LOS ANGELES, CA. (Universal
Music Enterprises) - The
Bee Gees have written some of pop music's greatest love songs-songs covered by innumerable artists throughout the years. But now, for the first time, The Bee Gees' original recordings of those love songs have been brought together on one album. Love Songs (Polydor/UMe), released November 22, 2005, features 18 newly remastered romantic hits spanning 1967 to 2001 from the best-selling vocal group of all-time.
Among the album's highlights is their original recording of "(Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away," a 1978 solo hit for Andy Gibb that the group recorded for 1979's Greatest compilation and was 2005-covered for the recent Barbra Streisand/Barry Gibb disc Guilty Pleasures. The collection's sole solo outing is "Juliet" from Robin Gibb's 1983 LP How Old Are You?
The first truly timeless love song from the Brothers Gibb-Maurice, Robin and Barry-appeared in 1967 with "To Love Somebody." Both that song and the following year's "Words" were Top 20. "First Of May" cracked the Top 40 to end the '60s.
The Bee Gees then became the biggest pop group on the planet. 1971 brought "Lonely Days," their first U.S. No 1 and first U.S. gold record, as well as the gold No 1 "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart." The trio's contributions to 1977's Saturday Night Fever helped make history when that soundtrack became music's top-selling album (15 times platinum, certified Diamond, still the biggest selling soundtrack ever). Its gold No 1 Grammy-winning "How Deep Is Your Love" ranked in the Top 10 for 17 straight weeks, setting a Billboard record. "More Than A Woman" was also heard on that landmark album.
"Emotion," a 1978 hit for Samantha Sang, was performed by The Bees Gees for 1991's retrospective-plus The Record before Destiny's Child took it Top 10 in 2001. In 1979, Spirits Having Flown spun off the platinum No 1 "Too Much Heaven." "Heartbreaker" was first heard sung by Dionne Warwick in 1982 but was later recorded by The Bee Gees for The Record as was "Islands In The Stream," which in 1983 went No 1 Country/No 1 pop for Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, is included here as a live version.
Culled from The Bee Gees' four final studio albums are "Secret Love" (1991's High Civilization), the Adult Contemporary Top 40 hit "For Whom The Bell Tolls" (1993's Size Isn't Everything), "Closer Than Close" and "I Could Not Love You More" (both from 1997's Still Waters), and "Wedding Day" (2001's This Is Where I Came In).
The Bee Gees were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 and have earned 16 Grammy nominations and won seven Grammy Awards, including the prestigious Grammy Legend Award in 2003. Today, The Bee Gees' legacy continues to grow as each new generation discovers pop music's greatest icons.
