh Gibb -- Barry, Robin, and Maurice's father and also their manager -- and Fred Marks of Festival Records had, shall we say, a disagreement. The former claimed poor promotion, thus poor sales; the latter claimed poor sales, thus "why promote something no one wants to buy?" The saving third party was Nat Kipner, a producer who had founded a new label called Spin. Festival agreed to let the Bee Gees go to Spin if Kipner would allow Festival to distribute his new label. Kipner thought the world of the group and agreed to this arrangement.

Kipner had a friend named Ossie Byrne, who owned the primitive St. Clair recording studio in a shopping center located in Hurstville, New South Wales, near Sydney. An adjacent butcher shop served as the studio's office. "Primitive" is an apt description; the studio had two single-track tape players and a mixing board, so it was even more technically limited than Festival Studios. But it had a laid-back vibe that even artists signed with other Festival labels enjoyed. When other artists weren't recording there, Byrne let the Gibb brothers have the run of the place, and they recorded a lot of stuff -- not only their own compositions, but others' as well -- in a short time.

The first released 45 from their St. Clair sessions was "Monday's Rain"/"All of My Life" (Spin EK-1384). The original single was supposed to have "Playdown," another song from the sessions that would eventually result in the Monday's Rain/Spicks and Specks album, on the flip. Assigned to Spin EK-1345, this was canceled.

When Brilliant from Birth was released, sharp-eared listeners noticed that the vocal track on "Monday's Rain" was different from the LP version that had appeared on Spicks and Specks and later Rare, Precious and Beautiful. Even more years later, when the Festival albums were issued on CD in 2013, the Spicks and Specks CD contained an alternate vocal take of "Playdown." Putting two and two together, the "other" versions of these two songs may have been intended for that canceled 45, with the "Monday's Rain" single presumably used on the re-assigned 45.

---

I re-listened to these four songs to refresh my memory, and here are my thoughts.

"I Want Home" feels like an unusually suggestive song for its era; it's pretty obvious that after whatever date the singer and his woman are going on, they'll be ending up in the bedroom ("I want home again/To do the things you do, you do, yeah"). Even the first words of the song -- "Take off your dress" -- foreshadow what is to come, though the suggestion was couched with "put on a new one." And it rocks hard, too, making the desire all the more urgent.

"Cherry Red" is a gorgeous ballad. I love those harmonies. It gives me chills and even makes me well up a little. Some day, this will be the fourth Australia Years recording to appear on a volume of my personal CD-R collection A Few of My Favorite Things.

"Monday's Rain" is interesting; it sounds as the Bee Gees were trying to channel either the Walker Brothers or the Righteous Brothers, or both, with the low vocals to start and the high lonesome vocals at the end. The Gibbs seemed to like the faux Walkers; among the St. Clair Studio outtakes are a version of "Another Tear Falls," a Walker Brothers hit in Australia, and a better imitation of Scott Engle & Co. with "Terrible Way to Treat Your Baby." I think they were still trying to figure out their own sound. And yes, Robin Gibb's vibrato here sounds like a bad impression of the Bee Gees.

"All of My Life" is indeed Beatlesque, but it hearkens back to the Beatles pre-Rubber Soul, which was several months old when the Bee Gees recorded this. It's definitely a throwback.

 

Most general pop and rock fans know them for the big melodramatic ballads of the 60s or the high harmony disco of the 70s. That's why I think it's vital to hear their earliest music. Not only their singles, but also the songs they wrote and produced for others.

Unless they already knew it was them, nobody would hear these tunes and automatically think the Gibbs. A couple of folks mentioned Brilliant From Birth. There's also the similarly titled Birth Of Brilliance.

Someone posted the Assault the Vaults youtube. Once again, those covers add a whole 'nother dimension to their catalog.

Bee Gees - I'll Know What To Do

 

Cherry Red is my other favourite Bee Gees song of the pre-First era along with Claustrophobia. I couldn't tell you which of the two I prefer. I've never heard the alleged A-side, I Want Home before (listening as I type). I can live without it.

For Monday's Rain, the reverse is true, as I'm familiar with that one but not its B-side (up next). Now on ... very Beatlesque! Till There Was You, specifically. A bit more raucous though.