Amazingly, Night Fever was the only one of the four to be number 1 on these shores. It’s one of the best-selling albums of all time and every single it spawned – How Deep Is Your Love, More Than a Woman, Stayin’ Alive and Night Fever, became global smashes and all became US chart-toppers. It’s fair to say it marked the peak of the commercial appeal of disco, turning it into a true phenomenon. You wouldn’t know from this collection of disco classics and soul ballads, primarily by the Gibbs, that the actual film was a gritty, bleak affair. The soundtrack became enormously successful. To say The Bee Gees got it right is an understatement. It’s weird to imagine, but before the Gibbs were involved, John Travolta was originally dancing to music by Boz Scaggs and Stevie Wonder when filming his famous dance scenes. They relented and, with nothing but a rough script as a guideline, recording demos. The Bee Gees were recording their next album in France when Stigwood rang them and asked if they’d consider helping out and they originally refused, saying they hadn’t the time.

Saturday Night Fever was in post-production when the Bee Gees began recording for the soundtrack. First single You Should Be Dancing, featuring Stephen Stills on percussion, earned them another US number 1, reaching five in the UK.Īfter the release of live album Here at Last… Bee Gees… Live the Gibbs agreed to work on the film that made them a bona fide phenomenon.

They were bona fide superstars and followed up their Main Course with Children of the World a year later. The funky Jive Talkin’ rightly returned them to the mainstream, hitting number 1 in the US and five in the UK. Following the advice of manager Robert Stigwood and producer Arif Mardin, they adopted a disco sound and Barry began using a falsetto for the first time. They found themselves performing in tiny Yorkshire clubs, with a new drummer, Dennis Byron.īolstered by former Strawbs keyboardist Blue Weaver, The Bee Gees moved to Miami, Florida and recorded their 13th album Main Course. But their commercial appeal shrank hugely and their next albums, Life in a Tin Can (1973) and Mr Natural (1974), sank without trace. Run to Me, from To Whom It May Concern, became their first top 10 hit in three years, climbing to nine in 1972. That year, Alan Kendall became their lead guitarist. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, from the LP Trafalgar, became their first US number 1, in 1971. The single Lonely Days did well in the US but not here. The album 2 Years On followed, with new drummer Geoff Bridgford. Robin rang Barry and they made amends, announcing The Bee Gees were back that August. Robin’s solo album Robin’s Reign was released around the same time, but planned releases by Barry and Maurice never saw the light of day. However, by the time the album was released in 1970, The Bee Gees were no more, and sales plummeted.

The first single from it, Don’t Forget to Remember, was a big hit, peaking at two. During recording, they fired drummer Colin Petersen and hired Pentangle’s Terry Cox to finish the sessions instead. Such was the tension between he and Barry, he announced he was leaving the band to pursue a solo career.īarry and Maurice continued, releasing the bizarrely named Cucumber Castle. A single, First of May, reached six, but Robin wasn’t happy that his song Lamplight was relegated to the B-side. He did however feature on their fourth LP Odessa, a sprawling double album released in 1969. He had been the only non-Gibb brother to write and sing on a Bee Gees album, with the track Such a Shame on Idea. They rode the disco wave and set the charts alight with a string of hits and eventually returned to the top of the charts once more with this smooth song from the Saturday Night Fever (1977) soundtrack.įollowing their second number 1, I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You, The Bee Gees lost their lead guitarist, Vince Melouney. In the 10 years since their last number 1, The Bee Gees had split, reunited and suffered wilderness years before a remarkable comeback.

Bee gees saturday night fever special